Two out of three Norwegians firmly opposed to war (Aftenposten)

Two out of three Norwegians think that the USA should not attack Iraq, even if the UN were to allow such a move. If the UN says no, nine out of ten Norwegians think that George W. Bush must pull his troops out. But Norway could be forced to join the conflict through its membership of Nato if Turkey feels threatened and asks its allies for help. Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik acknowledges Norway’s obligations. “I fear a war. It could have many consequences, including this,” he said.

Socialist Left Party encouraged by massive anti-war feeling (Aftenposten)

Only the Socialist Left Party and the Centre Party have so far come out firmly against a military offensive in Iraq regardless of whether the UN Security Council gives the USA the go-ahead for such an attack. “Opposition is enormous. And a surprising number of people reject Norwegian support for an attack, even with a UN mandate. This is encouraging for everyone who is trying to prevent war,” said Socialist Left Party leader Kristin Halvorsen. “The response shows that people want to avoid war. Everyone wants that, and we must be glad of it. The UN and the Security Council’s role is not at the front of people’s minds, but we politicians must respond on the basis of Norway’s foreign policy,” said Thorbjørn Jagland (Lab), leader of the Storting’s Foreign Affairs Committee.

No EU majority in the Storting (Vårt Land)

Forget any talk of a decision on EU membership during this parliamentary term. Before the next general election in 2005 there is not even a majority in the Storting in favour of sending an application for EU membership. On the other hand, it is clear that the issue of EU membership could dominate the election campaign in 2005, not least in terms of the government alternatives which are on offer. But the question of EU membership does not have to pose any kind of a threat to the Bondevik government during this parliamentary term.

EU negotiator says Norway must pay to play (Dagbladet)

Percy Westerlund, the EU’s chief negotiator in the EEA negotiations currently underway in Brussels, says that Norway has got off lightly up to now, but maintains that the EU can no longer be as “generous” as it was when the EEA Agreement was originally signed. So, when negotiations to extend the EEA Agreement to the new EU countries resume today, the gap between Norway and the EU remains huge.

Businesses face huge bill (Dagens Næringsliv)

The Government does not think that Norway will be allowed to retain its system of regionally differentiated employers’ national insurance contributions. This could mean businesses in outlying districts having to pay NOK 6 billion more. The system of regionally differentiated employers’ national insurance contributions has been one of Norway’s most important regional assistance measures. Finance Minister Per-Kristian Foss believes Norway would have been in a stronger position in its dispute with Brussels if we had been a member of the EU. “This is the disadvantage of the EEA Agreement. If we had been a member of the EU, we would have got a better deal,” said Mr Foss.

Call for Government to work for Krohn Devold (Dagbladet)

No one in this country would make a better General Secretary of Nato than Defence Minister Kristin Krohn Devold, according to the Conservative Party’s defence spokesman Bjørn Hernæs. “It would surprise me if the Government does not put her name forward,” said Mr Hernæs. And he is not the only one who thinks so. Åse Wisløff Nilssen (Chr.Dem) agrees, but Labour’s Marit Nybakk, who chairs the Storting’s Defence Committee does not. Ms Nybakk believes that Thorbjørn Jagland, former Labour leader, former Prime Minister and former Foreign Minister, would also be a strong candidate if Norway decided to throw itself into the battle to appoint a Norwegian to the post of Nato General Secretary. “But it is Ms Krohn Devold’s name which has come up, and I will say that in a Nato context her efforts on behalf of Norway have been impressive,” said Ms Nybakk.

Power utilities deny responsibility for electricity crisis (Dagsavisen)

The power utilities do not think they have anything much to learn from this winter’s electricity crisis. They say they will not keep a higher water level in the hydro-electric reservoirs if it looks as though next autumn could also be dry. “We are not going to reduce the water flow or change our policies for planning electricity production. It will take a terribly long time before we experience anything like this dry year,” said Kjell Berger, Statkraft’s chief economist. On the other hand, Helge Siksrud, Hydro Energi’s head of corporate communications said we should blame the situation on “the Man Upstairs”.

Minister demands clampdown on executive pay rises (Aftenposten)

Trade and Industry Minister Ansgar Gabrielsen has instructed the state’s representatives on company boards and at annual general meetings to make sure that there is no increase in the fees paid to company directors. And senior executives will have to accept pay rises in line with the rest of the workforce. Mr Gabrielsen represents the largest shareholder in Norway – the state. 43 per cent of the shares on the Oslo Stock Exchange are owned by the state. Traditionally, Norwegian governments have been reluctant to exercise the power afforded by the state’s share-ownership, but Mr Gabrielsen is now signalling a greater willingness to take an active role.

Experts dismiss prospect of wage moderation (Dagsavisen)

The experts do not believe the promises made by Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik, employers’ representatives and union bosses that this year’s wage settlement will be kept to a minimum. “It is remarkable that they did not manage to agree a greater level of commitment to cooperate. I think the Government had hoped for a more specific outcome from the meeting. Instead they emerged with some vague phrases about wage rises being “more in line with” our trading partners,” said Steinar Juel, chief economist at Nordea Markets.

Call for review of gun legislation (Nationen)

Jan Egeland, General Secretary of the Norwegian Red Cross, says that the Ministry of Justice should think about whether inactive hunters should lose their weapons. Though he declined to say outright that the principle of “once a hunter, always a gun” should be abolished, he did say: “We need to take a long, hard look at whether many of these people should be made to hand in their guns. It is very dangerous to have so many firearms lying unsecured at home”. Officials at the Ministry of Justice are also unhappy about weapons lying about unused, but they have no plans to change the law.

Worth Noting

• In the past five years the number of people who have been given a fine has risen sharply. While 22,736 fines were issued in 1994, that figure had risen to 264,206 last year. This provides the state with revenues of almost NOK 500 million.
  (Aftenposten)
• In a couple of years’ time it will be illegal to be an anonymous sperm donor in Norway. The move will put an end to today’s practice of importing anonymous sperm from Denmark. Sperm will have to be obtained from Norwegian donors who can be traced by their children.
  (Dagsavisen)
• Gerd-Liv Valla, president of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), has moved from opposition to EU membership to silence on the issue. But her two deputies are not keeping quiet. One says yes and the other no.
  (Dagens Næringsliv)
• The cut in interest rates announced by Svein Gjedrem, Governor of the Norwegian Central Bank, will cost Norwegian households NOK 4.7 billion in lost interest revenues. “The celebrations over falling interest rates are not funny for the large number of people with savings. It is a way of fleecing the elderly,” said economics expert Christian Vennerød.
  (Nationen)
• The two recent cuts in interest rates will result in a slight rise in house prices, according to the leaders of Norway’s housing cooperatives. The fall in prices last autumn was smaller than expected, but fewer homes were sold.
  (Aftenposten)
• Last year the experts recommended investing in unit trusts. Now they have changed their tune. It could take many years before you again make any profit on your unit trust investments. The amount being invested in unit trusts has not been this low since 1994.
  (Dagsavisen)
• Relocating eight public authorities currently based in Oslo to towns and cities throughout the country could cost as much as NOK 2 billion, according to employees. All the unions in all the authorities concerned are united in their opposition to the proposed relocation exercise.
  (Dagens Næringsliv)
• Scientists have known for a long time that Norwegian and Nordic bones are much more fragile than other bones. But so far the reason has remained a mystery. Now scientists in Sweden have come a step closer to an explanation. Our consumption of vitamin A is so high that it is damaging our bones.
  (Aftenposten)

Today’s comment from Aftenposten

Today, two out of three Norwegians think that the USA should not go to war with Iraq even if the UN Security Council were to adopt a resolution sanctioning military action against Saddam Hussein’s regime. About the same number of people think that even with a UN resolution, Norway should not support any such war. Nine out of ten oppose military action which does not have UN backing, and an even larger majority believe that Norway should not support such action. No Norwegian government can ignore such strong and widely-held public opinion. Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik has also made it crystal clear that Norway will not support a war that is not firmly rooted in a yet-to-be-adopted Security Council resolution. This is a stance which the Norwegian people have every right to expect that he and his government stick to, even if the USA should let its threatening rhetoric cross the line into military action in Iraqi territory without the backing of the UN. In reality, a small country with solid traditions of building on the foundations of international law, and with public opinion united to such a degree as we are now seeing, has no option – even if it puts us on a collision course with the world’s only superpower; the country which has traditionally been our most important ally.