The Nordic Council (NC) was established in 1952. It is the forum for Nordic parliamentary cooperation, involving members of parliament (MP) from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden as well as of the three autonomous areas: the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and the Åland Islands. Who becomes one of the 87 members of the NC is decided by the national MPs themselves. Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden have 20 members each. The Danish delegation includes two members from the Faroe Islands and two from Greenland. The Finnish delegation includes two members from the Åland Islands. Iceland has seven members.

As far as possible, the political composition of the national delegations should reflect the balance of power in the national parliaments.

Initiatives and good advice

The NC takes initiatives and acts in an advisory and supervisory capacity on issues and matters of interest for official Nordic cooperation. Its statutes were set out in the 1962 Helsinki Agreement. According to these statutes, the parties undertake “to seek to preserve and further develop cooperation among the countries in legal, cultural, social, and financial fields as well as in matters relating to transport and environmental protection.” More binding cooperation has since been extended to include foreign policy and security-policy issues.
The NC has five committees: the Culture, Education and Training Committee; Citizens and Consumer Rights Committee; Environment and Natural Resources Committee; Welfare Committee; Business and Industry Committee.

NC procedures are similar to those of the national parliaments. The Nordic Council of Ministers (NCM) submits proposals for discussion and comment by the Council. Members, party groups, and committees submit ideas in the form of written questions or member proposals. The committees discuss these proposals and prepare a recommendation/report for consideration at the Session. The governments involved must answer the questions within a specified time limit.

The Presidium

The Presidium is the NC’s governing body. It consists of a President and 12 ordinary members. The presidency of the NCM is held for a one-year period and rotates among the five Nordic countries. The Presidium’s main task is to deal with general political and administrative issues, foreign policy and security-policy issues, and the budget. The Presidium also functions as the primary point of contact with the adjacent areas and with regional and international organisations.
The party groups, the Presidium, the committees, and the Control Committee meet four times a year as well as during the Session to deal with the NC’s business.
The Nordic Council awards the Literature Prize, the Music Prize, the Film Prize, and the Nature and Environment Prize. Each prize, worth 350,000 Danish krones, is presented to the prize-winner during the Session.