Automobile theme, Work life | Strongly attack Listhaug and Biltema: – Actually, I am not responsible

On Thursday morning, Nettavisen Økonomi wrote that the Minister of Local Government and Modernization, Nikolai Astrup (H), would not intervene in the event that Biltema in Stavanger cannot sell more than a third of its product range.

In March, Biltema opened a department store in Forus that is regulated for so-called “space-consuming commerce,” which prevents the Swedish chain from selling products related to, for example, cars, boats, bicycles, and various other product groups.

Municipal politicians granted Biltema a dispensation, so the group could offer the full range of products, but the county governor, the state’s representative in the county, has stopped the dispensation twice.

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Minister Astrup has received harsh support from both Biltema and the Progress Party for not intervening in the case, but now she has the magazine by her mouth:

– There is nothing to indicate that the county governor’s decision is invalid. This means that I have no legal basis or opportunity to resolve this, Astrup says.

Think Biltema knew what they were getting into

Astrup says it’s no news to Biltema that the chain wasn’t able to sell all of the department stores when they opened the doors of Forus in March.

– They knew the plot was regulated for space consuming commerce before opening the center, says Astrup.

The Minister of Local Government and Modernization believes that it is Stavanger politicians who hold the key in the case.

– If the municipality wants to regulate the plot again, it can do so. It is the municipality that has the key to solving the case, says Astrup and continues:

– The situation is that the municipality has granted a dispensation, and then it is the responsibility of the County Governor to verify if the conditions for granting a dispensation are met. The county governor can do no more than take the municipality’s own plan as a starting point, which does not provide the opportunity to grant a waiver in this case. If the municipality is not satisfied with its own plans, it is free to change them.

Last week, FRP Deputy Leader Sylvi Listhaug strongly objected to what she believed to be “a rule that simply borders on insanity” and was surprised Astrup had not intervened.

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Astrup, for her part, is surprised that Listhaug, with five ministerial positions on her CV, has not become better acquainted with the regulations.

– When Sylvi Listhaug as a former minister points out to me that way, it is surprising, because the Public Administration Law is very clear, says Astrup.

Welcome new Biltema investments

When Biltema’s Norwegian manager, Dag Bergby, read Astrup’s response to Roy Steffensen’s question on Thursday, he acknowledged that he had doubts about the chain’s future investments.

– A final rejection will have important consequences for our higher establishment rate in Norway. We plan to invest more than NOK 2 billion in new department stores, which will generate approximately 1,000 long-term jobs in Norway. At the same time, these establishments provide significant economic benefits and ripple effects for the cities and local communities where we build department stores, Bergby told Nettavisen Økonomi.

Astrup responds that it welcomes Biltema’s investments in the future, but that the chain must verify the regulations before they are established.

– In general, I would recommend looking for plots where the municipality has not regulated the trade that consumes space. I would do that if I were them. In this specific case, Biltema knew what they were getting into and what challenges might arise. If the municipality has now changed its mind, that is fine. But they must make the necessary decisions to solve the case themselves, Astrup says, continuing:

– It is not a good idea to have as a starting point that you must obtain a dispensation from the municipality. I do not believe that Biltema and Frp transfer responsibility to me, because in reality I am not responsible in this case, nor do I have the means to solve it.

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Siv Jensen: – Unsustainable

FRP leader and former Finance Minister Siv Jensen is among those who have seen the situation at Biltema department store in Stavanger. She believes there is room for maneuver in the Public Administration Law to solve the case, even though Astrup claims there is nothing she can do.

– Astrup addresses this case in a bureaucratic and anti-business way. It is clear that customers who enter the Biltema store in Forus will be able to buy the same products as in other Biltema stores in the country, says Jensen.

– But Astrup says that this is not his table, and that it is the municipality and Biltema that have been wrong here?

– Again, act like a bureaucrat. Are you worried about finding a solution or not? The municipality and local politicians want a waiver. Now Astrup must clean this up and make sure Biltema sells the products they want to offer, Jensen responds.

The FRP leader fears that Biltema will take seriously the threat to boost investment in Norway.

– If this ends with Norway potentially losing 1,000 jobs, where several of them could have gone to unskilled people in need of valuable work experience, it is completely impossible to understand why Astrup does nothing. If it’s the case that conservatives still think they’re a business-friendly party, then your boss must soon inform Astrup that this is untenable.

– Do you think this is something that Erna Solberg should address?

– If you must give your consent, vote against or simply whisper in Astrup’s ear that this is not possible, the Prime Minister himself will decide. But a bourgeois party does not want to treat businessmen this way, says Jensen.

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