Waiting for new national measures: – Vital to protect children – GBV

Mayors experiencing high infection pressure at the local level have already introduced strict measures and do not see what the government can propose that could be more intrusive.

Others ask for time to prepare before the measures are implemented, so that the implementation is the best possible.

Local politicians hope that fewer people will be able to gather at private events and gatherings, and that more people will have to test themselves after traveling during winter break. They want to limit infection from imports and protect children and young people.

Next week

Health Minister Bent Høie (H) has announced new national measures over the next week. The R number is currently 1.3, which shows that the infection is spreading rapidly. The goal is to get the R number below 1.

The National Institute of Public Health and the Norwegian Health Directorate have been tasked with assessing whether national measures are sufficient or should be strengthened. Regional austerity measures may also be relevant.

Deputy Health Director Espen Nakstad said on Friday that the level of measures had not been sufficient to keep variants of the mutated virus under control.

– Can’t be more strict

Oslo City Councilor Raymond Johansen (Labor Party) says that most of it is closed in the capital:

– We have recently tightened even more, due to the increase in infection. We are now working hard to further strengthen compliance with the measures. We do not expect there to be stricter national measures than those already in place in Oslo, but the government may see the need to tighten more in other parts of the country.

Bergen City Councilor Roger Valhammer (Labor Party) has a good overview of the infection in the city, after two weeks of closure.

– We are closely following a large outbreak at a high school in the city center, but right now we do not see the need to toughen up in Bergen. This can still change quickly, Valhammer says.

At the same time that the city closes early, there are more and more house parties in Bergen.

– When the government considers new austerity measures, it is important that they do not reinforce this trend, Valhammer believes.

– Shield children and youth

Urge the government to protect children and youth as much as possible when considering new measures.

– It is absolutely vital. I am very concerned about children and young people and their mental health at the moment, says the Bergen city council leader.

Busy Trondheim Mayor Rita Ottervik (Labor Party) asks political adviser Jørn Arve Flått (Labor Party) to respond, and believes that Bent Høie and the National Institute of Public Health itself have the best conditions to assess when national measures should be strengthened.

– We hope you find something that can limit the import infection. The registration form must be improved and we must obtain legal authority to track and control working immigrants and their living conditions in quarantine, says Flått.

He also wants to allow regional adaptations, so that national rules can be adapted to the infection situation locally.

Stavanger Deputy Mayor Dagny Sunnanå Hausken (Sp) says their situation is not as precarious as in other cities.

– We are in control. But we’re excited about the possibility of the infection flourishing when people return after winter break this week, says Hausken.

Waiting for rules about tests

She prefers very intrusive measures to be introduced at the national level, as they are difficult to handle at the regional level. He also says that it is important to be clear about what the measures entail, so that they do not have to be interpreted and evaluated locally.

Hausken is awaiting the national rules for the crowning trials, and would like to see them arrive as soon as possible.

– I think that those who have gone out and traveled in areas with high infection pressure, such as Oslo and Kristiansand, should prove themselves. This especially applies to health personnel, says Stavanger’s deputy mayor.

Mayor of Kristiansand Jan Oddvar Skisland (Labor Party) He considers that the pressure of contagion in the city is about to decrease, after the municipality ten days ago reinforced the measures and introduced the prohibition of drinking and bandaging orders.

– I do not see that the government can introduce stricter measures than we already have in Kristiansand, says Skisland.

He believes that it is difficult to operate with national measures, when the level of infection at the local and regional level is so different.

– We chose to go to the red level in middle school and high school, but we protected the younger students. I think it makes sense to avoid red in elementary schools, says the mayor of Kristiansand.

Mayor of Tromsø Gunnar Wilhelmsen (Labor Party) fully understands that Høie will tighten national measures. But he believes that the minister before the weekend should signal what is coming and implement new measures as early as Monday.

– You will have access to relax

– I also think that more should be delegated to municipalities. We should allow ourselves to drop national measures, not just tighten them. We have the competence to assess what is right at the local level, says the mayor of Tromsø.

He cites the alcohol service as an example: the national discharge stop is at 22. The municipalities can decide to close the taps at 20, but they cannot extend the discharge time to 24 hours.

– Berlevåg does not need the same crown measures as Oslo, says Gunnar Wilhelmsen.

Sandnes Mayor Stanley Wirak (Labor Party) trusts that the National Institute of Public Health is working as quickly as possible with the measures.

– But they must have a solid professional justification for what they recommend the government to do. People are starting to get tired and need to understand that new national measures are needed, says Wirak.

– Waiting for less to get together

Where the pressure of infection is very high, he believes that local authorities can sharpen measures more quickly.

– At the national level, I think they come up with something about fewer people being able to get together at private meetings and events. This is where the infection spreads, when the routines for infection control are not good enough, says the mayor of Sandnes.

Sandnes has almost no infection today.

– But it can change quickly. We’re ready for the brakes, says Stanley Wirak.

Sarpsborg Mayor Sindre Martinsen-Evje (Labor Party) experience that the pressure of the infection increases locally. The municipality has a local regulation that goes beyond the national one, but sees the need for stricter rules also at the national level.

– If the government presents more intrusive measures, we wait in time to prepare, so that the implementation is the best possible. It is not easy for those involved and those affected to do it overnight, says Martinsen-Evje.

– Waiting for prior notice

Mayor of Lillestrøm Jørgen Vik (Labor Party) I can hardly imagine that the Minister of Health can propose stricter measures than those already introduced by the municipality. Lillestrøm is at level 5A.

– The only thing that would have to be for the government to toughen training for children and young people, which we have protected. Or if they do it by changing age classes, languages ​​and concepts, says Jørgen Vik.

He also hopes that municipalities will receive a warning about what is to come.

– I hope we are informed before the government releases the news at a press conference, so that the country is connected. Two weeks ago, we had to work through the weekend with new local regulations, says the mayor of Lillestrøm.

Bodø Deputy Mayor Ola Smeplass (Sp) You have no idea what Bent Høie should think:

– I do not want to give advice or use my position to think anything about this, it will be too stupid. Measures and vaccines have a lot to do with health issues, I think that in Norway we should respect that. There is too much politics in this.