– We are now sending a clear signal that such practices will be clamped down on. This will make it easier to get access to good retail premises, says Minister for Business Jan Christian Vestre. As news has previously uncovered, for a number of years there has been a fierce battle between the grocery chains for attractive properties, in order to steal customers from each other. As news has previously uncovered, for a number of years there has been a fierce battle for attractive properties, in order to steal customers from each other. The prohibition is against what are called negative servitudes. There is a right to refuse a certain type of use of a property, even if one does not own it, the press release states. – Market shares should be secured by performing the best, not by pulling up the ladder after yourself, the Minister for Business maintains. Easement A special right over someone else’s immovable property, which entails that a certain right of disposal over it has been assigned to another immovable property (real easement) or a person (personal easement). This discretion can either consist of access to a certain use, e.g. right of way, right of way, right of grazing (positive easement), or it can amount to the right to prohibit the owner of the servient property from certain types of actual disposal, e.g. building ban, villa clause (negative easement). Easements are most often established by agreement and must be registered to obtain full legal protection; positive servitudes can also be established by claim, but if the right does not appear from a fixed facility placed for the purpose of use, the claim period is 50 years, compared to 20 otherwise; however, this does not apply to the right to the necessary road or storage space. General legal rules on servitudes can be found in the Act of 29 November 1968 on special rights of disposal over foreign property. The law has, among other things, provisions on the exercise of the right of easement, on the relocation, re-regulation and replacement of easements, and on disposal. In a separate section on rights of use in forests, there are a number of restrictions with the aim of protecting the forest. Source: Store Norske Leksikon Servituttlova – lovdata.no The ban will be adopted this summer, but will come into force on 1 January 2024. The food giants Norgesgruppen, Coop and Rema have the largest market shares in Norway. Minister of Industry, Jan Christian Vestre, says that negative easements can counteract local competition. Photo: Tale Hauso / news In 135 Norwegian municipalities, Norgesgruppen has over 50 percent market share. – We are working in several areas to improve competition in the daily necessities market. Ensuring access to good retail space is one of the measures, writes the Minister of Business. – Unproblematic CEO of Norgesgruppen, Stein Rømmerud, tells news that this will not happen to them. – This is unproblematic for us because we do not have negative easements. Some time ago we went through all the agreements and removed what was there. We are left with three agreements with negative easements which will eventually be terminated. Stein Rømmerud, in the Norgesgruppen, says the ban is unproblematic and will not affect them. Photo: Ola Hana / news Rømmerud, on the other hand, says that there are many regulations on the daily grocery market at the moment: – It is important that you get time to see that the regulations work before introducing new ones. Ingvill Størksen, director of Coop, says that they are positive about the ban. – We are positive about measures that contribute to better competition in the market. The first proposal had many legal loopholes that need to be closed. Størksen emphasizes that they will read the decision with interest, and that it is important that the government looks at the integrity of it. Photo: Virke – There may be more to look at than negative easements, and exclusive lease agreements, including right of way. Financial director of Rema Establishment, Henning T. Trangerud wrote to news that: – We think it is good that there will be a ban, it is a step in the right direction. But the regulations should contain a prohibition against exclusive lease agreements, and a prohibition against renting premises with the aim of preventing a competitor from establishing itself as well. The ban does not apply to exclusive lease agreements, but there is a need to map their use and look at how they work, the press release states. Reitan Retail says that they also welcome the ban. – We are for competition on equal terms, to the extent that actors have used negative easements to keep competitors out, a ban is a good thing.
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The government bans tactical games from the daily grocery giants – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
