On EU ‘no’ vote anniversary, more Norwegians want to join bloc

The Nordic country last said ‘no’ to joining the EU in 1994 and also voted against membership in a 1972 referendum

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European Union flags flap in the wind at EU headquarters in Brussels. Opposition in Norway to EU membership has declined from more than 70 per cent in 2016 and is now at the lowest level since 2009, while support is up from around 20 per cent in the last decade. Photo: AP

Published: 6:04pm, 27 Nov 2024

A growing number of Norwegians would like their country to join the European Union, although the “no” camp still holds an edge, an opinion poll showed on Wednesday, on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the last referendum Norway held on the question.

The Nordic country last said “no” to joining the European bloc, on November 27 to 28, 1994. It also voted against membership in a 1972 referendum.

Instead, since 1994, Norway has been part of the European Economic Area (EEA), allowing the free flow of people, goods, services and capital between the the European bloc and non-EU states Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

Some 46.7 per cent of Norwegians said Norway should not join the EU, while 34.9 per cent said it should and 18.4 per cent were undecided, according to a Sentio poll published in the daily Nationen.

Opposition to membership has declined from more than 70 per cent in 2016 and is now at the lowest level since 2009, while support is up from around 20 per cent in the last decade, Nationen said.

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Times of crisis tend to push Norwegians to be more pro-EU, but overall they remain satisfied with being outsiders, with only a “shock” able to change opinions, said Kjetil Alstadheim, author of the 2024 memoir Everyone Got it Wrong: On Norway as an EU Nation.