Jan Christian Vestre
Second Deputy Leader of the Labour Party
Assumed office
5 May 2023
LeaderJonas Gahr Støre
Preceded byBjørnar Skjæran
Minister of Trade and Industry
Assumed office
14 October 2021
Prime MinisterJonas Gahr Støre
Preceded byIselin Nybø
Political advisor for the Minister of Trade and Industry
In office
3 June 2013 – 16 October 2013
MinisterTrond Giske
Personal details
Born (1986-10-09) 9 October 1986
Haugesund, Rogaland, Norway[1]
Political partyLabour
OccupationBusinessperson
Politician

Jan Christian Vestre (born 9 October 1986) is a Norwegian businessperson in the furniture industry, and politician for the Labour Party. He has served as Minister of Trade and Industry since 2021 and deputy leader of the party since 2023.

Personal life and education

Vestre was born in Haugesund on 9 October 1986. He graduated in jurisprudence from the University of Oslo in 2017.[1]

During summer of 2022, he entered a relationship with architect Viktoria Millentrup.[2]

Business career

Vestre worked as a designer and manager in his family's furniture company, Vestre AS, and won an Entrepreneur of The Year award in 2019.[3]

He took over the leadership of his family's furniture company at the age of 26, following the death of his father.[4]

Political career

During his youth, Vestre was a member of the Workers' Youth League, and was present at the summer camp on Utøya when Anders Behring Breivik attacked it. He escaped barefoot and ran along the shore, despite bleeding, he never noticed his injuries, and held out for an hour before being rescued.[5]

Vestre served as a political advisor to then Minister of Trade and Industry Trond Giske, from June to October 2013.

On 21 April 2023, ahead of the party convention, the party election committee announced that they would designate Vestre as one of two deputy leaders, alongside Tonje Brenna.[6] He was formally elected during the party conference in May.[7]

Minister of Trade and Industry

He was appointed Minister of Trade and Industry in Støre's Cabinet on 14 October 2021.[8][1]

2021

Vestre and Minister of Climate and the Environment Espen Barth Eide announced that the government would work actively to cut emissions, with Vestre noting: "I believe that the richest country in the world must be willing to take some greater risks. The shift we are going through now is the biggest change in recent Norwegian history. The problem here in Norway is not that we have taken too much risk. We have rather been too cowardly to point out a direction and do what works. We no longer have time for that".[9]

Vestre expressed that it is important for Norway to be coordinated with the rest of Europe when it came to decisions about either having standard time permanently or both standard and summer time.[10]

In December, he and fellow ministers Marte Mjøs Persen and Anniken Huitfeldt, and Crown Prince Haakon visited the United States to promote Norwegian interests notably regarding "War, the Arctic, offshore wind, contemporary art and Christmas trees".[11] However, like Persen, he returned to Norway earlier then planned.[12]

On 14 December, Vestre attended a press conference alongside Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, Hadia Tajik and Anette Trettebergstuen to present the government's economic COVID-19 measures. In regards to his field of responsibility, Vestre announced that the national compensation scheme for businesses would be extended. Vestre stated: "We expect owners and managers to act responsibly. The government is clear that the COVID-19 support will go to keep people in work, not for the benefit of the owners".[13]

On 28 December, Vestre expressed that there was no guarantee that measures would be lifted come January 2022. He emphasised with the restaurant service industry, and added that the government saw no other options. He did however state that if the number of cases went down, the government would possibly instigate the process of reopening.[14]

2022

After 100 days in office, Vestre stated that some things he hoped to get done going forwards, would be to possibly buy the state in and up in multiple companies, strengthen climate demands and put a break on executive salaries.[15]

In late March, Vestre affirmed that Norway would follow the same line as the European Union when it came to adjusting the clock with summertime.[16]

In May, he warned large companies to lower their leadership salaries, noting that they should not earn more than regular people. Vestre also expressed that harsh measures could be taken, notably to deny any further bonus salaries or exclude board members who would not follow through with the changes. He stated: "The boards must know their visiting hours. The boards are responsible for executive salaries and must listen to the expectations of a large and important owner such as the Norwegian people. If our requests are not sufficient, we may either change the regulations or put other people on the boards".[17]

On 25 May, it was revealed that Vestre had given financial support to Extinction Rebellion of 300,000kr back in 2021 when he was chief of his family company. The report from then also revealed that the financial support would be for a three-year engagement. Vestre received criticism from opposition parties, such as the Conservatives and the Progress Party. Vestre later asserted that he no longer supports Extinction Rebellion in response to activists gluing themselves in the Storting audience gallery in protest. In a statement he said: "I am also passionate about the climate issue, but paralyzing the country's National Assembly is certainly not the right way to proceed".[18]

Vestre AS originally argued that the engagement had been severed due to Extinction Rebellion due their actions at several Swedish airports. However, in early June, Dagbladet discovered an email from the company's strategy and sustainability manager, that it was because Vestre had been appointed minister in the new government. Vestre himself refused to comment on the revelation, with the Ministry of Trade and Fisheries noting that he had cut ties with the company.[19]

On 28 June, Vestre announced that the Norwegian government would not repurchase equity in the ownership of SAS, notably citing that it had been irrelevant "since day one". He did however note that the Norwegian state would prefer to be a constructive creditor and limit losses as much as possible.[20]

On 5 August, he expressed that a last resort to balance gender equality in company boards might have to be resolved with quotas for private companies. He also expressed disappointment in the equality balance, saying "we are in 2022, not 1922". He also stated that there are qualified female candidates to sit on a company board, but many of them doesn't have the chance to reach higher in ranks.[21]

On 16 September, Vestre and the leaders of the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise and the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions presented a negotiated electricity package that could assist over 20,000 companies. Despite this, the support scheme is due to expire by the end of the year (2022).[22]

On 21 October, Vestre presented the government's first ownership message. The message included several, including changes to state owned company CEO's salaries, which included that they shouldn't get more than the average salary then the staff in kroner and pennies.[23]

In December, Vestre announced that he would be calling for a meeting with the grocery store companies over new year to discuss the high prices on grocery items. He also added that the government is working with proposals to improve the competition and give lower grocery prices in the long run.[24]

2023

In January 2023, he and agriculture minister Sandra Borch met with the grocery store companies to discuss the rising food prices. He also announced a new measure aimed towards the grocery store companies, being a margin study to "see where the margins in this value chain end up".[25]

In June, he announced that the government would be abandoning their proposal of banning "price discrimination" in grocery stores. Vestre described that the proposal had met mixed reception after being sent on hearing, and that he would start work on new models for the same purpose over the summer.[26]

In early August, Vestre asserted that the government would tackle the issue of adding more languages for availability for the Establishment Test in the catering industry, but also to amend the rules for the industry.[27]

In late September, Vestre and prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre announced that the government would allocate 15 million NOK for green transition through equity, guarantees, loans and grants.[28]

In October, E24 revealed that a close friend of Vestre had served in several Ministry of Trade and Fisheries administrative posts temporarily while he was minister. Vestre admitted that he hadn't considered his impartiality and fisheries minister Cecilie Myrseth was appointed acting minister in order to handle cases where he was not impartial. The prime minister was informed of the matter on 14 October, while also still expressing confidence in Vestre.[29]

Vestre announced in mid-November that the government would not grant a power support scheme for businesses for 2023, citing that the energy situation had come more under control. He also suggested that businesses set a fixed price in order to help themselves.[30]

Vestre praised the Storting for passing the motion demanding gender balance in company boards in December. Furthermore, he called the motion "historical". The rules for this were made in cooperation between the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions and the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise. The motion consists of five phases, where the first must be implemented by companies by 31 December 2024 and the second by 30 June 2025. The remaining phases would have to be implemented in the remaining years until 2028.[31]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Tvedt, Knut Are. "Jan Christian Vestre". In Bolstad, Erik (ed.). Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Norsk nettleksikon. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  2. ↑ "Ap-toppens kjærestetur: - Forlot knapt hotellets strand" (in Norwegian). Dagbladet. 10 August 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
  3. ↑ Haugstad, Tormod (23 February 2020). "Han er kåret til Norges beste vekstskaper. Forbildet er Sam Eyde". Tu.no (in Norwegian). Teknisk Ukeblad. Archived from the original on 14 October 2021.
  4. ↑ "Jan Christian overlevde Utøya - så måtte han ta over da faren døde - nå gjør han suksess i USA" (in Norwegian). Dagbladet. 29 May 2017. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  5. ↑ "To av de nye statsrådene overlevde Utøya: – En seier for demokratiet, mener Støre" (in Norwegian). Fri Fagbevegelse. 14 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  6. ↑ "Disse innstilles til Ap-ledelsen: Vil ha Brenna og Vestre som nestledere" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. 21 April 2023. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  7. ↑ "Etter dramauken: Nå er Ap-ledelsen valgt" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  8. ↑ "Støre presenterer Norges nye regjering". nrk.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  9. ↑ "Regjeringen varsler kraftigere utslippskutt allerede i høst" (in Norwegian). ABC Nyheter. 23 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  10. ↑ "Har du husket å stille klokken?" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 31 October 2021. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  11. ↑ "Tre statsråder på plass i USA: − Vi har veldig mye å tilby amerikanerne" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  12. ↑ "Senatoren trosset Trump – og har gjenvalg neste år" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 9 December 2021. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  13. ↑ "Utbyttebegrensning for støttemottagere: – Forventer at eiere og ledere opptrer ansvarlig" (in Norwegian). Dagens Næringsliv. 14 December 2021. Retrieved 15 December 2021.
  14. ↑ "Næringsministeren: Dette skal til for at regjeringen åpner krana i januar" (in Norwegian). TV 2. 28 December 2021. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
  15. ↑ "Næringsminister i 100 dager: Dette er Vestres planer fremover" (in Norwegian). E24. 22 January 2022. Retrieved 23 January 2022.
  16. ↑ "På tide å stille klokken igjen" (in Norwegian). E24. 23 March 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  17. ↑ "Næringsministeren truer med å kaste styremedlemmer" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 16 May 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  18. ↑ "Sponset politianmeldte demonstranter: - Absurd" (in Norwegian). Dagbladet. 25 May 2022. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  19. ↑ "Avslørt av e-post" (in Norwegian). Dagbladet. 5 June 2022. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  20. ↑ "Den norske staten går ikke inn med friske penger i SAS, men følger streikefaren nøye: – Alle parter i en krise må bidra konstruktivt" (in Norwegian). Dagens Næringsliv. 28 June 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
  21. ↑ "De fleste selskaper styres av menn – næringsministeren truer med kvotering" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
  22. ↑ "Regjeringens strømpakke: Ingen får utbetalt en krone uten energieffektivisering" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 16 September 2022. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  23. ↑ "Dette er næringsministerens nye krav til selskaper med staten på eiersiden" (in Norwegian). Dagens Næringsliv. 21 October 2022. Retrieved 22 October 2022.
  24. ↑ "Næringsministeren: − Vi skal presse prisene ned" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 23 December 2022. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
  25. ↑ "Regjeringen varsler nye dagligvaretiltak" (in Norwegian). NRK. 12 January 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
  26. ↑ "Vestre skroter dagligvareforslag – varsler ny høringsrunde" (in Norwegian). ABC Nyheter. 28 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  27. ↑ "Prøvene tilbys kun på norsk: – Ekskluderende" (in Norwegian). TV2. 1 August 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  28. ↑ "Setter av 15 milliarder til grønn omstilling" (in Norwegian). NRK. 28 September 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
  29. ↑ "Venn av næringsministeren fikk lederstillinger: – Legger til grunn at jeg har vært inhabil" (in Norwegian). E24. 20 October 2023. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  30. ↑ "Næringsministeren sier nei til ny strømstøtte til bedriftene" (in Norwegian). Nettavisen. 12 November 2023. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  31. ↑ "Krav til kjønnsbalanse i norske styrer er vedtatt" (in Norwegian). government.no. 22 December 2023. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
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