Tonje Brenna

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Tonje Brenna
Tale ved Tonje Brenna.jpg
Minister of Education
Assumed office
14 October 2021
Prime MinisterJonas Gahr Støre
Preceded byGuri Melby
Chairwoman of the County Cabinet of Viken
In office
1 January 2020 – 14 October 2021
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded bySiv Henriette Jacobsen
Deputy Member of the Storting
Assumed office
1 October 2017
ConstituencyAkershus
Personal details
Born (1987-10-21) 21 October 1987 (age 34)
Holmlia, Oslo, Norway
NationalityNorwegian
Political partyLabour
OccupationPolitician

Tonje Brenna (born 21 October 1987) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. She has served as Minister of Education since 2021.

Career[]

Youth league[]

Brenna was the General Secretary of the Workers' Youth League at the time of the 2011 Norway attacks on the island of Utøya, and responsible for the camp there. She was also responsible for taking cared of loved ones, victims and survivors during the aftermath of the attack.[1]

Local politics[]

Brenna was a member of the county council of Akershus from 2007 to 2019, and from 2020 a member of the county council of Viken. She chaired the county cabinet of Viken from 2020 to 2021.[2]

Parliament[]

She was a political advisor at the Office of the Prime Minister from 2012 to 2013. During this time, the 22 July commission was handed over. She was also a political advisor to minister of justice Grete Faremo from May to October 2013.[2] She was elected deputy representative to the Storting from the constituency of Akershus for the periods 2017–2021 and 2021–2025, for the Labour Party.[3]

In 2021 she published a book related to the 2011 Utøya shootings, 22. juli – og alle dagene etterpå.[2]

Minister of Education[]

On 14 October 2021, she was appointed minister of education in Støre's Cabinet.[4]

Brenna expressed that the Solberg Cabinet’s early re-instalment of school absence rules were wrong. She promised to be back with a better solution as soon as possible, saying that rules had to be understandable for both teachers and students and to be experienced as sensible.[5]

Following demands for the absence limit in upper secondary schools to be relaxed, Brenna announced that this change would become effective on 5 November and last throughout the school term. The primary cause for the demand had been that students shouldn’t be given absence remarks due to having COVID-19 and have the need to go into quarantine. She said she understood the dilemma for students, and noted that they would have to get an approved leave of absence, to for example go to a doctor’s appointment or similar.[6]

On 17 November, Brenna ordered the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training to halt the case process of private schools. Brenna said that the government wanted to strengthen public schools and wanted to stop the previous government’s privatisation of schools. The Conservative Party’s Margret Hagerup called it “a dark day” for Norwegian students, and that the government had focused on “ideology and structure” instead of “quality and diversity”.[7]

In early December, Brenna expressed that private schools earned to much from students taking private exams. She stressed that upper secondary schools should advise students better and to inform them of their choices when it comes to higher education. She did however add that private education isn’t necessarily bad, and serves as “a safety valve” for those who don’t have other options.[8]

On 13 December, at a government press conference with prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre and health minister Ingvild Kjerkol, it was announced that kindergartens, primary and lower secondary schools would be adjusted to yellow tier, while upper secondary schools to red. Brenna announced that municipalities should prioritise vaccinating kindergarten and school staff once the vaccination of a third vaccine dose commences.[9]

Following criticism of the government’s measure to give exceptions to teachers and kindergarten staff in regards to quarantine, Brenna defended the decision, citing it to be crucial for children’s ability to learn. She stated: “I understand the criticism, but I am keen to take the necessary steps to keep kindergartens and schools as open as possible. It is crucial for children and young people's learning and everyday life, but also for parents, society and working life”.[10]

Brenne announced that exams for the 2021-22 school year would be cancelled, citing the pandemic. She did however stress that it wasn’t an indication for students to take it easy, and encouraged them to work hard going forward.[11]

Bibliography[]

  • 22. juli – og alle dagene etterpå. J.M. Stenersens Forlag. 2021. ISBN 9788272017223. OCLC 1261713964.[12]

References[]

  1. ^ "To av de nye statsrådene overlevde Utøya: – En seier for demokratiet, mener Støre" (in Norwegian). Fri Fagbevegelse. 14 October 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Tvedt, Knut Are; Askheim, Svein. "Tonje Brenna". In Bolstad, Erik (ed.). Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Norsk nettleksikon. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  3. ^ "Brenna, Tonje (1987-)". stortinget.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  4. ^ "Norge har fått ny regjering" (in Norwegian). NRK. 14 October 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  5. ^ "Kunnskapsministeren: – Det var feil av den forrige regjeringen å gjeninnføre fraværsreglene så tidlig" (in Norwegian). Avisa Oslo. 28 October 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  6. ^ "Regjeringen gjeninnfører unntak for dagens fraværsregler" (in Norwegian). Nettavisen. 4 November 2021. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  7. ^ "Kunnskapsministeren stanser godkjenning av nye private skoler" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 17 November 2021. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  8. ^ "Vil ha færre privatister: − Betaler seg til bedre karakterer" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 1 December 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  9. ^ "Gult nivå i barnehager og skoler" (in Norwegian). Adresseavisen. 13 December 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
  10. ^ "Tonje Brenna forsvarer karanteneunntaket for lærere" (in Norwegian). ABC Nyheter. 28 December 2021. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
  11. ^ "Kunnskapsministeren: Eksamener avlyst" (in Norwegian). NRK. 11 February 2022. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  12. ^ "22. juli og alle dagene etterpå". worldcat.org. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
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