NORWAY: Centre Party To Leave Gov't Over EU Energy Directives-NRK

Norway's public broadcaster NRK reports that the agrarian Centre Party (SP) is set to withdraw from the minority centre-left coalition gov't of PM Jonas Gahr Støre, citing disagreements over three directives from the EU's Fourth Energy Market Package. The withdrawal of the SP leaves Støre's centre-left Labour Party as the only party in gov't, with 48 seats in the 169-member Storting (parliament). Under the Norwegian constitution, a snap election is not possible meaning that the minority Labour gov't will continue to try to pass legislation on a vote-by-vote basis until the next general election due to take place on 8 September. 

• NKR reports "While SP leaders Trygve Slagsvold Vedum and Marit Arnstad stated that it is not appropriate to link Norway more closely to the EU's energy policy, Støre said that the Labour Party believes it is in Norway's interest to introduce the three controversial EU directives."
• With eight months to go until the election, the centre-right Conservatives of former PM Erna Solberg and the right-wing populist Progress Party are vying for first place in opinion polling. Unlike a number of other populist right parties in Europe that have seen a surge in support over the past decade, the Progress Party has supported or participated in governing coalitions on a number of occasions, starting in 1981 (albeit never at the head of gov't).
• The party takes a broadly pro-business libertarian stance on the economy, rather than the socially conservative, economically leftist stance that has increasingly been the hallmark of populist parties gaining support across Europe.

Chart 1. General Election Opinion Polling, % and 8-Poll Moving Average

Source: Opinion, Respons Analyse, Verian, Norfakta, Norstat, InFact, MNI