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85-652: Thorbjørn Jagland ( né Johansen ; listen , 5 November 1950) is a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party . He served as the Secretary General of the Council of Europe from 2009 to 2019. He served as the 32nd Prime Minister of Norway from 1996 to 1997, as the minister of Foreign Affairs from 2000 to 2001 and as the president of the Storting from 2005 to 2009. Jagland studied economics at

170-487: A majority government . Labour entered opposition again after losing nine seats in 2013. The party lost a further six seats in 2017 , yielding the second-lowest number of seats since 1924. At the 2021 election , the party lost one seat but the left-wing opposition gained a majority over the political right, with Støre becoming the prime minister and heading a minority government along with the Centre Party. The party

255-799: A progressive party that subscribes to co-operation on a national as well as international level. Its youth wing is the Workers' Youth League . The party is a member of the Party of European Socialists and the Progressive Alliance . It was formerly member of the Comintern (1919–1923), the International Revolutionary Marxist Centre (1932–1935), the Labour and Socialist International (1938–1940), and

340-720: A racial slur . Jagland visited Sri Lanka in June 2001 to try to reach a level of involvement in the Sri Lankan Civil War. After a brief visit to the capital Colombo, at the request of the Sri Lankan president Chandrika Kumaratunga, Jagland agreed to take a role in the peace process of Sri Lanka between the Sri Lankan Government and the Tamil Tigers.[29] The Labour Party did not fare well during

425-606: A vote of no confidence . The Labour cabinet was only directly supported by its own party group, which consisted of 67 out of 165 members of Parliament. To pass legislation, the cabinet had sought support from the largest opposition parties—the Centre Party as well as Labour's traditional adversary, the Conservative Party —on a case-by-case basis. Brundtland had already employed this ad-hoc tactic during her time as Prime Minister, describing it as " slalom racing in

510-499: A "Racism Paragraph", that was aimed at protecting religious groups from attacks, while retaining protection of the academic freedom of speech. All political parties in parliament, except the Centre Party , were opposed to the "Racism Paragraph", but Centre-leader Liv Signe Navarsete stated that she had used her influence to make the Labour Party accept the matter. When asked about the case, Jagland responded: "It will in itself be

595-614: A bi-yearly congress, a national council and the Labour group in the Sami parliament. Buskerud County Municipality The main responsibilities of the county municipality included the running of the 13 upper secondary schools . It managed all the county roadways, public transport , dental care , culture , and cultural heritage sites in the county. Public transport was managed through Vestviken Kollektivtrafikk . The Buskerud county council ( Norwegian : Fylkestinget )

680-531: A bomb towards a government building (which was led by the Labour Party). Stoltenberg's initial response to the 22 July attack was well received by the Norwegian public. As he reaffirmed his government's commitment to the values of openness and tolerance in the face of adversity or intolerance his approval rating soared as high as 94%, only to decrease sharply after the 22 July Commission report highlighted

765-495: A close association with the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), and until the mid-1990s, a dual-membership agreement existed between the two organizations, with LO members automatically holding (indirect) membership in the Labour Party as well. The party had about 200,500 members at its peak in 1950. No records were kept about direct membership or indirect membership figures. The dual-membership clause

850-776: A comfortable absolute majority. Jagland formally commenced his next term from 1 October 2014. Jagland's re-election as Secretary General of the Council of Europe is without precedent. Several outgoing Secretaries General had stood for re-election without having been successful. His wide margin of victory is seen as a sign of approval and appreciation of his yeoman services to both the Council of Europe and his unstinting efforts to reduce tensions in Ukraine. Labour Party (Norway) The Labour Party ( Bokmål : Arbeiderpartiet ; Nynorsk : Arbeidarpartiet , A/Ap ; Northern Sami : Bargiidbellodat ), formerly The Norwegian Labour Party ( Norwegian : Det norske Arbeiderparti , DNA ),

935-564: A committee consisting of 5 persons who then choose the candidates for the prize. This committee is completely independent of the Norwegian Parliament or other institutions, domestic or foreign. The Nobel Committee announces the winning candidate(s) on the first Friday of each October; prizes themselves are handed out on 10 December in Oslo, that date being the birthday of Alfred Nobel. The announcement of Barack Obama as winner of

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1020-539: A common surname with working class connotations, to Jagland in 1957; the Jagland name was one of the proposed "new family names" which imitated traditional farm names in the book 2000 nye slektsnavn ("2,000 new family names") by Astrid Moss; the book aimed to help members of the working class with common surnames to find more unique names. He married journalist Hanne Grotjord in 1976. The couple has two sons, Anders (born 1978) and Henrik (born 1986). As Secretary General of

1105-470: A complete address, the mailman delivered many of them to Jagland's home, "since that was where everything happened". Jagland graduated from secondary school in 1969. Along with his twin brother Helge, Thorbjørn Jagland briefly studied economics at the University of Oslo, but was at the same time involved in politics and did not finish his studies. Jagland and his parents changed their surname from Johansen,

1190-449: A fund, the interest on which shall be annually distributed in the form of prizes to those who, during the preceding year , shall have conferred the greatest benefit to mankind... and one part to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses....The prizes for physics and chemistry shall be awarded by

1275-526: A government-in-exile for the duration of the war. Immediately following the end of the Second World War , the Labour Party emerged victorious from the 1945 Norwegian parliamentary election . For the first time, the party secured an absolute majority in the Storting , taking 76 of 150 seats. Einar Gerhardsen of the Labour Party subsequently formed his first government, and he went on to dominate

1360-604: A meeting with Jagland at his residence in Strasbourg in 2013, according to media in October 2020. In 2009, Jagland was elected Secretary General of the Council of Europe . Jagland was elected with 165 against 80 votes in the Parliamentary Assembly . The other candidate was former Prime Minister of Poland Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz . Jagland has emphasized the importance of strengthening the cooperation with

1445-555: A monthly political magazine, Kontakt , between 1947 and 1954 which was edited by Torolf Elster . From its roots as a radical alternative to the political establishment, the party grew to its current dominance through several eras. The party experienced a split in 1921 caused by a decision made two years earlier to join the Comintern and the Social Democratic Labour Party of Norway was formed. In 1923,

1530-492: A move that increased the popularity of the opposition to Milosevic and his eventual fall from power. The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs furnished computers that helped in revealing the electoral fraud perpetrated by Milosevic. The Norwegian contribution was instrumental in the overthrow of the Milosevic government and Jagland was the first to be invited to the victory celebrations. Jagland again made national headlines in

1615-401: A new cabinet. Jagland's cabinet was short-lived with two ministers being forced to withdraw. He resigned following the 1997 election even though his party won the most votes. Jagland was widely perceived to have been passed over when Jens Stoltenberg formed his second cabinet in 2005. Jagland launched his vision of the "Norwegian House" during his tenure as Prime Minister. In his speech to

1700-789: A paradox if one questions the principle that freedom of speech is subject to the party whip. Especially when it emerges that the question may have been the subject of horse-trading and attempts at a coup". Jagland had also been critical of the lack of parliamentary control permitted by the coalition cabinet . Critics accused Jagland of attacking the Red-Green Cabinet as revenge against Stoltenberg for forcing Jagland to resign as Labour Party leader in 2002. Jagland rejected this as "petty criticism". Jagland announced in September 2008 that he would not seek reelection. He said he decided, with "great sadness", to leave Norwegian politics because he

1785-470: A prime minister candidate. Speaking to the national council of Labour on 10 February 2000, Jagland said "If I were to continue as prime minister candidate, and especially if I should return as prime minister, the pressure that has been put against me the last three years will only continue and increase in strength." Only 35 days later, the first cabinet of Bondevik resigned following a motion of confidence . A new Labour cabinet , to be led by Jens Stoltenberg,

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1870-528: A prominent profile in the Stoltenberg government, was chosen as new party leader on 14 June 2014. In the 2017 Norwegian parliamentary election , he led the party to a surprise defeat, as Labour fell 3.4 percentage points to 27.4%, and from 55 to 49 seats in the Storting , while the Conservative Party managed to retain a majority along with its smaller centre-right partners. Erna Solberg , Conservative prime minister since 2013, remained in office throughout

1955-503: A second term and was one of the two candidates competing for the post. Jagland was opposed by Ms Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger. In the voting conducted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), of the 252 members voting, Jagland won 156. Ms Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger obtained 93. There were 3 blank ballots. With the requirement for an absolute majority being 125, Jagland's tally of 156 gave him

2040-634: A similar fashion to the publicity about "The Norwegian House" and "36.9%", this time for the phrase "Bongo from Congo", which Jagland used when referring to Omar Bongo , the President of Gabon, when he was visiting Norway. Jagland stated on 2 February 2001 on the nationally broadcast television show I kveld med Per Ståle on TV 2 that "everybody at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs went around saying that 'now you are going to meet with Bongo from Congo ' ". The term "Bongo" and "Congo" has been seen by many as

2125-455: Is a social democratic political party in Norway . It is positioned on the centre-left of the political spectrum , and is led by Jonas Gahr Støre . It is the senior party in a minority governing coalition with the Centre Party since 2021, with Støre serving as the current Prime Minister of Norway . The Labour Party is officially committed to social-democratic ideals. Its slogan since

2210-605: Is the Party Congress which is held every two years. The most senior body between these congresses is the National Delegate's Meeting which is made up of the party's Executive Board and two delegates from each of the 19 counties. The Executive Board itself consists of 16 elected members as well as the leadership of the party. The party is headed by a single leader, while the number of deputy leaders has fluctuated between one and two in different periods. As of 2022,

2295-597: The 1961 election . In 1963, the Kings Bay Affair drove the opposition to table a motion of no-confidence against the Gerhardsen's cabinet; the motion was ultimately successful, and Labour was forced to step down from government for the first time in 28 years. However, the incoming centre-right coalition proved short-lived, and Labour returned to government less than one month later, and remained in office until 1965. The Labour Party later formed government in

2380-480: The 2001 election . In an interview with the Associated Press , Jagland said, "It is unstable and unpredictable". After the votes had been counted, Stoltenberg and his cabinet was forced to resign, suffering from its worst election campaign results since 1924. Jagland stepped down in 2001 from his post as Foreign Minister in the wake of the collapse of the Stoltenberg government. The leadership battle of

2465-649: The 2005 Norwegian parliamentary election . The Labour Party subsequently formed its first ever peace-time coalition government along with the Socialist Left and Centre parties. Their cooperation was dubbed the Red-green coalition , in emulation of similar constellations in Germany. In 2011, the party changed its official name from the Norwegian Labour Party ( Det norske arbeiderparti ) to

2550-419: The 2009 Nobel Peace Prize , raised a few eyebrows and Jagland had to clarify this choice on several occasions. The Nobel Committee points to the fact that it has to execute the will of Alfred Nobel, in accordance with the following text in his will: "...The whole of my remaining realizable estate shall be dealt with in the following way...the capital, invested in safe securities by my executors, shall constitute

2635-465: The Conservative prime minister in the 2013—2021 period. Meanwhile, the Labour Party hit record-low ratings in voting intention polls in late 2022, with a number of polls placing it below the 20%-mark in September 2022. The Labour Party organisation is divided into county- and municipality-level chapters, numbering approximately 2,500 associations in total. Historically, the party has maintained

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2720-661: The Socialist International (1951–2016). The Labour Party has always been a strong supporter of Norwegian NATO membership and has supported Norway joining the European Union during two referendums. During the Cold War , when the party was in government most of the time, the party closely aligned Norway with the United States at the international level and followed an anti-communist policy at

2805-482: The Socialist People's Party . From the late 1970s, the party started to lose voters due to a rise in right-wing parties, leading to a swing to the right for the Labour Party under Gro Harlem Brundtland during the 1980s. In 2001 , the party achieved its worst result since 1924 . Between 2005 and 2013 , Labour returned to power after committing to a coalition agreement with other parties in order to form

2890-615: The Storting . The energy crisis was the most important issue for voters. Party leader Jonas Gahr Støre assumed the Norwegian premiership on 14 October 2021, at the helm of a minority coalition with the Centre Party . Soon after assuming power, the new coalition was faced with a series of crises, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine and subsequent energy price hikes. The government was criticized for its handling of these crises, and by August 2022, Støre had dropped to 31% in preferred prime minister polling, against 49% for Erna Solberg ,

2975-458: The University of Oslo at introductory level, but did not graduate. He started his political career in the Workers' Youth League , which he led from 1977 to 1981. He was party secretary from 1986 to 1992 and party leader from 1992 to 2002. Jagland's cabinet , albeit short-lived, was marked by controversies, with two ministers being forced to withdraw following personal scandals. Jagland, who

3060-745: The World Forum for Democracy conferences at the Council of Europe. The annual conference brings together statesmen, NGOs, grassroots workers, academics, politicians and others and was inaugurated in 2012 by the Secretary General of the United Nations Ban ki Moon. In April 2014, under Jagland's watch, the Council of Europe released its seminal report "State of Democracy, Human Rights and the Rule of Law in Europe". The report constituted

3145-433: The 1930s has been "everyone shall be included" ( alle skal med ) and the party traditionally seeks a strong welfare state , funded through taxes and duties . Since the 1980s, the party has included more of the principles of a social market economy in its policy, allowing for privatisation of state-owned assets and services and reducing income tax progressivity , following the wave of economic liberalisation during

3230-487: The 1980s. During the first Stoltenberg government, the party's policies were inspired by Tony Blair 's New Labour agenda in the United Kingdom and saw the most widespread privatisation by any government in Norway to that date. The party has frequently been described as increasingly neoliberal since the 1980s, both by political scientists and opponents on the political left . The Labour Party profiles itself as

3315-411: The 2017—2021 term. In the same year, the Labour Party was targeted by hackers suspected to be from Russia. In 2021, the Labour Party returned to government after eight years in opposition, following the 2021 Norwegian parliamentary election . The party dropped to 48 seats from the 49 it had secured in 2017, but its centre-left coalition secured a landslide victory overall, taking 100 of the 169 seats in

3400-432: The Comintern. It first formed a government in 1928 and has led the government for all but sixteen years since 1935. From 1945 to 1961 , the party had an absolute majority in the Norwegian Parliament, to date the last time this has happened in the history of Norway. The electoral domination by the Labour Party during the 1960s and early 1970s was initially broken by competition from smaller left-wing parties, primarily from

3485-639: The Council of Europe, Jagland resided in Strasbourg , France, but has since moved back to Norway. Jagland has been awarded the title of Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour of France for his "tireless commitment to the European continent and the universal values it represents". In 1966, at age 16, he joined the Lier chapter of the Workers' Youth League (AUF). Rising up rapidly through

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3570-477: The Council of Europe. Jagland has also taken the initiative to a Neighbourhood Policy which includes an important number of cooperation activities on the basis of Council of Europe standards with Jordan, Tunisia, Morocco and Kazakhstan. Jagland's has initiated regular consultations with the United Nations and these have since become institutionalised within the Council of Europe. In 2012, Jagland launched

3655-670: The European Union and regular consultations are taking place with the leaders of the EU. The process of EU accession to the European Convention was meant to be ratified by 2015, but as of July 2017, no new accession agreement had been drafted. Jagland signed an intention agreement with Commissioner Stefan Füle in April 2014, which will considerably increase the number of Joint Programmes and EU financing of projects implemented by

3740-455: The Labour Party ( Arbeiderpartiet ). The party claimed there had been confusion among voters at polling stations because of the difference between the official name and the common use name of Labour Party. The name change caused Arbeiderpartiet to appear on the ballot, eliminating any potential confusion. On 22 July 2011, a terrorist opened fire at the Labour Party's youth camp (ages 13–25), killing 69 people and killing eight more in Oslo with

3825-473: The Labour Party returned to power under Jens Stoltenberg , who became prime minister. However, after a period of intense infighting between Stoltenberg and former prime minister Thorbjørn Jagland , and a turbulent spell in government, the party collapsed to only 24.3% of the vote in the 2001 Norwegian parliamentary election , marking its worst result since 1924. The party returned to the opposition under Stoltenberg's leadership, before later recovering to 32.7% in

3910-557: The Labour Party's International Committee. He held both positions until 1992, when he succeeded long-time leader Gro Harlem Brundtland . Jagland was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Buskerud in 1993, and was re-elected on three occasions. During his first term, Jagland was a member of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs , and also served as the fractional leader for the parliamentary group of

3995-502: The Storting following his appointment, Jagland described the Norwegian House as a foundation with four pillars. The metaphor represented, "the collective value creation within the ecologically sustainable society". The four pillars that hold up the house were business and labour policy; welfare policy; research and educational policy; and foreign and security policy. Jagland stated that everyone had something to contribute regarding

4080-402: The Storting". However, the negotiations in order to land the annual state budget in 1996 were particularly tough. According to political scientist Trond Nordby , Jagland felt that a cabinet which achieved less than 36.9% would struggle to govern. As it turned out, Labour only received 35.0%, remaining the largest party with a small loss of seats. Jagland resigned on 29 September 1997 and power

4165-717: The Swedish Academy of Sciences; that for physiological or medical work by the Caroline Institute in Stockholm; that for literature by the Academy in Stockholm, and that for champions of peace by a committee of five persons to be elected by the Norwegian Storting. It is my express wish that in awarding the prizes no consideration whatever shall be given to the nationality of the candidates, but that

4250-501: The cabinet would resign if the Labour Party received less than 36.9% of the popular vote . This was the percentage of the vote that the party had received in the 1993 election while Brundtland was still leading, which had provided them with an unclear mandate to govern. The Constitution of Norway does not require a cabinet to be formally approved by Parliament in order to serve, and a minority government that lacks concrete support from its inception may serve as long as it does not receive

4335-540: The cabinet. A UN conference against racism and discrimination in Geneva was planned for the spring of 2009. Some member states, such as Canada and Israel , had announced that they might boycott the conference because previous such conferences had given way to anti-Semitism and racism. Jagland said Norway was unlikely to undertake any boycott, but he added, "The previous racism conference in Durban , South Africa, in 2001,

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4420-462: The creation of the house; in particular he stated that the cabinet would cooperate with the opposition to reach these goals. In his speech, Jagland said that he would not deviate much from Harlem Brundtland's policies, but that he would increase the focus on violence, abuse of alcohol and drugs, and crime, including improvement of preventative measures and the courts . He also stated that it was important to introduce information technology in all parts of

4505-429: The domestic level in the aftermath of the 1948 Kråkerøy speech and culminating in Norway becoming a founding member of NATO in 1949. Founded in 1887, the party steadily increased in support until it became the largest party in Norway at the 1927 parliamentary election , a position it has held ever since. That year also saw the consolidation of conflicts surrounding the party during the 1920s following its membership in

4590-475: The early 1930s, Labour abandoned its revolutionary profile and set a reformist course. Labour then returned to government in 1935 and remained in power throughout the Second World War . The party was a member of the Labour and Socialist International between 1938 and 1940. When Norway was invaded by Nazi Germany in 1940, the Labour-led government and the Norwegian royal family fled to London, whence it led

4675-580: The education system. As part of the construction of the Norwegian House, the cabinet also started to appoint lay councils, with expertise within their fields, that would provide them with feedback and inputs on important areas in society. Jagland stated that the purpose was to allow critical voices close access to the political decisions, and increase the number of ideas generated at a political level. Jagland stated in August 2008 that, "the Norwegian House could have been better planned and prepared, but I did not have

4760-526: The first consolidated analysis of human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe, based on the findings of the Council of Europe's monitoring bodies. In the preface to the report, Jagland wrote: "Human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe now face a crisis unprecedented since the end of the Cold War. Serious violations – including corruption, immunity from prosecution, impunity, human trafficking, racism, hate speech and discrimination – are on

4845-502: The laggard response time of police cost dozens of lives. In the 2013 Norwegian parliamentary election , the Red-green coalition lost its majority in the Storting , but the Labour Party remained the largest party in the Storting. Jens Stoltenberg, who had served as prime minister for 10 of the past 13 years, remained party leader until he stepped down in 2014 after being appointed Secretary General of NATO . Later, Jonas Gahr Støre ,

4930-503: The live broadcast jumping around in a chicken costume, cackling about media's treatment of Thorbjørn Jagland and mocking the media's double standards . On 3 February 2002, Jagland announced that he wouldn't seek a new term as party leader in November. In 2005, Jagland was reelected to a fourth term in the Norwegian Parliament. Jørgen Kosmo , the previous President of the Storting , had not stood for parliamentary re-election, and Jagland

5015-599: The most worthy shall receive the prize, whether he be a Scandinavian or not..." The justification for award to Barack Obama was anchored in the work he had done to restart the START agreements with Russia and for promotion of dialogue with the Muslim world. The Nobel Peace Prize for 2012 was awarded to the European Union for "....have for over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe." The Nobel Peace Prize for 2013

5100-503: The need for the Workers' Youth League to have its own political platform. Important issues he supported at that time included the nationalization of the oil industry , permission to conduct petroleum test boring outside Northern Norway , and that the state should use income from the petroleum industry to nationalise domestic industry. From 1981, he worked as a secretary for the Labour Party; he became acting general secretary in 1986 and

5185-433: The newspaper Aftenposten he wanted more Norwegian soldiers sent to South Afghanistan : "The Norwegian special forces will certainly be welcome throughout the winter. If NATO is demanding them, Norway should contribute". In 2007, Stoltenberg allowed Jagland to push through his plan to develop Storting as a stronger centre for current political debates, thus increasing the power of the parliamentary members on issues from

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5270-553: The party didn't end with the election, and pressure was still mounting on Jagland to give the party leader role to Stoltenberg. It was expected that Stoltenberg would contest the leader during the national congress of Labour in November 2002, and in January 2002 the two were supposed to say if they wanted role. On 15 January, Jagland collapsed in the parliament and was sent to the hospital. Later that evening, during live coverage by TV 2 Nyhetene , comedian Bård Tufte Johansen interrupted

5355-547: The party had 24 newspapers and six more newspapers were founded in 1913. The party also had the periodical Det 20de Aarhundre . In 1920, the party had 33 newspapers and 6 semi-affiliated newspapers. The party had its own publishing house, Det norske Arbeiderpartis forlag , succeeded by Tiden Norsk Forlag . In addition to books and pamphlets, Det norske Arbeiderpartis forlag published Maidagen (annual May Day publication), Arbeidets Jul (annual Christmas publication) and Arbeiderkalenderen (calendar). The party also published

5440-623: The party leadership is made up of leader Jonas Gahr Støre , who has held the position since 2014, and deputy leader Bjørnar Selnes Skjæran , who was first elected to the position in 2021. The party's youth organisation is the Workers' Youth League , and it maintains a women's wing known as the Labour Party Women's Network. The party participates in elections to the Sami Parliament of Norway , and work related to this has its own organisational structure with seven local groups,

5525-751: The party left the Comintern while a significant minority of its members left the party to form the Communist Party of Norway . In 1927, the Social Democrats were reunited with Labour. Some Communists also joined Labour whereas other Communists tried a failed merger endeavor which culminated in the formation of the Arbeiderklassens Samlingsparti . The same year, Helga Karlsen became the party's first Member of Parliament. In 1928, Christopher Hornsrud formed Labour's first government, but it lasted only two weeks. During

5610-413: The party ranks, he was elected leader of the Workers' Youth League in Buskerud , in 1973, a position he held until 1975. That year, he was elected member of the Buskerud county council . In 1977, he became the national leader of the Workers' Youth League, a position he held until 1981. During this period, he said he wanted to bridge the gap between the youth wing and the mother party, but also expressed

5695-426: The party. In 1995, Jagland published a book, titled Brev ( Letters ), "Vår sårbare verden" (Our vulnerable World) i 2001 and "Ti teser om EU og Norge" (Ten Postulates about the EU & Norway) in 2003. On 23 October 1996, Gro Harlem Brundtland informed Jagland she was withdrawing from politics and leaving him as head of government. The third cabinet Brundtland resigned, prompting the party leader Jagland to form

5780-421: The periods of 1971–1972, 1973–1981, 1986–1989, and 1990–1997. Labour prime ministers in this period included party veterans Oscar Torp , Trygve Bratteli , and Gro Harlem Brundtland , and the party remained the largest in Norway throughout the remainder of the 20th century. In the year 2000, the centre-right coalition led by Kjell Magne Bondevik of the Christian Democrats was toppled in a confidence vote, and

5865-401: The post-war political scene over the following years. Gerhardsen is commonly referred to as Landsfaderen ( Father of the Nation ) and is generally considered one of the principal architects behind the reconstruction of Norway after the Second World War. The period from 1945 has been described as the golden age of the Norwegian Labour Party, and the party retained its parliamentary majority until

5950-462: The rise throughout the continent. People's rights are also threatened by the impact of the economic crisis and growing inequalities. The Council of Europe and its member States must act urgently to stop this erosion of fundamental rights..." On 24 June 2014, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe convened to elect the Secretary General for the term running from 2014 to 2019. Thorbjørn Jagland had expressed his intentions of continuing on for

6035-427: The time. I took a chance. The Labour Party was down for the count. My goal was to make a good election; and we did. We have not done so well since". Jagland said in an interview, "I still get letters from people who miss the Norwegian House. It was an attempt at something new, a building project that would also inspire the activity on the side of the parties". Ahead of the 1997 parliamentary election , Jagland announced

6120-495: Was a festival in the criticism of Western values. We must never allow the successor conference in Geneva in April next year to be a repetition of this". In 2009, the cabinet issued a proposal to remove the "Blasphemy Paragraph", part of the criminal law that made blasphemous statements a criminal offense. There was a political consensus in parliament that the paragraph was outdated. The cabinet proposed that it instead by replaced by

6205-598: Was a member of the Norwegian Nobel Committee , and left in 2020; he formerly served as its chairman from 2009 to 2015. Thorbjørn Jagland was born on 5 November 1950 as Thorbjørn Johansen in Drammen and is the son of a welder , Helge Th. Jagland, and a cook, Ingrid Bjerknes. According to the Norwegian daily Dagbladet , his father had additional duties as a kind of "steward" for his community, so when "the postal service had letters" or envelopes without

6290-561: Was announced by King Harald V on 17 March 2000. Jagland was chosen for Minister of Foreign Affairs . One of his first acts as Minister of Foreign Affairs was to visit Belgrade, three years before its collapse. Jagland wanted to improve foreign aid to Yugoslavia and try to find a peaceful solution to the Yugoslav wars . Jagland engineered financial and material support to the forces in Yugoslavia who were opposed to Slobodan Milosevic,

6375-516: Was applying for the position of Secretary-General of the Council of Europe . On 1 January 2009, he succeeded Ole Danbolt Mjøs as the chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee . The Norwegian Nobel Committee is tasked with selecting candidates for award of the annual Nobel Prize for Peace in accordance with the last will and testament of Alfred Bernhard Nobel (1833-1896), the Swedish chemist and inventor of dynamite. The Norwegian Parliament selects

6460-503: Was awarded to the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons OPCW for "...its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons". The Nobel Peace Prize for 2014 was shared between Pakistani national Malala Yousafzai and Indian activist Kailash Satyarthi . The prize motivation states: "for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education". On 3 March 2015 Jagland

6545-546: Was demoted by the five-person Norwegian Nobel Committee, which elected Kaci Kullmann Five as its new chair. Jagland's demotion is without precedent in the history of the Nobel Peace Prize. After the demotion, Jagland continued to serve as an ordinary member of the committee. In 2019 the leader of the committee asked each of the members if any of them had been in contact with Jeffrey Epstein ; in 2020 Jagland changed his answer; Jeffrey Epstein and Bill Gates had

6630-479: Was elected to this position by the members of parliament on 10 October 2005. Jagland was elected with only one blank vote, whereas his Progress Party opponent, Carl I. Hagen , had 25 blank votes in the Storting. He later said: This is a completely new era for me. I shall lead the work of the parliament, so that it goes smoothly on rails. Also, I represent the Parliament, both in Norway and abroad. Jagland told

6715-510: Was formally appointed to the position in 1987. In his role as secretary of the Labour party, Jagland initiated a number of measures that culminated in organisational and political reforms. The right of the Trade Unions to influence the working of the Labour Party was curtailed; periodic consultations were initiated with civil society outside the party boundaries in the formulation of the party manifesto etc. In 1986, he also became chairman of

6800-712: Was founded in 1887 in Arendal and first ran in elections to the Storting in 1894. It entered the parliament in 1903 and steadily increased its vote until 1927 , when it became the largest party in Norway. The party were members of Communist International (Comintern), a communist organisation, between 1918 and 1923. From the establishment of Vort Arbeide in 1884, the party had a growing and notable organisation of newspapers and other press outlets. The party press system eventually resulted in Norsk Arbeiderpresse ( Norwegian Labour Press ). In January 1913,

6885-406: Was given to the first cabinet of Kjell Magne Bondevik . This cabinet had an even weaker parliamentary basis. Erik Solheim , the leader of Socialist Left Party (SV), said that if Jagland resigned, "he would go down in history as Norway's most puzzling politician". In February 2000, still reeling from the 36.9 fiasco and the growing popularity of deputy party leader Stoltenberg, Jagland withdraw as

6970-473: Was made up of 43 representatives that were elected every four years. The council essentially acted as a Parliament or legislative body for the county and it met several times each year. The council was divided into standing committees and an executive board ( fylkesutvalg ) which met considerably more often. Both the council and executive board were led by the County Mayor ( fylkesordfører ) who held

7055-616: Was marked by controversies, due to his perceived lack of qualification for the office and quotes and statements that were considered inappropriate. Jagland was widely perceived to have been passed over when Jens Stoltenberg formed his second cabinet in 2005. In 2009, Jagland was elected as the secretary-general of the Council of Europe . In 2014 he was reelected for an additional five years. His tenure as secretary-general has been controversial, and he has been accused of inaction against corruption and of servility towards Putin's Russia . Jagland

7140-621: Was much ridiculed in the media for his quotes and statements and frequently portrayed as incompetent, resigned following the 1997 election , as a consequence of his much ridiculed 36.9 ultimatum , even though his party won the most votes. In 2010 a group of forty prominent historians ranked Jagland as the weakest Norwegian prime minister since the end of the Second World War; two years before, his predecessor Gro Harlem Brundtland had criticized his premiership in harsh terms and described Jagland as "stupid". Also his term as Foreign Minister

7225-403: Was scrapped in 1995, and that year its membership level fell to just over 72,500 from 128,000 in 1990. In 1997, that figure dropped to 64,000 in 1997. In 2021, the party comprised 45,553 members according to its own official website. Since 2005, the party has maintained a policy requiring full gender parity at every level of organisation above ordinary membership. The supreme body of the party

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