– The government behaves like a cow in a glass warehouse. Here they have not realized the consequences of the adjustments they are making. This is completely hopeless. The salvo comes from county council leader Anette Solli (H), who meets news together with the county council for finance, Tom Staahle (Frp). They say that the government’s proposal for next year’s state budget will cut approximately NOK 250 million in income for Akershus. – It will have dramatic consequences for our citizens, says Solli. Photo: Hallgeir Braastad / news More expensive buses and cuts in schools She warns that the cuts will affect all parts of the county, but especially public transport. – We have to look at both more expensive tickets and possible route cuts, or a combination of both, she says. ROUTE CUT: There may be cuts in the bus route offer in Akershus. The county council cannot say whether it will affect line 250 between Asker and Oslo as you see here. Photo: Hampus Lundgren / Routes/Redink How big the price increase will be, and which routes may be closed or changed, Solli does not yet know. At least people can look far beyond the price cuts promised by the county council after the election victory last autumn. Hallgeir Braastad / news Emmeline Utengen (19) – It will be more difficult for people then, says Emmeline at the Oslo bus terminal. She gets a discounted ticket as a youth until she turns 20, but thinks the full price for adults is high. – If it is even higher, then it will be tighter for those with little money. She believes that fewer people will choose collectively if it becomes more expensive and/or worse. – When it becomes more expensive, then perhaps there will be a greater threshold for people. Hallgeir Braastad / news Sondre Evensen Barli (31) Sondre thinks it’s a shame if the bus service in Akershus becomes more expensive or routes are cut. – Price is linked to whether people use public transport. You count on what pays off. He is sure that more people will choose a car if it turns out as the county council warns. – I think that is very stupid. Hallgeir Braastad / news Egil Sjaastad (75) – The worst thing about this is that there will be more driving. And they should have thought about that, says Egil. He does not 100 per cent believe that this is only the government’s fault, as the county council says. – It is a large and complicated connection. It is not so easy to know what is a necessary consequence of the budget they have drawn up. The secondary schools will also be affected, according to Solli, although the county council is trying to avoid it. – Now we are working hard to find out where to take the cuts. But we will try as best we can to protect young people, says the county council leader. MAY BE AFFECTED: There are 24,500 students at the upper secondary schools in Akershus who may be affected by cuts. Here Sørumsand upper secondary school in Lillestrøm municipality. Photo: Bård Nafstad / news Believes the county council has the money Hoda Imad from the Labor Party in Akershus rejects the county council’s version of the situation. – Akershus has very good finances. It is not about the money, but about political will and priorities from the county council. That they choose to cut services, they themselves must be responsible for that, says Aps’ group leader in the county council. Photo: Nima Taheri / news She says it is unclear how the county council has calculated the figure of NOK 250 million. Ap has asked for more information, but had 15.30 still haven’t received it. – What has happened in the state budget is that Akershus has received more money. She believes the county council is trying to use the government as a scapegoat. – They point at everyone other than themselves, and especially at the state, especially at the government, when they implement unpopular policies. MORE EXPENSIVE: Public transport tickets in Akershus will be more expensive in 2025, the county council warns. Photo: Øyvind Ganesh Eknes / Ruter/Nucleus AS Clear message Akershus is not the only county that is now getting cuts. Friday at 15 there is an economic crisis meeting between municipal minister Erling Sande (Sp) and the municipal organization KS. Finansfylkesråd Staahle (Frp) believes the government will punish the most populous and fastest growing parts of the country, such as Akershus, in order to give more money to the districts. – Here the government must clean up the distribution that is the basis of how the county councils get their income, he says. CRITICIZED: Local Government Minister Erling Sande (Sp) has to endure criticism from several county councils and municipalities that are getting cuts in the state budget. This afternoon he meets KS to discuss the situation. Photo: Roy Pettersen / Roy Pettersen news has submitted the criticism to the Ministry of Local Government and District Affairs. State Secretary Ole Gustav Narud says the income system is based on tax income, and that the subsidies follow the people. State Secretary Ole Gustav Narud (Sp) says the government is working on how to provide extra for the municipal sector in 2024. Photo: Trond A. Isaksen / The Government – The counties that grow in population will see growth in income. In order to equalize costs, there are also other criteria that come into play, including large distances, the length of county roads and the extent of public transport, says Narud. The government responds to this: news has submitted the criticism to the Ministry of Local Government and District Affairs. Here you can read the full response from State Secretary Ole Gustav Narud (Sp): The county council in Akershus says today that they will lose NOK 250 million next year due to the government’s new income distribution, and that they will then have to increase public transport ticket prices and cut the route offer, and probably cut high schools as well. What do you say to the government’s policy having such consequences? – No new changes have been made to the revenue system for the county councils in 2025, but changes from the past will be introduced over several years, and will take effect in 2025. Many county councils and municipalities are struggling with their finances now, and the government is working on how to provide extra support for the municipal sector in 2024. The county council leader compares the government to a cow in a glass warehouse, and says you do not understand the consequences of the adjustments in the distribution. Do you guys do that? – Comparing others to a cow in a glass case seems very frivolous. Some of the country’s foremost experts on economics in the municipal sector work in KDD, so we have good information about the effects of changes in policy. The county council believes that you and the government will punish the most populous and fastest-growing counties, in order to give more money to the districts. What do you say to that? – The income system is based on tax income and subsidies following the people. The counties that grow in population get growth in income. In order to equalize costs, there are also other criteria that come into play, including large distances, the length of county roads and the extent of public transport. County council leader Solli also points out that the government wants more people to use public transport, but that the cut to Akershus leads to the exact opposite. – It doesn’t matter. We are Norway’s largest county. If you want to get people over from cars to public transport, then it is not possible to take part in demolishing public transport here in this way. They have to get together. – Don’t have a gold card to go All county councils and municipalities in Norway must save money in good times to be able to handle downturns. Akershus has for many years been a county with a good economy. But finance county councilor Staahle rejects that they should have been prepared to deal with a cut like this. SURPRISED: County councilor for finance, Tom Staahle (Frp) says Akershus was prepared for cuts, but not as much as NOK 250 million. Photo: Hallgeir Braastad / news – We don’t have our own gold card that we can only draw when the government gives us an extra bill of around a quarter of a billion kroner, says the Progress Party politician. He points out that Akershus is the fastest growing county in the country, and must make investments to cope with that growth. It costs. Postponing the entire Akershus budget The cut from the government is so large that the county council is postponing the presentation of its own budget proposal by a week. They were actually supposed to present that on Monday. – When we get a deduction of approximately a quarter of a billion kroner, then the rules of the game change dramatically. We must go through all priorities, and look at how we can put forward a responsible budget proposal, says county councilor for finance, Tom Staahle (Frp). County council leader Solli reacts to the fact that the cut came like lightning out of the blue. – We started looking at these numbers on Tuesday, and I guess we couldn’t really believe our eyes. Cutting a quarter of a billion from one year to the next with just a few days notice is pretty hair-raising. Hoda Imad in Ap snorts at the complaints. – It is nothing new that the state budget is presented a week before the county budget. The county councils in the past have managed to do the job quickly enough. Now the county council chooses to postpone the process. Worst of all, it will affect our citizens, who do not know where the cuts will end up, she says. Published 11.10.2024, at 14.30 Updated 11.10.2024, at 17.10
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Warns of economic crisis in Akershus after major cuts in the government’s proposal for the state budget – Greater Oslo
