Stockholm pub ‘tipping scam’ widens
Several Stockholm restaurants are under scrutiny after revelations about more cases of eateries tricking their customers into thinking they are required to leave tips.
Day: October 18, 2011
Sweden
Sweden
Last minute reprieve for 90-year-old deportee
90-year-old Ganna Chyzhevska's imminent deportation to the Ukraine was stopped last minute by the European Court of Human Rights, pending a new review of the nonagenarian’s case.
Germany
Prosecutor downplays cannibalism in German’s Polynesia death
The chief prosecutor in French Polynesia has denied reports that a cannibal ate a German tourist believed to have been murdered while visiting the island chain.
France
France pipped by Japan on three star restaurants
France has been overtaken by Japan when it comes to the number of restaurants with three Michelin stars, according to the latest guide to the nation's western cities to be released on Friday.
France
Polynesians outraged by cannibal claims
Fears that a missing German tourist may have been killed and eaten by his tour guide after the remnants of skin, teeth and bones were found in a fire have angered locals in French Polynesia.
Norway
Should I move to Norway?
I have an opportunity to move to Norway from the US to set up a new office for my company. My impression of the country is very positive but foreigners living there seem to find a lot to complain about. Should I stay or should I go? Please have your say.
Sweden
Town reeling as police search continues
As police continue their search of the area where the 4-year-old boy was found dead on Sunday evening by scouring the location and going from door to door in the neighbourhood near the scene of the crime, the local community is trying to get to grips with what has happened.
Germany
Details emerge of BND spy who aided Shalit deal
The head of German intelligence service Ernst Uhrlau last week indicated that his agents helped secure the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for over 1,000 Palestinians. One spy’s role was particularly crucial.
Switzerland
Swiss food pioneer dies at 95
Ueli Prager, the founder of the Swiss hotel and restaurant group Mövenpick, died on Saturday at the age of 95, according to his family.
Germany
Broken tsunami warning system wastes millions
Germany has invested €45 million in a network of buoys that are supposed to warn Asians of an impending tsunami. But they don't work and even if they did they might be useless, according to news reports.
Sweden
Reinfeldt sends lost teddy bear ‘home’ to Belgium
Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt brought a new dimension to Swedish foreign policy recently when he sent a stray teddy bear back to its young owner in Belgium.
Germany
Investor confidence slides as debt crisis bites
Evidence that the eurozone debt crisis is beginning to hurt the German economy sent investor confidence in Europe's largest economy to a three-year low, data showed on Tuesday.
Germany
Run on Steve Jobs’ German designer jumper
In his last public appearance, Steve Jobs wore a sweater by exclusive Berlin label Von Rosen. Since his death earlier this month, the company has seen a huge rush in sales of the €420-cashmere turtleneck.
Sweden
Time runs out for 90-year-old deportee
90-year-old Ganna Chyzhevska, suffering from dementia and heart disease, is scheduled to be deported to Ukraine on Tuesday afternoon, after all efforts by her family to keep her with them in Sweden have failed.
Sweden
23 Swedish women guilty in child porn case
All 23 women on trial for possessing and distributing child pornography were convicted by a Swedish court on Tuesday, along with a 43-year-old man believed to be the mastermind behind the network.
Norway
Bergen rejects ‘German’ wharf name change
The town council in Norway’s vibrant old Hansa trading port, Bergen, showed they were appalled by a proposal to re-name part of their harbour “The German Wharf” in tribute to its history.
Sweden
Swedes’ terror trial in Ethiopia delayed
The trial of two Swedish journalists arrested in Ethiopia on suspicions of terror crimes will be delayed until Thursday.
Switzerland
Swiss Railways offers bonus to fill staff void
Swiss Federal Railways has offered to pay 2,500 francs ($2,800) to staff members who recommend their friends and acquaintances for job interviews in a move aimed at tackling a shortage of qualified staff.
Norway
Homebuyers revolt over down payment hike
Property buyers have asked Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg to snub a recommendation from financial oversight officials to hike the minimum down payment on a property by five percent to 15 percent of the purchase price.
Germany
Right wing group tricks state into selling manor
A person suspected of being associated with an alleged neo-Nazi group has bought a manor from the state of Thuringia, apparently breaking rules on selling state property to extremists.
Switzerland
SVP claims support for anti-migrant vote
The far-right Swiss People’s Party (SVP) has claimed to have gathered enough support to push for a referendum aimed at "stopping mass immigration", which could have implications for the country's bilateral deal with the EU.
Germany
Giant python fossil found in Bavaria
The fossil of a python dating from about 15 million years ago has been discovered in Bavaria, first time proof that the reptile lived so far north, according to German palaeontologists.
Sweden
Night shift work boosts MS risk: Swedish study
Young people who work night shifts end up with a significantly higher risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), researchers at the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm have found.
Sweden
Sneaking a peak at Sweden’s burgeoning wine industry
While perhaps best known as the home of Absolut vodka, Sweden also boasts a growing selection of wineries, food blogger Maia Brindley Nilsson discovers.
Switzerland
Mubarak sons have Swiss bank millions
The two sons of deposed Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak have $340 million in Swiss bank accounts, Egypt's deputy justice minister said on Monday.
Norway
China rejects Norway Nobel peace overtures
China on Monday rejected the Norwegian foreign minister's call to restore the political dialogue put on ice by Beijing after the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to jailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo in 2010.
Germany
US medic training on live pigs faces opposition
A US company that trains military medics in field operations using live pigs is trying to bring its courses to Germany. Animal rights group PETA believes the company is using US Army protection to bypass German animal protection laws.
Sweden
Botswana crash victims were Swiss, not Swedish: travel agency
Initial reports that three Swedes had been killed in a plane crash in Botswana proved to be false after a travel agency confirmed that the victims were actually from Switzerland.
France
Moody’s warns France on ‘negative outlook’
France's Finance Minister Francois Baroin said Tuesday that the government would do everything in its power to maintain its triple-A rating after Moody's warned it may place the country on negative outlook.
France
Secret service head held in growing spy scandal
The head of France's secret service has been held for questioning over alleged spying on a journalist at Le Monde newspaper in an affair that is reaching ever higher into the upper echelons of the French state.
France
Paris marks 50 years after Algerian ‘massacre’
A number of events were held on Monday to remember the violent deaths of up to several hundred anti-war demonstrators in Paris 50 years ago.
France
Marine Le Pen slams union leader
A war of words has broken out between the leader of the far-right Front National, Marine Le Pen, and the equally forthright head of the Medef employers' group, Laurence Parisot.
Sweden
Swedish shoplifters prefer meat: study
Swedes are the worst shoplifting offenders in the Nordic region, costing every resident 779 kronor ($117) per year in higher retail prices, a new study has found.
Germany
Deutsche Bank betting $4.9 billion in Las Vegas
Deutsche Bank has invested almost $5 billion in casinos in Las Vegas, almost as much as its exposure to Greece, Italy, Ireland, Spain and Portugal put together, a British newspaper report said.
Sweden
Advert slammed for portraying women as ‘pure sex objects’
The Jack & Jones clothing retailer has been rapped by Sweden's advertising watchdog for a “sexist” ad campaign which utilised scantily clad women to market a line of men's clothing.
Germany
Jazzed up in Stuttgart
Buttoned-down Stuttgart might appear to be an unlikely jazz mecca, but the venerable music genre is making a comeback in the southwestern German city after being popularized by American GIs after the war. Tracy Moran reports.
Germany
Duisburg mayor faces recall election
Nearly 80,000 signatures have been collected to force a special election to recall Duisburg Mayor Adolf Sauerland, who has clung to office since the deadly Love Parade disaster in 2010.