Democracy is one of the pillars of the western social structure and I would say behind the west’s great success. The majority decides, you have to bow to the majority even if you disagree, and management and care can change over time. Those who are voted into power reflect and must represent the voice of the people. The politicians are the people’s servants, it is said. However, with a salary far above the average in the population, but then a politician’s job is a place where it blows a lot at the top, so this is probably fair and reasonable. What is not reasonable is when you bluff your way into power and deliver something completely different from what you were elected on. Over a year into the electricity price crisis, the government has by no means got the crisis under control. The people were concerned about low electricity prices even before the general election. Electricity is clearly a very important matter in a country where it is cold, and not least when the political plan is to heat with almost only electricity. The people therefore voted for parties that went to the polls on promises of low electricity prices and Norway first. What did energy minister Aasland stand for? Yes, to the newspaper Fri Fagbevegelse he stated in 2019: “Not one kilowatt should be sent out of the country if the industry needs it.” The opposite has happened. The cables have mainly functioned as export cables, which have driven the price up so much that many companies have had to close down or reduce their operations. And what did Støre stand for? Yes, he said, among other things, the following at the Ap-National meeting in 2017: “We will be the first user of Norwegian hydropower. (……) We must think about first, the opportunities that the force provides for ourselves. The goal is value creation in Norway.” He has also said: “Economically, it is not a correct perspective if we build cables that lead to electricity becoming more expensive in Norway. It must then be included in the criteria, and we must say no to that.” What the politicians promised and what they have delivered do not match. Many businesses and people who voted for the Labor Party probably simply feel cheated. You have to say that the people voted rationally, they were concerned about electricity prices and the majority voted for parties that promised that we would be the first user of the power here. Then surely you don’t let the power go to the highest bidder abroad and let the highest price abroad set the price for the whole of southern Norway? Over 90 per cent of hydropower is owned by the state, county councils and municipalities. The average production cost is around 12 øre. This power is now sold at a super profit to the rightful owners of the hydropower, the people. It is simply rude to call it support, which is only a small compensation for usurious prices. All parties put on a ballot box when they go to the polls. Everyone knows they often fail to deliver fully. Not least if a party were to become a minority in a government, they would typically not be able to get through several of their election promises. They might even have to swallow a camel or two. There is a difference between adding a bit of election fluff and delivering something completely opposite to what you have bluffed your way into. Especially when you have even ended up with the majority in the government. I think this is what a great many voters now feel, that they have simply been bluffed by the Labor Party and the Center Party’s top management in terms of what they went to election on and what they actually deliver in their energy policy. Democracy itself can be weakened if those who win elections have bluffed their way in and do almost the opposite of what they were elected on. It would perhaps have been better if we had several referenda on important individual issues such as in Switzerland. But we don’t often have referenda on important individual issues in Norway. In this country, the democratic system is designed so that you have to be able to trust that the politician at least tries to deliver what they have been elected on, not least if you get the majority in the government. Vedum also made promises similar to Støre and Aasland around electricity before the election, so the Labor Party and the Center Party are in no way a minority in a government where they have to swallow camels. More than a year after the electricity price crisis began, the government is miles away from delivering. Fortunately, democracy has self-regulating mechanisms even without a referendum on individual issues. Municipal elections are approaching. The voters should consider the extent to which they will ensure that the local elections actually have a national political overtone, where they consider turning mayors from the governing parties in disgust at the government’s lack of will and ability to solve the electricity price crisis. Alternatively, the grassroots in these parties must stand up more strongly against the top management in their parties. We are anxiously waiting for the government to turn over more stones, set up more committees, and follow the situation closely, and even a little more closely.
ttn-69
Bluff and broken election promises – Speech
