SV on aid budget:

SV, the party supporting the government, is not impressed with the government’s proposals for the APBN. The Conservative Party and KrF were also critical.

– The government is giving a signal that other countries outside Europe are no longer important to us. There, I believe that they should think about and look at the seriousness of the situation we are facing globally and what kind of signal it sends to people in poor countries, who may feel that Norway and other western countries are withdrawing, says Ingrid Fiskaa to Panorama News.

He sits on the Storting’s foreign affairs and defense committee for the SV and was also previously state secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Fiskaa also pointed out that, in this budget, the government does not intend to reach its own target of one percent of gross domestic product going to aid.

– We must be able to contribute one percent of total national income when international solidarity is increasingly needed. When we are in the situation we are experiencing internationally, with huge humanitarian needs that have increased in recent years and many people fleeing, Norway, which is used to seeing itself as a great power in the humanitarian field, must have a heart that is more than just Ukraine. The money we fought to get back into this year’s budget, which amounted to five billion for countries in the south – has now run out again. We think so, we speak a clear language.

– Among other things, the number of refugee quotas has been cut. What do you think?

– This is also in line with the idea that the government does not take into account that there are record numbers of refugees in the world, and that reducing the number of refugee quotas in a situation like this is the wrong action. .

– What will you negotiate?

– There are many things in this APBN that we imagine we have to improve, we just need to get an idea of ​​where we will invest our efforts. The overall aid goal is to reach one percent, then we have to see how far we have achieved compared to other important issues.

Also read: – It is disappointing and surprising that the government did not reach the one percent target

Incomprehensible deprioritization of education

Former Development Minister Dag-Inge Ulstein (KrF) was also critical of the government’s budget proposal.

– In actual terms, this budget is NOK 6.8 billion lower than the revised budget in 2023. This is of course disappointing. The budget does not reach one percent of GNI, I don’t see any good reason why the budget should not reach that target – as the Storting requested, said Ulstein, who is now a parliamentary representative for the KrF.

He also emphasized that he completely disagrees with what he believes is the Støre government’s clear deprioritization of education.

– The government made major cuts to education last year and is now also making cuts compared to last year’s balanced budget. This is an incomprehensible deprioritization of education, which of course impacts on children and young people’s opportunities to get an education and create a better life for themselves. Previously there was broad agreement that education, health, job creation, climate and humanitarian aid were the cornerstones of Norway’s aid, but the current government is not prioritizing education, Ulstein said.

He also highlighted other things the KrF disagreed with, including that the government cut funding for refugee quotas and that NOK 3.8 billion in aid was spent on refugees in Norway.

– Norway remains the second largest recipient of aid. This happened even though the government’s expert committee had given a strong recommendation to exclude reception/settlement costs in Norway from the aid budget, Ulstein said.

Also read: Has Education Assistance Been Achieved?

– Will look for alternatives

Ingjerd Schou of the Conservative Party also criticized the government’s downgrading of education – which was a key focus under the previous government.

– In education, you build systems and knowledge over time. You have to think long term and there is no point in yo-yo politics where the allocation fluctuates greatly from year to year.

– What does the Conservative Party think about the government not reaching the one percent target?

– These percentages are not something the Conservative Party is too worried about, in fact the size of the budget clearly plays a role. What is most important is the alignment and predictability of aid funds actually used. “We will now thoroughly review our alternative efforts,” Schou said.