The Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, was in Norway from 19 to 23 October.
The main focus of the visit was elderly people in care homes and other institutions. However, in the statement he issued afterwards, Norway is also criticised for its climate policy.
The Commissioner writes that he has noted a tension between Norway’s role as a climate leader and its role as a major exporter of oil and gas, reports Dagsavisen.
He urges Norway to step up its efforts to tackle climate change. He believes that states have considerable scope for action in climate policy, but that this is not unlimited.
He also wants the government to support the work on a new, binding instrument within the Council of Europe. This is intended to safeguard the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.
Climate and Environment Minister Sigrun Aasland (Labour) is unwilling to make such a promise.
“It is important to have a clear picture of what a new body would achieve, compared with the current regulatory framework,” Aasland told Energi og Klima.
Norway’s greenhouse gas emissions stood at 44.1 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents last year. Global emissions totalled 57.7 billion tonnes in 2024. Norway therefore accounts for less than one per mille.
Last October, Norway was also acquitted by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). Greenpeace, Natur og Ungdom and six young activists argued that the state had violated human rights by awarding oil licences in the Barents Sea in 2016. The Court did not agree. However, it ruled that the state must assess the climate impacts before new fields are developed.
Aasland says that the government is now following up on the ruling, and that there may be changes to the Climate Act.
O’Flaherty is also concerned about the rights of the Sámi people when ‘green’ development takes place on Sámi land. The Fosen case is a well-known example. In that case, the Supreme Court ruled in 2021 that the wind power development infringed the rights of the reindeer-herding Sami.
In addition, he is concerned that environmental organisations face high costs when they take the state to court. Greenpeace, WWF and the Norwegian Society for the Conservation of Nature have on several occasions been ordered to pay millions in the state’s legal costs after losing cases. The Commissioner also reacts to the fines imposed on peaceful demonstrators.
Michael O’Flaherty is an Irish lawyer. He headed the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights from 2015 to 2023, and has been Commissioner since April 2024. The Council of Europe is not part of the EU. The organisation has 46 member states, including Norway, and is tasked with safeguarding human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
On the subject of care for the elderly – which was, in fact, the main focus of the visit – he pointed out that the quality of care depends on where in the country one lives. He called for more funding for the sector.
