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| - The Norwegian government on Wednesday announced that it will propose legislation allowing it greater powers to enable swifter action in times of crisis, such as the spread of COVID-19. "This is an extraordinary situation where we need to act quickly," Prime Minister Erna Solberg told a news conference. "The government will therefore send a bill to parliament this afternoon, that will give the government the mandate to quickly enable regulations -- including regulations that deviate from existing laws, except the Constitution and human rights," Solberg added. The bill, which has already been backed by the country's opposition after consultations last Sunday, is set to be officially presented to parliament on Friday. The extra government powers come with some safeguards, as deviations from existing legislation should not last more than six months and can be dismissed with a third of the votes in parliament. "We promise to use this legislation wisely," Solberg stressed. Norway has already cancelled all cultural and sporting events, discouraged all travel abroad -- even banning it for health staff -- when the government introduced the "most intrusive measures" during peacetime. On Wednesday, 1,423 cases of the new coronavirus had been confirmed in the Nordic country, where six people have died from the disease. phy/hdy/jll/har
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