The Week That Was, April 22nd-28th 2024:
Politics/Economy:
4 out of 10 voters have deserted the government coalition parties since the 2022 election - the latest Megafon poll for TV2 showed only 30.7% of the electorate would vote for either the Social Democrats, Liberals (Venstre), or Moderates if an election was held today, compared to 51% two years ago - TV2’s political analyst Morten Nielsen blamed the government’s worst opinion poll ever on its decision to scrap the Great Prayer Day public holiday which should have been held, Friday.
The Defence Ministry announced that the independent legal inquiry into the Elbit/Israel arms affair has been widened and subsequently delayed.
A Danish processing centre for refugees in Rwanda is still a distant dream even though the British Parliament approved a similar bill this week to deport asylum seekers to the east-African country - Immigration and Integration Minister Kaare Dybvad Bek said the government is looking for a common, European solution and Britain’s decision won’t change that.
The former head of the New Right party announced he’s forming a new party that will ‘stir things up at Christiansborg’ - Lars Boje Mathiesen, who was fired and kicked out of the anti-migrant party in March said ‘voters deserve a party that has the courage and will to challenge the political power system, which no longer acts for the people, only self-interest.’
Randers municipality warned of a pending ‘financial disaster’ if the state doesn’t help with more money for the clean-up operation following January’s landslide at a local reprocessing plant for contaminated soil.
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen shared 36 hate messages and threats she’s received on Instagram recently in which she was called, amongst other things, a ‘child murderer’ and ’Denmark’s biggest whore’.
EU/Foreign Affairs:
A cross-party majority agreed to increase military aid to Ukraine by a further DKK4.4bn this year, adding to the more than DKK60bn already allocated to the Ukraine Fund from 2023 to 2028 - the government also granted a DKK2.85bn (€380m) state guarantee for a wind energy project in Ukraine that will provide green energy for at least 500,000 households.
Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said the government could be willing to help other countries financially if they send their Patriot Air Defence systems to Ukraine.
The government called for Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to be put on the European Union’s terrorist list.
The far-right Sweden Democrats reached out to the Denmark’s Democrats Party about a possible partnership in the upcoming EU election campaign - the nationalist Swedish party’s leading candidate for MEP, Charlie Weimers, told political news site Altinget that Inger Støjberg's new party would be ‘warmly welcomed’ in the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group at the European Parliament.
Denmark received a DKK3.1bn payout from the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) for meeting agreed milestones and targets for the climate and economy.
Former Social Liberal (Radikale) leader Margrethe Vestager acknowleged it’s unlikely she’ll be offered a third term as Executive Vice President of the European Commission - the ex-deputy prime minister said she hasn’t given up all hope but the chance of her being picked by the current government coalition is unlikely.
Arms smuggler Niels Holck dismissed Denmark’s attempt to extradite him to India as ‘outrageous’ and claimed to have new evidence showing the Danish authorities were aware he was residing in this country at a time when he was a wanted man throughout the world.
For the third year in a row a war memorial in Bornholm for Russian soldiers kiiled defending the Baltic island in 1945-6 was vandalised – a police spokesperson said it appears the monument was attacked in protest against the traditional May 9th ceremony held annually to commemorate the World War 2 victory and usually attended by Russia’s ambassador to Denmark.
Social Affairs:
The number of people in employment rose by 5,300 in February, reaching a new record level of 3,014,700 - 87% of those who joined the labour market over the past year were foreign nationals.
Social Democrat members distanced themselves from integration spokesperson Frederik Vad’s claim in parliament last week that immigrants who appear to be well-integrated can be actively undermining Danish values but he was given a vote of confidence by the prime minister.
New figures showed soldiers are fleeing the armed forces because they feel they can earn more money elsewhere.
A new Copenhagen University study found that the high level of air pollution in this country could damage children's academic performance.
Business:
Brewing giant Carlsberg announced plans to invest around DKK300m to extend its three breweries in Ukraine.
A U.S. Senate committee launched an investigation into the prices of Novo Nordisk's ‘wonder’ diabetes and weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy in the USA.
4 out of 10 voters have deserted the government coalition parties since the 2022 election - the latest Megafon poll for TV2 showed only 30.7% of the electorate would vote for either the Social Democrats, Liberals (Venstre), or Moderates if an election was held today, compared to 51% two years ago - TV2’s political analyst Morten Nielsen blamed the government’s worst opinion poll ever on its decision to scrap the Great Prayer Day public holiday which should have been held, Friday.
The Defence Ministry announced that the independent legal inquiry into the Elbit/Israel arms affair has been widened and subsequently delayed.
A Danish processing centre for refugees in Rwanda is still a distant dream even though the British Parliament approved a similar bill this week to deport asylum seekers to the east-African country - Immigration and Integration Minister Kaare Dybvad Bek said the government is looking for a common, European solution and Britain’s decision won’t change that.
The former head of the New Right party announced he’s forming a new party that will ‘stir things up at Christiansborg’ - Lars Boje Mathiesen, who was fired and kicked out of the anti-migrant party in March said ‘voters deserve a party that has the courage and will to challenge the political power system, which no longer acts for the people, only self-interest.’
Randers municipality warned of a pending ‘financial disaster’ if the state doesn’t help with more money for the clean-up operation following January’s landslide at a local reprocessing plant for contaminated soil.
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen shared 36 hate messages and threats she’s received on Instagram recently in which she was called, amongst other things, a ‘child murderer’ and ’Denmark’s biggest whore’.
EU/Foreign Affairs:
A cross-party majority agreed to increase military aid to Ukraine by a further DKK4.4bn this year, adding to the more than DKK60bn already allocated to the Ukraine Fund from 2023 to 2028 - the government also granted a DKK2.85bn (€380m) state guarantee for a wind energy project in Ukraine that will provide green energy for at least 500,000 households.
Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said the government could be willing to help other countries financially if they send their Patriot Air Defence systems to Ukraine.
The government called for Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to be put on the European Union’s terrorist list.
The far-right Sweden Democrats reached out to the Denmark’s Democrats Party about a possible partnership in the upcoming EU election campaign - the nationalist Swedish party’s leading candidate for MEP, Charlie Weimers, told political news site Altinget that Inger Støjberg's new party would be ‘warmly welcomed’ in the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group at the European Parliament.
Denmark received a DKK3.1bn payout from the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) for meeting agreed milestones and targets for the climate and economy.
Former Social Liberal (Radikale) leader Margrethe Vestager acknowleged it’s unlikely she’ll be offered a third term as Executive Vice President of the European Commission - the ex-deputy prime minister said she hasn’t given up all hope but the chance of her being picked by the current government coalition is unlikely.
Arms smuggler Niels Holck dismissed Denmark’s attempt to extradite him to India as ‘outrageous’ and claimed to have new evidence showing the Danish authorities were aware he was residing in this country at a time when he was a wanted man throughout the world.
For the third year in a row a war memorial in Bornholm for Russian soldiers kiiled defending the Baltic island in 1945-6 was vandalised – a police spokesperson said it appears the monument was attacked in protest against the traditional May 9th ceremony held annually to commemorate the World War 2 victory and usually attended by Russia’s ambassador to Denmark.
Social Affairs:
The number of people in employment rose by 5,300 in February, reaching a new record level of 3,014,700 - 87% of those who joined the labour market over the past year were foreign nationals.
Social Democrat members distanced themselves from integration spokesperson Frederik Vad’s claim in parliament last week that immigrants who appear to be well-integrated can be actively undermining Danish values but he was given a vote of confidence by the prime minister.
New figures showed soldiers are fleeing the armed forces because they feel they can earn more money elsewhere.
A new Copenhagen University study found that the high level of air pollution in this country could damage children's academic performance.
Business:
Brewing giant Carlsberg announced plans to invest around DKK300m to extend its three breweries in Ukraine.
A U.S. Senate committee launched an investigation into the prices of Novo Nordisk's ‘wonder’ diabetes and weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy in the USA.
Danish Krone Exchange Rate