and to get a train to Malmö, Copenhagen and Europe beyond”. A few days before the 2021 election, Hareide asked the Railway Directorate to get in touch with the Swedish Transport Administration to make a common proposal for a possible railway connection between Oslo and Stockholm, something both country’s authorities have agreed to do. Hareide stressed the importance to map out the marked potential, evaluating the railway capacity, evaluate the costs, possible tracks, and social economic estimations. He also expressed that it should receive inputs from non-state initiatives, who could in turn see the potential for building such a railway without state investments. Despite the Storting approving in February to abolish the need for health certificate for elderly drivers, Hareide stated in October that he would not oblige to the decision. Instead he defended the certificate, saying it was an important tool to keep drivers safe. He also referred to it being the professional opinion to keep the certificate, but also said it was up to the new government to handle the issue further. Director of the Norwegian Maritime Authority On 12 November 2021, he was nominated to become the next director of the Norwegian Maritime Authority. He assumed office on 1 January 2022. On 5 December 2021, a month before assuming the position, he announced that he and his family would be moving to Karmøy in relation to his new job. Personal life Hareide comes from a middle-class background, his father being a transportation manager and his mother a consultant. Although reluctant to comment on the issue, Hareide was likely single during his first tenure in national politics. He has been confronted with rumours of homosexuality by segments of the media, but these have been dismissed. In 2008 he was reported as having a relationship with Solveig Engevik from Kolbotn, which ended in 2010. In the spring of 2011 he was confirmed in a relationship with school teacher Lisa Marie Larsen. The couple married in Moi on 23 June 2012, and had a daughter on 6 April 2013. References 1972 births Living people Norwegian state secretaries Members of the Storting Ministers of Climate and the Environment of Norway Christian Democratic Party (Norway) politicians Leaders of political parties in Norway Norwegian Lutherans Hordaland politicians Akershus politicians Norwegian School of Economics alumni Norwegian businesspeople 21st-century Norwegian politicians People from Bømlo Ministers of Transport and Communications of Norway