Norwegian PM Jens Stoltenberg
spent an afternoon working
incognito as a taxi driver in Oslo,
he has revealed.
Mr Stoltenberg said he had wanted to
hear from real Norwegian voters and
that taxis were one of the few places
where people shared their true
views.
He wore sunglasses and an Oslo taxi
driver's uniform for the shift in June,
only revealing his identity once he
was recognised by his passengers.
His exchanges with his passengers
were captured on a hidden camera.
The footage - made in collaboration
with an advertising company - has
been posted on the prime
minister's Facebook page and
made into a film which will be used
as part of his campaign for re-
election in September.
"It is important for me to hear what
people really think," he told
Norwegian media.
"And if there is one place people
really say what they think about most
things, it's in the taxi."
Driving errors
Some of the passengers who appear
in the film had been told to wait for
the taxi - without being told who
would be driving - while others were
picked up randomly and from taxi
ranks.
Most of them appear to realise very
quickly that there is something
different about their driver, with one
saying: "From this angle you really
look like Stoltenberg."
Another says she was lucky to meet
him as she "wanted to send a letter".
The conversation turns to politics in
most cases.
Most of the passengers realise
quickly there is more to the driver
than meets the eye
Mr Stoltenberg engages one
passenger on education, saying: "The
main point is to make sure good
students have something to stretch
for, and to give those who struggle
extra help."
None of the passengers was charged
for the ride.
Mr Stoltenberg told the VG
newspaper: "I'm pretty well known in
Oslo, but I tend to sit in the back
seat."
The Labour prime minister came in
for criticism for his driving, at one
point jolting the car abruptly when,
he said, he mistakenly applied the
brake pedal on the automatic car,
thinking it was the clutch.
He said he had not driven in eight
years.
Mr Stoltenberg is popular in Norway,
but opinion polls suggest he is
lagging behind the opposition ahead
of the election.
But asked by VG whether he would
consider becoming a taxi driver full
time if he lost the election, Mr
Stoltenberg replied: "I think the
country and the Norwegian taxi
passengers are best served if I'm the
prime minister and not a taxi driver.

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