Norway lacks legislation to prevent terrorism (Aftenposten)

The terrorist attacks in the USA have highlighted Norway’s need for anti-terrorism legislation, according to Chief Constable Stein Ulrich, formerly deputy head of the National Police Security Services (POT). "There are a number of holes in Norway’s legislative framework, which makes the country a safer place for ‘sleeping’ terrorist cells than other western countries," said Mr Ulrich. The Government has appointed a special commission to review Norway’s need for stronger police methods to expose potential terrorist activity at an early stage in its planning.

New government a step closer (Dagsavisen)

The Conservatives, the Christian Democrats and the Liberals have moved a step closer to fulfilling their dream of forming a coalition government. The three parties have identified the most difficult policy areas. "We have come half-way down our list of items," said one of the negotiators yesterday evening. Even in the Conservative ranks, the feeling is that there is no more than a 50/50 chance of reaching a successful conclusion. Only when all the issues are on the table and the political landscape has been properly mapped out will the Conservatives, Christian Democrats and Liberals gird themselves up to tackle the issue of who will be the new prime minister.

Labour issues warning over Hagen (Aftenposten)

For the first time in decades the vote to elect the new President of the Storting could turn into a tough battle. Carl I. Hagen, chairman of the Progress Party, is an impossible candidate for the Labour Party. "Our party does not feel that Mr Hagen is a figure of unity," said Hill-Marta Solberg, leader of the Labour Party’s parliamentary group. She refused to expand on her comment beyond pointing out that Mr Hagen has been a controversial politician for many years. As the largest party in the Storting, the Labour Party feels it is natural that they propose their own candidate.

Conservatives could rule alone (Verdens Gang)

Norway will get a purely Conservative government if the Conservatives, Christian Democrats and Liberals do not reach an agreement on forming a coalition, according to Conservative and Christian Democrat sources. This is a solution the Conservative Party does not want, but which the Christian Democrats may feel benefits them – assuming the tri-partite talks break down. Christian Democrats are saying that a purely Conservative government could give Bondevik & Co. much greater political leverage when the Conservatives realise how ungovernable the new Storting is going to be.

They will decide Labour’s fate (Dagsavisen)

The Labour Party is out for the count. A disastrous election defeat and shattered dreams of continued government provide the backdrop to the party’s national committee meeting, to be held today. Now the battle will begin over which political line is most likely to raise the Labour Party from the ashes of its former glory, and what next year’s party conference will vote for. Thorbjørn Jagland, Jens Stoltenberg and Trond Giske will play the leading roles in the forthcoming political contest. The supporters of both Mr Jagland and Mr Stoltenberg believe that Trond Giske could be the joker in the pack, when it comes to deciding policy and positions. Just as interesting is the fact that both camps see Mr Giske as an ally.

Torsvik unwanted (Dagsavisen)

Powerful forces within the Labour Party are working to remove Solveig Torsvik from her position as party secretary. And they are not prepared to wait until next year’s party conference. Suggested replacements for Ms Torsvik include Jan Bøhler, currently State Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Environment Minister Siri Bjerke. The problem for Labour is that relations between its party secretary, Ms Torsvik, and party chairman Thorbjørn Jagland are extremely strained. When the Labour government resigns, it will give Mr Jagland more time to devote to party matters. His parliamentary duties will be not be too demanding, which will give him the opportunity to focus on what will be his most important task in the time ahead – getting a demotivated party organization back on its feet again.

Gambled and lost (Dagens Næringsliv)

Kværner’s chief executive Kjell Almskog gambled that Kværner would be able to manage with a smaller loan than before. But at yesterday’s press conference, the victor from Kværner’s last annual general meeting acknowledged his defeat. This autumn will be his last as chief executive at Kværner. Mr Almskog takes away NOK 16.5 million in severance pay over the next two years. All told his severance package is worth some NOK 100 million – the equivalent of seven per cent of Kværner’s total market value.

Worth Noting

• Labour Party chairman Thorbjørn Jagland has admitted that he did not know about the Government memo on the sickness benefit scheme which caused such problems for the party during the election campaign. (Verdens Gang)
• The choice of prime minister is of major significance for a new government, according to election expert Bernt Aardal. He believes the most important thing for the Conservatives is to get a change of government. (Nationen)
• The Immigration Directorate (UDI) is still not managing to process quickly enough the long queues of asylum-seekers waiting to be interviewed. Newly appointed head of the UDI, Trygve G. Nordby, has now asked the police to take over this job, despite the fact that it is only 14 months since the UDI took over the task of interviewing asylum-seekers from the police. At that time the transfer of responsibility was accompanied by noisy protests from the police. (Aftenposten)
• Norwegian interest rates are being kept just as high as before. The terrorist attacks in the USA have not made Norwegian Central Bank Governor Svein Gjedrem change his mind about the pressure on the Norwegian economy. (Aftenposten)
• Aker Maritime has refused to nominate a winner following Kjell Almskog’s resignation as Kværner’s chief executive. "The most important thing now is to focus on the fact that Kværner is still in a very difficult position," said Geir Arne Drangeid, head of corporate communications at Aker Maritime. (Dagsavisen)
• Banks and shareholders are providing Kværner with NOK 3 billion in new capital in an attempt to rescue the company. If it had not been for a loan worth almost NOK 1 billion, Kværner would have gone to the wall yesterday. (Aftenposten)
• Kværner boss Kjell Almskog has earned NOK 43,000 a day since he joined the company in 1998. By comparison Kværner’s shareholders have lost an average of NOK 9.1 million every day since Mr Almskog was hired. (Verdens Gang)

Today’s comment from Vårt Land

Kjell Almskog has resigned as chief executive of Kværner following the company’s acute cash crisis. Mr Almskog himself will not be experiencing any lack of cash in the years to come. He will take NOK 16 million away with him immediately, and every year he will receive NOK 5 million in severance pay and pension benefits. This is evidence of a culture of unparalleled executive greed, which has had a negative impact on the last couple of years’ wage negotiations. This kind of malpractice should now be buried for good.