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Today in Denmark For Members

Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Wednesday

Michael Barrett
Michael Barrett - [email protected]
Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Wednesday
Valgplakat for Sophie Hæstorp Andersen, Lars E. Bjerrum fra Socialdemokratiet og Yildiz Akdogan fra SF i København lørdag den 23 oktober 2021. Der afholdes kommunalvalg og regionsrådsvalg den 16. november 2021.. (Foto: Liselotte Sabroe/Ritzau Scanpix)

Find out what's going on in Denmark today with The Local's short roundup of the news in less than five minutes.

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New parental leave rules finalised 

A cross-aisle majority of parties in the Danish parliament last night agreed on a reform to current parental leave rules, providing for 11 weeks tagged or “earmarked” leave for each parent.

The reform has been in the making for a while, with trade unions and employer organisations having agreed to it in September.

Under the new rules, each parent is granted 24 weeks each of leave following the birth of a child, with a total of 11 weeks “earmarked” for each parent, meaning they can’t transfer those weeks from one another. This is a significant change from the existing system.

You can read all the details in this article.

Health minister says Covid-19 restrictions could return unless vaccination coverage improves

After a notable upswing in daily Covid-19 infection numbers over the last week, Health Minister Magnus Heunicke said that more people must be vaccinated if Denmark is to avoid a return to some form of restrictions to contain the virus this winter.

Just over 75 percent of the population is currently fully vaccinated, and booster vaccination is also underway for some groups.

“A huge appeal from me: If we are to keep Denmark open, we must get more people to get the vaccine,” Heunicke said.

More on this story here.

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295 million to be spent on local green renovations

A fund of 295 kroner is to be created for municipalities to apply for subsidies for green renovations of local infrastructures or building such as schools, libraries, or town halls.

Local authorities will be able apply to the fund for money in support of projects that improve energy efficiency in public buildings. Up to 30 percent of the costs of approved projects can be paid for by the funding. In addition to green renovations, digitisation can also be subsidised under the scheme.

The new funding was announced by the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Utilities in a press statement this morning.

Election placards targeted by vandals

Posters boosting candidates for local elections are now on display in the public space all over the country. The placards are regularly drawn on, pulled down and stolen, police say.

“Vandalism of election placards is unfortunately something we see during most election campaigns. This type of thing is completely unacceptable and we investigate these incidents as vandalism based on criminal law,” senior officer Peter Dahl with Copenhagen Police told broadcaster DR.

Stolen placards have been reported in many parts of the country, DR writes.

READ ALSO: How to vote by post as a foreign resident in Denmark’s local elections

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