Welcome to the Norwegian parliament - Stortinget
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The Supervisory Role of the Storting Debates The third main function of the Storting is to supervise the Government and
the public administration. The Constitution assigns a number of supervisory functions to
the Storting, including: However, perhaps the most important duty is not set out in the Constitution at all. This is the political accountability of the Government to the Storting. The substantial control which the Storting exercises over the public administration is often based on information communicated through the mass media. Parliamentary debates provide the Storting with opportunities to scrutinize and evaluate Government policies. The debates are generally open to the public. The subject of debates is often business introduced by the Government. Each year, the debate on the Speech from the Throne inaugurates the new session of the Storting. In many ways, this debate has evolved into an examination and discussion of the Government's political programme, essentially the same function as the Budget debate in respect of the Government's economic policy. Numerous reports on various aspects of Government policy are presented and debated throughout the year. Questions and interpellations addressed to the members of the Government provide an opportunity for individual Storting representatives to obtain information on specific matters and to ascertain the views of the ministers on specific political issues. A Question Time is held in the Storting nearly every week, generally at 11 o'clock on Wednesday mornings, at which twenty to forty questions are normally answered. Any representative who wishes to question a government minister and receive an answer during the Question Time must file his or her written question with the President of the Storting by 10 o'clock Friday morning (Thursday if Friday is a holiday). A representative is limited to two questions at any Question Time. Questions are brief, and they generally refer to specific issues. The questions may deal with anything at all, from minor items of business to major issues of principle. Questions often deal with matters of concern in some local district on which the media have focused attention. The questioner would like to know the Minister's views on the matter and what action the Ministry intends to take, if any. The questioners state their questions in turn, and the ministers reply immediately. After a question has been stated and the answer given, the questioner and the minister are each allowed to take the floor twice for brief remarks. The questioner may ask short supplementary questions. Debating is not permitted, and the Storting may not pass resolutions. The Question Time is popular with the Storting representatives, and the opposition uses it freely. The government ministries make a great effort to enable the ministers to answer all questions. Interpellations are a more formal way of presenting questions.
An interpellation must be brief, and it must also be filed in writing
with the President of the Storting. The President may reject interpellations
on matters currently being dealt with in committee, or on which recommendations
have been made but not yet deliberated by the Storting or either of its
chambers. The President may also reject interpellations on matters on
which interpellations or questions have already been submitted but not
yet answered. (Questions may be rejected for the same reasons.)
The Constitution provides that the Storting should appoint five national auditors who shall annually examine the State Accounts. The Office of the Auditor General is the Storting's most important controlling body, examining the activities of the national administration to ensure that State assets are utilized and managed according to sound financial principles and in keeping with the decisions and intentions of the Storting. The Office of the Auditor General is independent of the Government and other administrative bodies. The Office of the Auditor General currently has 440 employees organized in six departments and an administration section, with a total of 28 offices scattered around the country. The five national auditors appointed by the Storting jointly head the Office of the Auditor General. The Storting makes the final decision on approval of the State Accounts after the Office of the Auditor General has submitted its annotations and proposals. The Parliamentary Ombudsman is appointed by the Storting for a term of four years, beginning 1 January the year after the general elections. This official may not be a member of the Storting, and he or she must be a lawyer (as well as possess the qualifications required of a Supreme Court justice). The duty of the Ombudsman is to ensure that individuals do not suffer injustice at the hands of the public administration (state, county or municipal). Despite the action of the courts in the cases brought before them, there is a manifest need for an ombudsman. A court action is costly and time-consuming. By taking a complaint to the Ombudsman, an aggrieved person may obtain a decision through a much easier process. The Ombudsman examines the case and makes a statement. If he finds that a government action or decision is in violation of the law or is manifestly unreasonable, the agency or official in question will normally reconsider the matter and follow the recommendation of the Ombudsman. The Ombudsman Act of 1962 provides that the Ombudsman shall send an annual report to the Storting on his activities, giving an account, among other things, of the proceedings in cases of general interest.
The Standing Committee on Scrutiny and the Constitution (see The Standing Committees), which is one of the Storting's 13 permanent committees, reviews and makes recommendations to the Storting on such matters as the Records of the Council of State, the annual reports from the Government on appointments of senior officials, and on committees, boards and councils. It also reviews the annual reports and so forth of the Office of the Auditor General, as well as appeals to the Storting from private individuals. This committee also deals with constitutional matters, the Storting's Rules of Procedure, appropriations for the Storting and the Office of the Auditor General, election legislation and matters involving the Parliamentary Ombudsman. This committee is further empowered to perform whatever investigations into the public administration which it may find necessary for the exercise of the Storting's control over public administration. This step may only be taken after a particular minister has been notified and requested to submit the required information.
Each year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs communicates to the Storting all the treaties and agreements concluded with foreign powers. The Scrutiny and Constitution Committee examines these and makes a recommendation to the Storting. A number of these treaties will already have been acted upon by the Storting, as Article 26 of the Constitution provides that the Storting must give its consent to all treaties "on matters of special importance" before they are held to be binding. This gives the Storting considerable influence on the conduct of foreign affairs and the ratification of treaties. |
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