The former minister for research and higher education was given a new position in the Storting on Wednesday.
It was decided at a group meeting in the Center Party’s parliamentary group on Wednesday.
Sandra Borch from Lavangen in Troms joins the same committee as her deputy in the Storting, Ivar B. Prestbakmo, sat on, i.e. the justice committee.
Communications manager Gunnar Ringheim in the Center Party’s parliamentary group confirms this to NRK.
He says Borch will take a seat in the Storting in three weeks’ time.
– I am looking forward to taking on an important field with many important but also demanding cases within the justice field, says Sandra Borch in a statement to NRK.
Heidi Greni (Sp) led Wednesday’s group meeting. She says Northern Norway is becoming an increasingly important area also in terms of preparedness.
– We believe it will be a strength for us to have a representative from the north in the justice committee, she says.
Borch recently chose to resign as a minister following revelations about textual similarities and possible plagiarism in her master’s thesis in law.
Party leader Trygve Slagsvold Vedum has subsequently stated on several occasions that Borch may make a comeback in government at a later date.
Amundsen welcomes Borch
The head of the justice committee, Per-Willy Amundsen (Frp), says Borch will be well received.
– She is most welcome.
– It is an important committee that has responsibility for one of the most important topics we have. In other words, the safety and security of the Norwegian people in peacetime. We are also responsible for the police, courts and correctional services, he says.
Per-Willy Amundsen from Troms heads the justice committee at the Storting.
Photo: Malin Clausen Røsberg / Malin Clausen Røsberg
Amundsen, like Borch, is a parliamentary politician from Troms.
– Do you have any reservations about a politician who has recently admitted to cheating on his master’s thesis joining the justice committee?
– I do not want to make that type of assessment. I expect that the Center Party has thought through the committee allocation, and found that it is a good solution. I don’t want to comment on that.
Left in January
Borch resigned as Minister for Research and Higher Education on 19 January. She resigned after revelations about plagiarism in her master’s thesis.
She was tight-lipped during the key handover at the minister’s office a few days later. Oddmund Løkensgard Hoel took over as Minister for Research and Higher Education.
Sandra Borch gave flowers to her heir during the key handover in January. Oddmund Løkensgard Hoel took over as Minister for Research and Higher Education.
Photo: Fredrik Varfjell / NTB
Borch took a master’s degree in jurisprudence at UiT Norway’s Arctic University in 2014. The thesis dealt with safety regulation in Norwegian petroleum law.
Lavangsværingen was appointed minister for research and higher education in August last year.
Before that, she was Minister of Agriculture and Food. She got that position when the Støre government took office in 2021.
In 2021, she was re-elected to the Storting as a representative from Troms. Borch had his first parliamentary term between 2017 and 2021.