The Week That Was, June 25th – July 1st 2018

Politics/Economy

Uffe Elbæk, head of the radical green Alternative party, put himself forward as a potential prime minister after the next election, claiming he’s tired of the usual ‘presidential run-off’ between two candidates.

The Danish People’s Party demanded the exclusion of the Liberal Alliance (LA) in a centre-right coalition if the ‘blue bloc’ wins the next election.

Although the Lib/Con/LA coalition has been accused of increasing the earnings gap by tax cuts and the benefit cap, the latest OECD report shows financial inequality increased during the pre-2015 Thorning government.

The government bowed to the Danish People’s Party’s (DPP) demand to ban anybody who’s served  more than 3 months in jail from citizenship, but dismissed a proposal to limit the number of new citizens to 1.000 a year.

EU/Foreign Affairs:

At a meeting of parliament’s Foreign Policy Committee, Wednesday, Foreign Minister Anders Samuelsen and Defence Minister Claus Hjort Frederiksen laid out the government’s plan to to contribute more to ‘combat terrorism in the south and Russian aggression in the east.’

Denmark signed up to two new military alliances –  a new, 10-nation defence coalition launched by France’s President Macron and the British-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), a rapid response unit which can support NATO or U.N. troops anywhere in the world.

After Thursday’s  EU summit on migration, Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said he had personally spoken to Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel about examining the possibility of tightening the Dublin Procedure –  he also said the EU doesn’t want to see further escalation in the trade war but ‘won’t turn the other cheek’ when President Trump imposes tariffs on European goods. Ahead of the meeting the PM warned that time is running out for Great Britain to agree a deal with the EU before it withdraws from the union next year.

Foreign Minister Anders Samuelsen held a brief meeting with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu on the sidelines of the International Ukraine Reform Conference in Copenhagen, Wednesday, just one day after he warned that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s election victory in Turkey signals the end of his country’s ambition to join the EU – Mr Samuelsen also said reforms are Ukraine’s best response to Russia’s aggression. Party spokespersons called for a stop on reform funding to Ukraine following reports that top officials in the country have sabotaged a prestigious Danish project aimed at combating corruption. At a press conference alongside his Ukraine counterpart, Volodimir Grojsman, Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said Denmark won’t recognise the Russian annexation of Crimea and condemns the aggression in eastern Ukraine.

Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen dismissed opposition calls to brief a parliamentary consultation about his plans to house failed asylum seekers at a location outside the EU.

Opposition politicians questioned why top Foreign Ministry officials have on two occasions over the past six months held meetings with the Chinese embassy in Copenhagen concerning the Tibet Commission.

Denmark pledged an extra DKK75m ($11.7m) to help stop the exodus of refugees and migrants from Africa, but also to protect those who have embarked on a dangerous voyage to Europe.

Russian media sites reported the controversial Nordstream 2 pipeline project could get underway as early as this summer, even without Denmark’s permission.

After four days at sea a Danish-flagged container ship was granted permission to sail into a Sicilian harbour and offload 108 migrants.

Social Affairs:

Jyllands Posten reported how children of Danish foreign fighters who’ve fought for the Islamic State in Syria have the right to citizenship in Denmark.

A Syrian couple were jailed, with deportation to follow, for physically abusing their daughter who they believed had ‘lesbian tendencies’.

Health Minister Ellen Nørby launched a panel of 11 experts to delve into mental illness’ causes and treatments in response to figures showing 25 percent of the Danish population reported experiencing high levels of stress.

The government is preparing to test the constitution by launching a legal action to ban the notorious immigrant street gang, Loyal To Familia (LTF).

Denmark’s unique deposit system on beer and soft drinks is to be extended to cover plastic, glass and other juice bottles by 2020 – an extra 52 million bottles a year are expected to be recycled under the new law.

Denmark was fined around DKK 130,000 (20,000 Swiss Francs) after fans disrespected the Australian national anthem at last week’s World Cup match that ended 1-1.

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Business:

The government welcomed energy giant Orsted’s move to sell off the utilities business side of the company to focus on green energy but warned it will place strict requirements on a potential purchaser.

Norway sold off its remaining stake of close to 10 percent in Scandinavian airline SAS, also co-owned by Sweden and Denmark – in 2016, Norway and Sweden began to sell off their shares in the airline but Denmark has been reluctant to shed its 14.3% holding.

The State Prosecutor’s Office for Serious Economic and International Crime (Søik), popularly known as the fraud squad, is considering new charges against public sector IT supplier Atea after two of its ex-bosses were given 12 and 18 month sentences for giving public officials trips to Dubai and Las Vegas, expensive restaurant meals, and top of the line smart phones or I-Pads in return for purchasing contracts.

Danske Bank’s scandal-hit Estonian branch was heavily implicated in an illegal arms deal years before criminal money laundering activities were revealed.

From the 1st of August cigarettes will be hidden from view in the country’s biggest supermarkets, Netto, Føtex, Bilka, and Rema 1000, all owned by the Salling Group – CEO Per Bang said as Denmark’s biggest retailer, with 600 outlets, the company has a duty to stop kids smoking.

A Chinese firm, Andersen Paradise – named after the world famous Danish author H.C. Andersen – initiated a collaboration with Randers Municipality with the aim of building a true copy of the well-preserved medieval town’s most characteristic buildings and trademarks in China.

And That Was The Week That Was, June 25th – July 1st 2018: To read all the above articles in full see: http://seven59.dk/archive (subscription required).