Today, foreign trucks can drive three cabotage trips within seven days after they have crossed the border into Norway. The vehicle then has to go out and “cool down” for four days, before it can again take on tasks within the Norwegian border. The rules follow from the EU’s mobility directive, which was introduced in Norway in 2020. Four years later, a new dispute is brewing over the rules following reports that social dumping is turning goods transport over to vegans – completely at odds with the Norwegian goal of getting more goods transport over to sea and track. In a new proposal, Raudt demands that the current rules be repealed in the interim. – We have never explored this room for action within the EEA agreement, so this is a question of political will, says Mímir Kristjánsson. Photo: Berit Roald / NTB The rationale is “extensive social dumping” and that “foreign lorries drive in with little or no cargo in order to exploit the opportunities for cabotage”. Foreign drivers must receive the Norwegian minimum wage in Norway, but in a survey from 2021, only 14 percent of the drivers answered that they receive wages according to Norwegian standards. – There are good reasons to stop and take a full review of the many unfortunate aspects of today’s access to cabotage transport, says Raudt representative Mímir Kristjánsson. – In violation of the EEA agreement to repeal the rules Leader of the Occupational Traffic Association Jim Klungnes, calls the Raudt proposal “a dead end”. – Vulnerable people are grossly exploited on Norwegian roads. But closing Norway to cabotage would be against the EEA agreement, he says. The EEA Agreement is Norway’s form of association with the EU and sets the framework for the flow of goods and services across borders. The Norwegian room for maneuver within these borders is the subject of political and legal tug-of-war, and this spring the government announced that it will challenge the room for maneuver for passenger transport cabotage. The background is the intermediate right for tour buses to operate in another EEA country – without the term “intermediate” being more closely defined or specified. Today, the Danes have seen a ceiling of seven days, while France has a limit of 30 days. In Norway, by comparison, foreign tour buses operate from May to September. The Ministry of Transport and Communications has therefore worked out what limitations they can implement – without falling afoul of the EEA regulations. The report has been completed, but is not yet public. – The report will be made public when the ministry has gone through it. It will probably happen relatively quickly, explains the Ministry of Transport and Communications to news. A ring round at the Storting shows that Raudt’s “competitors” agree on the diagnosis of a “race to the bottom”, but not the prescription. Photo: Øyvind Engan / VG – Far better to intensify the controls NHO Transport expects that any demarcations will not be clear before the summer season 2024. Managing director of NHH Transport, Jon H. Stordrange, believes that the Raudt proposal breaks with the EEA agreement “because you can don’t just ignore predictions you don’t like”. – Then it is far better to intensify the controls, he says. A ring round at the Storting shows that Raudt’s colleagues agree on the diagnosis of a “race to the bottom”, but not the prescription. Mona Fagerås, SV: – It is clear that it is urgent to clean up cabotage transport, but we think it is important to listen to the trade union movement in this matter, after all it is their jobs that are at stake. Alfred Bjørlo, Liberal Party: – Stronger action is needed to overcome the illegalities that have been uncovered in the industry. But we must do this in collaboration with the parties in working life, and within the scope of action in the EEA agreement. Today, foreign trucks can drive three cabotage trips within seven days after they have crossed the border into Norway. Photo: Paul Kleiven / NTB scanpix – Only a few percent of the trailers were checked. Last autumn, the EU’s mobility directive was supplemented with a “social part” to remove unscrupulous actors and ensure better competition conditions. – At the second largest border crossing, in the past only a few per thousand of the trailers were checked, says transport policy spokesperson for the Labor Party, Nils Kristen Sandtrøen. He refers to “several concrete improvements” on their watch: – We need much stricter control of foreign road trains Jim Klungnes, leader of the Professional Transport Association – The problem is not primarily the regulations. We should rather spend time and energy on measures to get all the actors to follow the existing rules. There is a lot we can do if only political will is enough. What we need is much stricter control of foreign truck trains in Norway and far stronger sanctions when the rules are broken. Unfortunately, the Norwegian Labor Inspectorate and the Swedish Road Administration have far too few resources to control and sanction. The big carriers make thousands of trips, and if they get caught once in a while and get a warning or a fine, it means nothing. It must hurt to break the law. I encourage Raudt and the other parties to deal with this properly. Jan-Terje Mentzoni, Vice Adm. director of the Norwegian Truck Owners’ Association – Today’s cabotage regulations are an important tool for counteracting social dumping over time. The EU’s former commissioner for transport in the years 2010-14, Siim Kallas, originally came up with a proposal for total freedom, which would have led to free flow without control. The consequences of that had been extensive social dumping, exploitation of workers and an undermining of the Norwegian model. Fortunately, NLF and our partner organizations in Europe won approval for changes, and the EU introduced the regulations we have today. We support all intentions to ensure good working conditions for drivers, and believe this is very important to also facilitate recruitment into the professional driving profession. We are happy that the violations that have been detected both by the Norwegian Labor Inspectorate and by the SVV Crime Section have been detected, and we have used our knowledge of the conditions along Norwegian roads to put better regulations in place. Nils Kristen Sandtrøen, spokesperson for transport policy in the Labor Party – The government works together with the industry to clean up social dumping and weed out frivolous or criminal actors. This way our drivers, who do important work on behalf of the community, can have a more secure income. At the same time, we can all increase the safety of vegans with even better seriousness in the industry. Alfred Bjørlo, Venstre – The Liberal Party supports a quick review of the cabotage regulations. There is no doubt that stronger efforts are needed to overcome the illegalities that have been uncovered in the industry. But in contrast to Raudt, who wants to continue with his fight to undermine the EEA agreement “over the heads” of the parties in working life, we would like to do this in cooperation with NHO Transport and the organizations in the Norwegian transport industry, and within the room for maneuver in the EEA Agreement. The Left will strongly encourage the government to listen more to the parties in working life in the transport industry than to the most extreme EEA opponents in Raudt. Mona Fagerås, transport policy spokesperson in SV – It is clear that it is urgent to clean up cabotage transport, but SV thinks that it is important to listen to the trade union movement in this matter, after all it is their jobs that are at stake. SV believes that one of the most important things now is to clean up the tour bus industry, where it is free to drive low-wage buses from abroad without proper regulation. That is why we have also proposed it in Parliament, but a majority unfortunately think that today’s race to the bottom is acceptable. We will continue to work against social dumping in the transport sector, but then more money will also be needed to ensure that the rules are actually followed. Because there have been many good changes recently, now it just needs to be followed up in practice. Mímir Kristjánsson, Raudt – It is right that Norway cannot close cabotage permanently when we are part of the EEA. But we can close cabotage driving between belts, if the reasons are weighty enough. In this case, the reasons are very extensive social dumping, which in addition to affecting working people also delays the necessary green shift. The purpose is therefore to clean up social dumping and to introduce new stricter rules for cabotage. The truth is that we have never explored this room for action within the EEA agreement, so this is a question of political will. When it comes to getting the players to follow the existing rules, we believe that 24/7 border control and heavy fines and sanctions for transport buyers who do not follow the duty of care are just such measures. Mímir Kristjánsson has heard the objections that it is simply not possible to repeal the cabotage rules without colluding with Brussels. – It is right that Norway cannot permanently close cabotage when we are part of the EEA. But we can close cabotage driving between belts, if the reasons are weighty enough. He adds: – The truth is that we have never explored this room for action within the EEA agreement, so this is a question of political will. NHO Transport expects that any restrictions on foreign bus transport will not be clear before the 2024 summer season. Photo: Halvard Alvik / NTB
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New dispute over the rules for foreign transport – news Vestland
