[ad_1]
In the ‘Next move’ report, NHO presents a roadmap for the Norway of the future that will mean major changes for working life and the welfare state.
NHO CEO Ole Erik Almlid wants a radical reform of the Norwegian welfare state in the organization’s new report. Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB scanpix
In the roadmap, which was presented at Nye Deichman in Oslo on Monday, NHO advocates cuts in social benefits, more temporary employment, further privatization and cuts in the Norwegian tax level.
NHO CEO Ole Erik Almlid says in an interview with Børsen that he understands that the message can be perceived as controversial.
– But I don’t want trouble. It’s not like that. We want to provoke a broad debate.
Party program
In the report, NHO presents ten ambitions for where Norway should be in 2030.
On the list, NHO advocates, among other things, for cuts in greenhouse gas emissions, digitization, strengthening foreign trade, more innovation, investment in skills and more employment.
But the ten movements also contain politically controversial advice.
According to NHO, the tax level for the continental economy should be reduced to 40 percent of GDP. Today, the level is 43 percent.
At the same time, NHO advocates reducing state ownership, streamlining the public sector, and actively utilizing competitive bidding and private providers.
For Børsen, Almlid describes the report as a party program.
– Everything we do in the future must be sustainable. The state will have less money to spend in the next few years. So we must guarantee sustainable jobs, because it ensures tax revenues that in turn ensure well-being, he says.
– Basic Misses
LO boss Hans Christian Gabrielsen reacts strongly to the message.
If there is one thing the crown crisis has shown, it is the efficiency of the public sector in Norway, he said when the report was presented.
– Then, present a proposal to reduce welfare, more privatizations, more insecurity, more job insecurity, that is a very bad decision, says Gabrielsen.
– Therefore, some important elements are fundamentally lost, dealing with, among other things, how we should finance the public sector, which is now absolutely crucial, he warns.
Private workplaces
The NHO director emphasizes that the roadmap is a plan to increase employment in Norway.
Aftenposten says that around 250,000 new private jobs will be needed to maintain well-being in 2030. He admits that this is an ambitious goal.
– But it’s not impossible, says Almlid.
In the report, NHO notes that no industrialized country today has a higher proportion of public employees than Norway.
“Participation should not be higher; on the contrary, the private sector must grow in the coming years,” NHO writes.
Budget gap
NHO also notes that the state budget faces a growing gap between expenses and revenues in the coming years. Aging will increase spending on pensions, health and care. At the same time, oil revenues will fall, while economic growth on the continent weakened. It will undermine the revenue side of the state budget.
Despite this, NHO advocates cutting taxes. NHO explains this by saying that a tax increase to close the gap could lead to less value creation in Norway.
At the same time, the employers’ organization comes with a strong warning to politicians: the public sector must be more efficient and expenses must be reduced.
“Measures that have a lower social benefit should not be prioritized. Also, in the future it must be thoroughly assessed whether the community’s ambitions for the scope and benefit levels of wellness plans will be able to meet the growing need for coverage, “NHO writes.
