6 July 2023 18:04 – Updated 6 July 2023 19:39
The FRP is currently alone in demanding a control case against Minister of Education Tonje Brenna (Ap). The other parties want more time, and the decision may take until August.
Brenna sent a letter to the committee on Thursday to answer follow-up questions about what she has done in connection with competency assessments. The almost eight-page long letter was not enough to convince Frp.
– We feel that we did not get good answers to several of the very central questions. We also find it strange that the minister has not been informed of the competence assessment her state secretary requested, writes party leader Sylvi Listhaug in a press release.
She says there are so many missing answers that there is a need to open a control case. The FRP has also previously expressed a desire for a control case against the Minister of Knowledge.
A decision may take over the summer
It is necessary that at least four members of the control and constitution committee stand behind such a demand in order for a control case to be established.
Currently, no other parties have declared that they are ready with a decision. Høyre and SV indicate that they are satisfied with Brenna’s answer, but are waiting until they have studied the letter more thoroughly.
– The Conservative Party has received the answers we have requested. We need some time to assess whether a control case should be established or whether we should draw a line, says Høyre’s Peter Frølich, who heads the committee.
Waiting for a reply from Støre
The control committee began its investigations after Brenna herself acknowledged that she should have declared herself incompetent when she appointed her friend Frode Elgesem as a board member of the Wergelands Center.
After the integrity case became known, the control committee asked Brenna to explain what had happened. Her answer came last week – but the control committee had several questions on the block. A list of 19 questions was sent over which drilled deeper into the details.
At the same time, the committee also asked Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Ap) to answer a number of questions related to routines and the handling of impartiality.
– Seen in isolation, Brenna’s case is well enough informed before the Storting. But we still have doubts about whether the government’s routines are good enough. We are still waiting for a response from Støre, says Frølich.
He believes that the committee will only make a final decision in August as to whether or not it will be a control case.
Venstres Grunde Almeland informs NTB that he has not yet had time to read the letter properly.
– I probably need some time to go through the answers thoroughly, but I do not want to rule out that it may be appropriate to open a case, he writes in a text message to NTB.
SV: Rare and strong self-criticism
SV is surprised that the FRP has already reached a conclusion. Audun Lysbakken, who represents the party in the control committee, says he cannot see any new information in the answers that gives grounds for opening a case. He believes Brenna has answered thoroughly, and points out that she also apologized for making mistakes in the letters to the committee.
– Such a written apology is a rare and powerful self-criticism for a minister. It is therefore not a given that it is necessary to open a case, but SV will not take a position on it until we also receive the Prime Minister’s answer about the handling of competency issues in the entire government system, writes Lysbakken in a text message to NTB.
Rødt also points out that the FRP concluded quickly.
– I am not surprised that the FRP moved forward with it. They have said it repeatedly even before the minister answered a single question, says Seher Aydar.
She herself has not had time to read the reply letter yet. Rødt has not previously found that there are grounds for a control case against Brenna.
– Now we will read the answers thoroughly first, says Aydar.
2023-07-06 17:16:42
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