Laila Marie Reiertsen, née Bjørkhaug (born 19 October 1960) is a Norwegian politician from

Hordaland Hordaland () was a county in Norway, bordering Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Telemark, and Rogaland counties. Hordaland was the third largest county, after Akershus and Oslo, by population. The county government was the Hordaland County Munici ...

, residing in Os representing the Progress Party. Reiertsen was born at

Askøy Askøy is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. The island municipality is located in the Midhordland district of the county, sitting in a large group of islands immediately northwest of the city of Bergen. The administrative centre of the ...

in 1960 to Bjarne Bjørkhaug (born 1935) and Målfrid Mathilde Heggøy (born 1940). Reiertsen was married when she was sixteen years old to her one-year older husband. When she was seventeen, she gave birth to their first of four children. Reiertsen joined the Progress Party already in 1980, when she was twenty years old, and from 1987 to 1994 served as chairman of the Os chapter of the party. She finished her three-year education as a

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

at Betanien Nursing College in 1995. Reiertsen worked at Haukeland University Hospital from 1995, then in various care facilities, both private and municipal. She led a unit in Bergen Hospital Trust from 2006 to 2007, headed a department at a care center in Os and led Ravneberghaugen Rehabilitation Center from 2009. She was elected to Os

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

from 1995 to 2011 and deputy member of Hordaland

county council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Ireland The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Irel ...

from 2003 to 2011. She served as a deputy representative to the Parliament of Norway during the term 2005–2009. Prior to the 2009 election, Reiertsen called care for the elderly her main issue. She has called for better funding of Helse Vest to stop the spectre of cutbacks in healthcare. Reiertsen has been critical of the

Bergen Light Rail Bergen Light Rail ( no, Bybanen) is a light rail system in Bergen, Norway. The first stage of the project was a twenty-station stretch between the city center and Lagunen Storsenter, where the first 15 stations comprising a stretch opened i ...

, and argued for more bus lanes instead. In the 2009 parliamentary election she won Hordaland's leveling seat, becoming her party's fourth representative in that county. She sat on the Standing Committee on Labour and Social Affairs. In the 2013 election she again became a deputy representative. In June 2015 she advanced to regular representative again, covering for Gjermund Hagesæter who became State Secretary.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reiertsen, Laila 1960 births Living people People from Os, Hordaland Norwegian nurses Hordaland politicians Progress Party (Norway) politicians Members of the Storting Women members of the Storting 21st-century Norwegian politicians 21st-century Norwegian women politicians