Venstre

Venstre (IPA: /ˈʋɛnsd̥(ʁ)ɐ/, in Danish literally: Left), full name: Venstre, Danmarks Liberale Parti (Venstre, Liberal Party of Denmark) is the largest political party in Denmark. Founded with a basis on free market Liberalism, it is now a right-wing party. The party is a member of Liberal International and sits with the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party in the European Parliament. In the 2007 parliamentary elections, it received 26% of the vote, and 46 out of 179 seats. It is led by Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the Prime Minister, and currently governs in coalition with the Conservative People's Party, with support from the Danish People's Party.

Venstre is a liberal party. Some describe it as a classical liberal party, since the current leader (Anders Fogh Rasmussen) is known for his authorship of the book "Fra Socialstat til Minimalstat" (From Social State to Minimal State). His book advocated an extensive reform of the Danish welfare state along classical liberal lines, including lower taxes and less government interference in corporate and individual matters. Recently, Rasmussen has drifted away from his earlier views and has called liberalism an outdated ideology.