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At the KrF base, several are unhappy after the party agreed to cut taxes on alcohol and tobacco in the state budget for next year.
– It is a great loss for Norway. No doubt, as a result, we will see increased alcohol consumption. It is unfortunate for public health and generates more violence in close relationships. It’s sad that KrF failed to get a majority to maintain the current level, Bror-Lennart Mentzoni, head of Vestfold and Telemark KrF, tells Dagbladet.
– This will affect the weakest among us and shows the need for an even stronger KrF after next year’s elections, he adds.
– Barely seen the game
– It hurt
KrF veteran Torhild Bransdal is also disappointed.
– It hurts, but I consciously choose to be pragmatic. This is what we had to give to get a deal that he can vouch for. The most important thing for me is the solidarity of the world’s poor and persecuted. I’m not pragmatic there, she tells Dagbladet.
It was a clearly disappointed FRP leader, Siv Jensen, who presented his progress in the budget negotiations. Jensen wanted a significant reduction in the number of refugees from the quota and in the development assistance budget, but received neither party. Jensen warned and said that had it not been for the crown crisis Norway is in, the FRP might have left the negotiating table.
Reducing taxes on alcohol and tobacco remains Jensen’s biggest victory in this budget deal. For KrF, their victory is a loss.
– I am very happy with the agreement in the budget negotiations and all the points that have been made that are in line with KrF policy. I’m not happy that alcohol and tobacco taxes are being cut, but I can accept it when there are so many good things in the budget deal, Trøndelag KrF county leader Bente Høston Bostad tells Dagbladet.
Much cheaper is tobacco
Billions in tax relief
Now the tax on chocolate and confectionery will be eliminated, while the tax on non-alcoholic beverages will be cut in half. The tax on snus will be reduced by 25 percent, while the tax on beer and wine will be reduced by 10 percent.
The total tax reduction on cross-border goods will be NOK 3,675 million. But at KrF, the hope is that the alcohol stays more expensive, not cheaper.
– Of course we mainly want higher taxes on alcohol, but this is a minimal loss with which I think we live well. At the same time, it is good to show voters how a stronger KrF could even better protect vulnerable groups in Norway, says Oslo KrF county leader Espen Andreas Hasle.
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Hasle is supported by Innlandet KrF.
– It is true that there is a clear connection between alcohol consumption and price. Therefore, KrF has opposed the reduction of taxes on alcohol. Norway will continue to have a significantly higher tax than, for example, Sweden. In negotiations, it is about give and take and that was necessary to reach an agreement now, says Oluf Maurud, head of Innlandet KrF.
Further north of the country, the atmosphere is better.
– We’re talking about a crown and fifty øre of price reduction for a pint. It’s almost comical how much the FRP has prioritized this. I think that KrF has come out of the negotiations well and that Ropstad has done a good job, says Truls Olufsen-Mehus, leader of Troms and Finnmark KrF, to Dagbladet.
Has tendon damage after crown
Ropstad satisfied
When the budget agreement was presented, KrF leader Kjell Ingolf Ropstad was particularly pleased that more money was set aside and that the number of refugees in the quota remained at 3,000.
– We have obtained a budget that provides greater security to families with children. Child benefit has been strengthened by a total of NOK 8,200 since 2019. We continue to support cash at a high level and have made sure to increase support for pregnant women who are out of work, said Ropstad.
– For KrF, it is important to facilitate investments in local businesses and jobs. Large resources are also spent on labor market initiatives, study places and the creation of 7,000 more places for initiatives. This ensures that more people can get a job, he added.
