The Week That Was, January 14th – January 20th 2019
Politics/Economy:
The latest YouGov poll showed less than one percentage point separates the two opposing blocs – if an election was held today the opposition would win 50.3% against the government + Danish People’s Party’s (DPP) 49.7%, providing the centre-left with a slim 3 seat majority. As the election approaches a new survey showed around 100,000 voters have deserted the DPP since the 2015 election.
2,000 more nurses, 100 more specialist doctors and an extra DKK6bn in funding – the core elements of the government’s health reform proposals, which also include plans to disband the country’s five regional authorities.
In its latest Economic Survey the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) praised Denmark but noted that economic growth has been weaker than in other OECD countries over the past decades and productivity growth has been sluggish.
A political majority came out against partially publicly-owned Ørsted’s plans to sell off its power distribution company in Copenhagen, Radius – Finance Minister Kristian Jensen denounced the ‘political U-turn’ that, he claimed, would deny Ørsted much needed capital to implement its green conversion strategy.
Alternative leader Uffe Elbæk warned against the increasing signs of fascism in Danish politics – in an interview with Berlingske he said some of the ‘ugly trends’ witnessed in the 1930s are appearing again.
Climate Minister Lars Christian Lilleholt again rejected accusations of trying to influence the independent Danish Council on Climate Change (Klimarådet), which in a critical report dismissed the government’s climate policy as ‘unambitious and unrealistic’.
Homeowner equity, the value of a homeowner’s interest in their property, increased to DKK4,000bn in 2017 but is still less than before the financial crisis hit in 2008.
EU/Foreign Affairs:
Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said the Danish government is preparing for the worst, following the British parliament’s rejection of Therese May’s Brexit deal – Danish People’s Party (DPP) leader Kristian Thulesen Dahl called on the EU to reopen negotiations so Great Britain isn’t forced to leave without a fair divorce settlement The OECD warned that Danish food exports to Britain could fall by around 25% in the event of a hard Brexit.
A leading U.S. cyber security expert warned of the threat of Russian interference in the upcoming Danish and EU election campaigns – former FBI officer Clint Watts said the Russians tried to influence voters in France and Germany and could now be aiming for the EU and Denmark.
Lawmakers warned that an upcoming EU ruling on successive governments’ denial of family reunification for Turkish nationals is a major threat to immigration policy – if an EU court rules against Denmark the Danish authorities could be forced to reopen thousands of cases concerning Turks who’ve been denied residency.
The government extended its arms ban to the United Arab Emirates, an ally of Saudi Arabia in the war in Yemen.
The Anti Torture Support Foundation (ATSF) urged Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen to raise the torture issue in talks with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, in Delhi this weekend.
Denmark’s EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager was ranked high on Foreign Policy’s (FP) annual list of the top 100 Global Thinkers.
HM Queen Margrethe and Crown Prince Frederik will make a state visit to Argentina in March at the head of a 25-company Danish trade delegation.
Denmark dropped to 4th place in the 2019 rankings of the world’s most powerful passports, despite nine visa-free destinations.
Social Affairs:
Nine ‘new Danes’ received their Danish passports in the first citizenship ceremony since the controversial handshake law was passed last September – all gladly shook hands with Integration Minister Inger Støjberg in a showcase ceremony in Copenhagen.
The government wants the right to deport criminal immigrants even though they haven’t appeared before a judge – Justice Minister Søren Pape Poulsen said it shows a lack of respect when criminals fail to show up for a court date to receive their deportation order.
A 31-year-old mentally-ill Somali man was committed to a psychiatric hospital with deportation to follow for stabbing his 58-year-old mother to death with a kitchen knife – at the same time a court in Nykøbing Falster sentenced two Croatian brothers to 15 years in prison, followed by deportation, for a string of violent home invasions.
Police launched an investigation into allegations of bribery at the national statistics agency, Statistics Denmark.
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Business:
The money laundering scandal has cost Danske Bank big fines and a loss of credibility – in a new customer confidence survey of 20 top Danish banks, Danske came in last.
Haulage giant DSV launched a a DKK22bn ($4.1 bn) takeover bid for Swiss rival Panalpina to try to close the gap on the world’s top three freight transport companies.
Jyske, Denmark’s 3rd biggest bank, announced plans to sell its Gibraltar subsidiary, possibly as a result of Brexit
And That Was the Week That Was, January 14th – January 20th 20192019: To read all the above articles in full see: http://seven59.dk/archive (subscription required).