Major crackdown on unregistered working (Aftenposten)

Anyone working unregistered on a Norwegian building site faces an uncertain future. The police, tax authorities, trade unions, employers and the Labour Inspectorate have joined forces to launch the biggest ever crackdown on unregistered working. As a result, the industry could be forced to pay an extra couple of billion in taxes, and the number of work-related injuries could fall. New routines to be implemented at all major building sites will give the police, tax authorities and officials from the Labour Inspectorate a completely new opportunity to keep track of things. Construction companies will in future have direct access to the public registers of companies held at Brønnøysund so that they can check on the status of the subcontractors that are hired in.

Training for war (tv2.no)

Last night TV2 broadcast astonishing film of Mullah Krekar, toting an automatic rifle and ammunition. The film was shot two years after he came to Norway as a refugee, and in it he explains that he is not only a religious and political leader. On the video he describes himself as "your brother in the faith, Abu Sayyed Qutob, Krekar the Conqueror, member of the Al-Shoura Council and responsible for the military wing of the Islamic movement Iraqi Kurdistan". Last night Mullah Krekar’s attorney claimed that the Police Security Service (PST) was given a copy of the film in 1995 by the mullah himself. However, the PST has denied that it received the film from Krekar. The film is new to the police, too.

Foreign Minister gives good marks for Norway’s Security Council performance (Klassekampen)

"Our two years on the UN Security Council have shown that even small countries can have an influence," said Foreign Minister Jan Petersen, summing up Norway’s performance at a press conference yesterday. Mr Petersen claimed that Norway certainly deserved more than a mere pass mark for its performance. However, he declined to enter into a debate on the further handling of Iraq’s weapons report. In the past two years Norway has been criticized for not signalling its own position on issues before the five permanent members have reached an agreement among themselves. "We have seen, also in the case of Iraq, that the right of veto has forced the five states to work together to formulate a clear-cut resolution," said Mr Petersen. At the same time he underlined the importance of the fact that all the Norwegian political parties have supported the country’s membership of the Security Council, and praised the efforts of his predecessor, Thorbjørn Jagland (Lab), particularly with regard to the Sanctions Committee on Iraq.

Norway’s UN performance slammed (Dagsavisen)

A centrally placed expert on the UN has slammed Norway’s performance as a member of the UN Security Council. Norway could have done much more with its position, is the verdict. "Even small countries can stamp their mark on the work of the Security Council, if they just do their homework," was Foreign Minister Jan Petersen’s conclusion yesterday, when he summed up Norway’s two-year term as a member of the UN Security Council. From the New Year Norway disappears out of the most important body in international politics. Mr Petersen’s own evaluation of Norway’s performance is in sharp contrast to the view of a key representative for the non-governmental organizations that follow the Security Council’s activities on a day-to-day basis. "Norway has had several opportunities to stamp its mark on the Security Council’s work, but has not made use of them," is the verdict of the American James A. Paul. He is head of the Global Policy Forum, which is based at the UN headquarters.

Left turn, shows latest poll (Dagsavisen)

If there had been an election today the Labour Party, Socialist Left Party and Centre Party would have won 80 seats in the Storting, according to the latest opinion poll from AC Nielsen Norge AS. The Labour Party alone surges forward 4.9 percentage points in the December poll, while the three government coalition parties are facing an uphill struggle. They would have received 24 per cent of the vote, giving them just 36 seats. The Progress Party remains the country’s most popular party, despite a 5.4 point slump in December which leaves them on 27.2 per cent.

Politicians should get waiting pay "only in an emergency" (Aftenposten)

The Storting’s Pensions Board has unanimously decided that it wants a less generous scheme for former politicians. "Waiting pay should be for emergencies only. It should only be something to help individuals over the initial, difficult period," said Christian Democrat Odd Holden. MPs’ lucrative survivors’ pension is also now being closely looked into. Jørgen Kosmo, President of the Storting, has now publicly criticized the way the scheme has been practiced. In a letter published in today’s Aftenposten, Mr Kosmo writes that both the Pensions Board’s annual report and recent articles in the press "have brought home to me that what is needed is a critical review of both the rules and their implementation".

1. Worth Noting

• During a press conference in Oslo yesterday, Foreign Minister Jan Petersen stated that all the UN Security Council’s members, including Norway, must be given the same right of access to Iraq’s declaration on its weapons programmes.
  (Aftenposten)
• The EU’s man in Norway, Gerhard Sabathil, leaves no room for doubt; an expansion of the EEA Agreement will only be possible if Norway puts several billion kroner on the table. He asks us to forget the current cost of Norway’s EEA contribution, which amounts to barely NOK 200 million. Norway is twice as rich as the EU after expansion, and cannot demand any rebate to compensate for its lack of influence, says the EU ambassador ahead of the forthcoming tough EEA negotiations.
  (Aftenposten)
• The EU is rushing to send its first military detachment into the field, which has put Norway under considerable pressure, according to sources in Brussels. Norway is fighting to avoid being relegated to the sidelines after Nato and the EU have signed a cooperation agreement. The EU countries in Nato are working hard to finalize the practical details as quickly as possible so that the EU’s first peacekeeping forces can take up their position in the Republic of Macedonia within a few weeks.
  (Aftenposten)
• Gas from the Ormen Lange field is to be brought ashore in Aukra. The oil companies who own the rights to the field made their decision on Wednesday. The entire development project is expected to cost NOK 55 billion, and the facilities at Aukra will be ready to go into service in 2007. The Storting will make the formal decision on whether the gas should be brought ashore in the spring of 2004, but a parliamentary majority has already signalled its support for such a move.
  (NTB)
• An opinion poll carried out by Sentio-Norsk Statistikk on behalf of Klassekampen, Dagen and Nationen shows that support for the Labour Party has increased by 4.3 percentage points to 24.4 per cent. Together, the Labour Party, Socialist Left Party and Centre Party can muster 44.4 per cent of the vote. The Progress Party retains its undisputed position as the country’s most popular party, despite a 2.8 point slide to 28 per cent.
  (Klassekampen)
• Justice Minister Odd Einar Dørum is proposing the imposition of a quarantine period for former politicians and civil servants during which they may not accept positions with private businesses. Anti-corruption legislation could also be tightened up. "The proposal for a quarantine period has not been prompted by any specific incident," said Mr Dørum at a press conference yesterday – in a barely veiled reference to former Health Minister Tore Tønne.
  (Dagens Næringsliv)
• In less than a week electricity prices have fallen by 25 per cent. Rain in Bergen could be a sign of better times ahead for electricity consumers.
  (Aftenposten)
• Norwegian shipments of fish are regularly hijacked in Italy. But now the Norwegian insurance companies have decided that enough is enough. Both Gjensidige Nor and Vesta Forsikring AS have stopped all insurance for stockfish, clipfish and salt fish being shipped to Italy in container lorries. According to Gjensidige Nor, the move should make both the Norwegian and Italian authorities sit up and think.
  (Aftenposten)
• Trading on the Oslo Stock Exchange appears to have fallen by 14 per cent this year to its lowest level since 1999. So far this year, stocks worth on average a little under NOK 1.8 billion a have been traded daily on the Oslo Stock Exchange, while the corresponding figure for last year was NOK 2.1 billion. The stock exchange set a record in 2000 with stocks worth an average of NOK 2.4 billion being traded each day.
  (Dagens Næringsliv)
• The Oslo City Council decided on Wednesday to choose the Selvaag Group’s proposal as the basis for the redevelopment of the Tjuvholmen site, adjacent to Aker Brygge in Oslo. "Perspective", as the Selvaag project is called, was voted the public’s favourite in an unofficial poll.
  (NTB)
• Providing a mattress for Daisy the cow will cost Norwegian farmers NOK 40 million a year. Agriculture Minister Lars Sponheim’s recently announced animal welfare proposals will cost the farming industry additional annual expenses of at least NOK 230 million.
  (Nationen)

2. Today’s comment from Aftenposten

In a few days’ time Norway’s two years as a member of the UN Security Council will be over, and there is strong evidence that the changeover will take place in the middle of a dramatic battle over war and peace in Iraq. The USA is in the process of drawing its first, negative conclusions about the 12,000 page report which Saddam Hussein’s regime has submitted to the UN. Foreign Minister Jan Petersen was therefore entirely justified in underlining at a press conference yesterday to review Norway’s membership of the Security Council that "it is vitally important" for all members of the Security Council to have "the same access to all material" in the report. Norway risks having to leave the Security Council at the end of the year after having been politically humiliated in an unacceptable way by its ally the United States. The Americans hijacked the report when it was delivered to the Security Council and gave special treatment to the four other permanent members: Great Britain, France, China and Russia. The 10 non-permanent members received an abridged version of 3,500 pages only yesterday. It is surprising that the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has not protested more vigorously against such behaviour. Naturally enough, Mr Petersen declined to give any opinion on the report itself until he and his Foreign Ministry officials have had the opportunity to study it in detail. Norway had great expectations of its membership of the Security Council, and has played an important role as leader of the Sanctions Committee on Iraq. Norway will now also relinquish this office, in the same way as it will step down as chair of the Donor Countries for Afghanistan from the New Year. The battle against terrorism has become a key issue for the Security Council following 9/11 last year, while the Middle East has been pushed more into the background. But it is interesting to note that, according to Mr Petersen, Africa and the conflicts there account for a massive two-thirds of the Security Council’s work. The world is balancing on the edge of war. It is therefore too soon to draw any final conclusions about how successful Norway’s performance as a member of the Security Council has been.