At a meeting of the Council of State at the Royal Palace today, the following changes were made in the Government:

Mr Dagfinn Høybråten will step down as Minister of Health and take over responsibility for labour and social affairs. At a later date, a new Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs will be established, which will incorporate parts of the Ministry of Labour and Government Administration, parts of the Ministry of Social Affairs and parts of the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development.

Mr Ansgar Gabrielsen will step down as Minister of Trade and Industry and take over responsibility for health, measures for alcohol and drug abusers, and nursing and care services. At a later date, a new Ministry of Health and Care Services will be established.

Mr Børge Brende will step down as Minister of the Environment and take over responsibility for the Ministry of Trade and Industry.

Mr Morten Andreas Meyer will as minister retain responsibility for matters relating to modernisation and government administration. He will also be responsible for co-ordinating IT policy and will be given more responsibility for competition policy. Mr Meyer will no longer be responsible for matters relating to labour. At a later date, a new Ministry of Modernisation will be established, which will comprise those parts of the Ministry of Labour and Government Administration that are not incorporated into the new Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, and some of the tasks that are currently the responsibility of the Ministry of Trade and Industry, including IT policy co-ordination.

Ms Thorhild Widvey, currently State Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has been appointed Minister of Petroleum and Energy.

Mr Knut Arild Hareide, who has a degree in economics, has been appointed Minister of the Environment.

The names of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Fisheries will be changed to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food and the Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs, respectively, at a date to be decided later.

Mr Einar Steensnæs and Ms Ingjerd Schou have been honourably discharged from their office as Minister of Petroleum and Energy and Minister of Social Affairs, respectively, as of 14.00 today.

More details on the changes

As of 14.00 today, Mr Høybråten has taken over responsibility for labour and social affairs. A new Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs will be established at the latest by 1 January 2005. The main responsibility of the new ministry will be to develop a coherent policy for the labour market, employment, living conditions, occupational benefits, social benefits and pensions. The ministry will also have the main responsibility for co-ordinating efforts to combat poverty in Norway and for co-ordinating alcohol and drug policy. One of the primary purposes of establishing the new ministry is to place policy responsibility for labour market services, national insurance and social welfare with one minister. The new ministry will also have overall responsibility for implementation of the agreement on an inclusive working life. The new ministry will comprise parts of the Ministry of Labour and Government Administration, parts of the Ministry of Social Affairs and parts of the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development.

As of 14.00 today, Mr Høybråten has taken over responsibility for the departments and staff units that will make up the new Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. These are: the Department of Labour Market Policy, the Department of Working Environment and Safety, and the Wage Negotiations Staff in the Ministry of Labour and Government Administration; the Social Insurance Department, the Section for Alcohol and Drug Policy in the Social Policy Department and the project for co-ordinating social insurance and civil servant pension schemes in the Ministry of Social Affairs; and the Section for Collective Labour Law in the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development. He will also take over responsibility for the office of the Minister, the office of the Secretary General, the Department of Administrative and Financial Affairs and the Press and Information Unit in the Ministry of Social Affairs.

Mr Høybråten is resigning his position as Director of the National Insurance Administration. He has been given a new portfolio, and will, when he is no longer a member of the Government, be available to carry out special assignments for the Ministry of Labour and Government Administration for the remainder of his term as director.

As of 14.00 today, Mr Gabrielsen has taken over responsibility for the Ministry of Health and the Section for Municipal Policy, the Section for Services and the Section for General Affairs in the Social Policy Department of the Ministry of Social Affairs. A new Ministry of Health and Care Services will be established at the latest by 1 January 2005. The main responsibility of the new ministry will be to develop a coherent policy for health services (primary health services and specialist health services), nursing and care services and measures for alcohol and drug abusers.

Mr Meyer will have responsibility for matters relating to modernisation. A new Ministry of Modernisation will be established by 1 January 2005 at the latest. In addition to having responsibility for the fields in the Ministry of Labour and Government Administration that will not be transferred to the new Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Modernisation will take over responsibility for co-ordinating IT policy and public sector competition policy from the Ministry of Trade and Industry. As of 14.00 today, Mr Meyer will take over responsibility for the fields that will be incorporated into the new Ministry of Modernisation.

As of 14.00 today, Mr Brende will take over as Minister of Trade and Industry, with the exception of the IT Security and Infrastructure Section, the eCommerce and Information Economy Section and the Public Sector Competition Policy Section.

As of 14.00 today, Ms Widvey has been appointed Minister of Petroleum and Energy.

As from the same time, Mr Hareide has been appointed Minister of the Environment

At a meeting of the Council of State at the Royal Palace today, it was also decided that the name of the Ministry of Agriculture should be changed to Ministry of Agriculture and Food, and the name of the Ministry of Fisheries should be changed to Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs. These changes are being made so that the names more closely reflect the ministries’ spheres of responsibility. The changes will become effective on a date to be decided by the Office of the Prime Minister.

Following today’s changes, the composition of the Government will be as follows:

(The Government is a minority government made up of members from the Conservative Party (C), the Christian Democratic Party (CD) and the Liberal Party (L).)

Prime Minister
Mr Kjell Magne Bondevik (CD)

Minister of Foreign Affairs
Mr Jan Petersen (C)

Minister of Local Government and Regional Development
Ms Erna Solberg (C)

Minister of Labour and Social Affairs
Mr Dagfinn Høybråten (CD)

Minister of Agriculture and Food
Mr Lars Sponheim (L)

Minister of Finance
Mr Per-Kristian Foss (C)

Minister of Justice
Mr Odd Einar Dørum (L)

Minster of Culture and Church Affairs
Ms Valgerd Svarstad Haugland (CD)

Minister of International Development (deputy for the Minister of Foreign Affairs)
Ms Hilde F. Johnson

Minister of Children and Family Affairs
Ms Laila Dåvøy (CD)

Minister of Education and Research
Ms Kristin Clemet (C)

Minister of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs
Mr Svein Ludvigsen (C)

Minister of Health and Care Services
Mr Ansgar Gabrielsen (C)

Minister of Transport and Communications
Ms Torild Skogsholm (L)

Minister of Defence
Ms Kristin Krohn Devold (C)

Minister of Trade and Industry
Mr Børge Brende (C)

Minister of Modernisation
Mr Morten Andreas Meyer (C)

Minister of Petroleum and Energy
Ms Thorhild Widvey (C)

Minister of the Environment
Mr Knut Arild Hareide (CD)