The Week That Was, November 18th – November 24th 2019:
Politics/Economy:
Less than two weeks after being founded by Liberal Alliance (LA) defectors Simon Emil Ammitzbøll-Bille and Christina Egelund, the new, centre-right party, Forward, is floundering at just 0.1% in a new poll.
Politicians on both sides of the aisle called for a probe into reports that at the height of the money-laundering scandal Danske Bank offered shady Russian customers anonymity if they bought bars of gold for their money.
A leading tax specialist said the authorities’ deal with speculators who scammed the Danish state out of billions of kroner in the share dividend scandal could be unlawful.
Consumer confidence fell for the third straight month in November, signalling the risk of a slowdown in the Danish economy according to economists.
Foreign Affairs/EU:
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and France’s President Macron covered a wide range of issues during talks in Paris but it was migration that topped the agenda.
Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod said the increasing superpower rivalry has made strengthening the NATO alliance a top priority – he also characterised the U.S. State Department’s reversal on Israeli settlements in the West Bank as ‘bad news’ for the peace process.
Finance Minister Nicolai Wammen travelled to Berlin to win German support for Denmark’s bid to cap the EU budget, one day before European Council President-elect Charles Michel arrived in Copenhagen to discourage Prime Minister Frederiksen efforts to reduce the EU’s long term budget.
A new Eurobarometer survey showed Danes’ support for major EU trade deals continues to grow – 81% of respondents in this country agreed that the EU is better at defending trade interests than if Denmark stood alone, compared to the EU average of 71%.
Former Swedish prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt decried Denmark’s decision to reinstate border controls with Sweden as the sign of an ‘us and them mentality that’s ruling the world right now’ and which will ‘lead to new wars.’
A leading China expert said Danish companies are reluctant to comment on the troubles in Hong Kong because they’re scared of repercussions from Beijing.
Transparency International warned that although Denmark, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden have traditionally enjoyed a low corruption perception the ‘tide is turning’ following a spate of financial scandals.
An 11-month old orphan from the al-Hol refugee camp in north east Syria was brought home to Denmark, the first time that a child linked to the Islamic State has been repatriated.
The Danish agricultural authorities expressed alarm about the growing threat of swine fever after a dead wild boar was found in western Poland, only 85 km from the border with Germany
Germany intensified police checks along its border with Denmark.
Social Affairs:
Ex-immigration minister Inger Støjberg said a new survey showing 28% of the electorate believe Muslims who can’t support themselves should be deported confirms the view held by many Danes.
Danish foreign fighters abroad will no longer be offered consular or legal assistance by Danish embassies but the Red/Greens said Denmark has a duty to help all Danish citizens, even criminals.
The Danish People’s Party reacted strongly to new figures showing only 183 people had their residency permits rescinded during the first nine months of this year for failing to meet stringent family reunification requirements, compared to 463 in 2018.
The government is preparing legislation that will allow the authorities to strip Danish citizens of their passport for at least three years if the police or Danish Intelligence (PET) suspect they could travel to participate in armed conflicts broad.
The ‘red bloc’ alliance reached agreement on the controversial Sjælsmark Transit Centre for failed asylum seekers – families who’ve refused to leave Denmark will within the next five months be relocated to other holding centres where children will be able to ‘lead a more normal life’.
A Syrian doctor whose wife was denied family reunification won the right to appeal to the Grand Chamber of the International Human Rights Court (IHCR) in Strasbourg.
More than half of the 372 people charged with social fraud during the first six months of the year for travelling abroad while claiming unemployment benefits were from ethnic minorities and a third weren’t even Danish citizens.
A new OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) study showed alcohol consumption per person in this country has fallen considerably but Danes are still the biggest consumers of beer, wine and spirits in Scandinavia.
Police launched a manhunt for a leading gang member who escaped during an armed raid on a hospital psychiatric wing in Slagelse.
Twenty-five migrants were found in a refrigerated container on a Danish-flagged ferry bound for the UK from the Netherlands.
Business:
For the second year in a row Denmark was ranked the world’s second-most talented nation.
The Danish state’s investment fund, Vaekstfonden, joined Greenland Venture in a DKK35m investment in Bluejay Mining, located in the north of the Arctic country – the company aims to produce between 440,000 and 600,000 tons of high purity ilmenite, the most important ore of titanium, by the end of 2021.
Danish shipping giant A.P. Moeller-Maersk posted impressive Q3 net profit but warned that growth in the container market is slowing more than previously thought as global economies weaken.
Nordea became the latest bank to impose negative interest rates – from February 1st private customers will be forced to pay 0.75% on accounts holding more than DKK 750,000 ($111,100).
The National Bank warned it won’t come to the rescue of the country’s $450 billion pension fund industry if it needs cash to meet EU demands for a multi-billion buffer against interest rate hikes.
Despite President’s Trump’s scepticism about clean energy, partially state-owned Ørsted started the construction of its solar and battery storage facility in Texas that will generate enough energy to power 100,000 US households.
Torben Möger Pedersen, CEO of PensionDanmark, was appointed head one of 13 new climate partnerships the Danish government has set up to achieve its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Denmark by 70% in relation to 1990 levels by 2030.
Partially state-owned energy company Ørsted listed green bonds on Taiwan’s stock exchange (TPEx) to finance its offshore wind development project in the country.
And That Was the The Week That Was, November 18th – November 24th 2019: To read all the above articles in full see: http://seven59.dk/archive (subscription required).