We asked one Member of the Storting, Svein Harberg (Conservative Party), how he would be spending his summer months. Will he really be taking a three-month holiday?

Svein Harberg has represented the constituency of Aust Agder for the Conservative Party since 2009. He currently holds the position of chair of the Standing Committee on Family and Cultural Affairs. He is certainly not intending to spend his days lounging around on the sofa until the end of September.

“The weeks leading up to the summer recess are extremely hectic for a Member of the Storting. It’s unremitting from early morning till late in the evening. Once this period is over we finally have the time to meet voters, companies and politicians in our own constituencies,” he says.

Harberg - whose particular remit is culture – will be taking part in a series of meetings, festivals and cultural events throughout the summer months. He will be able to go on holiday with his family in July, but after that will participate in a host of local, regional and national events. These will include the Ibsen and Hamsun days at the Sørlandet Literature Festival, the Arendalsuka political and business networking forum, parliamentary party group meetings and meetings in the Nordic Council.

Election campaign                       

“As well as this, I – like all the other MPs – will be campaigning in the lead up to the local government elections. My calendar is jam-packed from 5^th August until Election Day on 14^th September. After that I’ll have another short holiday before the first committee trip of the autumn starts on 23^rd September,” he continues.

Some people think that the sittings in the Storting ought to start earlier in the autumn. Do you agree?

“No. In Norway there are elections every other year, and we need time to campaign. It’s also important to remember that an MP’s job isn’t only done when there are sittings in the Chamber. It’s vital that we spend time in our own county – the constituency we represent – and we wouldn’t be able to do this if it weren’t for the sitting-free periods. We also organize our committee trips during such times,” Harberg adds.

How much holiday will you be able to have this summer?

“All told, around five weeks. But even when I’m on holiday, it doesn’t stop the public and journalists from calling me. That’s just part of the job of being an MP,” he says.

State Opening on 2^nd October

The next sitting in the Storting will be held on 30^th September. The 160^th Storting will convene for its constituent sitting the following day, while the State Opening of the Storting takes place on 2^nd October.