The Week That Was, June 26th – June 2nd 2017
Politics/Economy
The Danish People’s Party (DPP) and Conservatives demanded immediate control of Denmark’s border with Sweden following reports of a significant increase in the number of Islamists who have settled there.
Integration Minister Inger Støjberg declined to support the DPP’s call for a ban on the foreign funding of mosques in this country.
Danmark’s Radio (DR) defended its decision to celebrate the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting, by throwing an EID party funded by licence payers after the Danish People’s Party accused the state run TV network of ‘pandering’ to the Muslim minority and ‘violating’ Denmark’s Christian heritage,
Conservative Party members voiced concern over the party’s position on the ‘child bride’ scandal, while the DPP said it would put forward a bill before the summer recess outlawing marriages involving a minor.
The Social Democrats called for all migrants and refugees to be turned back and sent to EU-funded camps in Africa where they can apply for asylum in Europe.
A new Gallup poll for Berlingske ahead of November’s local government elections showed the far-left Red/Green Alliance and Social Democrats are neck and neck in the race to win power at Copenhagen City Hall.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged the government to lower taxes as part of its upcoming labour market reform programme.
A new government proposal that would allow Danish farmers to grow medicinal cannabis received cross-party support.
Retail sales disappointed in May after rising in the previous four months – the latest figures from Statistics Denmark show a slight 0.1% increase, far less than expected.
EU/Foreign Affairs
Defence Minister Claus Hjort Frederiksen said he’s confident the USA will come to the aid of NATO allies that are attacked, after President Trump raised doubts over whether he would come to the defence of other members of the military pact who are not spending enough – Politiken reported that Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen was one of the few European leaders to challenge U.S. President Donald Trump at the recent NATO summit, when Mr Trump scolded European leaders for not footing more of the bill for their own defence and lectured them to stop taking advantage of U.S. taxpayers.
The ruling Liberals called for sanctions against NGOs working on the front line of the refugee crisis in the Mediterranean that help to rescue migrants whilst receiving Danish funding.
Danish soldiers stationed in Iraq suspect the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service is mishandling prisoners at a prison located at the Al-Asad Airbase.
Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen urged the EU make significant cutbacks to adjust for the lack of British funding after Brexit.
Romania’s ambassador to Denmark, Alexandru Gradina, said he feels no need to visit Roma camps in Copenhagen, following a recent study in which travellers complained about the poor living conditions in Denmark, police harassment, and the lack of protection from the embassy – Justice Minister Søren Pape said it could be take six years before Denmark can resume extraditing prisoners to Romania.
The EU Competition Commission, led by Denmark’s Margrethe Vestager, fined Google a record €2.4bn ($2.7bn) Tuesday, ruling that the search-engine giant violated antitrust rules for its online shopping practices.
The Spanish authorities arrested a Danish national allegedly involved in a network of companies that financed and recruited militants for the Islamic State (IS).
The Danish and Swedish authorities put together a joint working group that will over the next three years examine the viability of an underwater tunnel between Helsingør in Denmark and Helsingborg in Sweden.
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Social Affairs:
The Danish Employers Association (DEA) blamed the lack of skilled labour on restrictive immigration policies by the government – Foreign Minister Kristian Jensen acknowledged that Danish companies desperate to attract much-needed skilled foreign manpower struggling with a negative image of Denmark in foreign media.
The High Court upheld a lower court ruling to deny mentally handicapped citizens the right to vote in national elections.
A new survey of the 13 largest neighbourhoods in the capital showed an increasing number of residents feel unsafe.
A 26-year-old deranged man who shot a policeman in the head outside Albertslund police station last December was charged with murder, Tuesday.
Business:
Shipping and oil giant A.P. Moller-Maersk was hit by a hacker attack that caused widespread disruption to ‘multiple sites and business units’.
While Goldman Sachs has earned DKK12bn from its much-criticised 18% stake in DONG Energy over the past three years, the Danish state has benefitted by a staggering DKK47.bn.
Asnæs Power Station, Denmark’s largest coal-fired power station unit, is to completely phase out coal by 2019.
An 81,000 square metre theme park dedicated to Danish fairy tales writer, Hans Christian Andersen, opened in Shanghai, the first of its kind in the world.
Danish architecture firm 3XN won a prestigious contract to redesign Sydney Fish Market, which the local authorities believe could become the city’s second-biggest tourist attraction, after Sydney Opera House.