(THIS ARTICLE IS MACHINE TRANSLATED by Google from Norwegian)
A government of the Labor Party and the Socialist People's Party – possibly with the support of a center-right party – to stem the right-wing forces. This is the requirement LO in Vestfold places before this year's election. The demand was adopted at LO in Vestfold's county conference last weekend. Previously, LO in Rogaland has made a similar decision, and Oslo LO's leader Kleiv Fiskvik was in favor of a parliamentary collaboration or government collaboration between the Labor Party, SV and possibly the Center Party, in an interview with Klassekampen a while ago.
A round of calls Ny Tid has made to the district secretaries in LO reveals that the views of Vestfold, Rogaland and Oslo have great support. Ny Tid has succeeded in getting in touch with eleven district secretaries from other than the three counties mentioned. All are clearly in favor of a government in which the Labor Party and the Socialist People's Party are part.
Most of the district secretaries Ny Tid has spoken to emphasize that the issue has not been formally addressed in their county councils, and that it is therefore their own views that they present. The secretaries' positions must nevertheless be perceived as a good barometer of the attitudes of LO around the country.
Ny Tid does not know that LO in other counties has made decisions similar to Vestfold and Rogaland.
Guest at LO
Two weeks ago, the national assembly of the Socialist Left Party unanimously decided that they are ready to enter government with the Labor Party, and possibly the Center Party, if there should be a parliamentary basis for this in the Storting after the election. SV leader Kristin Halvorsen also used the opportunity to state that it was not SV that was at stake – but that the Labor Party and the Socialist People's Party had to show willingness to cooperate.
The Labor Party's leadership has remained silent about the scheme. The Center Party's leader Odd Roger Enoksen has rejected an organized collaboration with the Labor Party in cash. But in the LO system, it seems that the fear of the right-wing forces – and of a government under the influence of the Progress Party – now leads to a more positive attitude towards SV.
One of the clearest evidence of the new attitude is that, for the first time in history, SV is now invited as a guest at a LO congress. The respondents in the trade union movement have repeatedly made proposals for this in previous years, without receiving support for the demand from especially more than themselves.
Afraid of Frp
- We are concerned about trade union rights, and then it is important for us that the Labor Party leans to the left instead of to the Conservative Party, says Agnes Nordgaard in Aust-Agder.
- Here in the county, we have studied the various party programs and people react strongly when they see what the Conservatives, and especially the FRP, have on the program. This applies to the sick pay scheme, central collective bargaining, the question of further deregulation of working life. I have traveled a lot and talked to people. These are things they are very interested in, says Bjørn Johansen in Finnmark.
- I see that we must bring about cooperation between the parties that will fight for the trade union rights. Today, it is almost only SV that is relevant, says Aud Watnebryhn in Buskerud.
The threat from the right is then also the starting point for LO in Vestfold's decision. "Under no circumstances must a bourgeois coalition, in which the Progress Party is represented, be given the opportunity to see the light of day," the decision states, and further: the labor movement has spent decades building. ”
Real discussions
- It would be natural if you talked together before the election, says Per Kristian Finstad in Vest-Agder. – Here I am not sure what is the right strategy, but you should already now explore the terrain, and then the election result will show how sustainable it is, says John Bjarne Hjelmeland in Sogn og Fjordane.
However, most of the district secretaries think it would be wise to wait. Vigdis Ravnøy in Hordaland says it like this: – The Labor Party and the Socialist People's Party must each run their own election campaign, then the election result will see if a government collaboration between the Labor Party and the Socialist People's Party is alive.
Shared about Sp
- No, as I said, we are concerned about the professional rights, and here we get little support from Sp and KrF, she says.
- What SV and the Labor Party have in common is the struggle to expose the right-wing forces – as LO also does. Here I do not envision Sp and KrF as teammates, says Vigdis Ravnøy in Hordaland.
The most positive for the Center Party is Mallvin Steinsvoll in Møre og Romsdal:
- The Center Party must be happy to join in a closer collaboration between SV and the Labor Party. The Center Party has been the guarantor that our trade union rights have been safeguarded in the Center Government. I would like to see a Center Party that works more closely with the Labor Party and the Socialist People's Party, if they will also in the future be a guarantor that the trade union rights are safeguarded, he says. Others emphasize Sp's defense of the sick pay scheme as a positive feature of the party.
Opinions are also divided on whether the LO Congress will decide on the issue in early May. Most are positive_
- Yes, the LO Congress should address this issue. For LO, it will be important to work to secure the basic trade union rights. If we are to achieve this, closer political cooperation must be encouraged, says Aud Watnebryhn in Buskerud.
- I hope that the forces on the socialist side in politics can cooperate more closely in the future, and if LO can contribute something, then that's fine, says Mellvin Steinsvoll in Møre og Romsdal LO.
Happy Halvorsen
- This agrees with my impression as well. Quite a few believe that the Conservatives and the Liberal Party have had too great an influence on the policy of any sitting government. Therefore, many see the need for a majority constellation with some community goals, which can last the four-year period, she says.
Halvorsen believes that the invitation to the LO Congress is part of the same process in the LO system as the desire for an AP-SV government, namely the desire to curb the Right and Frp.
- But this is also a challenge for us in SV. As a party, we must work more with the issues where we agree with LO, says the SV leader.
- LO has previously criticized SV for a lack of business policy. Why do you think this has changed?
- I have always believed that it has been a wrong accusation, and SV has in many areas been concerned with governance, national ownership and other things that are important prerequisites for employment. But we have also worked to develop a business policy for the districts – not least at the last national meeting.
- Many district secretaries are skeptical of the Center Party, but you have invited them to the team. Can you reassure LO?
- No, I probably can not. But any political cooperation must be based on spaciousness and tolerance for different traditions. We will probably have to sharpen our skills, says Halvorsen.
