Editorials

When the mighty fall, they land softly

When regular employees get caught up in serious criminal cases, they lose their jobs, their income, and their security. When it happens to those at the very top of the system, they’re relieved of all duties while keeping full pay. The double standard is outrageous. Try telling a single mother stressing over her power bill that Mona Juul is still collecting 1.5 million kroner a year for doing absolutely nothing.

The toxic culture in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs – seen from the inside

When the party handbook becomes too dominant and the roles of political leadership and the civil service blur into one another, professional integrity erodes and lines of accountability grow unclear. This toxic culture is especially pronounced in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (UD). In such systems, a culture quickly takes root in which regulations, meritocratic principles, and expert assessments become difficult to uphold. Loyalty to the leadership’s political and personal interests – and to one’s own career prospects – weighs far more heavily than professional integrity or the organisation’s overarching objectives.

Eight dangerous asylum seekers and ten neighbours: – Bloody man in the garden

A barracks in Norway’s far north has in recent years been used as a reception centre for particularly dangerous asylum seekers. The nearest police patrol is at least half an hour away. The foreigners move about freely, creating unease and frustration among the ten permanent residents, who are calling for better security: “We no longer want to take part in this experiment.”

Architecture of Impunity

In 1996, Terje Rød-Larsen faced a public tax case with full details exposed. The tax authorities had to decide whether to reopen his assessment before the ten-year deadline expired in 39 days. Economist Eirik Reppen reviewed the documents on national TV: a 600,000 kroner share gain in Fideco, potentially taxable as salary income. If so, he owed nearly 400,000 kroner in underpaid tax—rising to 843,000 with interest and penalties, or over 700,000 without them. These are hard numbers, not opinions.

Something is rotten in the state of Norway

The Norwegian Epstein network could have been taken straight from Shakespeare’s «Hamlet», with deep corruption at the centre of power. That the scandal has cast a sharper spotlight on Norway than on the other Nordic countries is clearly connected to Norwegian Middle East policy, the Oslo Process and the large sack of aid funds which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs disposes of without control or concern for where the money ends up.

Now begins Lent – the Christian fasting season before Easter

For many Scandinavians, Lent itself has become an unfamiliar word. Yet it is one of Christianity’s oldest and most biblical practices. Let us recover what these observance days truly mean as they lead towards Easter, the Church year’s greatest feast. We are dust – and we are loved.

Støre’s self-esteem bruised by Trump

Norway PM Støre’s address to the Storting echoed the interwar years, casting the US as the chief destabiliser through its “unconcealed use of force”. It rings hollow, then, to claim our security footing is unchanged. On his account, it is hardly certain the US would always come to our aid, whatever the Government does.

How the toxic culture in the Foreign Ministry became possible

The release of the Epstein files has exposed numerous alarming reports of serious and long-standing irregularities within Norway’s Foreign Ministry (UD). The unhealthy entanglement between political and administrative leadership has corrupted the department. This rot must be investigated right to the top – including elite circles in the Labour Party and Conservatives. A proper clean-up is needed in the UD, where those who show integrity are met with sanctions.

How Jeffrey Epstein recruited Norwegian and Swedish girls for sex and prostitution

“I’m ready to get started tomorrow and send you 16-year-olds,” wrote the Algerian groomer Daniel Siad, who holds Swedish citizenship, to Jeffrey Epstein.

Prince of Darkness Shines a Light on the Murky World of Lobbying Companies

Peter Mandelson is featuring heavily in the headlines as his role in the Epstein scandal threatens to bring down Keir Starmer’s government. But the story goes much deeper: Mandelson, the disgraced former Ambassador to the US and adviser to Tony Blair and successive UK Labour prime ministers has had a finger in many unsavoury pies. […]