Today in Norway: A roundup of the latest news on Friday
Oslo postpones discounted ticket prices on public transport, a record number of rich Norwegians moving to Switzerland and other news from Norway on Friday.
Oslo City Council postpones discounted, flexible tickets in public transport
In its budget proposal for 2023, the Oslo City Council postpones the introduction of discounted ticket prices in public transport. The postponement is due, among other things, to the increased tax on hydropower.
An allocation of 206 million kroner, which was supposed to be earmarked for a new and better flexible ticket system on trams, buses, and the subway, has now been pushed back from January to April, the newspaper Dagsavisen reports.
Oslo is likely to suffer several blows to its revenues next year. The new tax proposal for hydropower will probably result in the municipality receiving 1 billion kroner less in dividends from the municipality-owned district heating supplier Hafslund.
In addition, several grants from the state are being cut. Altogether, Oslo Municipality will have between 2 and 3 billion kroner less on the income side this year, according to Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK).
A record number of Norwegians are moving to Switzerland
Since 2009, 44 Norwegians with a wealth of more than several tens of millions of kroner in assets have moved to Switzerland – and 19 of them reported they're moving this year, according to the newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN).
There are four times as many emigrants to Switzerland this year than Dagens Næringsliv has previously recorded in surveys in a single year.
The total equal assets that have been moved from Norway to Switzerland this year are three times larger than what was previously moved out in one year, according to the newspaper's statistics which go back 14 years.
Between 2009 and 2022, a total of around 40 billion kroner was moved to Switzerland.
Bergen may have broken the law by registering extensive information on residents during the pandemic
The Norwegian Data Protection Authority says that Bergen Municipality may have broken the law when they registered extensive information about residents in a separate document without the residents being informed, the newspaper Bergensavisen (BA) reports.
"We believe a municipality as large as Bergen should be well equipped to be aware of privacy requirements.
"The fact that an assessment of privacy consequences has not been carried out can be an offence," legal adviser Susanne Lie at the Norwegian Data Protection Authority warned.
Unusually high number of overdoses in Oslo
An unusually high number of overdoses were registered in Oslo on Thursday, Oslo University Hospital (OUS) warns.
"We have seen an unusual increase in overdoses in Oslo in a short time. We encourage users to be careful and take care of each other," OUS wrote on Twitter.
On Thursday, the OUS registered five overdoses in just a few hours, press officer Hedda Holth at the OUS told NRK.
Last year, 241 people died of overdoses in Norway, the lowest number since 2013, according to the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH).
Norway plans to give businesses better fixed-price electricity agreements
The Norwegian government has put forward a proposal that would facilitate fixed price agreements for electricity for businesses. The proposal will now be considered in the parliament (Storting).
Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum says it is important for the government to facilitate better fixed-price agreements for businesses and households.
"Now the government is putting the finishing touches on its important work to help ensure that those who need to protect themselves against major fluctuations in electricity costs have a real opportunity to do so," Vedum stated.
Industry Minister Jan Christian Vestre believes the new fixed price framework could be up and running before Christmas.
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Oslo City Council postpones discounted, flexible tickets in public transport
In its budget proposal for 2023, the Oslo City Council postpones the introduction of discounted ticket prices in public transport. The postponement is due, among other things, to the increased tax on hydropower.
An allocation of 206 million kroner, which was supposed to be earmarked for a new and better flexible ticket system on trams, buses, and the subway, has now been pushed back from January to April, the newspaper Dagsavisen reports.
Oslo is likely to suffer several blows to its revenues next year. The new tax proposal for hydropower will probably result in the municipality receiving 1 billion kroner less in dividends from the municipality-owned district heating supplier Hafslund.
In addition, several grants from the state are being cut. Altogether, Oslo Municipality will have between 2 and 3 billion kroner less on the income side this year, according to Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK).
A record number of Norwegians are moving to Switzerland
Since 2009, 44 Norwegians with a wealth of more than several tens of millions of kroner in assets have moved to Switzerland – and 19 of them reported they're moving this year, according to the newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN).
There are four times as many emigrants to Switzerland this year than Dagens Næringsliv has previously recorded in surveys in a single year.
The total equal assets that have been moved from Norway to Switzerland this year are three times larger than what was previously moved out in one year, according to the newspaper's statistics which go back 14 years.
Between 2009 and 2022, a total of around 40 billion kroner was moved to Switzerland.
Bergen may have broken the law by registering extensive information on residents during the pandemic
The Norwegian Data Protection Authority says that Bergen Municipality may have broken the law when they registered extensive information about residents in a separate document without the residents being informed, the newspaper Bergensavisen (BA) reports.
"We believe a municipality as large as Bergen should be well equipped to be aware of privacy requirements.
"The fact that an assessment of privacy consequences has not been carried out can be an offence," legal adviser Susanne Lie at the Norwegian Data Protection Authority warned.
Unusually high number of overdoses in Oslo
An unusually high number of overdoses were registered in Oslo on Thursday, Oslo University Hospital (OUS) warns.
"We have seen an unusual increase in overdoses in Oslo in a short time. We encourage users to be careful and take care of each other," OUS wrote on Twitter.
On Thursday, the OUS registered five overdoses in just a few hours, press officer Hedda Holth at the OUS told NRK.
Last year, 241 people died of overdoses in Norway, the lowest number since 2013, according to the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH).
Norway plans to give businesses better fixed-price electricity agreements
The Norwegian government has put forward a proposal that would facilitate fixed price agreements for electricity for businesses. The proposal will now be considered in the parliament (Storting).
Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum says it is important for the government to facilitate better fixed-price agreements for businesses and households.
"Now the government is putting the finishing touches on its important work to help ensure that those who need to protect themselves against major fluctuations in electricity costs have a real opportunity to do so," Vedum stated.
Industry Minister Jan Christian Vestre believes the new fixed price framework could be up and running before Christmas.
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