– None of the ministers who are resigning today have asked to resign. Everyone wanted to continue, said Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Ap) at his press conference today. As a result, Ap’s Storting group gets three new ex-ministers who would ideally have been in a completely different place. RESPONSIBILITY: Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. Photo: Lise Åserud / NTB Neither Marte Mjøs Persen, Anniken Huitfeldt nor Bjørnar Skjæran have at any time expressed that they want to leave the government. – This is my decision, which I in no way take lightly, said Støre. He admitted that the talks with the three ministers who have now been dismissed were not easy. – If you were to proceed from what would have been convenient for me, I would have wished that it was not right to do this, he said. From before, former labor minister Hadia Tajik and former culture minister Anette Trettebergstuen had to resign from the government after commuter housing scandals and breaches of integrity. Neither did their departures happen of their own accord. Thus, there are a total of five recent ex-ministers in Ap’s parliamentary group. Former Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt. Former Fisheries Minister Bjørnar Skjæran and his successor Cecilie Myrseth. Marte Mjøs Persen (th) leaves the helm to Tonje Brenna. Anette Trettebergstuen. Hadia Tajik. “Bench of Discontent” The Labor leaders could manage an entire ministry with at least tens of billions in budget. The journalists stood in line to get them to speak, and drivers had them transported from one important appointment to another. Now a new everyday life awaits as a representative of the Storting, where the personal influence over politics is usually more limited. The ministers who have now left the government are among the Labor Party’s best-known faces. Now it will be up to parliamentary leader Rigmor Aasrud to ensure that the wrecked party profiles function well in their new roles in the Storting. – Are you getting a kind of dissatisfaction bench now, which you have to deal with as leader of the Storting group? – I do not believe. Those who have returned are determined to do a good job in the parliamentary group. They all report that, says Aasrud STORTING STOP: The Labor Party’s Rigmor Aasrud. Photo: Mats Rønning / news – What is it like to be the head of a group that also includes five people who would prefer to be somewhere else entirely, i.e. in government? – I think most people who return to the Storting have a short period where they wish things were different. But my experience is that it does not take long before they are well underway with normal parliamentary work and contribute well to the parliamentary group. I’m absolutely sure we’ll get that, with the three coming back now too. – So there won’t be a problem with a lack of trust between parts of the parliamentary group and the government? – No, I do not think so. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre was this afternoon in the Storting for talks with the parliamentary leaders ahead of the next long-term plan for the Norwegian Armed Forces. There he was also asked questions about today’s Cabinet resignations. – It is a sign of quality that they wanted to continue. It was not an easy message to give, but it was the right message to give. When a few days have passed, I think they will become a resource for the group and strengthen the group, Støre told news. New roles Under the leadership of Nils Foshaug, APS’s election committee at the Storting is now starting to find new tasks for the three former ministers. Aasrud says that a larger reshuffle may be necessary, which also includes changes for others in the group. Practice dictates that none of the three ex-ministers takes a seat in the control and constitutional committee. Nor will they probably end up in committees with responsibility for areas where they themselves were ministers. The aim is to have the solitaire ready during the week, but no guarantee is given. Rigmor Aasrud himself is determined to continue in his role as parliamentary leader. – I have no other plans than to be here, Aasrud answers questions about her own role. – As a parliamentary leader? – Yes. DONE: Anniken Huitfeldt will now return to the Storting. Photo: Lars Nehru Sand / news The three who are now removed from the government are all very experienced Labor people: 53-year-old Anniken Huitfeldt from Akershus has 18 years’ experience in the Storting and has previously held several ministerial posts. She was AUF leader in the years 1996 to 2000 and sat on Aps’ central board from 2002 until this spring. Fisheries Minister Bjørnar Skjæran was sacked this spring as deputy leader of the Labor Party. The 57-year-old from Lurøy in Nordland was deputy leader of Ap for four years and has sat on the central board since 2013. Marte Mjøs Persen became minister of oil and energy in 2021 and took over as minister of employment and inclusion last winter. She sits on Aps’ central board and was mayor of Bergen from 2015 to 2021. RENEWAL: Jonas Gahr Støre with his new faces today. Photo: Emilie Holtet / NTB Strong reactions Anniken Huitfeldt has for several decades left her mark on the Labor Party, where she has a large network. news knows that the reactions to her departure are strong among her supporters. At the weekend, Labor politician and county councilor for finance and administration in Viken, Edvin Søvik, told VG that it is completely incomprehensible if Støre removes Huitfeldt. Støre stood behind Huitfeldt when the share case surrounding her husband broke a month ago. But by getting rid of Huitfeldt, sources in the party indicate that the Labor Party may have a tougher grip on Conservative Party leader Erna Solberg when all the competency cases come up in the control committee this autumn. Støre justified the dismissal of Huitfeldt with the need for renewal and a weak election with great attention to integrity and shares. And he himself got into Solberg’s own share issue. – Erna Solberg’s case has contributed to further weakening trust in us politicians. It has also contributed to there being no peace around Anniken’s case, even though Solberg’s case is far more extensive, they also have fundamental similarities, he said. Anniken Huitfeldt herself did not want to answer in-depth questions from the press about her own resignation or the integrity case today. – I have no comment. Now it is Espen who is the protagonist of the day, said Huitfeldt before accepting the successor. – I understand that this is not easy for Anniken, Eide answered when asked by the press if he thinks it is painful that his party colleague had to resign. BACK: Espen Barth Eide (Ap) takes over as foreign minister from Anniken Huitfeldt, a job he has also held previously. Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB – Incomprehensible The departures of Persen and Skjæran also create reactions internally. – That the Prime Minister chose to replace Fisheries and Oceans Minister Bjørnar Skjæran is both incomprehensible and surprising, says county leader Mona Nilsen in Nordland Ap. Thus, for the second time in six months, Skjæran had to step aside in an internal Labor reshuffle. This spring he had to go as deputy chairman, to make room for Jan Christian Vestre and Tonje Brenna. He retained his position as fisheries minister – until today, when he was replaced by Cecilie Myrseth from Troms. According to what news understands, it was the government’s gender balance that sealed Skjæran’s fate: When Andreas Bjelland Eriksen was to come in as minister, another man had to leave. Labor and Inclusion Minister Marte Mjøs Persen would also prefer to continue in government. – I do not understand this decision, and I do not think it is a wise choice by Jonas, says Bergen’s outgoing city councilor Rune Bakervik in an SMS to news today.
ttn-69
Five former ministers parked at the Storting – news Norway – Overview of news from various parts of the country
