Oslo municipality claims they could lose around NOK 1 billion due to the new tax that the government announced on Wednesday. – I am very excited about the state budget. If there are further cuts there, I think an order crisis is starting to loom, says finance councilor Einar Wilhelmsen (MDG). It is only eight days since the city council in Oslo presented proposals for next year’s budget. The finance council was then clear that this was no crisis budget. – We can thank the electricity revenues for that, said the Finance Council then. Now, in other words, the pipe has taken on a different tone. Fear of cuts Less income also means less money to spend. In the end, it will probably affect the population of the capital: – Since the municipality primarily delivers welfare to the residents, daycare centers or people who work in home care, I’m afraid that means we have to cut the welfare offer to Oslo’s residents, says Wilhelmsen. Turning over all stones For Oslo municipality, it is still too early to say where they will have to cut, if the tax changes are adopted in the Storting. The Finance Agency says the municipality is now turning over all stones to find out how to cover the expected loss. – It is not allowed to have a municipal budget that goes into the red, says Wilhelmsen. 8 billion in extra tax When Oslo municipality presented its budget for 2023, it looked fairly bright. They own Hafslund, and are the country’s second largest power owner after the state. They expected that sky-high electricity prices would bring record dividends to the municipality. In fact, as much as NOK 2.5 billion. But already when the budget was presented, Wilhelmsen said that the power surplus would probably be eaten up by wage and price growth in society. Hafslund tells news that they will have to pay 8 billion in extra tax if the government’s power tax goes through. Last year they paid a total of 5.2 billion in tax, so next year the tax bill is likely to be more than twice as high. The government: – Needs new income The proposals for the tax changes were presented by Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Ap) and Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum (Sp) on Wednesday. The Prime Minister said that the community needs greater income in the coming years, and that it is not appropriate for the government to cover the costs with large cuts. – In many cases, many have received more and they must contribute more to the joint team. The community gets bigger tasks and needs new income. I want to emphasize that we are in an enormously demanding time, Støre said on Wednesday. Lived beyond means City council representative and city council leader candidate Eirik Lae Solberg (H) believes the Labor Party has lived beyond means, and that this is now affecting the residents of Oslo. – Oslo is now being hit both by the government hitting the big cities hard through a change in the energy tax, and by an Ap-led city council that has not set aside a buffer for unforeseen events, says Solberg. He now fears that this will lead to major cuts in nursery, school and health services for the citizens.
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Oslo municipality loses a billion after new power tax from the government – news Oslo og Viken – Local news, TV and radio
