Marianne Sivertsen Næss (born 28 March 1974) is a Norwegian school principal and politician for the Labour Party. She is currently minister of fisheries and ocean policy since 2024 and a member of parliament for Finnmark since 2021. She previously served as mayor of
Hammerfest Municipality
Hammerfest (; ) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Finnmark Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality being the Hammerfest (town), town of Hammerfest which is considered the List of no ...
between 2019 and 2021, and deputy mayor between 2011 and 2019.
Political career
Local politics
On the local level, she has been a member of the Municipal Council of
Hammerfest Municipality
Hammerfest (; ) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Finnmark Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality being the Hammerfest (town), town of Hammerfest which is considered the List of no ...
since 2007 and served as deputy mayor of Hammerfest between 2011 and 2019, with Alf E. Jakobsen as mayor.
She succeeded him as mayor in 2019 after he didn't seek re-election, with Terje Wikstrøm as deputy. She gained national attention for her handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in Hammerfest, which was strongly affected by the outbreak.
She resigned in 2021 in order to take her seat in parliament, and was succeeded by Wikstrøm. He would go on to lose the 2023 local elections to the Conservative Party's Terje Rogde.
Parliament
She was elected as a representative to the
Storting
The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The Unicameralism, unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list propo ...
from the constituency of
Finnmark
Finnmark (; ; ; ; ) is a counties of Norway, county in northern Norway. By land, it borders Troms county to the west, Finland's Lapland (Finland), Lapland region to the south, and Russia's Murmansk Oblast to the east, and by water, the Norweg ...
for the period 2021–2025. In parliament, she was a member of the
Standing Committee on Energy and the Environment The Standing Committee on Energy and the Environment () is a standing committee of the Parliament of Norway. It is responsible for policies relating to petroleum, energy, hydroelectricity, environmental protection and regional planning
Regional p ...
, to which she was elected chair of in 2022. She left the position upon her 2024 ministerial appointment, and was succeeded by Ingvild Kjerkol. While serving in government from 2024, Sigurd Kvammen Rafaelsen deputises in her place.
Minister of Fisheries
Næss was appointed minister of fisheries and ocean policy on 19 April 2024 following the dismissal of Ingvild Kjerkol in the wake of a plagiarism scandal.
2024
In June, Norway signed a deal on mackerell fishing with the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
and the
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ) (alt. the Faroes) are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean and an autonomous territory of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. Located between Iceland, Norway, and the United Kingdom, the islands have a populat ...
, which would ensure management, distribution and access to fishing for mackerel in each other's waters. The deal is scheduled to last at least three years. Næss hailed the deal, noting that it would ensue "flexibility and predictability" in Norwegian vessels' fishing and that it was important for production planning in the agricultural industry.
Næss expressed concerns for illegal fishing tourism in July following revelations by
NRK
The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company.
The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...
of the matter in Western Finnmark. As a result she put down a commission which will look into the matter and the report will be presented by the
Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries
The Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries () is a Norwegian government agency. On 1 January 2014, it was incorporated into the new Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries formerly under the Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal Affairs.
Established ...
on how fishing tourism can be regulated and controlled better. She also proposed measures such as fishing license for foreign fishing tourists, ban on filleting and freezing fish for tourists who are not registered at a tourist fishery, and inspections of the level of the export quota.
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
representative Erlend Svardal Bøe submitted a question to Næss in September regarding the harbour routines after a cargo ship that was docked in
Tromsø
Tromsø is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city in Tromsø Municipality in Troms county, Norway. The city is the administrative centre of the municipality as well as the administrative centre of Troms county. The city is located on the is ...
carrying dangerous explosive materials onboard. Næss responded that she would be tasking the
Norwegian Coastal Administration
Norwegian Coastal Administration () is a Norwegian government agency responsible for the water transport infrastructure along the Coast of Norway. It is responsible for coastal navigation infrastructure, pilotage and harbour and port infrastr ...
and its subordinate agencies to investigate the matter and the routines to make necessary adjustments for interaction.
Following negotiations that lasted between 21 and 31 October, the government announced that they had reached a new fishing agreement with
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
for 2025. Næss expressed gratitude for an agreement being reached, but noting that the circumstances weren't ideal. She also hailed the agreement to be long-term and would be sustainable for marine management in the northern regions. The agreement also notably saw a decrease of 25% in quotas for cod, ensuring it to be the lowest since 1991.
2025
On behalf of the government, she signed a new corporation deal in March with different companies in the fisheries industry that would seek to strengthen equality and would notably focus on improved recruitment, safer work environment and a more inclusive workplace. The deal is also a follow up to the government's equality strategy for the sector from 2023.
Together with her French counterpart,
Agnès Pannier-Runacher
Agnès Pannier-Runacher (; born 19 June 1974; née ''Agnès Runacher'') is a French business executive and politician of La République En Marche! (LREM) who has been serving as Minister of Ecological Transition in the successive governments of ...
, Næss signed a new convention establishing a new centre for oceans while attending the 2025 United Nations Ocean Conference in
Nice
Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionFinnmark Hospital Trust and principal at Hammerfest upper secondary school. She has been on leave from her duties as principal since 2016 in order to focus on political work.
Personal life
Næss is married to her husband Reidar, with whom she has three daughters. Her eldest daughter died at an early age of childhood cancer.