Marte Mjøs Persen to be named Norway’s new Minister of Labor, Terje Lien Aasland to take over Oil Ministry

Marte Mjøs Persen (AP) is being named Norway’s new Minister of Labor, and Terje Lien Aasland (AP) is set to become the new Minister of Oil and Energy. 

The cabinet reshuffle was formally carried out in an extraordinary cabinet meeting at the Palace on Monday afternoon. Even before the weekend, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (AP) signaled that he would not wait long before finding a replacement for Hadia Tajik, who resigned last week amid a new commuter housing controversy. 

The NAV scandal

46-year-old Mjøs Persen has previously been Mayor of Bergen. From 2011 to 2015, she was also a member of AP’s Central Board. After the election in the autumn of 2021, she was elected to the Norwegian parliament (Storting) from Hordaland but was picked by Jonas Gahr Støre for the job as Minister of Petroleum and Energy.

In the short period as Minister of Oil and Energy, Persen has been involved in putting in place support schemes to relieve people of high electricity bills. As Minister of Labor, she will, among other things, be responsible for cleaning up after the NAV scandal.

Energy politician

57-year-old Aasland has been elected to the Storting since 2005 and is the parliamentary deputy leader of the Labor Party. He has a background as a shop steward in the trade union movement. In the period 1995–2000, he was the leader of the Skien Labor Party and leader of the Telemark Labor Party from 2006 to 2020.

In the Storting, Aasland has been a member of the Energy and Environment Committee and the Business Committee on several occasions. He also chaired the business committee from 2009–to 2013 and was elected chairman of the Energy and Environment Committee in the autumn of 2021.

This autumn and winter, Aasland has been visible in the debate on the electricity crisis and the introduction of support schemes.

Tajik’s resignation

On Wednesday last week, Tajik resigned from her position as Minister of Labor and Social Inclusion following media reports that she was granted tax-free commuter housing from 2006 to 2010 – based on a lease she never used.

On Sunday, Tajik also resigned as deputy leader of the Labor Party.

Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews

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