The Week That Was, June 18th – June 24th 2018

Posted on 24. Jun, 2018 in: TWTW

Politics/Economy

Experts expressed concern about politicians’ quick transition to lobbyism, following Brian Mikkelsen’s surprising resignation as business minister to become CEO of the Danish Chamber of Commerce – he was replaced by the Conservatives’ Rasmus Jarlov.

The opposition remains on course for victory at the next election – the latest Voxmeter poll for news agency Ritzau indicated a 91-84 seat victory for the ‘red’ bloc. Immigration will again be the main issue when the next election campaign gets underway according to a new Gallup poll – even though the government has tightened legislation 89 times since the 2015, 51% of respondents said refugee and immigration are their biggest concern.

The latest International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Article IV Consultation found the Danish economy is performing well but potential growth remains weak.

Despite the government’s failure to cut the punitive top rate of income tax the overall tax burden will be eased by DKK 23.5bn (€3bn) ahead of 2025, according to the government’s Tax Economics Report 2018.

A new forecast by Danske Bank showed the ‘nuclear’, home-owning ‘two adults, two kids’ family will have 646 kroner more to spend every month in 2018 and 2019, due mainly to wages rising faster than inflation.

According to tabloid daily Ekstra Bladet, Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen has grossly exaggerated the government’s job rate success for Danes and is guilty of ‘cosmetically enhancing’ the figures.

Despite the government’s ambitious energy bill a confidential memo sent to all parliamentary parties showed Denmark’s CO2 emissions could increase by 5-10% ahead of 2030.

EU/Foreign Affairs:

Minister for Foreign Affairs Anders Samuelsen was forced to tread a fine line on the sensitive Tibet issue during talks with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing, Thursday. Søren Espersen (DPP), the chair of parliament’s Foreign Policy Committee, warned that China’s President Xi Jinping could be met by demonstrations when he comes to Denmark in Spring 2019.

Integration Minister Inger Støjbeg confirmed that Denmark and Norway are working on establishing a centre in Kabul where unaccompanied Afghan minors who have been denied asylum can be sent back.

The Social Democrats summoned Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen to a parliamentary consultation to explain his claim of international support for his proposal to house failed asylum seekers at a location outside the EU.

Minister for Gender Equality and Nordic Cooperation Karen Ellemann, confirmed the government’s committment to the UNHRC after the USA pulled out citing a ‘chronic bias against Israel’ – DPP deputy leader Søren Espersen said he agrees that the UN body is guilty of ‘Israel bashing’ and urged Denmark to follow suit.

Satellite images indicated that Russia has developed a nuclear storage facility in Kaliningrad, close to the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea.

Social Democrat leader Mette Frederiksen said Austria could provide the key to limiting child benefit for migrant EU workers after Employment Minster Troels Lund Poulsen acknowledged last week that the government has accepted defeat.

Energy and Climate Minister Hans Lilleholt called on the EU to decrease carbon emissions in the transport sector by 40 percent.

Denmark is again the most expensive country in the EU – according to the Eurostat statistics agency: “In 2017, price levels for consumer goods and services differed widely across Europe. The highest price level among EU Member States was observed in Denmark, 42 % above the EU average.”

Foreign Minister Anders Samuelsen’s ‘right hand man’ Ulrik Vestergaard Knudsen is leaving Denmark to become the new deputy secretary-general at the OECD.

Social Affairs:

Hundreds of thousands of east Europeans have found work in Denmark over the past decade but the tide has turned – many migrant workers have returned home and recruitment agencies are finding it increasingly difficult to find the manpower companies need.

The Social Democrats and Danish People’s Party (DPP) joined together to call for a ban on criminal gangs after a Netherlands court shut down motorcycle club Satudarah, also active in Denmark, as a result of its criminal links and ‘culture of violence’.

Supermarket chain Bilka dismissed accusations it’s promoting Islamism by selling an ‘Eid Mubarak’ cake to celebrate the end of the Ramadan festival.

Despite anti-smoking campaigns and one of the western world’s highest cancer rates, cigarette sales rose by 6.2% in 2017, to 6,133 million, the latest Statistics Denmark figures showed.

To read all the above articles in full see:  http://seven59.dk/archive (subscription required)

Business:

Danish wind power giant Vestas denied trade union accusations it relocated hundreds of jobs to Spain to save wage expenditure, despite opening a wind turbine production facility there after closing its factory in Nakskov in 2010 and firing 430 employees.

Vestas booked an order for the 228 MW Lal Lal Wind Farm, located in Victoria, Australia and confirmed it will deliver turbines to the Toabre wind farm in Panama.

British department store chain Debenhams is reportedly considering selling off 6 Magasin du Nord stores in Denmark to offset forecasted losses at home.

Danish card payment services company, NETS, is to expand into Poland through a EUR73 million acquisition of online payment providers Dotpay/eCard.

Public confidence in Denmark’s biggest bank, Danske, has fallen in the wake of the money laundering scandal – the percentage of Danes who find the bank credible has fallen to 63 percent this year from 70-75 percent over the previous two years.

And That Was The Week That Was, June 18th – June 24th 2018: To read all the above articles in full see: http://seven59.dk/archive (subscription required).