‘Trash baron’ jailed for more than four years
A former police officer turned businessman has been jailed for more than four years for ditching thousands of tonnes of dangerous garbage in dumps that he was being paid to decommission.
Day: January 19, 2012
Germany
Sweden
Pantless prisoner walks out of Swedish jail
A bare-legged ex-convict walked out of a Swedish prison without any pants or shoes on Tuesday after being denied extra money to buy new clothes.
Switzerland
Switzerland to get 100 low-cost childcare centres
Swiss national councillor Otto Ineichen is planning to build 100 affordable daycare centres that he hopes will enable more mothers to rejoin the labour market.
Germany
Green Week: Animal-friendly food costs more
The biggest agriculture show in the world opens in Berlin on Friday, with the dominant message being: Animal-friendly agriculture is possible, but it costs extra.
Germany
Police raid president’s ex-advisor’s house
Police have raided the home of President Christian Wulff’s former spokesman Olaf Glaeseker as well as the offices of an event manager who was closely connected to the president when he was state premier of Lower Saxony.
Sweden
Military drops grenades in northern Sweden
Six grenades that fell from a military transport truck in northern Sweden on Wednesday have yet to be recovered despite a wide ranging search to recover the missing munitions.
France
France shrugs off downgrade with successful bond sale
France and Spain successfully raised funds at lower rates on the markets despite a raft of eurozone credit downgrades, while Greece got the prospect of more rescue loans from the IMF.
Norway
Danish Breivik play sparks fury in Norway
A Danish theatre group has come in for vehement criticism in Norway after it announced plans to stage a monologue based on the manifesto of confessed mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik.
Sweden
‘Mossad set me up’: Swede held in Bangkok
A Lebanese-born Swede arrested in Thailand last week on terror suspicions has professed his innocence, claiming he was set up by Israeli intelligence service Mossad.
Switzerland
Swiss veteran Cuche to retire at season’s end
Veteran Swiss alpine ski racer Didier Cuche, the reigning World Cup downhill and Super-G champion, announced on Thursday that he will retire at the end of the season.
Sweden
‘I feel strong support from the party’: Juholt
After the Riksdag’s party leader debate on Wednesday, beleaguered Social Democrat head Håkan Juholt was questioned by the gathered press regarding his future in the party.
Germany
UN envoy urges more action on Syria
Germany UN envoy has accused Russia of preventing the UN Security Council from taking decisive action over the deadly crackdown on anti regime protests in Syria.
Sweden
Foreign applications to Swedish unis rebound
The number of foreign students applying to masters programmes at Swedish universities is on the rise, according to preliminary figures, following last year's precipitous drop in foreign applicants.
Germany
Banks ‘stashing money in fear of meltdown’
Germany’s economy is still in the danger zone, with banks stockpiling money in the European Central Bank (ECB) instead of lending it, Jürgen Fitschen, next in line to lead Deutsche Bank, warned on Thursday.
Sweden
Average Swede likes sweets, booze, and TV
The average Swede is 40+, munches on a weekly bag of sweets, washed down with a glass or three of alcohol, while relaxing in front of the TV, according to the 2012 Statistical Yearbook of Sweden from Statistics Sweden (Statistiska Centralbyrån -SCB).
Germany
Millions needed to fix five-year-old rail bridge
A bridge leading to Berlin's central train station needs repairs costing at least €10 million because of a cheap construction job done in a rush to get the station finished for the 2006 football World Cup.
Norway
Pakistan wants answers on Norwegian agents
Norway's ambassador in Islamabad has been summoned to a meeting with Pakistani authorities after outgoing domestic security chief Janne Kristiansen said Norway has intelligence agents posted in Pakistan.
Sweden
Sony Ericsson ends 2011 with massive loss
Mobile phone manufacturer Sony Ericsson said Thursday that intense competition hit fourth quarter sales hard and forced the company to post a loss of €247 million ($318 million) for the year.
Germany
Music site ends German business on a sour note
A free online music streaming service, Grooveshark, has closed its German operations, saying the music industry is charging too much for access to songs.
Switzerland
Hamas chief meets Swiss envoy in Cairo
Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal met the Swiss Middle East envoy in Cairo late on Wednesday as part of efforts to normalise relations with European governments, sources in the Islamist movement told AFP.
Switzerland
Swiss housing market in ‘dangerous trend’: UBS
The price of housing has increased by an average of 35 percent in the last five years, a UBS annual report says.
Sweden
‘Your baby looks like Saddam Hussein’
An administrator at the Swedish Migration Board (Migrationsverket) is facing disciplinary action after telling a family of Iraqi asylum seekers that their newborn baby looked like Saddam Hussein.
Switzerland
Pakistan’s president ‘immune’ to Swiss probe
Pakistan's prime minister on Thursday told the country's top court that the president enjoys immunity, defending himself against contempt charges for refusing to ask the Swiss to re-open graft cases.
Germany
What’s on in Germany: January 19 – 25
This Week's Highlights: An open-air ball in Dresden, music and movies at the Berlin Cathedral and lots of interesting new art in Frankfurt.
Norway
Intelligence chief resigns over secrecy blunder
Janne Kristiansen, the head of Norway’s domestic intelligence service, has resigned over an alleged breach of confidentiality after she told parliament that Norway had agents operating in Pakistan.
France
TV chef breaks silence after children’s deaths
Anne Alassane, who won popular TV cooking show MasterChef in 2010, has spoken for the first time about the fire that took the lives of two of her children.
Germany
Man can keep €84,600 after tax office error
A man who kept quiet for eight years about a €84,600 overpayment from the German tax office has been told by a court he can keep the money.
France
Campaign shows ‘blind’ politicians with rivals
A new campaign from France's leading organisation for the visually-impaired uses well-known politicians being guided by their equally well-known rivals.
France
Shorter stays in hospital after childbirth
A combination of budget cuts and demands from mothers could see the time women spend in maternity wards cut in France.
France
Suspect in murder waits for Ireland decision
A British man wanted in France over the murder of the wife of a French filmmaker in Ireland will have to wait to learn if he faces extradition after his appeal hearing ended on Wednesday.
Germany
North Korea claims ‘natural wonder’ in Berlin
The official North Korean news agency says a little bird and a flowering plant at the country’s embassy in Berlin were signs of Mother Nature’s grief for the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il – rather than the mild winter.
Sweden
Swedish village seeks mystery lotto winner
After Sweden's Wednesday night lotto draw, one lucky winner took home the grand slam of 134 million kronor ($19.6 million). Despite the ticket being bought in a small town, the owner is still unidentified.
France
Job summit ends with €429 spending plans
A four-hour crisis jobs summit chaired by President Nicolas Sarkozy on Wednesday ended with a series of measures as well as plenty of criticism.
Sweden
Disappointed robber kicks over stroller
A mother of three, walking her 9-month-old baby in southern Malmö, suddenly found herself surrounded by three men, threatening to rob her.
Germany
Looking at food ‘prompts appetite hormone’
The feelings of hunger that suddenly appear when looking at pictures of food are not all in the head – German researchers have shown they are in the blood too.