Norwegian PM says Norway can’t be naïve in dealings with China

Jonas Gahr Støre, Norway’s PM, has said Norway must be cautious in its dealings with China.

The PM made the comments in an interview with the newspaper Aftenposten after a Norwegian man was arrested on suspicion of spying for China.

“China is looking for technology, political decision-making processes and human contacts in areas we must protect ourselves from for the sake of our own and allied security. There will be cases where we do not allow cooperation at all,” he said.

“We know from experience that Norwegians with the best intentions can give out information they shouldn’t,” he added.

However, Støre also said that it wouldn’t make sense if Norway refused to collaborate with one of the world’s biggest economies and a leading nation in technology.

Calls for hard age limit for social media in Norway

Norway’s PM has told public broadcaster NRK that a solid age limit for social media use should be put in place.

He told NRK that the government would set an age limit in the autumn, that it would be enforced with electronic identification, and that content aimed at children would be regulated more thoroughly.

“We must get an age limit that we can enforce. And we have to get stricter regulation of functionality and content that is obviously harmful to children,“ he said.

A recent survey from data analysis firm Opinion shows that the majority in Norway want to see an increased age limit for social media in Norway.

“We see increasing support in the population for increasing the age limit in social media,“ Tove Botnen from Opinion said.

Oslo schools to ban smartphones

Starting in August, there will be a municipal-wide ban on mobile phones during teaching hours in Oslo’s schools.

The ban is the result of the recommendation for mobile-free schools from the Norwegian Directorate of Education.

Break times at primary schools would also be phone free in Norway, however phones would be permitted during free time at high schools.

“The new rules state that mobile phones and other digital means of communication must not be used during school hours unless otherwise agreed with the teacher or the school’s management,“ city councillor for education Julie Remen Midtgarden said.

Labour Party make improvement in the polls

A poll from Verian for broadcaster TV 2 shows that Labour may be closing ground on the Conservative Party.

The party is up 3.8 percentage points since the last poll. This would give Labour 22.4 percent of the vote, which is still behind the 24.8 percent that the Conservative Party would receive based on polling.

The figures are the Labour Party’s best since May 2022.