Tax on wealth is key issue as Norway votes in close parliamentary elections
STAVANGER, NORWAY—Prosperous Norway is holding an election on Monday with inequality high on the list of concerns and the future of a wealth tax that has endured for over a century in doubt.
There is expected to be a close outcome between the center-left bloc led by the Labor Party of Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, Norway’s leader for the past four years, and a right-wing bloc.
Labor wants to keep the wealth tax that has been a mainstay of Norwegian policy since 1892. Of its rivals on the right, the Conservatives want it reduced and the Progress Party, which calls for lower taxes and more immigration controls, wants it scrapped. Previously a fringe issue, it has been at the heart of this campaign.
Around 4.3 million people in the nation of some 5.6 million are eligible to vote for the new 169-member parliament, or Storting. Official results are expected on Tuesday. They are usually followed by weeks of horse-trading to form a coalition and agree on Cabinet positions.
The result isn’t likely to have major implications for Norway’s foreign policy. The country is a stalwart member of Nato and a strong supporter of Ukraine’s defense against Russia.
The wealth tax is a levy of up to 1.1 percent on assets and shares worth more than 1.76 million kroner (around $176,000), though there are various reductions and discounts, for instance taking account of debt and property. Labor says that scrapping it would cost 34 billion kroner ($3.3 billion) per year.
The Progress Party, which leads the right-wing coalition, is calling for the wealth tax to be abolished, arguing that it is detrimental to the economy. Party leader Sylvie Listhaug argues that it penalizes entrepreneurs who might have taxable stakes in valuable companies, but little real income.
“The money paid in wealth tax could have been spent creating businesses, new jobs and more innovation,” Listhaug wrote in an email to The Associated Press (AP).
Polls show Listhaug’s party ahead of the Conservatives, led by former Prime Minister Erna Solberg.
