Posted on 10/17/2001 6:46:52 AM PDT by testforecho
Filed at 6:26 a.m. ET
OSLO, Norway (AP) -- Shaken by its worst election showing since 1924, Norway's minority Labor government said Wednesday that it will resign, handing power over to a non-socialist coalition.
Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg informed parliament of the government's resignation. He will administer a caretaker government until the new Christian Democratic-led coalition can take over on Friday.
Stoltenberg will formally deliver the resignation to King Harald V and advise the figurehead monarch to contact Kjell Magne Bondevik, the Christian Democrat who will lead the new government, about taking over.
Long Norway's dominant party, social democratic Labor was stung by its worst showing since 1924 in Sept. 10 national elections, falling to 43 seats from the 65 it gained in the last national elections in 1997.
A coalition of the Conservatives, the Christian Democrats and the Liberals won support from the populist Party of Progress on Tuesday to give it a majority in parliament.
``It is now clear that a majority in parliament wants a new government,'' Stoltenberg said.
The coalition has 62 seats in parliament, and with backing from the Progressive's 26 members, has five more than the 83 seats needed for a majority.
Progress Party leader Carl I. Hagen said his bloc decided to support the coalition because its overall policies would be closest to his own party's.
The anti-tax, anti-immigrant party will have a strong influence on the new government's policy, even though it was excluded from the coalition as being too far to the right.
Political analyst Bernt Aradal said there is such common ground in Norwegian politics that a change of government will make little difference in key areas, such as membership in NATO, remaining outside the European Union and oil policy.
Bondevik, a 54-year-old Lutheran clergyman and former prime minister, was expected to form his second government on Friday.
In a 34-page joint platform, the center-right coalition last week promised to cut taxes, speed up privatization of government-owned business, and spend more of Norway's vast oil wealth to improve schools, health care and other services of the welfare state.
Stoltenberg and his Labor government remained in power while the opposition determined whether it had the support needed to take over.
Even though Norwegians enjoy unprecedented prosperity thanks to vast oil revenues, voters appeared disgruntled over high taxes and shortages in their welfare state.
Can anyone translate?
I'd love to see a Norwegean keyboard. Or an Arabic or Chinese keyboard, for that matter.
Too bad our anti-tax, anti-illegal immigrant groups have no influence here.
A Norwegian employee of the government oil company thanked some of his fellow countrymen for paying high taxes so the oil company could have nice office facilities. He may or may not have thought he was joking. I don't believe he was.
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