Why so quiet?

Opinions This is a debate post. The post expresses the writer’s views.

Local night guards at all Asker municipality’s homes with staffing in mental health and substance abuse were removed on 1 May. The exceptions are Kirkealleen housing in Slemmestad and Knivsfjell housing in Klokkarstua, which house residents under forced occupancy.

Yes, you read that right. Asker municipality’s housing with staff for those who have large and complex care needs as a result of mental health and/or substance abuse challenges, are no longer staffed at night.

Instead, an ambulatory night watch team has been set up, which will go out to homes if necessary.

In advance of the municipal council’s consideration of the budget for 2024, shop stewards went out and warned against cuts of NOK 7.8 million in mental health and substance abuse services, but were not heard.

The comment from the head of the committee for welfare Cecilie Lindgren (H) was simply that she could not promise that the politicians would take a position on all the cuts in detail (!), while director of welfare Aud Hansen did not want to comment on the priorities.

The cuts were pushed through by the majority parties in the municipal council, and since then it has been quiet. Silence from the opposition, silence from union representatives and employees, silence from the user organizations and silence from the user council for mental health and substance abuse in Asker municipality.

Removing local night guards at the municipality’s staffed housing for people with disabilities or the elderly would have been unthinkable.

But if that had happened, the protests would have been loud both before and after.

People with large and complex care needs as a result of mental health and/or substance abuse challenges have an equally great need for local night guards, so why aren’t the protests as loud?

In addition to looking after the individual resident, local night guards at the municipality’s housing for people with large and complex care needs as a result of mental health and substance abuse challenges also have an important function in the form of community protection.

Chief shop steward for the Joint Organization (FO) in Asker Ole Tommy Meland said it this way in Budstikka ahead of the budget process:

– This is perceived as a poorly thought-out proposal. In the long term, this can lead to serious conditions in the municipality when they remove preventive services. … The night guards prevent a lot of unrest, so our concern is that it could quickly lead to the buying and selling of drugs, increased crime in the area and that it could become unsafe for residents, employees and neighbours.

Does a serious incident have to happen before the protests become loud?

Other downsizing at the same time as the low-threshold inpatient services for the mentally ill are now temporarily closed, as the premises in Kirkeallee will be used to house residents under duress and no new premises have been found, contributes to less follow-up and further insecurity for those with large and complex care needs as a result of mental health and/or substance abuse challenges.

As a former municipal council representative for Asker SV and head of the user council for mental health and substance abuse in Asker, I am particularly disappointed by the lack of loud protests from there, but the entire opposition and other actors should protest loudly against a cut that affects some of the municipality’s most vulnerable residents.

Does a serious incident have to happen before the protests become loud?

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