A fisherman in Varangerfjord, Norway.

Living the Norwegian way

Norway, a a member of the European Economic Area, but not the EU, is the dream country for British eurosceptics. But could it work for countries that want to jump the European ship?

Published on 13 July 2012 at 13:07
A fisherman in Varangerfjord, Norway.

On the historic quayside, gazing out over the North Sea, the sunburnt young man took a swig of his lager and paused. "We want to be our own masters," he said finally, "and not let Brussels tell us what to do. Why should we be in the European Union and pay for the mistakes of other countries?"

With a shrug of his shoulders, he added the oft-heard British refrain: "We're better out of the EU."

But this was not a British shore, and the familiar phrases were not coming from British lips. In Bergen, Norway's second city, such views are almost universally held, and Hans-Erik Almas, 23, is among the 80 per cent of Norwegians who think their country is right not to be in the EU.

"Norway is strong and wealthy, so I don't see why we should put that at risk by joining," he said. "We already have the best parts of the EU without actually being a member."

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It's an opinion increasingly shared across the sea, in Britain. Last week, writing in The Sunday Telegraph, David Cameron raised the possibility of a referendum on Britain's membership. And Norway is often cited as a perfect example of how to leave the EU, yet still thrive.

"People worry that if Britain left we would lose access to the Single Market and not be able to travel freely," said Robert Oulds, director of the Bruges Group think tank. "“But that is not the case. Britain can cancel its membership of the EU and retain the trade benefits, following Norway’s example. The only thing we will lose is the bureaucracy and expense."

Norway's five million people were asked twice whether they wanted to join – with referendums in 1972 and 1994 – and each time, after impassioned debate, narrowly voted No.

Counterpoint

But Norwegian model isn’t the answer

Eurosceptics may well believe that Britain should become like Norway in its relationship with the EU, but according to Mats Persson of the Open Europe think tank, joining the European Economic Area would be “a much worse deal than the existing relationship.”

In a column in the Daily Telegraph, Persson writes

First, Norway is almost as much of an EU member as Britain is, implementing roughly 75 per cent of all EU laws, from labour market rules (such as the working time directive) to crime and policing measures.

Second, despite being forced to accept all these laws, Oslo has no representation in the EU’s institutions and virtually no way of influencing the decision-making process to reflect its national interests. Should Britain “become like Norway”, it would be home to 36 per cent of Europe’s retail finance market, but with no say over huge swathes of regulation governing that market. [...]

Finally, Norwegian companies face extra costs when selling manufactured goods to Europe, stemming from the EU’s arcane “Rules of Origin”, which impose a tariff on any imports that contain components from outside the EU, and lots of extra paperwork. This has been acceptable to Norway, since 62 per cent of its goods exports come in the form of fish or natural resources, which are not affected by these rules. Applied to the UK – its car manufacturing or pharmaceuticals industries – it would bring sudden additional costs and a competitive disadvantage.

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