Trond Giske had to step down as deputy leader of the Labor Party in 2018. Here he is pictured during the weekend’s annual meeting of Trondheim’s local association. Photo: Anja Ariel Tørnes Brekke / VG
The newly elected deputy leader of Trondheim Ap responded to speculation during “Political quarter” on NRK on Monday morning.
Monday 12 February at 15:49
The short version
- Trond Giske rejects accusations of a coup during the annual meeting of Trondheim Ap this weekend.
- He says the party needed a new team after poor election results.
- Giske will also not rule out a comeback as a national politician in the Storting.
Sea view
– We want to say clearly to Trondheim that now they must put an end to the noise, says Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Ap) to NRK on Monday morning.
Party secretary Kjersti Stenseng also gave a clear message that the local team must put an end to internal conflicts when she visited the annual meeting at the weekend.
– Everyone has a responsibility to focus on politics and the people we are there for, adds Støre.
He will not answer questions from the channel about how the annual meeting took place.
Disturbed on a previous occasion. Photo: Hallgeir Vågenes / VG
There was noise and drama when the local team held its annual meeting at the weekend.
- There was an unexpected change of leadership when a motion of no confidence A motion that is put forward to show that you do not have confidence in a person in a leading position, and want that person to resign. against leader Gunn Elin Høgli was adopted. Pål Sture Nilsen was elected as the new leader.
- At the same time, Trond Giske was suddenly elected as deputy leader of the local team. He was originally nominated as a board member, but was brought in as deputy chairman when Marit Selfjord proposed to switch places with him.
During “Political quarter” on Monday morning, NRK’s presenter Håvard Grønli asks what is Giske’s understanding of what happened:
– It is really a movement from below, where local teams put forward proposals that, after the bad election, we have to change, he says.
He points out that the Labor Party made the worst election in Trondheim in almost 100 years.
– It is very serious. We needed a new team and a new team, says Giske.
Here Giske votes yes to himself. Photo: Anja Ariel Tørnes Brekke / VG
Criticism has poured in all directions after the turbulent annual meeting.
Address newspaper has referred to the local team as a “split party”. VG’s commentator calls it all a “well-directed comeback” by Giske – in “brutal Makta-style”.
Giske’s political figure is controversial:
- In 2018, he had to resign as deputy leader of the parent party Ap after several women reported sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour.
- Afterwards, Ap concluded that Giske had broken the party’s internal guidelines against sexual harassment in several of the cases.
– We are not talking about a person
The no-confidence motion against Høgli was submitted two days before the annual meeting. From the pulpit, she took a strong stand with Giske. Among other things, she referred to a telephone conversation with him on 22 May last year:
– I was told that I was to be thrown at the extraordinary annual meeting. Then I realized it was going to happen.
According to Høgli, Giske is said to have said she was a supporter of AUF, disloyal to the party and sewed pillows under people’s arms. The background was a conflict over the employment of one election campaign worker.
Giske has denied that he has threatened to throw Høgli. He also repeated that on Monday morning:
– I flatly reject that, he says.
He emphasizes that politics should be about people’s everyday lives – and “not us politicians”. Members must be heard, he says.
– That was also what happened at the weekend.
– We are not talking about a person, we are talking about matters. People must have greater influence on their own everyday lives, says Giske.
Opens for Storting comeback
NRK’s presenter also confronted Giske about the process surrounding the replacements in management.
– Would there have been a change of management this weekend if you didn’t want it, do you think?
– It is difficult to say, it will be hypothetical. We from Nidaros supported the proposal, replies Giske.
– Did the party team Nidaros contribute to an orderly change of leadership?
– We set our delegates free. Based on what people have reported back to me, I think it was perhaps a quarter of our delegation who voted against there being a leadership election at the weekend.
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– It is no secret that many people who have joined Nidaros have done so because they want to promote their social democratic values more strongly, they want a new course in a number of areas.
– I asked if you helped make it tidy?
– Yes, I mean at least that we stayed completely away from personal characteristics, media debate, attacks on party members. It must be legal in an organization to elect a manager.
Giske also warned against underestimating members of the party.
– Nidaros has 4,482 members, each and every one of them can and will think for themselves, he says.
He was also asked whether he would be a parliamentary candidate at the next election.
– I am open to it, but I will consider that when the time comes, he says.