THE ROYAL MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, Oslo

Press Division

NORWAY DAILY No. 152/00 ØW/kj

DATE: 11 August 2000

DISABILITY SPENDING GROWING FASTER THAN REAL DISABILITY (Aftenposten)

Norway’s welfare system spends over NOK 20 billion on disability pensions, and the number of Norwegians on disability is rising dramatically. But poor health is not the reason why over 270,000 Norwegians collect this type of pension, which was intended for persons disqualified for work on medical grounds. Inadequate employment qualifications and few local job opportunities weigh as heavily as physical disability in assessing eligibility for disability payments.

STOLTENBERG: DISAGREEMENT NO PROBLEM FOR LABOUR( Dagsavisen)

Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg had no problem with the internal turmoil in the Labour Party when he opened the debate at a meeting in the Oppland County Labour Party yesterday. "Labour can live with controversy and differences of opinion. What we cannot live with is a lengthy period of paralysis. We must reach a conclusion. That is when issues turn into common goals," said the PM, referring to the lineup of controversial issues to be dealt with at the Labour Party national convention in November.

STOLTENBERG KEEPs HIS VIEWS TO HIMSELF( Dagbladet)

In his first meeting with the rank-and-file after the latest interest rate hike, and in the midst of calls for more well-defined leadership, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg repeated that nobody would be "farming out Grannny". He still refuses, however, to reveal his stand on whether Labour should support or oppose putting health and care services out on bid, leaving the controversy to rage on in a growing number of municipalities.

HIGHER FUNDING MAY BE IN STORE FOR MUNICIPALITIES( Dagens Næringsliv)

The process of putting together a fiscal budget that everyone can agree on will be a particularly stiff challenge this autumn. With the likelihood of further interest rate hikes lurking in the background, Finance Minister Karl Eirik Schjøtt-Pedersen will try to keep spending in check in the face of calls from within the Labour Party for higher funding. Before the summer holiday, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said the Government was looking for ways to spend more money without putting additional pressure on the economy, and now he is being backed from an unexpected quarter. Conservative finance policy spokesman Per-Kristian Foss believes that because of the high level of municipal debt, there is some room for an increase in municipal funding without heating up the economy.

LABOUR LEADER BELIEVES RØKKE WANTS FULL CONTROL (Aftenposten)

"I think the real motivation behind Aker Maritime’s Kværner acquisitions will become increasingly apparent in the next few days. They have not bought this stock simply to secure oil and gas interests in Kværner, but to take full control," says chief employee representative in Kværner, Rolf Utgård, who calls on all of Aker Maritime’s small shareholders to resist Kjell Inge Røkke. He also believes Kværner is neglecting other responsibilities in the fight against Mr. Røkke.

CHRISTIANITY STRONGEST IN FINLAND(Vårt Land)

The Christian faith is most in evidence in Finland, ahead of the other Nordic countries. Norway and Denmark share second place. One Norwegian in 15 attends church at least once a month. These figures indicate that believing Christians are becoming a minority in Scandinavia, according to sociologist Pål Ketil Botvar.

WORTH NOTING

• In collaboration with Telenor, the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO) offered its members a special deal on two different personal computer systems last year, but response has been negligible. Fewer than 1,000 of the LO’s 835,000 members have taken advantage of the offer. (Dagsavisen)
• If Kjell Inge Røkke sells Aker Maritime and pockets his gain, the Ministry of Trade and Industry could compel him to reduce his stake in Aker RGI, according to former Minister of Trade and Industry Lars Sponheim. However, he is so confident in Mr. Røkke as a serious businessman, that he does not believe this will happen. (Dagbladet)
• Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg could mobilize a strong majority to redraw the map of Norway. 15 of Labour’s 19 county leaders agree that counties and municipalities should be reduced in number and increased in size. Only the Østfold Labour Party is sceptical. (Dagens Næringsliv)
• A proposal to destroy all cattle imported from Denmark has shocked and confounded Norway’s farmers, who are not prepared to go along with it. The decision is in the hands of Minister of Agriculture Bjarne Håkon Hanssen, but he promises that the farmers’ voice will be heard before the issue is decided. (Dagsavisen)
• Every week, the National Football Association is contacted by people who want to be football agents. Players, teachers, parents and lawyers want to seek their fortune by managing football players. Norway will soon have more agents than the rest of Europe put together. (Aftenposten)
• Six young Norwegians were found guilty of defacing property in Denmark and fined the equivalent of NOK 348,099 for 30 minutes of graffiti activity. This is the highest amount of damages ever awarded for graffiti in Denmark. (Verdens Gang)

TODAY’S COMMENT from Dagens Næringsliv

Mad cow disease may have acquired a double meaning here in Norway. It has always been applied to a contagious disease among cattle, but since an ox imported from Denmark has tentatively been diagnosed with this disease, a different form of mad cow disease seems to have affected the Norwegian Animal Health Authority and the Veterinary Institute. If the diagnosis is confirmed, all 130 head of cattle on the unfortunate farmer’s farm will probably have to be slaughtered. Tragic, but not unreasonable. Worse, though, is the proposal to require the destruction of 350 other head of cattle imported from Denmark. This reaction may safely be termed panic—or madness, as it were. One advantage we enjoy here in Norway is a high degree of certainty that the food we eat is safe. The quality is not always the best, but it seldom makes one ill. Nonetheless, food safety restrictions should not be applied to the point of absurdity. If the rest of the world responded like the Animal Health Authority, there would not be many cattle left anywhere. If all Danish cattle in Norway ought to be destroyed, then it follows that all Danish cattle in Denmark ought to be destroyed as well. Should we all become vegetarians? Instead of slaughtering all the cattle in panic, Norway’s veterinary authorities should develop an inspection programme holding similar standards as those used in the rest of the world. At present, Norway has no inspection programme of this calibre.

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