Covid-19 epidemic in Norway could be over by the summer 

The coronavirus epidemic in Norway will be over by the summer, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health have predicted.

An epidemic is an outbreak of disease that spreads rapidly between people in smaller areas, such as a country, whereas a pandemic affects people over a greater geographical location. Covid-19 currently has the status of an epidemic within Norway’s borders. 

“During the summer, we expect that the epidemic will more or less disappear from the country,” Department Director, Line Vold, at the NIPH told state broadcaster NRK. 

However, this does not mean that Norway will be completely rid of the virus. Vold still expects there to be small local outbreaks of Covid-19. 

“We envisage that there will still be outbreaks in some municipalities, but that there will be a much lower risk of any new regional or national waves,” Vold said. 

We will have more on this story in a separate article shortly.

Clear majority for change of government in next election

There is a clear majority for a change of government according to a joint poll conducted by newspaper Aftenposten and national broadcaster NRK. 

According to the poll, the Labour Party and Socialist People’s Party will receive 78 out of the required 85 for a majority in parliament between them. Norway’s left leaning parties could receive up to 109 seats between them.  

READ ALSO: What Britons in Europe need to know about hte UK government’s ‘votes for life’ pledge

The four parties currently in government are only on course to receive 60 seats and are 20 percentage points behind the opposition, with three months until the next election. 

The two parties would need to form a coalition with one or multiple other parties to form a government. 

Coalitions are the norm in Norway as there are nine main political parties, and Norway uses a proportional representation voting system. 

Almost 500 wolves in Norway and Sweden 

The population of wolves in Scandinavia has risen over the past two years, and there are now around 480 wolves across Norway and Sweden. 

The wolf population grew by 30 last winter and 100 the winter before that, according to Rovdata. 

READ MORE: How many wolves are there in the Norwegian wild

Rovdata, which collects data and population figures on wolves, wolverines, bears, lynxes and golden eagles, said that the majority of wolves were in Sweden and border territories; roughly 110 wolves were detected in Norway this winter. 

460 new cases of Covid-19 in Norway 

On Tuesday, 460 cases of coronavirus were registered in Norway. This is an increase of 108 compared to the seven-day average of 352. 

In Oslo, a sharp increase in cases has been recorded. On Tuesday, 140 cases of infection were registered in the Norwegian capital, a rise of 93 cases. 

The R-number or reproduction rate in Norway is currently 1.0. This means that every ten people that are infected will, on average, only infect another ten people, indicating that the infection level is stable.