– I get a little annoyed at the industry when they paint the situation black the way they do. When the country is in a difficult economic situation, I think you have to contribute, says Labor mayor Per Lerøy in Austrheim municipality in Nordhordland. news has been in contact with over 30 mayors from the two governing parties. And while many have criticized the salmon tax with an outside voice, the move also has great grassroots support. This week, the farming company Lerøy sent a layoff notice to 339 employees on Skjervøy, Hitra and Osterøy. CEO Henning Beltestad pointed to the government’s new ground rent tax as an explanation. But mayor Lerøy i Ap, who despite the name has nothing to do with the farming company, doubts that there will really be many layoffs in the aquaculture industry. – Is it a tactical ploy or is it real? I don’t trust them much. The whining from multi-billionaires becomes distasteful, quite simply. I don’t think most people have much sympathy, says the mayor. Ground rent is in practice a tax on various industries that are allowed to exploit a natural resource. There is already basic rent tax on hydropower and oil. PROFITABLE: Salmon farming off the island of Lovund in Nordland. – Nonsense Mayor Per Lerøy in Austrheim says the municipality does not get many kroner from the farming industry in the area. Not many are working either. – Most of the people employed in the industry do not live in our municipality. That they go out with such violent reactions, such as the lights going out along the coast, is just nonsense. They have had – and will continue to have – good earnings, he says. Economics professor Karen Helene Ulltveit-Moe led an investigation and recommended a salmon tax in 2019. Then the proposal did not materialize. – I am shocked at how far the industry is willing to go. To me it looks like a game of intimidation, she says of the layoff notices that are now ticking in. Norwegian society has waited too long and slept through the hour when it comes to the aquaculture industry, believes Ulltveit-Moe. – Now we have an aquaculture industry that is very strong, and that can spend millions on lobbying. ALARM: Director Geir Ove Ystmark of Seafood Norway. Photo: Audun Braastad When the government presented the proposal for a ground rent tax on farming in the autumn, Geir Ove Ystmark, director of Sjømat Norge, went hard: – With this, the Center Party and Labor put out the lights in the windows along the coast and force workers to hang their work clothes on the hook, said Ystmark to news. – What they are doing is slaughtering Norway’s most important future industry, he added. Ystmark has received solid support, including far into the Labor Party. Because in Hitra, mayor Ole Laurits Haugen sees the issue completely differently than his party colleague in Austrheim. – This will be a direct attack on jobs in the rural areas, and will also distort competition in favor of farming in other countries, he said when the proposal was presented. JOBS: Hitra mayor Ole Laurits Haugen (Ap) leads a network of coastal municipalities. Photo: Privat / news Hitra is among 78 Norwegian municipalities in a network for fjord and coastal municipalities (NFKK) – the vast majority of them from Ap and Sp – which have protested in clear terms against the salmon tax. Haugen is chairman of the network. “Ultimately, it will mean that the ambitions for more aquaculture in Norway are turned into the opposite – namely flagging and loss of jobs,” he says. The Hitra mayor receives support from mayor Ingrid Ovidie Rangønes (Ap) in Averøy municipality near Kristiansund. – What is most worrying is what will happen to suppliers and the service industry that serves the salmon industry, where we see that a lot of investment stops, she told Dagens Næringsliv on 31 October. Facts about ground rent tax for the aquaculture industry Effective rate of 40 per cent. Applies to the production of salmon, trout and rainbow trout. A floor deduction of 4,000-5,000 tonnes ensures that only the largest players pay ground rent tax. To apply from 1 January 2023, the government proposes. Will provide between 3.6 and 3.8 billion annual tax revenues. The income must be distributed equally between the state and municipalities. The proposal has been submitted for consultation with a deadline of 3 January. The proposal has been submitted for consultation and not adopted. (Source: NTB) Split team But the picture is therefore not clear cut. A poll conducted by news among mayors in Ap and Sp shows that there are different views on the matter. SUPPORT: Nannestad mayor Hans Thue (Ap) likes the government’s tax measures. Photo: Ali Iqbal Tahir Ap mayor Hans Thue in Nannestad believes that the changes in tax rules relating to aquaculture, but also hydropower, should have come a long time ago. He believes that tax rates should actually be higher rather than lower. – It seems a bit absurd that the welfare of the elderly and the quality of the schools should vary between municipalities based on whether the municipality has a river or water pond within its borders, he says. – Basic interest on aquaculture is also a sure-fire move, which I think the industry can really support. Some of them are just whining out of old habit, adds Thue. Labor mayor Ola Nordal in Ås also supports the tax changes in power and aquaculture: – It means an opportunity for an absolutely necessary equalization between owners and municipalities that have large and extraordinary power or aquaculture income from our common nature, and the state and municipalities such as Ås, which currently has very large extraordinary expenses related to electricity and interest, he says. Vedum: The tax is coming There are also different opinions in the Center Party about the salmon tax. Bømlo mayor Sammy Olsen is among the sceptics. – For my municipality, the signals I have received are a halt in large investments in aquaculture. The total taxation for the aquaculture industry must be investigated to ensure development, growth and Norwegian ownership, he says. – There is a great need for change in the proposal. The minimum deduction for the companies must be up to a minimum of 30,000 tonnes. Today, a minimum deduction of 4,000–5,000 tonnes is proposed. Smøla mayor Svein Roksvåg says no to ground rent tax on aquaculture. He would rather look at license fees or increasing the current production fee. – The subcontractor industry is just as important as aquaculture, they are the first to notice this, he says. But unrest notwithstanding: Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum has no plans to drop the controversial salmon tax. – There will be ground rent tax. We believe the farming companies can contribute more to the community, said the leader of the Center Party to VG on Thursday. He points to, among other things, that Norway’s largest salmon company Mowi came out with its results this week. It showed 2.5 billion in profit in the third quarter. CONTRIBUTION: Midt-Telemark’s mayor Siri Blichfeldt Dyrland. Photo: hand out And the boss has the support of several mayors. – The fact that industries have to pay tax for the use of common natural resources is understandable, says Siri Blichfeldt Dyrland in Midt-Telemark. – In general, I am positive that it should benefit the community when you use the community’s resources, says Grunde Wegar Knudsen in Kragerø. “Both of the mentioned industries have been able to extract large dividends in recent years and can therefore withstand an increased basic rent,” says Gudbrand Kvaal about increased tax on aquaculture and hydropower.
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– Unsavory whining – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
