It is time to accept that Sogn and Fjordane have been closed

First they spent all their money. Now politicians in Sogn and Fjordane complain that the economy is poor.

Westland County is five months old and already in serious financial trouble.

It is so wrong that the Local Government Ministry has the county for observation and threatens to include it in the state’s own version of the luxury trap, Robek’s list.

In that case, it will say that the county is no longer angry about its own money.

The poor economy I have met on the site last fall. But at Sogn og Fjordane Center Party they do not allow an opportunity to criticize Westland and regional reform.

– We were one of the richest counties in the country, and now we are suddenly bankrupt. Regional government reform appears to have failed, Sigurd Reksnes of the Party Center tells NRK.

No surprise that Reksnes should say something like that.

He has wanted to dissolve Westland County before it existed completely. Sogn and the Fjordane Center Party have become their own separatists within the new county, taking advantage of every opportunity they have to get their message across. And this despite the fact that they themselves were about to shut down Sogn and Fjordane.

But what makes this outright rude is that the old county council in Sogn and Fjordane ran high sums just before the merger with Hordaland.

To the extent that Reksnes and the rest of the northern central parties are now concerned about the common economy in the West, they are largely accused jointly.

This is the same politicians who deemed it necessary to spend 12 million crowns to expand the old town hall in Leikanger. A room that will now be used once a year.

Also in ancient Hordaland, a lot was invested in the years before the merger. Some of these investments can also be questioned.

But in Sogn and Fjordane, the use of money in part seems like pure protest. This opinion is reinforced by the fact that they also gave away the shares they had in Sogn and Fjordane Energi to local municipalities, in order to avoid annual income within the old county limits. Therefore, a possible additional source of income for the new county disappeared.

To criticize county reform Having contributed to the poor economy of the West is also completely wrong. The new county is now in deficit, essentially all new electric ferries.

It has been known for a long time that this will cost a lot in the coming years. Still, there is broad agreement that it is okay to invest in zero emission shuttles. I also know that Vestland receives extra money from the government that compensates for some of the additional expenses.

To cover the rest, the county council adopted a plan to save NOK 100 million in 2020. It will also have to do so for the next four years, to get back on track.

It is completely legitimate be critical of the regional reform itself. It is now clear that almost no new tasks will be transferred to the county. That is the law and a good reason to be disappointed.

But complaining about regional reform for all the problems that arise in the new county is not legitimate.

It has been used for years and huge sums to establish Vestland. Pretending that the economy will be better if you reverse all this and let Sogn and Fjordane rise from the dead does not lead to anything good.

What Sogn and Fjordane Senterparti are involved in is cheap and divisive rhetoric, and a counterweight to everything they really should be doing. They are no longer just people options for people from all over the Sogneford Fjord and the north. They will run a county that benefits us all, from Stad to Sveio.