Arne Røksund and Árni Páll Árnason take oath of office as President and Member of the EFTA Surveillance Authority's (ESA) College during ceremony at the EFTA Court. Stefan Barriga joined ESA as College Member and took his oath of office last October.

The oath ceremony was presided over by EFTA Court President Páll Hreinsson during which the new ESA President and new College member swore to perform their duties independent of external influences and with integrity.

Mr. Røksund, taking up the post as President of the College, comes from the post as Secretary-General of the Norwegian Ministry of Defence. He was previously Deputy Secretary-General of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries, and reached the rank of Rear Admiral in the Royal Norwegian Navy.

Mr. Barriga came from the position as Deputy Head of Liechtenstein's Mission to the European Union. Before that, he served as Deputy Ambassador at Liechtenstein's Mission to the United Nations in New York.

Mr. Árnasonjoins ESA from the position of Deputy Managing Director at EEA and Norway Grants. He was elected to the Althingi, Iceland's parliament, in 2007. He served as Minister of Social Affairs and Social Security (2009-2010) and Minister of Economic Affairs (2010-2011) and was leader of the Social Democratic Alliance in 2013-2016.

The EFTA Surveillance Authority and the EFTA Court are the institutions of the EFTA pillar responsible for the monitoring and application of EEA law in the EEA EFTA States Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.

  • The EFTA Surveillance Authority monitors that Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway respect their obligations under the EEA Agreement, and holds similar powers to the European Commission with regard to the EU Member States.
  • The EFTA Court fulfils the judicial function of interpreting the EEA Agreement with regard to Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Like the Court of Justice of the European Union with regard to EU Member States, the EFTA Court decides on whether EEA EFTA States fulfil their obligations under the EEA Agreement.

The College is ESA's decision-making body, consisting of three members. Although appointed by the EEA EFTA States, College Members are independent in the performance of their duties, and do not take or receive instructions from any government.

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EFTA Surveillance Authority published this content on 19 January 2022 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 19 January 2022 14:51:04 UTC.