The Northern Future Forum was launched by United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron with great fanfare in 2011 as a different kind of summit meeting involving the Nordic and Baltic countries plus the UK.
The second event was held in Stockholm a year later and the third in Rīga in 2013 saw Latvia staging an extensive program with all Prime Ministers except Finland's Jyrki Katainen in attendance, though British Prime Minister David Cameron did return to Great Britain immediately after the opening plenary to be replaced by a Planning Minister, Nick Boles.
However, the importance of the Northern Future Forum appeares to have steadily waned ever since and a planned meeting in Stavanger in 2016 was postponed until the Oslo meeting now, due to turmoil in the British government following the Brexit vote and Cameron's resignation.
This year's event has health care and health technology as its theme according to the hosts and takes place October 29 and 30 at Oslo Cancer Cluster.
"We all face challenges relating to an aging population and the pressure this puts on the welfare state. We need to develop sustainable health services for the future and make the best possible use of the opportunities new technology offers. I look forward to sharing knowledge and ideas about these issues with the prime ministers of the UK and the Nordic and Baltic countries,'' said Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg ahead of the event.
