Fremskrittspartiet (FrP)– a party founded on liberalism

In this series of articles, Universitas wishes to include international students in, and introduce them to, the Norwegian political scene, starting with an introduction to the youth parties. Inter Universitas has asked all the local youth parties to answer questions regarding the party itself, and what their most important topic for the upcoming election is.

The first party to be introduced is Fremskrittspartiet (FrP) and its youth party Fremskrittspartiet Ungdom (FpU). FrP is a party that is considered right-wing. The party was founded in 1973 with an aim of lowering the amount of taxes the state collected. The party was a part of the current government coalition from the 16th of October 2013 until the 20th of January 2020, when the party’s central board decided to leave the coalition. They have 26 members in parliament.

Inter Universitas' questions have been answered by Herman Fåne, who is a member of FpU’s central board.

— Could you give a short description of the party’s ideological basis or its most important political topics?

— The Progress Party is founded on liberalism. Our politics are therefore based around freedom and the premise that people themselves are better at making choices for themselves, rather than politicians and government making them for them. We want less government, and more freedom and responsibility for individuals. We are therefore big supporters of a free market and a free economy. The premises of a free economy bases itself on free establishment, independent businesses, free flow of goods and services in addition to a market that does not give any special treatments or anti-competitive agreements.

— What are the most important topics for your party in the upcoming election?

— In the upcoming election there will of course be a huge focus on the aftermath of the pandemic. For us, it is important to make more jobs for Norwegians, and make sure that everyone has a job to go to every morning. In addition, businesses are having a hard time, and we believe that businesses should have lower taxes in the upcoming years, to make sure our economy grows back to where it was before the pandemic.

— Why should an international student wish to join or vote for your party?

— Liberalism is founded on the idea of individualism. That each individual knows best for his own life. I believe that there are many foreign students who are shocked when they find out that grocery stores can't hold open on Sundays or that bars have to close at 3am. We want to make each of those things easier and more accessible by allowing stores and bars to choose when to close. We don't want any special treatment for foreign students, but we want to welcome them to the Norwegian culture. We believe that freedom is universal, that everyone thrives with more freedom and that everyone should be treated equally.

— What is the party’s position on free university courses or scholarships for international students?

— We think it is a very good thing that people from around the world come to Norway to experience Norwegian society, culture and education. In Norway, education is funded by the government through Norwegian taxpayers’ money. Although we love having international students here, we believe it's wrong that Norwegian taxpayers should finance the education of foreign students.