BEHIND THE
NEWS
NORWEGIAN POLITICS (BTNN) - BACK ISSUES
2008 |
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N320 |
Friday, 19 December 2008
The Energy Maze |
- SV also the Energy Extremist
- Energy Maze Will Deepen if Smaller Parties Get Their Will
- All Parties Want Green Certificates, but Contents Differ
- Strong Differences on CCS, Fuel Policies
- Conservatives/Progress Party: Good Intentions, Inconsistent Policies
- Enhanced Efficiency Still Possible If Creativity Is Added
- Small Opening for more Hydro Power
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N319 |
Thursday, 18 December 2008
Climate Policy Division Lines |
- Climate: SV the most Isolated Party
- Main Division Line between Smaller and Larger Parties
- SV to Use Climate Policy for Socialism
- Reminder that Others Should Reconsider Their Mitigation Policies
- Differences between Conservatives and Progress Party Reconcilable
- Both Can Easily Join Forces with Labour
- Conservatives Align Reality Perception to Facts
- A new Three-Party Climate Deal Would Express Democracy Better
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N318 |
Wednesday, 1 October 2008
Tax Commission for Growth |
- Conservatives Want Dynamic Tax Commission
- Formal Motion Tabled in Parliament
- Cites Norwegian, International Research
- Should Get Full Non-Socialist Support
- Presents a Tactical Dilemma to the Red-Greens
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N317 |
Friday, 12 September 2008
Defusing the Tax Bomb |
- Balanced Strategy Required
- Welfare Improvements Must Be Contained
- Taxes Could and Should be Cut Soon
- Decade Should Be Used to Test New Tax Systems
- Fiscal "Action Rule" Should Be Amended
- State Must become Cheaper and More Efficient
- A Lot to Do in a Very Short Time
- Only Three National Elections Left
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N316 |
Thursday, 11 September 2008
A Treacherous Decade |
- Statistics Norway Forecasts State Finances
- Increased Immigration Improves Demographic Profile
- Young/Old Ratio to Improve before Deteriorating
- Huge Financial Room Until 2020
- Could be more than NOK 200 Bn
- Costs to Climb Rapidly Post-2020
- Welfare Instead of Tax Cuts Will Cause Tax Shock Towards 2050
- Opportunity to Do Much Better or Much Worse
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N315 |
Friday, 25 July 2008
Profitable Nature |
- Natural Resource Curse Theories Debunked
- Resource Based Economies Often Very Innovative
- May Require More Complex Innovation Systems
- Path Dependence, Linkages Important
- Better Understanding Required for Full National Advantages
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N314 |
Tuesday, 1 July 2008
Voodoo Reconfirmed |
- New Labour/Tax Response Model from Statistics Norway
- 56% of Static Revenue Loss from 2006 Reform Recovered
- Adds Payroll, Indirect Tax Effects to Labour Response
- Elasticities Falling Only Slowly with Growing Income
- Macro Feed-Back from Growth Not Yet Included
- Neither is TFP Impact from Improved Incentives
- Self-Employed, Young, Old not yet Modelled
- Long-Term Structural Changes Could Enhance Effects
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N313 |
Tuesday, 3 June 2008
May Polls |
- May Polls Show Red-Greens in Strong Decline
- Will Require Non-Socialist Government
- Several Good Scores for Conservatives + Progress Party
- Average Joint Score 44%, Range 41-47%
- Nine Seats, Approx. 5%, Away from Clean Majority
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N312 |
Thursday, 22 May 2008
"Big" Coalition? |
- Former Conservative Minister Suggests Lab/Con Coalition
- Objective to Take Norway into the EU
- Voters Tired of Non-Socialist Quarreling
- Solberg: Far-Fetched
- Stoltenberg: Will Disguise Contradictions
- Sponheim: Won't Get a Majority
- Høybråten: Main Opponents Can't be United
- Not Good for Democracy
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N311 |
Tuesday, 20 May 2008
A Pure Blue Option? |
- Poll Says Conservatives, Progress Party Close to Majority
- Researcher: Clear Government Option Could Boost Support
- Conservatives: Option Not Excluded
- Progress Party: Must Be Defined as Desirable
- Investor Promises Financial Support from Industry
- Conservatives/Progress Party Complementary for Value Creation
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N310 |
Wednesday, 30 April 2008
Missing Link |
- Conservative Party Brushes up Principles
- Closes no Doors for Next Government
- Warnings about Lacking Focus on Business & Industry
- The Missing Link between Principles and Policies
- Should Set the Agenda Rather than Responding to It
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N309 |
Monday, 21 April 2008
Ambiguity and Contradiction |
- Christians Release Draft Election Platform
- Ambiguous about Tax
- Contradictory about Northern E&P
- "Gas Blocks" Only to Be Offered for Licensing
- "Stabile" Oil and Gas Production "at Lower Level"
- Full Protection of Barents Etc.
- But Promises Exploitation of High North Resources, Local Spin-Offs
- Platform Designed for Full Political Manoeuvrability
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N308 |
Saturday, 29 March 2008
Hidden Innovation |
- New Research Confirms Norway's Hidden Innovation
- Same Bias Observed in the UK
- Knowledge Bridging Beats Formalized Innovation
- Process Innovation Has Been Under-Evaluated
- Innovation in Service Industries also Under-Evaluated
- Three Main Modes of Innovation
- Patents Poor Indicator of Innovation Persistence
- Large Firms More Persistent Innovators
- Technological Diversity Enhances Innovation
- HR Management Supports Knowledge Management
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N307 |
Tuesday, 26 February 2008
Norwegian Paradox |
- Poor Norwegian Score on European Innovation Scoreboard
- Contradicts Fairly Good Long-Term Productivity Performance
- Innovation in Major Clusters Very Poorly Captured by Scoreboard
- Tacit Knowledge Evasive and Hard to Measure
- Cluster Exclusion and Irrelevance Reasons for "Norwegian Paradox"
- Scoreboard Also Captures Real Advantages and Deficiencies
- But Fails Test of Comparison with Productivity
- More Relevant as Indicator for Weak Points than for National Differences
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N306 |
Monday, 21 January 2008
The Defeats
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- Two Biggest Reduction Demands Rejected as Unrealistic
- Demands on New Offshore Electrification Policy Dropped
- Demands on New Large Carbon Capture Projects Dropped
- Irresponsible Demands to Accelerate Kårstø/Mongstad Dropped
- Already Buried "Value Chain" Buried Again
- Good Idea for Capture Technology Incentives Too Late
- Many Other Expensive and Redundant Demands Rejected
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N305 |
Monday, 21 January 2008
The Victories
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- Climate Agreement Opening for "Neutrality" in 2030
- Rain Forest Protection, But Not as a Unilateral Policy
- More R&D for Renewables, but at High Cost for Petroleum
- New Negotiations with Sweden on Green Certificates
- But Swedes May Not Be Ready in Time
- More Likely Option is to Increase Norwegian Subsidies
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N304 |
Monday, 21 January 2008
Climate Deal
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- Present and Former Coalition Parties Make Climate Deal
- Stoltenberg: Should Survive Changing Governments
- Solheim: New Reports and New Issues Coming up Every Day
- Greens: The Fight Must Go On
- Stoltenberg's Philosophy that Few Understand
- Should Have Been Supported by the Conservatives
- But Much of It Included in Final Agreement
- Can We Hope for Populism and Overbidding to Cease?
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