Former FRP leader and finance minister Siv Jensen fastens his life jacket and sets out on the sun-bathed fjord. Her job is to keep safety at sea afloat, but she misses greater commitment and more measures from the government. – We have to go from words to action, we need a zero vision, like in traffic. We need measures, an action plan and better statistics. Now there is a lot of talk, and little that happens. Time passes, and people drown, says Jensen, who is the general manager of the organization Flyte, to news. 118 people died in traffic last year, a sharp decrease from 310 in 2002, the year the Storting introduced a zero vision for traffic. According to Flyte, an average of 93 people die each year after drowning in Norway. Siv Jensen wants to have an equal commitment to drowning deaths as traffic deaths. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB Unclear responsibility Jensen believes that the statistics have major weaknesses and that the hidden figures can be large. She wants better cooperation and coordination in several areas. Which ministry has the overall responsibility? news has been in contact with several, and the areas of responsibility have been divided up and distributed in several places on deck. Jensen asks one minister to take over the helm. – I myself have sat in the government, and know that if one minister does not have all the responsibility, then nothing happens. Communications adviser Halvard Wensel in the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries confirms that responsibility for prevention is shared. – Several ministers have met with Flyte, and the government is aware of their commitment to a zero vision for drowning accidents. It is necessary to prevent drowning accidents, and they have good input that we are now working on, says communications adviser Halvard Wensel at the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries. – A serious social problem The UN and WHO have increased their efforts, and 25 July is World Drowning Prevention Day. – We must increase the spotlight on this serious social problem, and now we are at full speed into the summer months, when most drownings occur. Every summer the politicians come running to a crime scene, and are almost shocked that it is happening. To a greater extent than in traffic, large parts of the accidents are naturally concentrated in the summer. – Norway has very big ambitions when it comes to traffic fatalities, with a zero vision for several years. Trygg Trafikk does a great job, and the authorities provide great resources. When it comes to drowning prevention, it seems that every season the authorities are surprised that around 90 people die annually in drowning accidents. Not only at sea Jensen is clear that it is important to think that it is not only from boats and at sea that people drown. – 40 per cent of drownings are due to falling from land. 40 percent of drownings are due to accidents in fresh water. Therefore, a zero vision must apply to all water throughout the country, i.e. rivers, lakes and seas. And that must apply to quays, wharves, boats and pools, she believes. The government has zero vision on the agenda, says Wensel in the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries. Together with the ministries concerned, the government has also initiated work to assess a zero vision for all drowning. The work is at an early stage, and it is therefore too early to say what the result will be. But the work has priority, says Wensel.
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Siv Jensen comes out hard against the government – news Norway – Overview of news from various parts of the country
