On Monday, the centre-left Norwegian government proposed a bill that would force large private firms to have boards that comprise at least 40% of women. In 2005, Norway was the first country in the world to introduce a 40% gender quota on the boards of listed companies, and last month, the European Parliament passed a law forcing large listed companies in the EU to have a minimum 40% of non-executive board members as women, from mid-2026. In Norway, the proportion of women on boards in private firms is currently 20%, up from 15% two decades ago: it has taken 20 years to increase the share by 5 percentage points. At this pace, gender balance we never be reached. The bill would not apply to smaller private companies therefore, if voted in its current state, it would affect 3-7% of private companies. This bill will likely pass with the support of the Socialist Left, a leftwing party that supports the cabinet.
