It is the Center Party, the Socialist Left Party, the Liberal Party, the Red Party, the Christian People’s Party, the Industrial and Business Party and the Pensioners Party that have come together on the demand following the county council’s controversial decision on 23 October.
– We believe that the case is not well enough informed on several key points. It is about the assessments of the child’s best interests and the economic and social consequences the decision has on affected youth, families and local communities, writes SV’s group leader Anne Lise Fredlund in a press release.
– Eight different pieces of legislation
SV believes that the deficiencies are so serious and extensive that it is necessary to request a legality check of the decision.
– There are a total of eight different pieces of legislation that we believe should form the basis of the control; the Local Government Act, the Constitution, the Human Rights Act, the Education Act, the Equality and Discrimination Act, the Public Health Act, the Public Administration Act and the Planning and Building Act, says Fredlund.
The economic consequences of the decision are unclear at best, and several key elements have never been considered in the case, according to SV.
The best interests of the child
– The child’s best interests are weakly assessed, and the order for an investigation to shed light on the child’s best interests in the case was ordered on 18.10.24 and presented on 22.10.24. When such an investigation is submitted after the case presentation and less than a day before final processing, we believe that consideration of the child’s best interests has neither been a satisfactory part of the basis for the referral or the decision in the case, the press release states.
Two schools in Skarnes and Dokka and four schools in Dombås, Lom, Flisa and Sønsterud have been decided to be closed. Altogether, this amounts to around 730 fewer pupil places, which will essentially be removed from autumn 2025.