A left-of-centre coalition formed Norway's first majority government in 20 years on Monday, promising to raise taxes, increase welfare spending and eradicate social inequality. Record high oil prices and low interest rates have fuelled an economic boom in the world's third largest oil exporter but last month Norwegians voted out a tax-cutting centre-right government in favour of the so called "Red-Green" alliance. New Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, 46, and leader of the Labour party, visited King Harald to present a 19-strong cabinet, which includes nine women and whose members have an average age of 44. "It's a good list of people," Stoltenberg said outside the palace in central Oslo, saying the members were from a wide range of backgrounds. It marks the first government with a majority in Norway's parliament since a Conservative-led coalition from 1983-85. All governments since have been fragile minority coalitions, Reuters reported.
