Norway's Liberal Party demands an end to the alcohol-serving ban

The Liberal Party (V) is joining the Progress party (FRP) and the Green Party (MDG) in asking the government to lift the national alcohol-serving ban.

Liberal Party deputy leader Sveinung Rotevatn told the newspaper Bergens Tidende that the Norwegian municipalities should be given more flexibility.

“National measures are logical when you have to act quickly. In the next phase, when many people have received the third vaccine dose, and we have more information about the omicron variant, there should be a high threshold for keeping such intrusive measures in place,” he told the newspaper.

Rotevatn believes alternatives to the full alcohol-serving ban should be introduced, as the municipalities – in his opinion – have a better opportunity to see the nuances and get a better overall impression of the situation at the local level.

“For example, there is a big difference between having a glass of wine or a beer with your food when you sit at a distance from each other in a restaurant, and close dancing at a nightclub. It must be possible to have locally adapted rules,” Rotevatn said.

The governing parties are also experiencing opposition to the alcohol-serving ban among their own ranks. Several mayors from the Labor Party and the Center Party have demanded that the ban be lifted.

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