– I think it is special that he will not be able to vouch for the election programme. It is the weak who are allowed to undergo. That’s what Øystein Reiersen Tholo says to news. He is one of several residents in the old municipality of Fusa who are now reacting strongly to the fact that the Progress Party has turned around since the election campaign last autumn. The party went to the election in the new Bjørnafjorden municipality to maintain the emergency room service both in Os and in Fusa. – Call the emergency room, says the election video that the FRP shared before the election in September. More expensive than planned Mayor Terje Søviknes and the FRP have now submitted a budget proposal in which the closure of the emergency room at Eikelandsosen in Fusa is most relevant to save money. He confirms that they went to the polls to ring around the emergency room at Eikelandsosen and at Os. – But the challenge is that the model that has been established, where you bring in doctors who go on the North Sea rotation, has a very high cost, says Søviknes. He believes that the scheme costs 4 million more than the 3.5 million that was budgeted for, says Søviknes. Terje Søviknes during the vigil for Bjørnafjorden Frp on 11 September this year. His party received 34.8 percent of the vote, an increase of 2.9 percent compared to the election in 2019. Photo: Eskil Wie Furunes/news – Must look at measures – But do you understand that people are disappointed that the FRP broke the promises they made in the election campaign? – I understand that people would like to keep the offer they have today, but we have to look at measures when the costs have been so high, says the mayor. Terje Søviknes was elected mayor of Bjørnafjorden after the election last autumn, but he is also still 2nd deputy leader of the Progressive Party. For Tholo, who lives in the village of Strandvik, it will mean much longer travel time to get to doctor’s services outside of office hours. Especially when the ferry stops running in the evening, the drive from, for example, Strandvik to the municipal center Osøyro will be over an hour and a half. – It will have major consequences for us who live here on the outskirts of the municipality, asserts Tholo. Bjørnafjorden municipality Bjørnafjorden is a municipality in Vestland county. The municipality was created by the merger of Os and Fusa municipalities in 2020. Terje Søviknes was mayor for several periods in Os municipality, now he is the same in the new Bjørnafjorden. The Progress Party went to the polls in the autumn of 2023 to retain emergency services on both sides of the Bjørnafjorden. Should protest In northern Norway in particular, there has recently been a focus on emergency preparedness, but especially linked to hospitals. In several places, people have gathered for torchlight processions and protests against cut plans. Now Øystein tells Tholo that they are doing the same for the emergency room in Fusa. – Next Sunday we will gather in protest against the proposal for closure, says Tholo. An analysis has been prepared of what could replace the 24-hour emergency department in Fusa. Among other things, it will now be assessed whether it can be solved by having a nurse at work. He or she must communicate with doctors elsewhere when people come in who are ill. – Serious But for Øystein Tholo and others in the old Fusa municipality news has spoken to, it is not a good enough solution. It is not more than a few weeks since he himself was picked up in an ambulance at home and driven the long way to hospital in Bergen. – I expect the politicians to realize how serious this is and that they will really look at themselves and find other ways to save money than closing down the most important thing we have, says the Fusa man.
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Søviknes in severe weather in the home municipality – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
