
Stavrum & Eikeland Ketil Solvik-Olsen: – Norge drukner i skjemaer. Politikere tvinger bedrifter til å bevise at de ikke har slaver i Afrika
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Nov 20, 2025 Ketil Solvik-Olsen, former Norwegian Minister of Transport and outspoken critic of bureaucracy, dives into the overwhelming red tape strangling Norwegian businesses. He fiercely argues that companies are bogged down by the need to prove they are free from slave labor, leading to a costly and ineffective system. He also highlights the disconnect between politicians and business realities, the burdens placed on startups by tax and reporting demands, and how rigid public sector rules stifle local innovation while advocating for more pragmatic solutions.
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Bureaucracy Creates Desk Prisoners
- Norway forces companies to document they have no slaves in Africa, creating excessive paperwork.
- Ketil Solvik-Olsen argues this turns firms into "desk prisoners" for political symbolism.
Allow Risk And Delegate Authority
- Let public servants take measured risks instead of demanding perfection.
- Give project teams more freedom and incentives to deliver cheaper, faster solutions.
Challenge Rigid Handbooks
- Challenge rigid handbooks and allow alternative engineering solutions.
- Empower local project teams to propose cheaper, faster builds and keep the savings.

