Norway too small for Statoil (Aftenposten)

According to Statoil’s chief executive Olav Fjell, within a few years the company will be investing more in its oil and gas exploration activities outside Norway than on the Norwegian continental shelf. Iran, Mexico, Brazil and Russia are among the countries which Statoil now has under consideration as new focus areas. In 2001 Statoil invested NOK 1.8 billion on exploration activities in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea and NOK 1 billion elsewhere in the world.

Call for new EU membership debate (Dagbladet)

Debate over EU membership will intensify in connection with the next general election, according to Petroleum and Energy Minister Einar Steensnæs. "The latest polls show that only a third of the population is in favour of membership, which means it would be totally pointless to start a new membership debate at this time. However, it would be natural to take another look at the issue when the EU’s forthcoming expansion has been completed in 2004/2005," said Mr Steensnæs.

Call for conscripts to be given special grants (Dagsavisen)

The Armed Forces’ ombudsman, Per A. Utsi, wants all conscripted servicemen to receive a grant of NOK 25,680 during their basic training period. Mr Utsi hopes that a scheme of this kind will encourage more young people to complete their national service. Today fewer and fewer 18-year-olds are being called up, and Mr Utsi believes that many of those who are let off the hook could have played an important role for the Armed Forces. If Mr Utsi’s proposal is adopted it would require an annual increase of NOK 500 million in the country’s defence budget.

Jagland exonerated after election disaster (Verdens Gang)

Labour Party chairman Thorbjørn Jagland has been largely exonerated after the party’s disastrous election results this autumn. Labour’s policies are to blame, according to chief investigator Raymond Johansen of the party’s Oslo branch. Thorbjørn Jagland has promised clarification of the power struggle between the various factions within the party at Labour’s national executive committee meeting in January. The conflict of personalities will be laid to rest and the focus transferred to the political issues at hand. Mr Jagland has now got the backing of a committee which has been investigating Labour’s election fiasco. "It is not the party’s split leadership which is the main problem. Labour is perceived as a party clinging to power for its own sake. In many ways developments in society have passed Labour by. We need to set ourselves new goals," said Mr Johansen.

LO strengthens its hand (Dagsavisen)

The Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) must establish a stronger image in the local community, says the organization’s deputy leader, Finn Erik Thoresen. For this reason the LO of the future will consist of several local LO centres. At the same time the number of LO unions will be reduced and they will become more powerful. "This means that the new cartels, which the LO Congress approved in 1993, have no place in our future organizational structure," said Mr Thoresen in an interview with the Newspapers’ News Agency (ANB). Mr Thoresen envisages developments along two parallel lines – larger confederations of ‘related’ LO unions, followed by a significant strengthening of the LO’s presence in the local community.

Small tax cuts in 2003 (Aftenposten)

The majority of people will not enjoy much in the way of tax cuts in 2003. Businesses have already received NOK 7 billion, so there is not a lot left over for anyone else. Government sources have made it clear that it is highly unlikely there will be room for major tax cuts over and above those already determined for 2003. Most people, it is underlined, have benefited from substantial tax cuts in 2002. Businesses, too, will enjoy a much better tax situation once the 2003 budget comes into effect. People have no reason to complain, it is felt.

Teachers give higher marks than they should (Aftenposten)

Results from the final exams taken by secondary school pupils show that they are not as good as their teachers think they are. Many youngsters drop one entire grade compared to their teacher’s assessment. The statistics show that the exam results fall below the teachers’ assessment marks in all written subjects. The proportion of bad grades achieved in exams is significantly higher.

Worth Noting

• Foreign Minister Jan Petersen has confirmed that Sri Lanka’s prime minister has asked Norway to resume its role as mediator between the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE guerrillas. (NTB)
• Euro or no, Norwegian opposition to EU membership is as strong as ever. The last EU poll of the year carried out by Sentio-Norsk Statistikk shows that 52.7 per cent of those questioned oppose EU membership, while 36.9 per cent are in favour. (Nationen)
• Norwegian enthusiasm for shopping across the border in Sweden has led to an 80 per cent rise in sales for the Systembolaget, the state-owned retail wines and spirits monopoly, in Strömstad in December, compared with December last year. For the year as a whole the increase is 65 per cent. (Aftenposten)
• Norwegian customs officials expect to have confiscated twice as much smuggled liquor this year as last. As of 31 October customs officers had seized 186,614 litres of liquor. Major seizures have also been made in November and December. (Nationen)
• A majority of Conservative voters are in favour of allowing the Progress Party to join the governing coalition, according to a recent poll. Christian Democratic voters also welcome the Progress Party’s support, but prefer to keep the party out of government. (NTB)
• 2001 has been a difficult year for the major players on the stock market. Nine of the Oslo Stock Exchange’s largest investors have accumulated unrealized losses amounting to a staggering NOK 7.2 billion. (Verdens Gang)
• Most of the major electricity generators and distributors are planning to raise their prices from the beginning of January. Consumers will therefore not see any immediate fall in electricity prices despite the NOK 0.2 cut in electricity tax from 1 January. (Dagsavisen)
• From the New Year all City and District Courts will be called District Courts. The name change is a result of the Government’s decision this autumn to reduce the number of courts of first instance from 92 to 66. (NTB)
• Seven Norwegian films captured as many as 1.8 million cinema-goers and over 15 per cent of the market. Neither the Swedes nor the Danes can point to such good statistics. (Aftenposten)

Today’s comment from Verdens Gang

Much well-deserved credit – both nationally and internationally – has been given to Captain Arne Rinnan and the crew of the Wilhelmsen-owned ship Tampa, following the refugee drama which was played out in the Indian Ocean. But the drama and the conflict between Norway and Australia has subsequently proved that the international regulations for dealing with refugee boat-people is not as clear-cut as the impression initially given by the Norwegian authorities. After pressure from various quarters, including Norway, the UN and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) have therefore decided to review the existing regulations, which are both unclear and to some extent contradictory. The aim is to agree on new, clear rules to prevent refugees who are picked up at sea ending up the unwanted prize in a game of international pass-the-parcel. This is what happened to the over 400 refugees who were brought on board the Tampa. Both Norway and Australia invoked different international agreements and practice in the dispute over who was to take responsibility for the unfortunate refugees – Norway, as a shipping nation and the flag under which the Tampa sails, or Australia as a coastal nation and the closest country. During the Tampa dispute the Australian authorities claimed that the Norwegian ship should have sailed back to Indonesia, which was the last jumping off point for most of the refugees. According to several international experts, Australia was operating here in a legal grey area with different countries around the world applying different practices. It is therefore high time the rules and patchwork of agreements are subject to review so that responsibilities can be clarified. For it is only a matter of time before another ship picks up another boatload of refugees somewhere in the world.

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Finally, Norway Daily’s editors would like to wish all our readers a very happy New Year!