Last week, news put the spotlight on dual roles in Hytte-Norge. In Øyer, SP politician Stein Plukkerud is the general manager of a number of companies in Hafjell. He has been in the chairmanship and municipal council for seven years. In addition, he has been on the municipal planning committee for a year and a half, until he applied for leave. He himself says that he is very careful to separate these two roles. But during a meeting of the municipal planning committee in Øyer in February last year, there were several people who were stumped: The committee was supposed to have a “dialogue meeting”, where different developers argue for which projects they want to have carried out. Later, the politicians will decide what they want to adopt. Politicians switched roles Two of the politicians, Stein Plukkerud (Sp) and Roar Øien (H), are engaged in the company Vestsiden Invest, which has a large project on Mosetertoppen in Hafjell. They were therefore ineligible, and could not participate as politicians. But they still came to the same meeting – as builders. They brought a 100-page power point presentation from Vestsiden Invest on how Hafjell should be developed. At the same time, their fellow villagers and politician colleagues sat and listened. news has been in contact with all the parties in the municipal council. – This was very wrong Deputy Mayor of Øyer, Nisveta Tiro (SV). Photo: Private Deputy Mayor of Øyer, Nisveta Tiro (SV) was present, and says she reacted. – I think this was very wrong. This was a new situation in terms of competence. On the same day, she sent an e-mail about the case to the mayor and the municipal director. – Do you think that the company should send other representatives? – Yes absolutely. I believe that the company has a responsibility to maintain trust, balance roles and act neutrally. – A purely informational meeting Roar Øien, one of the developers, says that the meeting referred to was a “purely informational meeting.” – The company was invited by Øyer municipality to present the areas and projects we are working on, without substantive treatment of any of the projects. This was the basis for me considering being able to participate, he says. Stein Plukkerud says that there has been full transparency about all his business interests ever since he stood for election. – This was the basis for me considering being able to participate in presenting our input, input that has been known for a long time. Lawyer: – Close personal connections Docent Fredrik Holth. Photo: Anne Lognvik / news Fredrik Holth, who is a lecturer in legal subjects at NMBU, says that the incident shows a lack of understanding of roles. – The two of them should, for the sake of the system they are part of, send others to such an orientation, he says. Professor Ole Kristian Fauchald. Photo: Christine Fagerbakke / news Professor Ole Kristian Fauchald at the Department of Public Law highlights the close personal connections. – Regardless of whether it is legal for the two to speak personally in such meetings, it is unfortunate that they do so because of their close relationship with people who, for example, might otherwise ask critical questions, says Fauchald. Had a follow-up conversation Mayor of Øyer, Jon Halvor Midtmageli (Sp). Photo: Dag Kessel / news Mayor Jon Halvor Midtmageli (Sp) says that he had a follow-up conversation with Plukkerud after the meeting, where the content was in the same direction as the two lawyers. – Vestsiden Invest should have sent someone else to present their proposal, he says. The mayor says that it was not controlled by the municipality who should come. He believes it is part of history that the company’s proposal for new cabin areas was not included in the consultation proposal for the municipal sub-plan. – It happened with the votes from Sp and SV, against the votes of Ap and Høyre, and against the municipal director’s proposal. I believe this creates trust. Midtmageli says that this is a direct follow-up to the election program for Øyer Sp, which states that cabin development in Øyer must be limited. Division in the political environment The issue of dual roles is now dividing the political environment in the large cottage municipality. Opposition leader in Øyer municipal council, Brit Krampgård Lundby (Ap), says that the mix of roles can be unfortunate, especially because it involves large developments and a lot of money. At the same time, she believes that what happened is not worthy of criticism. – I find it unproblematic that these two represented Vestsiden Invest at an open orientation meeting under municipal auspices, even though they had leave from the same meeting because they were ineligible as elected representatives, she says. As for Høyre’s group, it is Roar Øien who is the group leader there. He has not answered questions from news about what they as politicians think about the matter. The complete answers from Plukkerud and Øien Stein Plukkerud (Sp): There has been full transparency about my interests ever since I stood for SP, including to my political colleagues and Øyer municipality. This was the basis for me considering being able to participate in presenting our input, input that has been known for a long time. I will of course practice this openness as long as I am a politician, and I will otherwise make the same assessments about my competence in the future. Beyond that, I have no comments. Roar Øien (H): I am now in my third term as elected representative. When I changed jobs in the autumn of 2021 in my tenth year as an elected representative, I was aware that I would then be disqualified during the processing of individual cases in elected bodies in the municipality. There has therefore been full transparency from day 1 about my then new employer’s projects and interests, both towards fellow politicians and the administration in Øyer municipality. The meeting referred to was a purely informational meeting, where the company I was employed by was invited by Øyer municipality to present the areas and projects we are working on, without any of the projects being treated as substantive. This was the basis for me considering being able to participate in presenting our input, input that has been known for a long time. I will of course practice this openness as long as I am a politician, and I will of course still follow the eligibility rules by declaring myself ineligible when I am in fact ineligible. I don’t want anyone to think the law should have been different. Beyond that, I have no comments. Hi! Do you have any tips about this case or similar cases?
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Stein Plukkerud could not participate in a political meeting due to a dual role. Met as a developer – news Innlandet – Local news, TV and radio
