Public sector services provided through local townships routinely get plenty of bashing, both directly and through the media. A survey of 15,000 Norwegians nationwide by research firm TNS Gallup, however, found that 77 percent of the services offered got positive evaluations.
The survey, which asked Norwegians to rank 43 different services from libraries to sports facilities and home health care, was commissioned by three state ministries including the one that oversees the townships.
"Many workers in the public sector get a lot of undeserved criticism," government minister Erna Solberg, in charge of the townships, told newspaper Aftenposten.. "This survey shows that they're doing a good job, and that the negative focus gives the wrong impression."
Solberg admitted, however, that low marks given to such services as unemployment offices, public swimming pools, psychiatric care and children's welfare services suggest there's still room for improvement.
"There can be poor quality in these areas, and we need to do something about that," Solberg said.
Researchers note, however, that many of these services (like the unemployment and children's welfare offices) would rather be avoided by those who find themselves using them, and they're simply not popular.
