Ketil Solvik-Olsen
Encyclopedia
Ketil Solvik-Olsen is a Norwegian politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 and Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 for the Progress Party
Progress Party (Norway)
The Progress Party is a political party in Norway which identifies as conservative liberal and libertarian. The media has described it as conservative and right-wing populist...

, where he currently holds the position as Spokesperson on Energy and Environmental Issues.

Early and personal life

Solvik-Olsen was born in Time
Time, Norway
Time is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is part of the region of Jæren. The administrative centre of Time is the town of Bryne.-Name:...

 to self-employed business-man Aksel Emil Solvik-Olsen (born 1943) and socionom
Socionom
A socionom , sosionom or sosionomi is a person with a degree in social work from a Scandinavian university. Law, sociology and psychology are also part of the degree. The course is 3.5–4 years long...

 Berit Lagergren (born 1943). From 1989 to 1990 he was an exchange student at Blissfield High School
Blissfield High School
Blissfield High School is a public high school serving grades 9-12 in Blissfield, Michigan, United States.- History :Prior to 1958, the district was served by a series of smaller rural schools. The initial nickname for the school district was the Blissfield Sugar Boys. This name referred to the...

, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

, USA, and from 1994 to 1997 studied political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...

 and social economics (summa cum laude) at the University of Toledo
University of Toledo
The University of Toledo is a public university in Toledo, Ohio, United States. The Carnegie Foundation classified the university as "Doctoral/Research Extensive."-National recognition:...

, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

, USA.

He is a personally Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

, and was a member of the Church of Norway
Church of Norway
The Church of Norway is the state church of Norway, established after the Lutheran reformation in Denmark-Norway in 1536-1537 broke the ties to the Holy See. The church confesses the Lutheran Christian faith...

 until he withdrew in 2010 after leaders of the church had publicly opposed oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....

 exploration in Lofoten
Lofoten
Lofoten is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Though lying within the Arctic Circle, the archipelago experiences one of the world's largest elevated temperature anomalies relative to its high latitude.-Etymology:...

 and Vesterålen
Vesterålen
Vesterålen is a district and archipelago in Nordland, Norway, just north of Lofoten.-The name:The Norse forms of the name were Vestráll and Vestrálar . The first element is vestr n west, the last element is áll m ' sound, strait'...

, with Solvik-Olsen strongly opposing the church getting involved in "party politics". He is connected to Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism
Pentecostalism is a diverse and complex movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on a direct personal experience of God through the baptism in the Holy Spirit, has an eschatological focus, and is an experiential religion. The term Pentecostal is derived from Pentecost, the Greek...

, in that he feels a close belonging with the Pentecostal congregation Filadelfia. His wife is also a member of the congregation, and his two children is christened
Infant baptism
Infant baptism is the practice of baptising infants or young children. In theological discussions, the practice is sometimes referred to as paedobaptism or pedobaptism from the Greek pais meaning "child." The practice is sometimes contrasted with what is called "believer's baptism", or...

 there.

He is married
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

, and has two children.

Political career

Solvik-Olsen joined the Progress Party
Progress Party (Norway)
The Progress Party is a political party in Norway which identifies as conservative liberal and libertarian. The media has described it as conservative and right-wing populist...

 already as a fifteen year-old. He was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Rogaland
Rogaland
is a county in Western Norway, bordering Hordaland, Telemark, Aust-Agder and Vest-Agder. It is the center of the Norwegian petroleum industry, and as a result of this, Rogaland has the lowest unemployment rate of any county in Norway, 1.1%...

 in 2005, and consecutively in 2009.

Political views

Solvik-Olsen has stated that he thinks Norway needs a "libertarianism
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...

 which is pragmatic
Pragmaticism
Pragmaticism is a term used by Charles Sanders Peirce for his pragmatic philosophy starting in 1905, in order to distance himself and it from pragmatism, the original name, which had been used in a manner he did not approve of in the "literary journals"...

". He is also noted for being critical of the current Red-Green governmental environmental policies
Green politics
Green politics is a political ideology that aims for the creation of an ecologically sustainable society rooted in environmentalism, social liberalism, and grassroots democracy...

, in that he claims it is too much based on "symbol politics" and "ambitious goals", instead of seeking feasible realistic options. He has also said that he is personally social conservative, though is liberal
Laissez-faire
In economics, laissez-faire describes an environment in which transactions between private parties are free from state intervention, including restrictive regulations, taxes, tariffs and enforced monopolies....

with regards to how other people wish to live their lives.
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