ITT, LM Ericsson and their market-sharing cartel in Denmark and Norway in the 1930s

This is the accepted and peer reviewed manuscript of Espeli, H. (2022). ITT, LM Ericsson and their market-sharing cartel in Denmark and Norway in the 1930s. In A History of Business Cartels (1st ed., pp. 105–121). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003128922-8acceptedVersio

Insurance cartels and state policies in Norway, 1870s–1990s

This paper analyses the prolonged nature of two related cartels in life and non-life insurance, in Norway. Insurance cartels and the role of the state are rarely studied in cartel research, although such cartels are common. Cartels played an important role in creating trust and stability in the formative years of the Norwegian insurance industry. In life insurance, premiums are paid sometimes decades in advance. Reducing high transaction costs can also explain the state’s prolonged support of the fire and non-life insurance cartels. State policy towards the fire insurance cartel changed after World War I, when the state became a competitor, although its regulations did not directly weaken the non-life insurance cartel, this finally collapsed due to mergers in 1982. State support for the life insurance cartel was strong from the 1920s to the 1980s. By then it was difficult to differentiate between state-sector regulations and cartel interests. The life insurance cartel was dismantled by new state regulations in the mid-1980s.publishedVersio

Helical Chirality: a Link between Local Interactions and Global Topology in DNA

DNA supercoiling plays a major role in many cellular functions. The global DNA conformation is however intimately linked to local DNA-DNA interactions influencing both the physical properties and the biological functions of the supercoiled molecule. Juxtaposition of DNA double helices in ubiquitous crossover arrangements participates in multiple functions such as recombination, gene regulation and DNA packaging. However, little is currently known about how the structure and stability of direct DNA-DNA interactions influence the topological state of DNA. Here, a crystallographic analysis shows that due to the intrinsic helical chirality of DNA, crossovers of opposite handedness exhibit markedly different geometries. While right-handed crossovers are self-fitted by sequence-specific groove-backbone interaction and bridging Mg2+ sites, left-handed crossovers are juxtaposed by groove-groove interaction. Our previous calculations have shown that the different geometries result in differential stabilisation in solution, in the presence of divalent cations. The present study reveals that the various topological states of the cell are associated with different inter-segmental interactions. While the unstable left-handed crossovers are exclusively formed in negatively supercoiled DNA, stable right-handed crossovers constitute the local signature of an unusual topological state in the cell, such as the positively supercoiled or relaxed DNA. These findings not only provide a simple mechanism for locally sensing the DNA topology but also lead to the prediction that, due to their different tertiary intra-molecular interactions, supercoiled molecules of opposite signs must display markedly different physical properties. Sticky inter-segmental interactions in positively supercoiled or relaxed DNA are expected to greatly slow down the slithering dynamics of DNA. We therefore suggest that the intrinsic helical chirality of DNA may have oriented the early evolutionary choices for DNA topology

De foreningsrettslige utrenskningene i Danmark og Norge etter 1945 SAGFØRERSAMFUNDET OG SAKFØRERFORENINGEN

Despite vigorous debates on the post-World War II court settlements, interest in internal disciplinary settlements of professional associations has been limited in both Norway and Denmark. The major exception in Norway has been a heated debate following the report from the Norwegian Authors’ Union’s disciplinary committee (æresrettutvalget) in 2018. This article compares the disciplinary settlements and purges in the two countries following liberation. A major difference was in the willingness to review disciplinary measures taken by associations before World War II. Danish courts showed far greater willingness than their Norwegian counterparts to review disciplinary decisions that association members found unjust. The quality of decisions by Danish courts improved still more after the Danish Sagførersamfundet came to understand that members who felt they had received unfair treatment could turn to the courts with a real chance of having the decision overturned. In Norway, only one appeal of a disciplinary action (expulsion) was brought to the courts after liberation. This occurred in 1953, long after the disciplinary settlements were over. In other words, association purges in Norway after liberation took place without court supervision. This fact has been almost absent from the debate since the 2018 report of the Norwegian Authors’ Union’s disciplinary committee. Bar associations could be expected to provide more comprehensively for their members’ legal protection than other post-liberation professional associations. This was indeed the case in the well-regulated Danish Sagførersamfundet, but less so in the Norwegian Sakførerforeningen. In Norway, the possibility of contradiction seems to have been very limited, meaning that the accused had no real opportunity to challenge an accusation before the sanction was imposed, especially for members who had been affiliated with the National Socialist Party. Additionally, there was no appeals process. Perhaps the most problematic aspect of the Sakførerforeningen’s purification process was that key leaders, who played a central role in formulating the guidelines for sanctioning „unpatriotic attitudes,“ had themselves engaged in similar behavior during Norway’s occupation.acceptedVersio

Fortropper for gjensidig skadeforsikring i Norge. Skipsforsikringsforeningene og brannkassenes gjennombrudd på 1800-tallet: Likheter og forskjeller

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Bør Riksrevisjonen fortsatt være Stortingets revisor?

Høsten 2021 dokumenterte Aftenposten at Riksrevisjonen i 2017 hadde stanset sin igangsatte etterlevelsesrevisjon av sikkerhetsarbeidet på Stortinget på grunn av motstand fra Stortingets presidentskap og direktør. Saken viser at Riksrevisjonen ikke hadde den nødvendige uavhengighet til sin egen oppdragsgiver, men lot den reviderte bestemme hva som skulle revideres. Det er strid med grunnleggende revisjonsprinsipper der hensynet til revisors uavhengighet har blitt vektlagt stadig sterkere de siste tiårene. De mange mediaavsløringer de siste årene av mangelfulle kontrollrutiner knyttet til stortingsrepresentanters reiseregninger, ventegodtgjørelser og pendlerleiligheter viser at Riksrevisjonen ikke har tillagt relevant risiko for tilliten til Stortinget som institusjon tilstrekkelig vekt i sitt revisjonsarbeid. Derfor reises spørsmålet om Riksrevisjonen fortsatt bør være Stortingets revisor. Artikkelen er basert på dokumentanalyse og relevant litteratur.publishedVersio

Pensjonstrygden for statens arbeidere blir til (1917–1951)

I 1950 vedtok Stortinget loven om pensjonstrygd for statens arbeidere med virkning fra 1951. Dermed fikk statens time- eller akkordlønte arbeidere – som ikke arbeidet i militærbedriftene, Sølvverket på Kongsberg eller i NSBs verksteddrift – for første gang en rettighetsbasert tjenestepensjon. Pensjonstrygden omfattet først og fremst bygg- og anleggsarbeidere i samferdselsetatene, men også rengjøringspersonalet i NSB og snart også arbeiderne i militærbedriftene. Statsarbeidere eller deres etterlatte behøvde ikke lenger søke Stortinget om en slags individuell gavepensjon. Arbeidsmandsforbundet, som fra 1930-tallet organiserte flesteparten av statens time- eller akkordlønnede arbeidere utenom militærbedriftene, var den fremste pådriveren bak det som ble pensjonstrygden. Omkring 1920 hadde det da politisk langt mer radikale Arbeidsmandsforbundet avvist å forhandle om en tjenestepensjonsordning for anleggsarbeiderne fordi ordningen ville kreve tre måneders oppsigelse. Det var i strid med fagopposisjonens ønske om å kunne aksjonere på kort varsel om man fant det nødvendig. Denne artikkelen ser nærmere på bakgrunnen for etableringen av denne særskilte pensjonsordningen for statens time- eller akkordlønte arbeidere. Pensjonstrygden skilte seg på viktige punkter vesentlig fra pensjonsordningen for statens tjenestemenn fra 1917. Ytelsene var lavere og rettighetene dårligerepublishedVersio

Limiting peaks in the electricity grid. Experiences from the Norwegian market.

Electrification leads to a need for more grid capacity, and at the same time, the grid is underutilized. High demand occurs only during short periods. To reduce these high peaks, utility companies have implemented a new network tariff to incentivize consumers to even out their energy demand throughout the day and shift their demand from peak to off-peak hours. Using hourly meter readings, survey-, weather- and spot price data, we analyze the effect of a new tariff on households’ peak demand. We investigate the causal relationship between peakpricing and each household’s peak demand using a two-way fixed effects model. We further explore the effects of Time-of-Use tariffs by doing a descriptive analysis. We find that households have reduced their daily peak demand by ~2% after implementing the new network tariff. The households with more occupants, more electric vehicles, or high income are among the groups that have responded the strongest. Our descriptive analysis of Time-of-Use shows a shift from peak- to off-peak hours due to this policy. While the results show a clear response to both the peak-pricing and Time-of-Use components in the tariff, the tariff is insufficient to reach the policy’s goal. We suggest shifting more focus to the Time-of-Use component

Limiting peaks in the electricity grid. Experiences from the Norwegian market

Electrification leads to a need for more grid capacity, and at the same time, the grid is underutilized. High demand occurs only during short periods. To reduce these high peaks, utility companies have implemented a new network tariff to incentivize consumers to even out their energy demand throughout the day and shift their demand from peak to off-peak hours. Using hourly meter readings, survey-, weather- and spot price data, we analyze the effect of a new tariff on households’ peak demand. We investigate the causal relationship between peak-pricing and each household’s peak demand using a two-way fixed effects model. We further explore the effects of Time-of-Use tariffs by doing a descriptive analysis. We find that households have reduced their daily peak demand by ~2% after implementing the new network tariff. The households with more occupants, more electric vehicles, or high income are among the groups that have responded the strongest. Our descriptive analysis of Time-of-Use shows a shift from peak- to off-peak hours due to this policy. While the results show a clear response to both the peak-pricing and Time-of-Use components in the tariff, the tariff is insufficient to reach the policy’s goal. We suggest shifting more focus to the Time-of-Use component

The minimum wage regulations in the Act on Industrial Home Work 1918–1995

Norges første og mest langvarige minstelønnslov, loven om industrielt hjemmearbeid, ble vedtatt enstemmig av Stortinget i januar 1918. Det var en tidsbegrenset lov for fem år som ble forlenget to ganger før den i 1933 ble gjort permanent. Bare et par ganger på 1920-tallet var det parlamentarisk strid om lovens utforming. Hjemmearbeidsloven skulle kontrollere lønns- og arbeidsforhold ved produksjon av klær og andre produkter av industriell karakter, som foregikk i arbeidernes hjem eller hos en mellommann. Loven åpnet for å innføre minstelønnsregulering, noe som ble innført i hovedstaden i 1920 og etter hvert også andre steder. Et overveldende flertall av hjemmearbeiderne var kvinner. Det var hensynet til disse lavtlønnede og ofte utbyttede kvinnene som var hovedbegrunnelsen for loven. Minstelønnsreguleringene omfattet langt mer enn halvparten av hjemmearbeiderne på 1930-tallet, og reguleringene økte lønningene for de aller fleste av disse. Loven ble ikke endret etter 1939 og ble gradvis foreldet. Da loven ble opphevet i 1995, hadde den for lengst sluttet å ha betydning.The minimum wage regulations in the Act on Industrial Home Work 1918–1995publishedVersio