Arne Rettedal (25 July 1926 – 28 December 2001) was a
Norwegian engineer, businessperson and politician for the
Conservative Party. He is best known as the
Minister of Local Government and Labour from 1981 to 1986,
mayor of Stavanger from 1965 to 1967 and 1972 to 1981 and
county mayor of Rogaland from 1988 to 1991.
He was born in
Madla
Madla is a borough of the Stavanger (city), city of Stavanger which lies in the southwestern part of the large municipality of Stavanger in Rogaland county, Norway. It lies in the western part of the city, along the coast of the Hafrsfjorden. T ...
as a son of farmer Ola Rettedal (1882–1956) and Rakel Kristine Berge (1884–1963). He
finished his secondary education in 1947, and enrolled at the
Norwegian Institute of Technology
The Norwegian Institute of Technology ( Norwegian: ''Norges tekniske høgskole'', NTH) was a science institute in Trondheim, Norway. It was established in 1910, and existed as an independent technical university for 58 years, after which it was ...
where he graduated in engineering in 1957. He worked four years as an engineer before he started his own
consulting
A consultant (from "to deliberate") is a professional (also known as ''expert'', ''specialist'', see variations of meaning below) who provides advice or services in an area of specialization (generally to medium or large-size corporations). Cons ...
company.
Within local politics, he was a member of Madla
municipal council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough cou ...
from 1960 to 1964, serving as mayor in the last year. From 1965 to 1981 he was a member of
Stavanger
Stavanger, officially the Stavanger Municipality, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the third largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the ...
city council, serving as
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
from 1965 to 1967 and 1972 to 1981. He was also a member of
Rogaland
Rogaland () is a Counties of Norway, county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. As of 1 January 2024, it had a population of 49 ...
county council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.
Australia
In the Australian state of New South Wales, county councils are special purpose ...
from 1967 to 1981, serving as deputy county mayor from 1967 to 1971.
As a politician in Stavanger and Rogaland, he is co-credited with bringing the headquarters of
Statoil
Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger, Norway. It is primarily a petroleum company operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. In th ...
and the
Norwegian Petroleum Directorate
The Norwegian Offshore Directorate () is a Norwegian government agency responsible for the regulation of the petroleum resources on the Norwegian continental shelf. Based in Stavanger, its mission is to ensure that the petroleum resources are a ...
to Stavanger. He was a member of Statoil's corporate council from 1975.
[
From 1981 to 1986 he served as Minister of Local Government and Labour in the ]First
First most commonly refers to:
* First, the ordinal form of the number 1
First or 1st may also refer to:
Acronyms
* Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array
* Far Infrared a ...
and Second Cabinet of Kåre Willoch
Kåre Isaachsen Willoch (; 3 October 1928 – 6 December 2021) was a Norwegian politician who served as the prime minister of Norway from 1981 to 1986 and as leader of the Conservative Party from 1970 to 1974. He previously served as the minis ...
. In this position, he is especially known for carrying through the government's housing policy. He is also known for the numerous labour conflicts in the petroleum industry during his period.[ Also, from 1990 to 1995 Rettedal was the board chairman of the ]Norwegian State Railways
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
*Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
*Demographics of Norway
*Norwegian language, including the two ...
,[ where he again went through labour-related conflicts, this time with the Norwegian Union of Railway Workers leader Leif Thue.]Tore Lindholt
Tore Lindholt (13 October 1941 – 14 November 2021) was a Norwegian economist, civil servant and politician for the Labour Party. He was twice the acting director of the Norwegian State Railways, and Folketrygdfondet from 1990 to 2004.
He was b ...
.
From 1988 to 1991 he served as County mayor of Rogaland.[ He tried to become county mayor after the 1991 election too, but lost out to Odd Arild Kvaløy. Kvaløy received 37 votes in the county council, whereas Rettedal received 28 votes and Kari Oftedal Lima received 6. The 28 votes were cast as ]blank vote
A protest vote (also called a blank, null, spoiled, or "none of the above" vote) is a vote cast in an election to demonstrate dissatisfaction with the choice of candidates or the current political system. Protest voting takes a variety of forms a ...
s in the vote for deputy county mayor; Kjell Erfjord
Kjell Erfjord (born 24 July 1940) is a Norway, Norwegian former educator and politician for the Christian Democratic Party (Norway), Christian Democratic Party.
He was born in Hjelmeland as a son of Bernt Erfjord (1898–1981) and Karen Hagen (19 ...
received support from the 37 and Lima from the 6. Rettedal stood for mayoral election in 1995
1995 was designated as:
* United Nations Year for Tolerance
* World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War
This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...
, but his candidacy was not voted upon in the county council.
In 1993 he was decorated as a Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav
The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav.
Just be ...
.Festschrift
In academia, a ''Festschrift'' (; plural, ''Festschriften'' ) is a book honoring a respected person, especially an academic, and presented during their lifetime. It generally takes the form of an edited volume, containing contributions from the h ...
s were issued both on Rettedal's fiftieth and sixtieth birthdays, and he was biographed in 1998, in Thorbjørn Kindingstad's book ''Maktens byggherre. Historien om politikeren, ingeniøren og småbrukeren Arne Rettedal''. He was married since 1954, and died on 28 December 2001 in Stavanger.[
He was portrayed by actor Vegar Hoel in the Norwegian series '']Lykkeland
''State of Happiness'' () is a Norwegian period drama television series about the discovery of oil in the North Sea, and subsequent growth of the petroleum industry in Stavanger, beginning in 1969. It is directed by Petter Næss and Pål Jackma ...
''.[NRK
The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company.
The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...]