- I have great understanding for when it is reported from Strömstad or Karlstad that this is the closed border is a big problem with increased unemployment and lost income, but it also shows how extensive this trade is. It is perhaps 20 billion Swedish kronor every year that is pumped out of the Norwegian economy and into the Swedish economy. Then, as a Norwegian politician, I must see what we can do to get more of that money into the Norwegian economy, says Kårstein Løvaas, parliamentary representative for the Conservative Party.

The border closure is proof that it is possible

Since March, cross-border trade has basically stood still, as Norwegians traveling into Sweden must be quarantined when they return home. This has led to Norwegian trade breaking new records. According to a new report, sales could increase by close to seven billion Norwegian kroner, this summer alone. According to Kårstein Løvaas, this is proof that it is possible to get Norwegians to shop at home instead of in Sweden.

In the clip above, you hear Kårstein Løvaas explain how the halving of cross-border trade would go.