New attempt to reach oil policy compromise (Aftenposten)

Discussions to see whether there is any possibility of reaching a broad compromise agreement on Norway’s future oil policy have been renewed, with the Conservatives, Liberals and Christian Democrats on one side and the Labour Party on the other. "I can confirm that we have been in contact, but our discussions could not be described as negotiations," says Jan Tore Sanner (Conservative). He points out that the three parties have never given the Labour Party any ultimatum. "We are looking to negotiate," he says.

PM gets fingers burned over EU (Dagbladet)

Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg is working as best he can to douse the flames after Foreign Minister Thorbjørn Jagland lit a fire under opponents of EU membership – both inside and outside the Labour Party. "Mr Stoltenberg is keeping his head above water as well as he can, but there is absolutely no doubt that the Labour Party, in the shape of Thorbjørn Jagland, has signalled a change in policy. According to the Foreign Minister, the Government will begin preparing an application for EU membership as early as next year," says Anne Enger Lahnstein (Centre Party)

Jens catching up (Dagsavisen)

According to the latest poll, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg is reducing the gap between himself and the enormously popular Christian Democrat leader, Kjell Magne Bondevik. But the majority of people still think Mr Bondevik would make a better prime minister than Mr Stoltenberg. In December, only 26 per cent of those asked thought Mr Stoltenberg was best suited to the job. This figure has now risen to 31 per cent. However, 42 per cent of those polled would prefer Mr Bondevik as prime minister. This is a drop of three percentage points compared to December.

Counterfeit cash (Aftenposten)

It starts as a teenage prank played with a scanner and a PC. The counterfeit notes are shown around to friends, who start to use them. The production of counterfeit notes has exploded in Norway. In January and February alone the police recorded 853 cases. Only a tiny minority are aware that counterfeiting carries a prison sentence, even for young people with no previous record. The police are now issuing a stern warning against this kind of "kids’ game".

Mini-parties could cause chaos (Nationen)

The Southern Counties List and other mini-parties could make the work of the Storting more difficult, according to electoral expert Frank Aarebrot. "We could end up with four different lists, each representing some regional protest movement or other. They could well have a casting vote on several issues. I look forward with trepidation to seeing how the next budget negotiations will proceed," says Mr Aarebrot.

Entry for immigrant workers to be made easier (Aftenposten)

In future it will be easier for employers to recruit staff from abroad. Local Government Minister Sylvia Brustad and Labour and Government Affairs Minister Jørgen Kosmo yesterday presented the new regulations for migrant workers. Mr Kosmo pointed out that this move will not make people move to Norway in droves. He added that both private companies and the Directorate of Labour will have to actively recruit in other countries in order to bring the people they want in to Norway.

Vesta demands NOK 50 million from National Railway Administration (Dagbladet)

Once again the acrimonious relations between NSB and the National Railway Administration have bubbled to the surface. NSB’s insurance company, Vesta, has presented the National Railway Administration with a bill for over NOK 50 million in an attempt to recover costs it has incurred following the fatal accident at Åsta in January 2000, in which 19 people were killed. The National Railway Administration is refusing to pay up and the dispute could end up in court.

People trafficking on an enormous scale (Dagsavisen)

Organized crime syndicates earn millions smuggling people into Norway. In the past five years police and customs officers have foiled almost 300 attempts. 91 of the traffickers are now being brought to trial. Two Norwegians from the southeast of the country are alleged to be the brains behind the illegal trafficking. They face up to five years imprisonment if found guilty. Intelligence reports from police in Germany show that Norway is increasingly the illegal immigrants’ final destination. People trafficking is extremely widespread, according to the police.

Worth Noting

1. The Labour government has searched high and low to find new tasks for the county authorities to take over. They have now discovered that culture, transport, the environment and industrial policy can be transferred to the counties to save them from a lingering death. (Dagsavisen)
2. MP Jørn Stang representing Østfold county resigned from the Progress Party in protest on Wednesday evening. "I still have respect for Carl I. Hagen as a politician. But I have lost all respect for Carl I. Hagen as a person," says Mr Stang. The number of Progress Party MPs has shrunk from 25 to 20 since January. (Verdens Gang)
3. Christian Democrat leader Kjell Magne Bondevik is willing to go a long way in order to give Norsk Hydro a bigger share of the State’s Direct Financial Interest (SDFI) in Norway’s oil and gas reserves. He has called on the Labour Party to make contact and restart negotiations on the distribution of the oil wealth deposited in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea. (Dagbladet)
4. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg’s popularity with the charity, Norwegian People’s Aid, sank like a stone yesterday when he refused to confirm or deny whether the Government Petroleum Fund would continue to invest in companies manufacturing landmines. (Dagbladet)
5. The Directorate for Public Management has proposed wide ranging measures to increase government efficiency. Government Administration Minister Jørgen Kosmo has followed up by announcing that the directorate will be merged with the Norwegian Central Information Service from 1 July this year to form a new directorate. (Dagens Næringsliv)
6. All the signs indicate that the Labour government has made up its mind. In a short while both Tormod Hermansen and Egil Myklebust will be appointed chairmen of their respective companies, Telenor and Norsk Hydro. (Verdens Gang)
7. No to the EU, which opposes Norwegian membership of the EU, is analyzing parliamentary candidates’ attitudes to difficult EU issues ahead of this autumn’s general election. Within the next few days they will send a letter to all the parties’ county organizations. "The electorate has the right to know what their politicians stand for," says Sigbjørn Gjelsvik, chairman of No to the EU. (Nationen)
8. Turid Birkeland was not appointed head of NRK, even though she had been Cultural Affairs Minister in a Labour government. However, she did land another thankless job: head of the cultural affairs department at NRK. (Dagbladet)

Today’s comment from Aftenposten

There is no reason to pander to the Centre Party’s dream of turning this autumn’s general election campaign into a matter of who is for and who is against Norwegian membership of the EU. That discussion will not happen until the people are ready for it. It is therefore even more important that we have a debate about the challenges which developments in Europe and the EU represent for Norway. Among the important issues at stake is how we should respond to an EU expansion to the east, which would turn the European Community into the pan-European organization for cooperation and development that opponents of Norwegian membership sneered at in the run-up to the referendum in 1994. We also need to discuss how we can protect our national interests in relation to the developments in security policy that are taking shape within the European Community. The most important thing as we embark on a new parliamentary term is how much freedom of movement the new Government will be given. But for before then we must debate our relations with the EU – regardless of whether we join the Community or remain on the outside.