Hagen heading for budget clash (Verdens Gang)

Progress Party chairman Carl I. Hagen has indicated that Kjell Magne Bondevik’s minority government will have to turn to the Labour Party for support if it wants next year’s budget to be tight. The Progress Party leadership has therefore decided to pursue a course which will result in a head-on collision with the Government – one week before the budget is due to be announced. "Last year we could not topple a government we had put into office three weeks before. Today the situation is completely different. Progress Party workers would be furious if we gave in on our main demands," said Mr Hagen.

Norwegians in training for Iraq attack (Aftenposten)

100 Norwegian Red Cross workers are being trained to tackle a possible biological or nuclear attack launched by Saddam Hussein. There are strong fears that Saddam Hussein will retaliate by striking at other targets in the world if the USA launches an attack on Iraq. The Norwegian Red Cross has said it reckons on being ready to respond to an emergency in four to six weeks.

Bondevik under fire from Bondevik (Dagbladet)

Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik was on hand yesterday to wish Norwegian pilots good luck on a mission which could lead to Norwegians risking their lives or killing innocent civilians. He has been met with strong anti-war protests from Christian groups – and one of the critics is his own cousin, Odd Bondevik, Bishop of Møre and former Primate of the Church of Norway. At a meeting of the General Synod in November last year, a substantial majority supported a declaration stating that "bombing is not a suitable tool with which to combat terrorism". At that time the bombs in question were American. Now it is Norwegian planes which will be dropping their deadly load. Many Christian groups believe this goes against Norwegian interests and Christian ethics.

Auditor General to be investigated by tax authorities (Verdens Gang)

Oslo’s Inspector of Taxes, Inger-Berit Andersen, has confirmed that Auditor General Bjarne Mørk-Eidem and the Office of the Auditor General are to be investigated by the tax authorities after revelations that foreign trips undertaken by Mr Mørk-Eidem’s wife were paid for out of public funds. Ms Andersen declined to give any further details about what will be subject to scrutiny or when the investigation will take place. It is not easy to estimate the value of the free trips because some of the hotel expenses were paid for by auditor general’s offices of other countries. However, the sum in question probably amounts to more than NOK 100,000.

Statkraft can manipulate electricity prices (Aftenposten)

Statkraft has admitted that it can manipulate electricity prices in Norway, according to documents Aftenposten has been given access to. The Government will soon decide if Statkraft can become even bigger. Statkraft’s proposed acquisition of Agder Energi has caused deep divisions within the Government. Labour and Government Administration Minister Victor D. Norman is under considerable pressure from other ministers to approve the takeover. During an electricity industry training course, a speaker from Statkraft used a transparency which clearly states that Statkraft can influence Norwegian electricity prices. It can do so by regulating the amount of water run off from its reservoirs around the country. Statkraft says the company has nothing to gain by exploiting its market dominance.

Unemployment in IT industry through the roof (Klassekampen)

The number of bankruptcies in the IT industry has increased dramatically as a result of the general downturn in the world’s economy. Over a thousand people have lost their jobs in the Norwegian IT industry since August last year. A total of 1,904 people are unemployed, an increase of 132 per cent. The recession has forced companies to cut back on their investments in new technology.

Regions could lose billions (Aftenposten)

The EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA), which acts as the EEA Agreement’s watchdog, has called on the Government to modify the scheme under which the size of employers’ national insurance contributions varies geographically. This differentiation is seen as a form of state subsidy which violates the terms of the EEA Agreement. If the scheme is changed it could cost Norway’s regions billions of kroner, because the current arrangement means that employers in sparsely populated areas pay a reduced national insurance contribution or none at all.

Penalty points as planned (Aftenposten)

The issuing of penalty points to motorists who commit traffic violations is not illegal and the scheme will be introduced as planned, according to Transport Minister Torild Skogsholm. She says that the Government’s bill takes into consideration both the Supreme Court’s deliberations regarding the confiscation of driving licences under current legislation and the Ministry of Justice’s proposal to transfer the right of confiscation from the police to the courts. If these two processes lead to changes in the current system, they will be reflected in the regulations.

1. Worth Noting

• Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik wanted to be on hand to send off the first contingent of Norwegian F-16 pilots heading for active duty in the war against terrorism in Afghanistan. "I wanted my presence to underscore that the F-16 unit has the Government’s full backing as it goes into service in the war against terrorism," he said as the planes took off.
  (Dagsavisen)
• If the illegally imported alcohol that was sold in Norway last year had been sold at the Vinmonopolet, Norway’s state-run wine and spirits retail monopoly, Finance Minister Per-Kristian Foss would probably have been able to bank an additional NOK 1.6 billion in taxes and excise duties.
  (Dagbladet)
• Den norske Bank (DnB) is concerned at the prospect of bankruptcies and defaulted loans. The bank has now set up a separate centralized unit to follow up on problem customers. The unit came into operation on 1 August. The move was prompted by recent disastrous developments on the stock market, the difficult competitive situation experienced by export industries and a gloomy macroeconomic outlook.
  (Dagens Næringsliv)
• The French seismic exploration company CGG has joined Jens Ulltveit-Moe as his secret partner in the battle for control of PGS. Behind the scenes CGG has bought almost 8 per cent of the Norwegian company’s shares. One possible solution in the longer term is for Mr Ulltveit-Moe and the Frenchmen to split PGS in two. Mr Ulltveit-Moe, who is also president of the Confederation of Norwegian Business and Industry (NHO), could take control of PGS’s floating production facilities while CGG gets the seismic part. Mr Ulltveit-Moe yesterday announced his proposals for a wholly Norwegian board of directors for PGS.
  (Aftenposten)
• In the future Gjensidige Nor and Den norske Bank (DnB) could consider a merger to reduce costs and improve profitability, according to DnB’s chief executive, Svein Aaser, and his counterpart at Gjensidige Nor, Olav Hytta. "There are interesting features to such a move which would make a merger interesting. But there is no deal right around the corner," said Mr Aaser to Bloomberg News.
  (TDN Finans/Dagens Næringsliv)
• So far this year 139 doctors have been reported to the Norwegian Board of Health for alleged violations of good medical practice. Around two-thirds of the cases have arisen because the doctors concerned have been overly liberal when prescribing habit-forming medication. Experts on substance abuse have sounded a warning and several doctors are now under investigation by the Norwegian Board of Health.
  (Dagsavisen)

2. Today’s comment from Nationen

Russia and Azerbaijan have agreed to divide the seabed under the Caspian Sea right down the centre line. The dispute between the two former Soviet states has not generated banner headlines in the Norwegian media, but the announcement was reported without much emphasis in yesterday’s Norwegian newspapers. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin will make an official visit to Norway in a few weeks, and 10 days from now Foreign Minister Jan Petersen will get on a plane to Moscow. It must surely be possible to express the hope that – finally – it might be possible to reach agreement on the division of resources in the Barents Sea which are so important for both countries.