EU membership supporters back in front (Aftenposten)

Supporters of EU membership have taken the lead after a long period in which a majority of the population opposed membership. Opinion’s latest poll shows that 53 per cent are in favour of Norwegian EU membership. This is a complete reversal of Opinion’s previous poll last March in which 53 per cent rejected EU membership, while 47 per cent were in favour. The results also diverge from those of other recent opinion polls. Opponents of EU membership had a clear majority as recently as December last year. According to Sigurd Grytten, leader of the European Movement in Norway, factors such as the successful introduction of the EU’s common currency, the euro, and the planned expansion of the European Union to include countries from eastern Europe have had an impact on public opinion. However, EU membership is still not an issue on the Government’s agenda.

Carrying a knife could lead to prison (Aftenposten)

The blood flowed this weekend following another fatal knife attack in Oslo. The police are now to be given wider powers against potential offenders. Today, anyone flouting the ban on carrying a knife in public risks a maximum prison sentence of only three months. The Ministry of Justice has now proposed that the maximum penalty be raised to six months in prison. This will also allow police to arrest criminals armed with a knife and if necessary ask the court for them to be remanded in custody.

Police officers to specialize in handling domestic violence (Dagsavisen)

By 1 July all the country’s 27 police districts are to have specialist officers whose sole job will be to work on cases of domestic violence. "Many women who are abused, pestered and harassed by their husbands or male partners are in reality refugees in their own country. These women need a larger array of help and support measures. One important contribution is to ensure that the victims of violence meet police officers who are specially trained and understand how best to handle these kinds of cases," said Justice Minister Odd Einar Dørum.

Contracts for young offenders (Aftenposten/Saturday)

According to recent findings, offering young offenders a binding contract instead of sending them to prison could keep them from choosing a life of crime. The scheme is now being piloted in seven local authorities and police districts in Norway. The contracts are meant to help young offenders make amends and at the same time ensure they are steered away from the slippery slope. If they break the contract, offenders may be fined or sent to gaol instead.

Drug seizures last year reach record heights (Dagsavisen/Saturday)

The amount of drugs seized by police and customs officials continues to grow. "I would have to say though that the huge seizures we have made are not due to the fact that police and customs officers have got very much better at their jobs. Unfortunately, it is largely because access to drugs is easier than ever before. People’s attitude to narcotics has changed. A larger number of different groups and individuals are open to the use of illegal substances," said Arne Huuse, head of the National Bureau of Crime Investigation.

Sick leave scheme useless (Aftenposten/Saturday)

In order to reduce the number of people classified as medically unfit for work and cut the length of time people were off sick, a scheme dubbed ‘Doctor’s Note II’ was introduced. But the cost of the scheme far outweighs its benefits. The annual bill amounts to NOK 100 million in increased social security payments. The system is bureaucratic and tiresome for both doctors and patients, according to Professor John Gunnar Mæland. Social Affairs Minister Ingjerd Schou admits there is a problem and has promised improvements.

Labour is male bastion (Dagsavisen)

Former Labour minister Grete Berget has accused the party of being a male bastion and says that an invisible ‘glass ceiling’ prevents women from climbing to the very top. Both Ms Berget and Grete Faremo, another former Labour minister, take it as read that the party’s annual conference will ensure that at least one other women is included in the currently male-dominated Labour leadership, so that deputy leader Hill-Marta Solberg is no longer the only woman at the top. However, they declined to say who they think should be ousted: Jens Stoltenberg, Thorbjørn Jagland or party secretary Martin Kolberg.

Politicians to blame (Dagbladet)

The strength of the Norwegian krone is causing major difficulties for Norway’s export industry. "The politicians have sacrificed exporting companies," said Tor Steig, chief economist at the Confederation of Norwegian Business and Industry (NHO). Over the past five years Norwegian export industry has lost significant market shares in Europe. Today’s strong krone is just making matters worse.

Worth Noting

• "53 per cent in favour of EU membership? This is good news for all of us who would like to see Norway take its place in the EU. But the poll is completely off the mark compared with other surveys we have seen recently," said Foreign Minister Jan Petersen. (Aftenposten)
• "Norway is so rich that we should be able to abolish poverty," said Jens Stoltenberg. He has announced a social policy reform plan which would give everyone either a job, further education or social security benefits it is possible to live on. (Dagsavisen)
• Gerd-Liv Valla, president of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), is refusing to participate in the Labour Party’s battle for power. But when asked by Dagbladet she explodes one of the myths of the current leadership struggle – there is no political difference between Thorbjørn Jagland and Jens Stoltenberg. (Dagbladet/Saturday)
• The voters said no, but the Confederation of Norwegian Business and Industry (NHO) says yes. In quick succession four senior Labour politicians have gone over to the NHO. An enthusiastic NHO says they have all been picked from the top drawer. (Aftenposten)
• The Norwegian Postal Administration is putting its long-distance transport service out to tender. At worst this could mean 200 postal drivers losing their jobs. The Postal Administration hopes to save substantial sums of money as a result of the tendering process. (Nationen)
• Expensive promises to compensate rail passengers for delays are being withdrawn. With fewer and fewer trains running on time, the national railway company, NSB, has had to fork out NOK 20 million in the past three years. The guarantee is being withdrawn because new monthly season tickets have made the scheme difficult for NSB to administer. (Aftenposten/Sunday)
• Labour Party chairman Thorbjørn Jagland and his wife Hanne Grotjord have gone to Israel to rest. They will visit their good friends and political allies Terje Rød-Larsen and Mona Juul. (Dagbladet/Sunday)
• Norwegian sealing is experiencing a renaissance following a substantial jump in the price of skins. Sealskin has become a permissible fashion. The stocks held in Tromsø warehouses have been reduced for the first time in 30 years. (Dagens Næringsliv)

Today’s comment from Aftenposten

For the first time in almost 18 months a poll, by market researchers Opinion, shows that a majority of those who have made up their minds are in favour of EU membership. Even for a newspaper which has consistently believed that Norway’s best interests lie in being a full member of an association which includes the majority of countries Norway is most closely allied to in Europe, the poll gives more reason for long-term hope than short-term celebration. It is after all only one individual poll, and it is far to early to start a new debate on Norwegian membership on the basis of the figures presented today. Nevertheless, we do not believe it is coincidental that an opinion poll carried out at this moment in time should show a majority in favour of membership. Events in Europe and the stirrings of renewed debate on Europe here at home have once again brought Norway’s relations with the EU to the forefront of the voters’ minds, as has our lack of opportunity to make our voice heard in the forum where the most important political decisions are made regarding developments in our part of the world. This debate must continue even if it should eventually become uncomfortable for the sitting government, with its built-in self-destruct clause, or the Labour Party, which is divided enough in other areas. We cannot afford a third no to the EU.