– You may get the feeling that things are not working quite as they should. But it is important to remember that politicians are people too – and can make mistakes, says Mathias Fagervik. He strolls through Arendal’s streets together with his brother Heine. The sun is shining over the southern village, but dark clouds threaten this year’s trust survey. It shows that trust in politicians has decreased somewhat since last year, and markedly back compared to three years ago. – They should perhaps know their role, says Heine. – If I ask you to highlight a Norwegian political scandal, what is the first thing that comes to mind? – I don’t know, ass. There have been so many scandals in recent years that everything just goes haywire, replies Mathias. Three scandals in the year Since 2018, Respons Analyze has carried out the trust survey on behalf of Arendalsuka. It shows a decline in trust in politicians in recent years. – The pressure of scandal in Norwegian politics has been extraordinarily high, says political scientist Kim Arne Hammerstad. Hammerstad believes that more scandals have been revealed because the Norwegian media invests more in investigative journalism. Photo: Rahand Bazaz / news He points to several reasons why trust in politicians is falling. The MeToo movement with the revelation of several abuses. Utilization of the Storting’s commuter accommodation. Cheating with travel bills. Share purchases that did not stand the light of day Employment of friends and own network. Cheating with master’s theses. Do you trust politicians? From 2017 until now, there have been several political scandals. At least scandals that have been exposed. From the 1970s until 2017, there was an average of just under one political scandal a year. Since then, many elected officials have been caught with their pants down. Three times as many in fact. On average, the front pages of newspapers are now filled with three political scandals a year. – When an impression is created that politicians are scandalous, corrupt and cheats, I think it probably has an impact on how trust is in high-ranking politicians. Other findings from the trust survey Norwegian non-profit organizations here have the most trust. In total, 89 per cent of the respondents give a grade of 6 or higher on the question of trust. This is an increase from last year. 72 per cent have confidence in Norwegian employee organisations. The Storting holds third place with a total of 69 percent. This is 2 percentage points down compared to last year, but markedly back compared to 3 years ago, from 78 per cent. 59 percent trust the Norwegian media. This is a decrease from last year. 59 and 58 per cent who give grades 6–10 when it comes to trust in the municipal council in their own municipality and the government. 46 percent say they trust Norwegian political parties. This is a decrease from last year. Only 10 percent trust social media. This is the lowest the confidence survey has measured. At the bottom of the article, you can read which scandals Hammerstad believes have been the worst in Norwegian politics. So far more political scandals than normal have been revealed in recent years. But which issue do people remember best? – That Gerd-Liv Valla. I don’t remember what it was. But I remember it was a scandal, says Kristine Von Atneosen. – I don’t know his name, but he who stole sunglasses at the airport. That’s the first thing I think of, says Fredrik Oftedal. – The commuter housing cases, says Ida Jodanovic. – I generally think Norway’s predator policy is a scandal, says Moa Hedman from NOAH’s stand in Arendal. – It was the commuter housing. I remember very well when it happened, says Stepan Ermilov Part of the problem – That my elections have weakened trust in politicians, I find that very difficult, says Storting politician Kjell Ingolf Ropstad (KrF) He is one of several politicians who were caught in the so-called commuter housing cases. The revelation led to him resigning as party leader in 2021. – I hope that people see the wonderful job politicians do every day. Only a few make mistakes like I did. Top five worst scandals Hammerstad published the book “Political Scandals: Sex, corruption and power struggle” in 2018. But after a wild scandal year in 2023, he had to update the book, and slang about stock trading and integrity in the title. But which scandal has thrones at the top? In the gallery below, Kim Arne Hammerstad lists what he believes to be the five biggest scandals in Norwegian politics. NTB 1. Leaked secret document In first place comes a scandal that is over 50 years old. Then Prime Minister Per Borten was accused of having leaked a secret document about the EC negotiations to the leader of the People’s Movement in 1971. This later ended up in Dagbladet, and the leak cost he the job. – It is actually the only scandal that has brought down a government, says political scientist Kim Arne Hammerstad. Frode Fjerdingstad / news 2. The share case Second comes Erna Solberg (H) and the share case. Her husband, Sindre Finnes, made 3,290 share transactions while Solberg was prime minister. Solberg herself has concluded that she was incompetent in several of the cases. Finnes traded shares even though In autumn 2013, he received clear warnings not to do so as long as his wife was prime minister. Solberg has continued as party leader afterwards. William Jobling / news 3. The Facebook scandal Sylvi Listhaug’s Facebook scandal also gets a podium place from Hammerstad. In 2018, then Minister of Justice Listhaug published a post on Facebook with a picture of uniformed soldiers with the following text above: “Ap believes the terrorists’ rights are more important than the nation’s security”. Listhaug resigned as Minister of Justice 11 days after she posted the post. NTB scanpix 4. Tax fraud In the early 90s, former Conservative Party leader and Prime Minister Jan P. Syse committed tax fraud as chairman of two apartment buildings in Oslo. Among other things, he had failed to deliver several important documents and accounts to the Brønnøysund registers. Syse resigned as Prime Minister , but not because of this case. The government decided that after they no longer had enough support from the Storting following an EU dispute. NTB scanpix 5. The sex scandal The Søviknes case sent shock waves through political Norway when it became known in 2001. Terje Søviknes (Frp), who was then 31 years old and deputy leader of the Frp, had had sex with a 16-year-old girl. The girl said in questioning that what happened was not voluntary on her part. Søviknes thought it was, but regretted the incident. The case was dismissed, but Søviknes had to resign as deputy leader of the party. Hi! Do you have any thoughts on the case you just read or tips for other things we should look at? We have worked on several issues about, among other things, Russian time, life as a student, local politics & single life. Send us an email! Published 14.08.2024, at 19.58
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Trust in politicians is falling – thinks the scandals are to blame – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
