Who will own District Norway? – The nation
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Seen in the light of the wording in the Hurdal platform, where one wants to make it more difficult for foreign companies to buy land in Norway – it should not be surprising.
Shareholders, like most shareholders, want to get the most out of invested capital. Exactly this has also proved to be problematic in relation to the local population and their needs and wishes in Meraker Brug’s over 100 years of history.
Meraker Brug owns over 90 percent of Meråker municipality as well as fine forest properties in Malvik, Stjørdal and Steinkjer. Very briefly told about the history of the property: In earlier times, most properties in Norway were owned by Kirka or the crown (the king). The local farmers farmed the land and paid rent to these (tenants).
At one point, the Danish king was in chronic shortage of money, and chose to sell properties to rich families to earn an income. Unfortunately, this affected, among other things, the village I live in; Forradal. It could just as easily have been in the neighboring villages Flora or Sona. Later, farmers in Norway were allowed to buy the land they had cultivated for the king and church. This did not happen for the properties the Danish king had sold. Here, farmers were only allowed to buy a little. The rest of the area is today Meraker Brug AS.
The sale of the property will probably go fast. At least faster than the legal work to ensure that properties in Norway do not become foreign. Meraker Brug AS can soon be owned by Chinese or Kuwaitis. This must be avoided.
The means the state now has to do this, and this must happen quickly!
In the event of a government acquisition, my opinion is:
* That the state sells the properties to the farmers who lost the land they had run in the century (possibly also to other local interested parties). This will create more resource-rich farms, and the potential for creating / securing jobs will increase. The potential for, among other things, new cultivation on these properties is great, and Norway will probably be able to use it at a time when we have low self-sufficiency. There is a full-scale war going on in Europe, and we are seeing world hunger increase.
* The state manages the mountain areas itself, either as state forest land or as state commons. In this way, one can ensure that the public in all future has access to hunting, fishing and other outdoor life.
But as I said – things have to happen fast! In a few weeks, the opportunity may be lost.