News round up

Danish People’s Party ready to give its party leader a salary increase

·

Morten Messerschmidt is set to receive additional pay from his party after its executive committee unanimously approved a chairman’s fee Friday.

Messerschmidt has led DF, Dansk Folkeparti, the Danish People’s Party, since 2022. The party said the fee is intended to bring his pay in line with what previous DF chairmen received.

The exact amount has not yet been decided. Messerschmidt will negotiate it with party secretary Kenneth Kristensen Berth.

“I haven’t had the negotiation with Morten yet, but I imagine that it is going to be 400,000-450,000 kroner a year,” Berth told Ekstra Bladet.

DF group chairman Alex Ahrendtsen told Berlingske that the additional pay reflects Messerschmidt’s work for the party.

The decision comes as DF is polling at 12.5 percent in the latest Voxmeter poll for Ritzau. The Social Democrats are the only party polling higher. DF received 9.1 percent in the general election in March.

After DF lost 11 seats in the 2022 general election, the party removed a chairman’s fee funded by members. Former chairman Kristian Thulesen Dahl had received about 30,000 DKK a month in such payments.

Other Danish party leaders also receive additional pay from their parties on top of their salaries as members of Folketing, Denmark’s parliament.

Conservative People’s Party leader Mona Juul receives 25,000 DKK a month, while Liberal Alliance leader Alex Vanopslagh and Denmark Democrats leader Inger Støjberg each receive 40,000 DKK a month.

  • News round up

    New rules guarantee young Danes mental health treatment within 30 days

    ·

    Denmark’s regions are taking responsibility for treating 18- to 24-year-olds with mild to moderate anxiety and depression under a new patient right taking effect today.

    Young people in the target group who are referred by their doctor must now have treatment started within 30 days.

    The change was passed by the Folketing, Denmark’s parliament, in December 2025 as part of an agreement on a 10-year plan for psychiatric care.

    Previously, young people could receive a referral for free treatment from a psychologist with a provider number, but waiting times varied considerably.

    “Some had to wait half a year to be seen, while others could be seen the next day,” said Jane Alrø Sørensen, secretary general of Bedre Psykiatri, a Danish association for people affected by mental illness and their relatives.

    “By introducing it as a patient right, everyone is guaranteed help within 30 days,” she said.

    The regions can provide treatment at their own facilities or through private providers with which they have agreements. Treatment can include individual psychologist sessions, group programs or online courses.

    Sørensen said offering different types of treatment could better meet patients’ individual needs.

    “Mental illness can develop just as quickly as any other illness. So early intervention is the key to thriving,” she said.

    Bedre Psykiatri plans to monitor whether patients receive treatment within the required 30 days and whether the treatment is at least as good as under the previous system.

    Region Østdanmark has previously estimated that around 9,500 young people in its future area will be referred for treatment each year.

  • News round up

    Pandora expands manufacturing footprint with new factory in Vietnam

    ·

    Danish jewelry company Pandora is expanding production beyond Thailand for the first time in decades with a new facility in Ho Chi Minh City.

    The factory opens Thursday following an investment of just under 1 billion DKK. Once fully operational, it is expected to employ 7,000 people and increase Pandora’s current production capacity by 50 percent.

    The facility will eventually be able to produce 60 million pieces of jewelry annually, although production will be increased gradually as demand grows. Around 700 of the potential 7,000 positions have initially been filled.

    Pandora CEO Berta de Pablos-Barbier said the company chose Vietnam partly to reduce its dependence on a single production market.

    “The reason why we are looking toward markets other than Thailand is that we want to create greater resilience and flexibility and avoid being dependent on a single market,” she said.

    She added that Vietnam, like Thailand, has a strong tradition of jewelry manufacturing, giving Pandora access to workers with relevant skills.

    Pandora makes its jewelry by hand, making access to employees who can be trained to meet the company’s craftsmanship standards important, de Pablos-Barbier said.

    “We have not built the factory with a view to the next quarter, but instead with a view to the next decade,” she said.

    The company expects to add employees and equipment as demand increases.

    De Pablos-Barbier said she particularly expects future growth from consumers in the U.S. and Asia. The U.S. is currently Pandora’s largest individual market, while Asia is among its fastest-growing markets.

  • News round up

    More Danes continue working after reaching state pension age

    ·

    A record 17.5 percent of Danes who reached the state pension age worked enough to qualify for the first senior bonus in 2025, according to ATP.

    ATP, Denmark’s statutory pension and labor market pension administrator, said 11,351 people received the first senior bonus last year. That was up from 9,592 people in 2024.

    In previous years, around 14 to 15 percent of people reaching the state pension age qualified for the first bonus.

    “The state pension age is not necessarily the time when one stops working, and we can see that a larger share continues after that age,” ATP Group Director Maria Damborg Hald said.

    Employment Minister Ane Halsboe-Jørgensen welcomed the increase.

    “It is great that so many seniors want to keep contributing. We need that if we are to continue to create growth and prosperity in Denmark,” she told Ritzau in a written statement.

    The senior bonus is a tax-free lump sum available to people who continue working after reaching the state pension age. Generally, a person must work at least 1,560 hours over 12 months to qualify.

    The first-year bonus is 56,327 DKK, while people who continue working sufficiently during the second year can receive 33,517 DKK.

    ATP paid 546.4 million DKK in first-year bonuses in 2025, compared with 446.3 million DKK in 2024.

    Just under 6,775 people also received the second senior bonus in 2025, almost 3,400 more than the previous year.

    In 2029, the two bonus amounts will increase to just under 65,900 DKK and 39,100 DKK, respectively.

  • News round up

    New organ donation method surpasses expectations three years after Danish rollout

    ·

    Denmark has reached 100 organ donors using a method introduced three years ago, exceeding initial expectations for the number of people who would donate this way.

    The method, known as donation after circulatory death, or DCD, allows organs to be retrieved after a person’s heart has stopped beating and breathing has ceased, the Danish Health Authority said.

    Since its introduction in 2023, 100 people have donated 210 organs through DCD. Authorities had expected the method to result in about 35 additional donors annually once fully implemented.

    “This involves several hundred organs that would not otherwise have been able to be donated,” Danish Health Authority chief physician Camilla Krogh told Ritzau.

    Previously, major organs could only be donated in Denmark by people who had been declared brain-dead and were being kept alive artificially. New technology has made donation possible from some patients who cannot be declared brain-dead but whose ventilator treatment is discontinued.

    Of the 210 organs donated through DCD since 2023, 187 were kidneys.

    During the first half of 2026, 46 people donated organs after being declared brain-dead, while 20 donated through DCD.

    Between 400 and 500 patients have been on Denmark’s organ transplant waiting list each year over the past decade, with most waiting for a kidney.

    By the end of June 2026, 1.9 million Danes had actively registered their position on organ donation.

    Under a consent model introduced last year, everyone over 18 is automatically included in the Organ Donor Register, but individuals must still actively record their decision on whether to donate.

  • Royal Run 2027 sells out more than 100,000 spots in under three hours

    ·

    All 102,500 spots for Royal Run 2027 have sold out less than three hours after ticket sales opened on Wednesday.

    The races in Vordingborg, Silkeborg, Thisted, Haderslev and Copenhagen/Frederiksberg will take place on Whit Monday in 2027.

    According to the Danish Sports Confederation, Danmarks Idrætsforbund, and sports organization DGI, this was the fastest sellout in the event’s history.

    Thisted was the first host city to sell out, with all 10,000 available spots taken in just under two hours.

    Royal Run will have fewer participants in 2027 than this year, when 112,450 people took part. The 2026 edition sold out in four hours, which was also a record at the time.

    Copenhagen/Frederiksberg has hosted Royal Run every year since the event began in 2018. Thisted, Silkeborg, Haderslev and Vordingborg will host it for the first time in 2027.

    “That all start numbers are once again snapped up in such a short time says something about the place Royal Run has gained among Danes,” DGI chief executive Jens Otto Størup said.

    Royal Run was first held in 2018 to mark King Frederik’s 50th birthday, with 70,938 people registered.

    Participants can choose between three distances: one mile, five kilometers and 10 kilometers.

  • Thousands of Home Guard soldiers to take part in major exercise across Jutland and Funen

    ·

    Military vehicles and armed Home Guard soldiers will be visible in several towns across Jutland and Funen from Thursday to Sunday as part of a large planned exercise.

    Police in South and Southern Jutland, Southeast Jutland and East Jutland said residents should not be concerned by the increased military presence.

    The exercise, called Blåtand, is expected to involve several thousand Home Guard soldiers, according to Colonel Peter Fausing, regional commander for the Home Guard in Regional Command West.

    “It is one of the largest exercises in recent times here in Denmark,” he told Ritzau.

    The exact number of participants is uncertain because the Home Guard is made up of volunteers. Around 6,500 active Home Guard soldiers are based in Jutland, on Funen and on nearby islands.

    The exercise will focus on cooperation between the Armed Forces and other emergency authorities. Soldiers will practice tasks including guarding areas and setting up cordons in support of the police.

    Training will take place in both towns and rural areas.

    Military activity is expected in places including Odense, Middelfart, Aabenraa, Kolding, Vejle, Aarhus, Grenaa, Frederikshavn and Samsø.

    The Home Guard is Denmark’s voluntary military emergency preparedness organization.

  • Green groups challenge government claim that 2035 climate target is on track

    ·

    Environmental groups and climate experts are challenging the Danish government’s claim that it has demonstrated a path to meeting its 2035 climate target.

    Climate Minister Samira Nawa has said the government considers the path to an 85% emissions reduction by 2035 to be demonstrated, even though current measures are projected to deliver only an 80% reduction.

    “It is demonstrated because there is enough time to make the decisions, and because there is enough time to handle the risks that may arise on the way towards 2035,” Nawa said.

    Greenpeace and green think tank Concito argue that this differs from how the term has previously been used in Danish climate policy.

    “That is stretching the definition of demonstrated,” Concito chief economist Torsten Hasforth said.

    Greenpeace political campaign lead Christian Fromberg said additional policy would be needed before the target could be considered demonstrated.

    “Of course, that target has not been demonstrated yet. That will require new policy,” he said.

    The Climate Council has previously assessed possible pathways toward an 85% reduction target, while stressing that reaching a higher target would require additional measures beyond policies already adopted.

    The government has proposed an 85% target for 2035, which would go beyond Denmark’s current 2030 target of a 70% reduction.

    Enhedslisten climate spokesperson Rasmus Vestergaard Madsen also said the final 5 percentage points still needed to be backed by concrete measures.

  • 4 years on, Danish-Greenland history projects unveiled

    ·

    More than four years after Denmark and Greenland agreed to examine their historical relationship, researchers have presented the first four subprojects in the investigation.

    The projects will focus on adoptions, people who were legally registered without a father, school and language policies, and settlement and working conditions, Greenlandic broadcaster KNR reported.

    “We are beginning with four important projects, which each shed light on concrete decisions and their consequences,” research leader Tenna Jensen said in a press release cited by KNR.

    The Danish government and Naalakkersuisut, Greenland’s government, agreed to launch the investigation in June 2022.

    The decision came after reporting by Danish broadcaster DR on the so-called IUD case, in which thousands of Greenlandic women and girls had contraceptive devices fitted without their knowledge or consent.

    The investigation will examine major decisions and events since World War II and their consequences for Greenland’s population. Its stated purpose is to provide a basis for reconciliation with the past.

    Possible areas of research mentioned earlier included the closure of Greenlandic settlements, adoptions and Greenlandic children sent to Denmark.

    The investigation is based at Ilisimatusarfik, the University of Greenland, and citizens are expected to be involved in the work.

    Denmark originally allocated 45 million DKK to the project. Under the terms of reference, the investigation should, as far as possible, be completed within five years of the agreement between the university and the research leader.

  • Danish economy grew 0.9% in second quarter after sharp upward revision

    ·

    Denmark’s economy grew by 0.9% in the second quarter of the year, according to new figures from Statistics Denmark.

    The estimate was revised upward by 0.6 percentage points compared with the previous calculation for the quarter, published in August. Statistics Denmark said the change followed an update to the data used in the calculation.

    Gross domestic product, or GDP, measures the size of a country’s economy. Denmark’s GDP was 5.7% higher in the second quarter than a year earlier.

    Las Olsen, chief economist at Danske Bank, said the revision puts Denmark’s annual growth rate at the high end compared with other countries.

    “This largely reflects a strongly increasing production among Danish companies abroad, and this is of course not least Novo, which is producing significantly more medicine than previously,” he wrote in a comment.

    Erik Bjørsted, chief economist at Dansk Metal, a Danish trade union representing workers in industry and related sectors, also pointed to strong economic activity but said employment is a better measure of the economy’s health.

    “The GDP figures can fluctuate a lot from quarter to quarter and are subject to considerable uncertainty,” he wrote.

    “But when companies continue to hire more employees, it is a clear sign that the Danish economy continues to do well.”

    Employment increased by 0.2% in the second quarter, according to Statistics Denmark.

  • Severed cable disrupts train traffic between Odense and Fredericia

    ·

    Several trains between Odense and Fredericia were cancelled Wednesday morning after a cable was severed on western Funen, causing delays and signal problems.

    The disruption affected regional train services, while other trains operating in the area could also face delays, according to P4 Trafik.

    DSB, Denmark’s national passenger rail operator, deployed replacement buses for the cancelled regional trains.

    It remains unclear when normal train services will resume.

    Banedanmark, the state agency responsible for Denmark’s railway infrastructure, is working to repair the damaged cable.

    At around 9:15 a.m. Wednesday, Banedanmark told Ritzau that repair work was relatively far along, but problems with the railway signals remained.

    As a result, authorities could not yet say when train traffic between Odense and Fredericia would return to normal.

  • Danish prisons reach record overcrowding as inmate numbers exceed capacity

    ·

    Danish prisons are more overcrowded than ever, with 4,650 inmates currently held in facilities designed for 4,300 people, according to Fængselsforbundet, the Danish prison officers’ union.

    The average occupancy rate has reached a record 105.4%, up from 102.7% last year.

    Overcrowding means prisons have to create additional capacity by installing bunk beds in cells or converting hobby rooms, visiting rooms and offices into accommodation.

    Vejle Arrest, a remand prison, has recorded an average occupancy rate of 135% this year.

    Jan Bruun, a union representative at the prison, said the situation is putting pressure on the facility as cells fall increasingly into disrepair.

    “We spend a lot of time finding room for inmates, swapping around when a double cell does not work between two inmates, and moving again when some have letter and visiting controls lifted,” he said in the union’s statement.

    Hillerød Arrest has had an occupancy rate of 140% in recent months, placing additional demands on staff. At Randers Arrest, occupancy has averaged 115% this year, with the local union representative reporting more conflicts among inmates.

    The pressure could increase further as tougher sentences introduced under Denmark’s penal reform take effect.

    Half of the increased penalties for violence and rape came into force in February, while further increases are due to take effect in January.

  • Polish airports briefly suspend flights during Russian attacks on Ukraine

    ·

    Air traffic at two Polish airports was briefly suspended Wednesday morning as military aircraft operated in Polish airspace during Russian attacks on Ukraine.

    Poland’s aviation authority, PANSA, said flights at Lublin and Rzeszów airports were suspended before resuming at 7:10 a.m.

    Poland’s military operational command, RSZ, said it had activated forces including ground-based air defense systems and radar surveillance.

    “These measures are preventive in nature and are intended to secure and protect the airspace, particularly in areas bordering the threatened regions,” RSZ said.

    Poland borders Ukraine, where Russian attacks overnight killed at least three people and injured seven in and around Kyiv, according to local officials cited by Reuters.

    Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said two people were killed and four injured in the capital. Fires damaged private homes, a shop and a warehouse.

    Kyiv regional governor Timur Tkachenko said a child was killed and three people injured in the surrounding region, where homes, warehouses and cars were hit.

    There were also reports of Ukrainian attacks inside Russia.

    Private homes were reportedly damaged in a Ukrainian drone attack on Russia’s Samara region, according to regional governor Vyacheslav Fedorishchev. The region, about 1,100 kilometers southeast of Moscow, is an important oil-producing area.

    Reuters said it could not independently verify the reports.

  • Higher winter electricity tariffs set to take effect across Denmark

    ·

    Many households in Denmark will pay higher electricity grid tariffs during peak evening hours from Thursday as the country’s grid companies switch to winter rates.

    The higher tariffs apply between 5 PM and 9 PM, when demand puts the greatest strain on the electricity grid. The aim is to encourage customers to move flexible electricity use to other times of the day.

    “Electricity consumption in Danish households is significantly higher in the winter period, and we feel that in the power grid. Therefore, with the tariffs, we give customers an incentive to use electricity wisely,” said Lise Bering, CEO of grid company N1.

    N1, which is owned by Danish energy company Norlys, supplies electricity to more than 800,000 households and businesses.

    Its grid tariff between 5 PM and 9 PM will rise to 99 øre per kilowatt-hour until March 2027, compared with 43 øre during the summer period. Between midnight and 6 AM, the tariff remains at 11 øre.

    Bering recommends moving flexible electricity use, such as charging an electric car or running a washing machine, away from peak hours.

    Doing so can reduce individual electricity bills while easing pressure on the grid, she said.

    “The more efficiently we can operate the existing power grid, the smaller the need becomes for new investments in the electricity grid, which are ultimately paid for by the consumers,” Bering said.

    Winter tariffs vary between grid companies. At Cerius, which operates much of the electricity grid east of the Great Belt, the tariff between 5 PM and 9 PM will be 129.75 øre per kilowatt-hour from October 1.

  • Denmark introduces new measures to crack down on phone scams

    ·

    Danish telecom companies will be required to block calls from abroad that falsely appear to come from Danish phone numbers under new rules expected to take effect in 2027.

    The Danish Agency for Digital Government announced the planned rules as part of efforts to make it harder for fraudsters abroad to disguise their calls.

    The practice, known as spoofing, involves manipulating caller ID so that a call appears to come from a different phone number. Fraudsters can use the method to make calls originating abroad look as though they come from Denmark.

    According to the agency, the number of such calls has increased in recent years. It said Danish phone numbers can create greater trust among recipients than foreign numbers.

    Under the new rules, telecom companies will be able to determine whether the Danish phone number displayed by the caller is actually located in Denmark.

    If the number is located in Denmark but the call using it can be traced to another country, the caller ID will be considered falsified and the call must be blocked.

    The agency said the system will not detect and stop every scam call.

    “But it is expected to make it significantly harder for the fraudsters to pretend to call with Danish numbers,” the agency wrote.

    The executive order containing the new rules has been sent for consultation and is expected to take effect on January 1, 2027.

    Telecom companies will then be required to introduce the necessary technical measures in their systems to comply with the rules.

  • September records Denmark’s highest raw electricity prices since December 2022

    ·

    Low wind and limited sunshine combined with high gas prices pushed Denmark’s raw electricity prices to their highest monthly level in nearly four years, according to energy company OK.

    The average raw electricity price in September was 1.07 DKK per kilowatt-hour east of the Great Belt and 1.05 DKK west of it. VAT, taxes and tariffs are added to those prices.

    By comparison, prices averaged 0.62 DKK east of the Great Belt and 0.54 DKK west of it in September last year.

    “Unfortunately, there has not been enough wind and sun to push prices down in September,” said Troels Skipper, commercial manager at OK.

    He said high gas prices caused by geopolitical unrest had influenced electricity prices for much of the month.

    Despite the increase, OK said Danish consumers’ bills will not be higher than last year because the electricity tax has been reduced to the EU’s minimum rate in 2026 and will remain there next year.

    Prices also varied significantly during September. On September 14, electricity cost more than 5 DKK per kilowatt-hour for short periods, while several weekend days had hours when prices were around zero.

    Skipper encouraged consumers to follow electricity prices and adjust their consumption when possible.

    “This will also be important over the winter, where we will see more large fluctuations in the electricity price. But the fluctuations thus also provide an opportunity to lower one’s electricity bill,” he said.

    The average electricity price has exceeded 1 DKK per kilowatt-hour during four weeks so far in 2026, including two weeks in September.

  • News round up

    Danish People’s Party ready to give its party leader a salary increase

    ·

    Morten Messerschmidt is set to receive additional pay from his party after its executive committee unanimously approved a chairman’s fee Friday.

    Messerschmidt has led DF, Dansk Folkeparti, the Danish People’s Party, since 2022. The party said the fee is intended to bring his pay in line with what previous DF chairmen received.

    The exact amount has not yet been decided. Messerschmidt will negotiate it with party secretary Kenneth Kristensen Berth.

    “I haven’t had the negotiation with Morten yet, but I imagine that it is going to be 400,000-450,000 kroner a year,” Berth told Ekstra Bladet.

    DF group chairman Alex Ahrendtsen told Berlingske that the additional pay reflects Messerschmidt’s work for the party.

    The decision comes as DF is polling at 12.5 percent in the latest Voxmeter poll for Ritzau. The Social Democrats are the only party polling higher. DF received 9.1 percent in the general election in March.

    After DF lost 11 seats in the 2022 general election, the party removed a chairman’s fee funded by members. Former chairman Kristian Thulesen Dahl had received about 30,000 DKK a month in such payments.

    Other Danish party leaders also receive additional pay from their parties on top of their salaries as members of Folketing, Denmark’s parliament.

    Conservative People’s Party leader Mona Juul receives 25,000 DKK a month, while Liberal Alliance leader Alex Vanopslagh and Denmark Democrats leader Inger Støjberg each receive 40,000 DKK a month.

  • News round up

    Denmark plans new animal welfare agency, more inspections and tougher penalties

    ·

    Denmark’s government will establish a new animal welfare inspection agency and increase inspections by 50% under an emergency package presented Tuesday, following criticism of enforcement failures and a backlog of about 1,500 follow-up visits.

    The package would also raise the maximum prison sentence for the most serious animal welfare offenses from two years to six. It will cost 160 million kroner annually once fully phased in.

    “It is no secret that it has not been good enough as it has been until now. Therefore, we are presenting a series of initiatives,” Justice Minister Nicolai Wammen said at a news conference at his ministry.

    Wammen said livestock owners would pay for the strengthened inspections. Visits will generally involve two inspectors instead of one, and more will take place without advance notice.

    Although recent scrutiny has focused on conditions at Danish pig farms, the measures also cover other livestock, including cattle and poultry.

    The package follows sharp criticism in April 2026 from the National Audit Office, which scrutinizes public spending and administration. A Justice Ministry review published in early September found that about 1,500 follow-up inspections from 2025 and the first half of 2026 remained outstanding.

    Responsibility for animal welfare inspections moved to the Justice Ministry when the new government took office. The ministry will establish an independent agency to carry out inspections, with more staff intended to help clear the backlog and improve enforcement.

  • News round up

    Denmark adds 5.6 billion kroner in support for hydrogen pipeline to Germany

    ·

    Denmark’s government and several parties in parliament have agreed to provide an additional 5.6 billion kroner in operating support for a planned hydrogen pipeline from Jutland to Germany, while easing financial requirements for producers.

    The funding comes on top of 10.9 billion kroner already allocated to the project. The agreement means the state will take on more of the financial risk while the hydrogen market is still developing.

    “We are entering the project with open eyes. The hydrogen market is still immature, and a hydrogen pipeline is a large project with several risks,” Climate, Energy and Utilities Minister Samira Nawa said in a press release.

    The pipeline would run from Esbjerg through Veerst, near Egtved, to the German border. Its route resembles the number seven, giving the project its Danish name, Syvtallet, or “The Figure Seven.”

    It is intended to allow Danish companies to produce green hydrogen using renewable energy and sell it to German businesses. German industrial companies could use the hydrogen to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from their production processes.

    Germany has committed to supporting five hydrogen projects in Denmark with a total of 12 billion kroner in German state and European Union funding. The public support is intended to help the industry develop.

  • News round up

    World’s largest ship by gross tonnage passed under Denmark’s Great Belt Bridge

    ·

    Pioneering Spirit, the world’s largest ship by gross tonnage, passed under Denmark’s Great Belt Bridge at 12:55 p.m. Tuesday, nearly three hours later than planned as it waited for a required gap in other southbound traffic.

    The construction vessel traveled at 5.4 kilometers per hour during the passage.

    “Apart from us just needing to have a few pieces in place, everything went according to plan,” said Jimmy Westermann, head of VTS Storebælt, the vessel traffic service for the Great Belt.

    The ship had been scheduled to pass at 10 a.m., but needed a two-hour window clear of other southbound traffic under the bridge before it could proceed.

    Before the passage, Westermann said the vessel had already been lowered in the water using ballast to reach the required draft, the distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull.

    “The ship is ballasted down to the draft it needs to have and is ready out there, so it is the two-hour clearance window we are missing,” he said.

    Registered in Malta, Pioneering Spirit is 382 meters long and 124 meters wide. It is built to transport, install and remove offshore oil drilling platforms.

    Its gross tonnage is 403,342. Gross tonnage measures the volume of a ship’s enclosed spaces.

    Planning the passage involved checking both the ship’s draft and its height above the water to ensure it could pass safely beneath the bridge, which has a clearance of 65 meters. The vessel had a draft of 19.9 meters during Tuesday’s passage. It also passed under the bridge in 2018.

    The ship’s next destination is Rostock, Germany, according to the ship-tracking website VesselFinder. Its previous port call was at Rotterdam Maasvlakte four days earlier.

  • News round up

    Government plans DKK 22 billion extra for defense in 2027

    ·

    The Danish government plans to allocate an additional DKK 22 billion to the Armed Forces in 2027 as part of its upcoming budget proposal, according to Berlingske.

    Defense investment is then expected to increase to around DKK 40 billion in 2030.

    The government expects Denmark to meet NATO’s target of spending 3.5 percent of GDP on military defense before 2030. According to NATO figures cited by Berlingske, Denmark is already spending 3.4 percent of GDP on defense in 2026 when funding from the Ukraine Fund is included.

    Finance Minister Peter Hummelgaard said the government’s first budget would require cuts in some areas to finance other priorities.

    “There is something we need to have a little less of, so that in return we can invest in the community, in welfare, in security, and in a competitive business sector,” he told Berlingske.

    Economic and Interior Affairs Minister Pia Olsen Dyhr said support for Ukraine would continue to form part of defense spending in the coming years.

    “This is both about defending Denmark and Europe, while at the same time we also protect welfare. The Danish economy is strong enough to do both,” she said.

    Taxation and Growth Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt said continued donations to Ukraine would require support from the Folketing, Denmark’s parliament.

    NATO members agreed in 2025 to increase the alliance’s military spending target to at least 3.5 percent of GDP, replacing the previous 2 percent target.

  • Train services return to normal after fallen overhead wire near Sorø

    ·

    Train services between Zealand and Jutland are expected to return to normal Tuesday morning after Banedanmark repaired a fallen overhead wire near Sorø.

    The damage had caused cancellations, fewer departures and longer travel times since Monday afternoon.

    “Normal service can be resumed on both tracks as planned today at 10:00,” Banedanmark wrote on X early Tuesday. The rail infrastructure operator said it was still investigating the cause.

    The wire fell on the westbound track between Sorø and Slagelse, leaving only one track available for trains.

    InterCityLyn and InterCity services between Copenhagen and Esbjerg continued to run, but with longer journey times and fewer departures. DSB also deployed replacement buses between Ringsted, Sorø and Slagelse.

    Banedanmark continued to advise passengers Tuesday morning to check Rejseplanen, Denmark’s public transport journey planner, before leaving.

    The incident comes only about two weeks after another damaged overhead line near Sorø caused cancellations and delays.

    Banedanmark said it is now investigating why overhead wires have fallen on the same stretch twice within a relatively short period.

    “We are, of course, well aware that this is not the first time we have found a fallen overhead wire on the same stretch within a relatively short period of time,” Banedanmark maintenance director Nicolai Smidt Sigsgaard said Monday.

  • Gender pay gap in Denmark narrows for first time in three years

    ·

    The pay gap between men and women in Denmark narrowed last year for the first time in three years, according to new figures from Statistics Denmark.

    In 2025, women earned on average 12.3 percent less than men, compared with 12.9 percent in 2024.

    Statistics Denmark has tracked the pay gap since 2004, when the difference was 16 percent. It fell to 11.9 percent in 2020, but then widened again in 2023 and 2024 before declining last year.

    Mads Moberg Reumert, chief economist at pension company Danica, said the development also matters for retirement savings.

    “Salary is the factor that matters most for the size of pension savings,” he said. “Therefore, the development in pay gaps is also one of the most important things to keep an eye on if you want less economic inequality between men and women as retirees.”

    Helle Dalsgaard, head of advisory services at pension company Sampension, also called the decrease positive, while stressing that women still earn “significantly less than men.”

    She said women’s growing educational advantage over men could support higher wages over time. She also pointed to rules on earmarked parental leave, which have led more men to take leave, as another factor that could improve women’s finances.

    “After a few years with bumps in the road, the development once again went in the right direction last year,” Dalsgaard said.

  • German military drone makes first test flight of its kind over Denmark

    ·

    A German military surveillance drone is flying over Jutland on Tuesday in what the Danish Defence says is the first test flight in Danish airspace involving an unmanned military aircraft of its size.

    The German Heron TP weighs more than five tons, is 13 meters long and has a wingspan of 26 meters. It is flying at an altitude of about seven kilometers, sharing airspace with manned aircraft.

    The drone belongs to the German air force, the Luftwaffe, and is being remotely controlled by a pilot at a military base in Schleswig, Germany.

    The roughly two-hour flight begins at the Danish-German border in South Jutland, continues over eastern Jutland to Aalborg and then returns to Germany over western Jutland.

    During the flight, the German pilot remains in contact with Naviair, which manages air traffic in Danish airspace. Denmark’s Civil Aviation and Railway Authority has approved the safety procedures for flying the drone beyond visual range, including procedures for a possible loss of control or radio connection.

    The test is part of preparations for the Danish air force to receive its own General Atomics MQ-9B unmanned aircraft in 2028. They will operate from Aalborg Air Base under Squadron 729 and will be used, among other tasks, for patrol and surveillance over Greenland and the North Atlantic.

    Brigade Commander Hans Peter Andersen called the flight “yet another important step toward receiving our own unmanned aircraft in the coming years.”

  • Copenhagen district nears ban to petrol cars

    ·

    A majority in the Climate, Environment and Technology Committee at Copenhagen Municipality approved a new plan Monday afternoon.

    According to it, the city has moved a step closer to introducing a zero-emission zone in part of Vesterbro, where petrol and diesel vehicles would generally not be allowed to drive.

    “It is really good that Copenhagen is now getting its first zero-emission zone. It is good for the climate and for reducing local air pollution,” Kristine Ammitzbøll-Bille of De Radikale, the Danish Social Liberal Party, told TV 2 Kosmopol.

    The proposal was originally larger but was changed after 768 consultation responses from residents, businesses and interest groups.

    Around 80 percent of the responses were either critical or reserved about the plan.

    The revised version exempts all of Vesterbrogade, the area around Copenhagen Central Station, Skelbækgade and part of Halmtorvet.

    Residents of Vesterbro who have parking permits for areas outside the zero-emission zone will also be able to apply for exemptions allowing them to drive and park fossil-fuel cars inside the zone.

    The adjusted zone will cover Inner Vesterbro, apart from the areas that have been exempted.

    The proposal must now be approved by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency before it can go to Copenhagen’s Borgerrepræsentation, the city council, for final approval.

    A final vote is expected by the end of 2026.

  • Fewer trains between Copenhagen and western Denmark until Tuesday morning

    ·

    Fewer trains will run between parts of Denmark until at least 10 a.m. Tuesday after an overhead wire fell between Sorø and Slagelse.

    Banedanmark, the state-owned company responsible for Denmark’s railway infrastructure, said Monday afternoon that repairs were underway.

    DSB, Denmark’s national passenger rail operator, said InterCityLyn and InterCity trains are still running between Copenhagen and Esbjerg, but passengers should expect longer travel times.

    Although the overhead wire fell on the westbound track, trains can still use the other track.

    Replacement buses are also running between Ringsted, Sorø and Slagelse. DSB said earlier Monday that it had ordered 50 buses.

    The disruption was initially expected to last until 8 p.m. Monday, but Banedanmark later extended the estimate until 10 a.m. Tuesday.

    A train that stopped beneath the fallen wire also had to be evacuated. Another train was connected to it and pulled it to the nearest station.

    Banedanmark said it would investigate why overhead wires have fallen repeatedly on the same section. A damaged overhead line near Sorø also caused cancellations and delays in mid-September.

    “We are well aware that this is not the first time we can see a fallen overhead wire on the same section within a relatively short time,” Banedanmark maintenance director Nicolai Smidt Sigsgaard said.

    Another overhead wire was also torn down at Copenhagen Airport on Monday, causing reduced service and delays.

    DSB and Banedanmark are advising passengers to check Rejseplanen before traveling.

  • Electric cars above DKK 366,000 could become more expensive in Denmark from 2027

    ·

    Electric cars costing more than DKK 366,000 could become more expensive in Denmark from 2027 if the government allows a current registration tax exemption to expire.

    The proposal is part of the financing for the government’s upcoming budget bill, four ministers told Berlingske.

    Electric cars currently benefit from lower registration taxes than petrol and diesel cars. A gradual increase in the tax was originally planned from January 2026, but the previous government and the Conservatives postponed it by one year.

    If the exemption is not extended again, higher taxes will therefore take effect from the beginning of 2027.

    The additional revenue would help finance government plans including free dental care, lower taxes and changes to agriculture.

    An expert group is currently examining possible changes to car taxation, including models for permanently removing registration tax on electric cars. Its recommendations are expected in the second half of 2026.

    DI, the Confederation of Danish Industry, Denmark’s main business and employers’ organization, criticized the government’s plan.

    Thomas Sørensen, director of DI’s automotive branch, called it an “own goal to let taxes on electric cars rise from the new year.”

    According to FDM, Denmark’s main association for car owners, a VW ID.4 Style could cost around DKK 10,300 more in tax, while a Tesla Model Y Long Range with all-wheel drive could face an increase of nearly DKK 28,000.

    Mobility Denmark, an industry association representing the automotive sector, also criticized the proposal.

    “Danes have embraced the green transition, and now the government wants to make some of the popular electric cars tens of thousands of kroner more expensive. It simply does not add up,” CEO Mads Rørvig said.

  • Study finds young women more likely than young men to cross sexual boundaries due to pressure to perform

    ·

    Young women are more likely than young men to take part in sexual acts they do not want because of pressure to perform, according to a new Danish study.

    Sex & Samfund, the Danish Family Planning Association, conducted the study with polling company Voxmeter among people aged 15 to 25.

    More than one in three young women said they had pretended to enjoy a sexual act more than they actually did because they felt pressure to perform.

    One in six said that pressure had led them to do something they did not want to do.

    “We know from previous studies that many young women are afraid to say no during sex because they are afraid of the reaction they will be met with,” Sex & Samfund Secretary General Majbrit Berlau said.

    Among young men, fewer than one in 10 said they had shown more enjoyment during sex than they actually felt. About 4.7 percent said they had agreed to do something they did not want to do.

    According to Berlau, most young people understand that sex requires consent and should be mutual, but they can still struggle to express and respect boundaries in practice.

    “You can be so focused on doing well for the other person or living up to certain expectations that your own desire and your own boundaries fade into the background,” she said.

    Sex & Samfund said the findings show a need for better knowledge about sex and sexuality.

    Sex education is one of young people’s preferred sources of information, but one in three said they did not find the teaching useful.

    Young people also rely heavily on friends and social media for information about sex, while one in three cited pornography as a source.

  • Downed wire disrupts many trains in Sjælland

    ·

    Fewer trains are running between Ringsted and Slagelse until 8 p.m. Monday after an overhead wire fell near Sorø Station, according to DSB, Denmark’s national rail operator.

    Passengers may also face longer travel times between the two stations.

    DSB told Ritzau that trains are still able to run on one track despite the damaged overhead wire.

    Around 50 rail replacement buses have been ordered to operate between Ringsted, Sorø and Slagelse. The first buses have already started running.

    DSB has also sent staff to the stations in Slagelse and Ringsted to help passengers affected by cancellations and delays.

    Banedanmark, the state agency responsible for Denmark’s rail infrastructure, is at the site and working to repair the fault.

    At 2:51 p.m., DSB’s traffic information showed that the company was unable to operate all scheduled trains between the regions.

    InterCityLyn and InterCity services between Copenhagen and Esbjerg are still running, but passengers should expect longer travel times.

    DSB is advising travelers to check the journey planner before traveling.

  • Øresund Bridge to close for 3 hours Thursday evening

    ·

    The Øresund Bridge will close to all car traffic in both directions Thursday evening as Danish and Swedish authorities carry out a major emergency response exercise, Copenhagen Police said.

    The closure will last from 8 p.m. until 11:15 p.m. on October 1.

    The exercise will include a scenario involving an accident in one of the tunnel tubes, Copenhagen Police told Ritzau in a written response.

    Emergency vehicles will be visible on the bridge during the exercise.

    Chief Police Inspector Peter Dahl of Copenhagen Police stressed that the operation is planned and that there is “no danger.”

    “It is important for safety on the link that the authorities regularly conduct exercises so that we are as well prepared as possible if a serious situation should arise,” Dahl said.

    Copenhagen Police will issue an update through Politi Update, the Danish police public information service, when the bridge reopens Thursday evening.

    “We therefore hope for road users’ understanding, and as soon as the exercise is completed, we will reopen the bridge to traffic again,” Dahl said.

    Copenhagen Police said smaller exercises are regularly carried out in cooperation with Swedish authorities, while larger full-scale exercises such as Thursday’s are held less frequently.

  • Five British citizens arrested near RAF Fairford suspected of preparing terror attack

    ·

    Five men arrested Sunday morning near the RAF Fairford airbase are all British citizens from London and are in their early or mid-20s, British counter-terrorism police said Monday.

    Police have previously said the five are suspected of preparing a terrorist attack.

    A “very complex and extensive operation” remains underway, according to counter-terrorism police.

    “This is an extremely complex and extensive operation involving local and national police authorities, the Ministry of Defence, and local authorities, working together to advance the investigation and provide support to the local community,” Vicki Evans, a deputy assistant commissioner in counter-terrorism policing, told the BBC.

    Evans said the operation had caused disruption for local residents but said it was “first and foremost in the interest of their own safety.”

    RAF Fairford is used by the US military.

    US President Donald Trump said Sunday that the arrested men were “looking to do great damage.”

    “We had them under observation for a long time,” Trump told journalists Sunday afternoon, according to the German news agency dpa.

    According to Reuters, the British government has previously allowed the US military to use the airbase for attacks on Iranian missile installations used in strikes on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

    In July, Britain said its armed forces were ready to protect the country against any attack after Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned Britain against allowing US bombers to take off from RAF Fairford.

    Speculation spread in the media and online Sunday about a possible Iranian role in the suspected terror plans.

    Iran’s embassy in London rejected what it called “unfounded and malicious speculation” Monday, saying Iran had no involvement with the five arrested men.

    Such speculation “serves no other purpose than to fuel the anti-Iran propaganda in Britain,” the embassy said in a post on X.

    British police have not mentioned any possible connection between Iran and the arrested men, according to Reuters, and have urged people not to spread rumors or speculation.

  • EU foreign policy chief: EU struggles to reach 2030 defense goal

    ·

    Europe must sharply increase the pace of its military buildup if it is to meet its goal of being able to defend itself by 2030, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said Monday.

    “Europe needs to rearm faster and more effectively if we are to achieve the 2030 goal,” Kallas said at a press conference following a meeting of EU defense ministers in Brussels.

    The ministers discussed the first annual report on the EU’s defense readiness. The report, which has not yet been published, is intended to assess whether Europe is on track to become capable of standing on its own militarily by 2030.

    Kallas indicated that the findings were not encouraging.

    “Europe needs decisive changes in the scale and speed of investments in defense, innovation, and industrial capability,” she said.

    Her comments come as intelligence services in several EU countries warn of an increasing threat from Russia.

    Last week, Denmark’s Defence Intelligence Service, known as FE, published an assessment saying it could no longer rule out a Russian invasion of a NATO country, although it considered such a scenario unlikely. The assessment also said Russia was expected to intensify and escalate its hybrid warfare against NATO and the West in the coming months.

    Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen of the Social Democrats has repeatedly pushed for Europe to be capable of defending itself by 2030.

    Denmark has also launched a major military buildup with support from the Folketing, Denmark’s parliament. The country is expected to reach NATO’s target of spending 3.5% of gross domestic product on defense this year.

    Other European countries are not increasing their capabilities at the same pace, however, a gap that was also apparent at Monday’s meeting.

    According to Kallas, no EU country came forward ready to send Patriot air defense missiles to Ukraine. The systems are Ukraine’s most effective defense against Russia’s heavy ballistic missiles.

    Despite continued Russian missile attacks that kill civilians and damage key infrastructure, no EU country is currently prepared or able to send the requested missiles for Ukraine’s air defense.

    Kallas also pressed EU countries to provide the warships they had promised for the bloc’s Aspides mission in the Middle East.

    She said the mission needs at least 10 ships to operate and meet its objectives. EU countries were unable to provide the required number at Monday’s meeting, although Kallas said two member states were discussing whether they could provide additional naval vessels at a later stage.

    The European Court of Auditors has previously warned in a separate report that the EU is not on track to meet its 2030 defense-readiness goal.

    According to the court, years of underinvestment have left Europe with insufficient ammunition and missile stockpiles, long production times, dependence on suppliers outside the EU and logistical bottlenecks.

  • News round up

    Man sets himself on fire at Copenhagen immigration agency

    ·

    A man set himself on fire Monday at the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration in Copenhagen, police said.

    The incident took place at the agency’s offices on Carl Jacobsens Vej in Valby. Copenhagen Police received the report at 10:12 a.m. and sent a large response to the scene.

    “He set himself on fire inside. A quick-thinking employee managed to put him out, but he is in a lot of pain,” Copenhagen Police duty officer Dyre Sønnicksen said.

    The man was taken to Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen’s main hospital, where he is being treated for his injuries. Shortly before noon, police said he was no longer in life-threatening condition but remained under treatment.

    Several people witnessed the incident.

    “There were a number of witnesses who are very shocked,” Sønnicksen said.

    Police said the witnesses would receive crisis support.

    It is not yet known what led the man to harm himself or why he went to the agency to do so. His relatives have been informed.

    Police said there were no immediate signs that a criminal act had taken place. No one else was injured.

    The Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration, known as SIRI, handles a range of matters involving foreign nationals in Denmark, including residence and work permits.

    The agency confirmed the incident on its website and said the man had acted alone and that the case involved self-harm.

    It said the situation was under control and was being handled in cooperation with police and crisis psychologists.

    SIRI’s citizen service center on Carl Jacobsens Vej will remain closed for the rest of the day because of the incident. People whose appointments were canceled will receive new appointments, the agency said.

  • News round up

    Øresund Bridge to close to car traffic for emergency exercise

    ·

    The Øresund Bridge will be closed to all car traffic in both directions on Thursday, 1 October, from 8 p.m. to 11:15 p.m., Copenhagen police said.

    The closure is part of a major emergency preparedness exercise involving authorities from Denmark and Sweden.

    Several emergency vehicles will also be visible on the bridge during the exercise.

    Chief Police Inspector Peter Dahl of Copenhagen police stressed that the closure is planned and that there is “no danger afoot.”

    “It is important for safety on the link that the authorities regularly carry out exercises so that we are as well prepared as possible should a serious situation arise,” Dahl said in a press release.

    Copenhagen police will announce through the official Politi Update service when the closure is lifted Thursday evening.

    “We therefore hope for the road users’ understanding, and as soon as the exercise is concluded, we will open the bridge to traffic again,” Dahl said.

  • News round up

    Eight Danish municipalities fail kindergarten staffing requirements

    ·

    Eight Danish municipalities did not meet the required staffing ratio in kindergartens in 2025, according to figures published Monday by Statistics Denmark.

    The municipalities are Ringsted, Odder, Holstebro, Ikast-Brande, Struer, Brønderslev, Rebild and Thisted.

    Under the political requirement, there must be at least one pedagogical staff member for every six children in kindergartens. In 2024, 14 municipalities failed to meet the requirement.

    The trade union BUPL, which represents pedagogues working in Danish children’s institutions, noted that more municipalities now meet the requirement than before.

    “Staffing ratios have improved, and that is an important first step to ensure the quality in our daycare institutions,” BUPL chairperson Elisa Rimpler said.

    “But we are not at the finish line at all when it comes to giving children the quality they are entitled to.”

    Since 2024, there has also been a requirement of at least one employee for every three children in nurseries.

    Five municipalities failed to meet that requirement last year: Bornholm, Holstebro, Ikast-Brande, Thisted and Rebild.

    Rimpler said the figures were not good enough and called on municipalities to increase their efforts.

    “There is a need to build on top of this, because in many places the staffing ratios on paper are experienced as very far from reality,” she said.

    “Both because managers, long-term sick employees, and pedagogues employed to support individual children are counted, and because many of the extra employees do not have the necessary professional qualifications.”

    According to BUPL, the law does not require the employees counted in the staffing ratios to have professional training.

    The union said the share of pedagogues among staff was 57% in 2019, compared with 50.6% last year.

    Children, Elderly and Housing Minister Jacob Mark of the Socialist People’s Party, SF, said it was serious when municipalities failed to meet the legal requirement.

    He said the minimum staffing ratios were working because more nurseries and kindergartens were getting more staff around children and nationwide cuts to staffing had stopped.

    “But, as I also see, there are eight municipalities that do not meet the minimum staffing ratios. That is completely unacceptable. I am going to intervene against that,” the minister said.

    Mark also criticized the practice of counting managers and long-term sick employees in the staffing figures. He said managers are not with children all the time, while long-term sick employees are not with them at all.

    According to Mark, municipalities “just” need to hire more pedagogical staff.

    The minister said he will send a letter to the eight municipalities that do not meet the requirements. The same municipalities will also face scrutiny from Ankestyrelsen, Denmark’s public authority for supervising municipalities and other public bodies.

    Ankestyrelsen can impose a range of sanctions after assessing why a municipality is not complying with the law, including advisory opinions and fines.

    “Now they have had four years. Now they must reach the finish line with those minimum staffing ratios,” Mark said.

  • News round up

    Rod Stewart to bring final tour to Copenhagen in June 2027

    ·

    British singer Rod Stewart will perform at Royal Arena in Copenhagen on 6 June 2027 as part of his “The Final Encore” tour, concert promoter Live Nation Denmark said in a press release.

    The 81-year-old singer said the time has come to end his career on the road.

    “After more than six decades, ‘The Final Encore’ will without doubt be my last tour,” Stewart said.

    “I have sung the music I love since I was 19 years old, and I have had the privilege of taking it around the entire world to all of you. It has given me a life that is far more fantastic than I could ever have imagined,” he said.

    Stewart had to interrupt his “One Last Time” tour in August this year after having a stent inserted into a coronary artery, according to a statement from his representative reported by CNN.

    A stent is used to keep a narrowed coronary artery open, including in cases where the artery has been affected by atherosclerosis.

    Stewart began making music as a teenager. His career took off in the late 1960s, when he became a member of several rock bands, including The Jeff Beck Group and The Faces.

    He released his first solo album, “An Old Raincoat Won’t Ever Let You Down,” in 1969.

    His major breakthrough as a solo artist came in 1971 with “Every Picture Tells a Story,” which included the song “Maggie May.”

    Another of his best-known songs is “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?” from his ninth solo album, “Blondes Have More Fun,” released in 1978.

    Stewart is also known for recording his own versions of songs by other artists, including Cat Stevens’ “The First Cut Is the Deepest,” Van Morrison’s “Have I Told You Lately” and the Sutherland Brothers’ “Sailing.”

    His latest album so far, “Swing Fever,” was released in 2024 in collaboration with pianist and composer Jools Holland.

    “The Final Encore” will begin in Dublin on 23 April and end in Hannover, Germany, on 24 July.

  • Denmark to roll out stun guns nationwide and allocate nearly 800 million DKK from 2027 to expand the police and PET

    ·

    Denmark plans to introduce stun guns across all police districts after a nearly two-year trial involving around 230 officers.

    The trial began in December 2024 in North Jutland Police, South Zealand and Lolland-Falster Police, and Copenhagen Western Suburbs Police.

    New figures from the National Police show stun guns have been used 325 times during the trial and fired at people in 115 cases. In 210 cases, officers only drew the weapon.

    Police Inspector Peter Olesen Dahl of Copenhagen Police, who was part of the trial’s steering committee, said stun guns had given officers another option in situations where they might otherwise have used a pistol.

    “And that can sound strange when you shoot electricity into people, but many times it is an alternative to a police officer drawing his pistol,” he said.

    The trial also showed that officers could react from more than 10 meters away if a person with a knife charged toward them.

    A stun gun fires two electrodes connected by wires, sending electrical impulses through the body and temporarily stopping the muscles from working normally. It can cause pain, discomfort and injuries if the person falls.

    The Danish Institute for Human Rights, Denmark’s national human rights institution, has warned that the use of stun guns raises human rights concerns and said police need clear training on the possible health risks.

    During the trial, one person suffered a serious eye injury in an incident involving a stun gun. Police said the weapon was not fired at the person’s eyes.

    Under the government’s plan, stun guns will not be issued to every officer. Instead, selected groups of police officers will be able to take them on patrol.

    The three police districts involved in the trial will continue using them while a permanent system is prepared. Olesen Dahl said it could take a couple of years before stun guns are available in the remaining police districts.

    Denmark will also allocate nearly 800 million DKK from 2027 to expand the police and PET, the Danish Security and Intelligence Service.

    National Police Commissioner Lasse Boje called it one of Denmark’s largest police expansions in several years.

    “The shot in the arm means that we will have to admit and train a great many officers,” Boje said. The exact number has not been decided.

    The Justice Ministry said the funding would strengthen Denmark’s response to the current security threats but did not provide a detailed spending plan.

    Boje said most of the money would fund additional officers. Police will also recruit employees with technological skills.

    The announcement followed a new assessment from FE, the Danish Defence Intelligence Service. It warned that Russia could increase hybrid attacks against Western countries and NATO in the coming months, with more serious consequences.

    Denmark’s Agency for Public Security also raised the threat level for destructive cyberattacks from medium to high. Companies and authorities responsible for critical infrastructure face the main threat.

    Boje said police could become more visible at sites including waterworks and railways.

    Police may also send more officers to incidents involving suspected sabotage, including drone activity or arson.

    “It is simply because we need to uncover whether it could be a hybrid attack,” Boje said.

  • News round up

    Government wants to abolish middle tax and give around 619,000 Danes a tax cut

    ·

    Around 619,000 people could receive a tax cut if the Danish government succeeds in abolishing the country’s middle tax.

    Tax and Growth Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt of the Moderates, a centrist party in Denmark’s governing coalition, wants the tax abolished as early as 2027. The middle tax is an additional income tax that applies once earnings pass a certain threshold.

    Engel-Schmidt said abolishing it would give those affected an average tax cut of about DKK 7,200 a year.

    “The government’s ambition is to abolish the middle tax as quickly as possible. Preferably together with parties to the right of center,” Engel-Schmidt said.

    “So there is a warm invitation to some of my center-right colleagues: We hope they will help take responsibility, strengthen competitiveness and give more than half a million Danes a tax cut they can really feel.”

    The proposal is expected to cost about DKK 2.5 billion.

    According to the government, abolishing the tax would also increase the labor supply by just over 3,000 people and contribute to Denmark’s GDP growth and competitiveness.

    “At the same time, it means that the people who pay the middle tax will have more money for themselves and their families,” Engel-Schmidt said.

    Funding plan not yet disclosed

    The minister has not yet said how the government plans to finance the tax cut.

    “I would like to wait before revealing that, but of course I have a very good proposal,” he said.

    “Before long, I will start some very quiet and informal talks with the parties that we think might be interested in cooperating on this particular part.”

    The size of the tax cut would not be the same for everyone currently paying the middle tax. How much a person would save depends on their income.

    “If you pay the middle tax and also pay the top tax, then you get the full effect of abolishing the middle tax,” Engel-Schmidt said. “If your income is only two kroner above the middle-tax threshold, then you won’t get much out of abolishing it.”

  • All trains on Svendborgbanen cancelled for two weeks in October

    ·

    All train departures on Svendborgbanen will be cancelled between Oct. 3 and 18 because of track work, according to DSB.

    The railway line connects Odense and Svendborg and is operated by DSB. Replacement buses will run along the route throughout the closure, TV 2 Fyn reported.

    There are already changes to the timetable before the planned track work begins.

    According to DSB Vores Tog, several departures have been cancelled because of a shortage of operational train sets.

    The affected trains from Odense to Svendborg are 2615, 2619 and 2829.

    In the opposite direction, trains 2614, 2618 and 2828 are affected.

    The cancelled departures will not appear in Rejseplanen, Denmark’s national public transport journey planner.

    The current disruptions are expected to continue until Oct. 2, with some evening departures replaced by buses.

    From Oct. 3, all train departures will be cancelled while track work is carried out.

    DSB took over operations on Svendborgbanen on Sept. 1. The route was previously operated by GoCollective, formerly known as Arriva.

    GoCollective’s original contract was due to run until the end of 2028, with an option to extend it until the end of 2030.

    However, Transport Minister Thomas Danielsen of the Liberal Party announced in September 2025 that GoCollective’s train operations in Denmark would be terminated after a prolonged period of delays and cancellations.

    He described the company’s train operations as “below all criticism” and said he had lost confidence in the operator. The government therefore decided to transfer the services to DSB.

    In June, it emerged that GoCollective was unable to pay expenses of around DKK 100 million due on June 29.

    The Ministry of Cities, Rural Affairs and Transport said at the time that there was an imminent risk of bankruptcy, which could have caused a complete halt to train services in Central and West Jutland and on Svendborgbanen.

  • Bullying among Danish school students rises, new Pisa survey shows

    ·

    The share of Danish school students who say they are bullied at least a few times a month has increased, according to the latest Pisa survey.

    The 2025 survey, published earlier in September, found that 26% of students reported experiencing bullying at least a couple of times a month, Berlingske reported.

    That was up from 23% in the 2022 Pisa survey.

    Pisa, the Programme for International Student Assessment, primarily measures the skills of 15-year-olds in science, mathematics and reading, allowing countries to track changes over time and compare results internationally.

    Students are also asked about issues including school absence and bullying.

    The latest results show increases in the share of students who reported being threatened, hit or pushed by other students during the previous 12 months.

    In 2022, 10% of students said they had been threatened by other students during the previous year. That figure has risen to 13%.

    The share who reported being hit or pushed increased from 20% to 23%.

    The 2025 survey also included a new question about students having “unpleasant information” about themselves published online without their consent, according to Berlingske.

    Twelve percent of students said they had experienced this.

    Lone Smidt, an education consultant at Danish children’s welfare organization Børns Vilkår, told Berlingske that bullying and school absence are closely connected.

    “Some of what we know is important for children to be motivated to come to school is to experience a sense of belonging and to have good relationships with peers and with the adults,” she said.

    “If that is not present, it can create fertile ground for poor well-being, bullying, and school absence.”

    The latest Pisa survey also found that more than one in four students had skipped an entire school day during the previous two weeks.

    When the question was first included in the survey in 2012, around one in 10 students reported the same.

  • Frederik helped paint his own official portrait – now critics are divided

    ·

    King Frederik picked up the brush himself to help create his first official portrait as monarch – but Danish critics are divided over the finished result.

    The portrait, created by visual artist Cathrine Raben Davidsen over the past two years, was unveiled Friday evening in the Great Hall at Frederiksborg Castle.

    It shows King Frederik in full uniform, standing in an abstract green landscape on a ground covered with marguerite flowers.

    Some of those flowers were painted by the king himself.

    Raben Davidsen asked King Frederik whether he would like to paint some of the marguerites, something he “really wanted to” do, according to the artist.

    “He cared very much about painting these flowers. I thought it was nice in one way or another to allow him to also be a part of the work,” she says.

    The marguerites are not there by chance. They are one of Denmark’s national flowers and also serve as a reference to Queen Margrethe, whose nickname is Daisy.

    Getting to know the man behind the king

    Raben Davidsen met King Frederik privately several times during the two-year process because she wanted the painting to reflect both the monarch and the person behind the title.

    “It was important for me to get to know him as a human being before having to think of him as king as well,” she says.

    Their first meeting took place in her studio. For their second meeting, the king invited her to Kongsøre Forest by the Isefjord.

    The area has personal significance for Frederik, who spent considerable time there while training to become a frogman.

    Raben Davidsen later researched the history of the area and discovered another royal connection. A royal oak once stood there, under which Frederik VII reportedly liked to stand during hunts.

    “That brought yet another historical layer to it. That it was not just a special place for King Frederik, but it also had a reference to his family,” she says.

    The landscape behind the king in the finished portrait is based on Kongsøre Forest and the royal oak.

    Despite discussing the portrait with the king throughout the process, Raben Davidsen says she was given “completely free hands”.

    She also admits that showing him the nearly finished painting for the first time was nerve-racking.

    “It is certainly boundary-pushing, and you certainly hope that he can recognize himself in it,” she says.

    She does not reveal how the king reacted.

    But does he look like himself?

    That question has also occupied Danish critics since the portrait was unveiled.

    Politiken art critic Mathias Kryger sees a “slightly disarmed and worried expression” around the king’s mouth and eyes.

    “Doesn’t he look more like Joachim than himself?” he asks, referring to the king’s younger brother, Prince Joachim.

    Berlingske royal reviewer Jakob Steen Olsen also questions the resemblance, writing that the portrait “resembles without quite resembling”.

    “You can easily see who it is supposed to depict, but the sum of the parts has not quite fallen into place,” he writes.

    Steen Olsen also sees a different Frederik from the sporty and cheerful king Danes encounter at events such as Royal Run.

    He compares the uniform to a “paper doll”, saying it creates the impression of a king “wearing a costume for the role he is to fill”.

    Despite those reservations, Steen Olsen considers the portrait a successful effort.

    Weekendavisen commentator Anne Sophia Hermansen takes a very different view.

    She calls the portrait “alluring” and says Raben Davidsen has handled the task “exemplarily”.

    “It can go completely wrong when a ruler is to be portrayed. (…) And it can go well, and that is the case with the first official royal portrait of King Frederik,” she writes.

    Hermansen particularly highlights the king’s expression. While previous monarchs have been portrayed with “fine moustaches and magnificent sideburns”, she sees something different in Frederik.

    His expression is “open and curious”, she writes, while his carefully painted stubble makes him look “like a human being more than a person of power”.

    Kryger is considerably less enthusiastic.

    He ends his Politiken review with a pointed question:

    “How would it look if the painting of the king had been real art?”

    On display at Frederiksborg Castle

    The portrait was unveiled as part of celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of the Carlsberg Foundation, with King Frederik and Queen Mary attending.

    From Monday, the public can see the painting at Frederiksborg Castle, home to Denmark’s national portrait collection, which includes thousands of portraits of monarchs, politicians, scientists and artists.

    Raben Davidsen is the first female artist to paint an official portrait of a monarch for the Great Hall at Frederiksborg Castle.

    She hopes visitors will look beyond individual details and experience the painting as a whole.

    “I really hope that people will take the time to see it as a complete painting and notice the painterly qualities. That one can sense the human Frederik and King Frederik in this work,” she says.
    RITZAU/Copenhagen Post

  • Minister to regulate Danish wolves after new count

    ·

    The upcoming estimated spring population of wolves in Denmark has provisionally been calculated at approximately 77, according to the calculation method used by Aarhus University and the Natural History Museum in Aarhus.
    The estimated spring population is calculated using a conversion factor where the number of packs – wolf pairs with pups – which stands at 11, is multiplied by seven individuals per pack.
    Since the population composition is not known, the international average is used in the conversion factor.
    Without “human persecution”, the Danish population is expected to grow.
    This is stated in a memo prepared for the Agency for Green Land Transformation and Water Environment.
    The number is approaching a size where one can begin to regulate the predator, Minister for Nature and Animal Welfare Christian Rabjerg Madsen (Social Democrats) tells DR and TV 2.
    The ministry now wants the wolf population calculated at the individual level and expects that, following the count, it can “demonstrate to the EU that the wolf has a favorable conservation status”.
    – Then we can begin hunting, and we should, Christian Rabjerg Madsen says to DR.
    According to the Danish Nature Agency, a species’ conservation status is considered favorable, among other things, when “the population trend shows that the species will maintain itself in the long term”.
    The wolf is protected under the EU’s Habitats Directive.
    However, it is possible to obtain permission from the Agency for Green Land Transformation and Water Environment to regulate – that is, shoot – a specific wolf in special situations.
    The authorities can grant permission to regulate the wolf if no other solution exists, and if it does not threaten the natural range of the wolf.
    The permission may be granted out of regard for “public health, safety, and security or to prevent serious damage to livestock and other forms of property”.
    Among other things, an “exemption to regulate the wolf” may be granted if it “lacks an instinctive shyness towards humans”.
    From September 1, wolves that intrude behind functioning wolf-proof fences may in the future be shot without prior permission.
    The executive order also allows for shooting a wolf if it attacks a domestic animal and is not scared away by a warning shot.
    After a shot is fired, the Danish Nature Agency must be contacted within two hours so that documentation can be collected to verify that the regulation took place within the rules.
    The wolf recolonized Denmark from Germany in 2012 after an absence of nearly 200 years.
    RITZAU

  • Novo Nordisk fined and criticized over Falck deal

    ·

    The Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk has received criticism and a fine of 45,000 kroner from the Ethical Board for the Pharmaceutical Industry (Enli) for a collaboration with Falck.
    DR reports this based on a decision from the independent body.
    Novo and Falck announced a collaboration at the beginning of the year on a weight loss program, where patients on the weight loss drug Wegovy could receive advice on diet, lifestyle, and other support from specialists at Falck during their weight loss.
    Enli assesses that, with the collaboration, Novo has violated ethical rules regarding financial benefits.
    Reference is made to Enli’s advertising code, where there is a ban on pharmaceutical companies offering direct or indirect financial benefits to healthcare personnel.
    Novo receives a fine of 45,000 kroner plus VAT and has been ordered to stop the project in its current form.
    The project has been stopped in its current form, but Novo Nordisk writes in a written response to DR that the company disagrees with the decision.
    When Novo Nordisk and Falck announced the collaboration in January, it was stated that the collaboration “introduces a holistic approach to weight loss treatment”.
    – The collaboration offers an integrated approach, where medical weight loss treatment, prescribed by the patient’s own general practitioner, is supplemented by a digital follow-up program from Falck.
    – The program is delivered by Falck’s online nurses, doctors, and dietitians and is included in the patient’s treatment at no extra cost, said Jakob Riis, CEO of Falck, in January.
    According to DR, around 150 patients managed to become part of the weight loss program.
    As part of the agreement with Falck, Novo Nordisk was to be allowed to obtain anonymized data from the patients about, for example, their treatment, prescription history, gender, age, and the risk of them dropping out of the project.
    This is also problematized in the decision from Enli.
    – There is therefore a risk that the patient support program will be perceived as a blurring of significant commercial interests, it states.
    The collaboration between the two is therefore perceived by the board as something that can “bring the pharmaceutical industry into disrepute or reduce confidence in it”.
    RITZAU

  • Authorities find fraud and errors in 26 of 27 kiosks

    ·

    During an operation at the end of August, the authorities found errors and illegalities in 26 out of 27 selected kiosks in Jutland.
    This was stated by the Ministry of Taxation and Growth in a press release.
    Illegal nicotine products, expired food items, and chocolate on which duties had not been paid were found in the kiosks.
    In a kiosk in Vejle, narcotics were also found, including 9 loose joints, 64 joints in joint tubes, 10 lumps of cannabis, and 28 bags of cannabis gummies.
    The kiosks that were visited were selected based on the criteria of risk and materiality.
    The operation also revealed several violations of working environment rules. Among other things, injunctions were issued for illegal smoking on kiosk premises and conditions involving a risk of accidents.
    In one kiosk, a prohibition was also issued against using the food items located in a basement room because asbestos was suspected in the room.
    Minister for Taxation and Growth Jakob Engel-Schmidt (M) calls the findings deeply worrying and completely unacceptable.
    – This is the fourth major kiosk operation this year, and the picture is completely crazy: far too many kiosks are cheating and circumventing the rules.
    – When 26 out of 27 inspected kiosks have errors or illegalities, something is fundamentally wrong, the minister states in the release.
    The inspection operation was carried out in cooperation between the Danish Tax Agency, the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration, the Danish Business Authority, the Danish Working Environment Authority, and the police. A total of 78 people participated.
    The press release states that the Danish Tax Agency will follow up in 11 of the 27 inspected kiosks due to the shadow economy or suspicion thereof.
    The kiosks that were visited on August 26 are located in Silkeborg, Holstebro, Randers, Aalborg, Horsens, Vejle, and Esbjerg.
    RITZAU

  • Denmark allocates nearly 800 million DKK to expand police and intelligence services

    ·

    Denmark will allocate nearly 800 million DKK from 2027 to expand the police and PET, the Danish Security and Intelligence Service.

    National Police Commissioner Lasse Boje called it one of Denmark’s largest police expansions in several years.

    “The shot in the arm means that we will have to admit and train a great many officers,” Boje said. The exact number has not been decided.

    The Justice Ministry said the funding would strengthen Denmark’s response to the current security threats but did not provide a detailed spending plan.

    Boje said most of the money would fund additional officers. Police will also recruit employees with technological skills.

    The announcement followed a new assessment from FE, the Danish Defence Intelligence Service. It warned that Russia could increase hybrid attacks against Western countries and NATO in the coming months, with more serious consequences.

    Denmark’s Agency for Public Security also raised the threat level for destructive cyberattacks from medium to high. Companies and authorities responsible for critical infrastructure face the main threat.

    Boje said police could become more visible at sites including waterworks and railways.

    Police may also send more officers to incidents involving suspected sabotage, including drone activity or arson.

    “It is simply because we need to uncover whether it could be a hybrid attack,” Boje said.

  • Danish universities open national research forum to study rising antisemitism

    ·

    The University of Copenhagen and Roskilde University will open Denmark’s National Forum for Antisemitism Studies on September 30.

    The forum will research antisemitism, which includes hatred, prejudice, discrimination or hostility directed against Jewish people.

    The University of Copenhagen said antisemitism had become more visible in Denmark and abroad in recent years, increasing the need for research documenting its development.

    “Neo-Nazism and the Holocaust are still the associations many get when they hear the word antisemitism,” said Sofie Line Bak, an associate professor at the University of Copenhagen.

    She said people may struggle to recognize antisemitic stereotypes and caricatures originating outside neo-Nazi environments.

    “We can see that today they are spread on social media and are also found in both Islamist and left-wing environments,” Bak said.

    The forum’s research is intended to support authorities and organizations working to prevent antisemitism.

    Its establishment was funded by Independent Research Fund Denmark, a public organization that provides grants for research. Antisemitism was one of 12 politically selected research themes receiving funding in 2025.

    The Jewish Community in Denmark recorded 199 antisemitic incidents last year.

    The figures were based on incidents that individuals reported directly to the organization.

  • Volkswagen Group recalls about four million cars over possible steering failure

    ·

    Volkswagen Group is recalling about four million vehicles because a screw in the steering system could break and cause the steering to fail.

    The recall covers cars sold under the Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda and Seat brands, German newspaper Handelsblatt reported, according to Norwegian business newspaper Finansavisen.

    Figures from Germany’s motor vehicle authority show that the recall includes more than two million Volkswagen vehicles, over one million Skodas, about 700,000 Audis and approximately 200,000 Seats.

    Affected Volkswagen models include the Golf, Golf Variant, Tiguan, Touran and Caddy produced between 2013 and 2024. The Audi Q3 is also included.

    The possible defect involves a screw connection that can weaken after years of use and exposure to road salt.

    Volkswagen said the recall was preventative and that no injuries or major property damage had been reported.

    “We are now recalling the affected vehicles as a safety precaution,” a company spokesperson told AFP.

    The recall does not mean every vehicle has the defect.

    The problem cannot be repaired with a software update. Affected cars must be taken to a workshop to have the screw connection replaced.

    Volkswagen said owners could continue driving until they had arranged a repair appointment with a dealership.

    The total cost of the recall has not been disclosed. Finansavisen said the required workshop visits could create a large expense for Volkswagen.

  • Øresund Bridge reopens toward Sweden after oversized truck triggers tunnel alarm

    ·

    The Øresund Bridge was briefly closed to traffic heading toward Sweden on Friday morning after an oversized truck entered the tunnel.

    The truck was too tall to pass safely through the tunnel, Copenhagen Police duty officer Dyre Sønnicksen said.

    Its entry activated the tunnel’s alarm system, causing safety barriers to close. The vehicle then had to be removed before traffic could resume.

    Police cleared the truck by 11:20 a.m., and the route toward Sweden reopened.

    The closure was first reported by P4 Trafik, the traffic service operated by Danish public broadcaster DR.

  • Øresund Bridge closed towards Sweden

    ·

    The Øresund Bridge is closed Friday morning in the direction toward Sweden.
    This appears from a report from P4 Trafik on dr.dk.

    This is because a truck has triggered a height alarm.

    The police are on their way to check the situation.

    The bridge is expected to be closed in the direction toward Sweden until 13:00 on Friday, the Øresund Bridge writes on its own website.

  • Denmark awards compensation to 122 Greenlandic women in forced contraception case

    ·

    A total of 122 Greenlandic women have received compensation over the fitting of contraceptive devices without their knowledge or consent, Patienterstatningen told Greenlandic broadcaster KNR.

    Each woman will receive 300,000 DKK. Patienterstatningen, Denmark’s patient compensation agency, has received 572 applications so far.

    “We are really, really glad that we have already at this stage been able to grant compensation to the first 100 women,” said Trine Berner Madsen, who leads the agency’s work on the cases.

    From 1960 to 1991, the Danish state fitted Greenlandic girls and women with intrauterine devices, or IUDs, without their knowledge and consent. The practice continued for a period after Greenland assumed responsibility for health care in 1992.

    Some women were also given the contraceptive Depo-Provera against their will.

    A 2025 investigation found that at least 4,070 Greenlandic women had received IUDs by the end of 1970.

    The Folketing, Denmark’s parliament, approved the compensation scheme last month. Applications opened July 1, and the scheme took effect September 1. The deadline is September 1, 2028.

    In 2025, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic leader Jens-Frederik Nielsen apologized on behalf of Denmark and Greenland.

    Two recent reports did not determine whether the case constituted genocide.

  • Novo signs licensing agreement with Nanexa worth up to 8.7 billion DKK

    ·

    Novo has signed a licensing agreement worth up to 8.7 billion DKK with Swedish pharmaceutical company Nanexa.

    The total includes an upfront payment and development milestone payments worth about 4.6 billion DKK, Nanexa said.

    The Swedish company could also receive royalties in the low single-digit percentage range if products using its technology reach the market.

    The agreement gives Novo a license to use Nanexa’s drug-delivery technology in as many as five development programs covering obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiometabolic diseases.

    Cardiometabolic diseases affect the cardiovascular system and metabolism.

    Nanexa’s technology releases medicines slowly, allowing injections to work for longer periods. The company said treatments could potentially be given monthly or quarterly, reducing the number of injections patients need.

    “We look forward to collaborating with them to develop products with fewer doses for the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes,” Nanexa CEO David Westberg said.

    Per Hansen, an investment economist at online investment platform Nordnet, described the agreement as good for Nanexa but unlikely to move Novo’s share price significantly in the short term.

    Nanexa shares rose 112 percent by about 9:30 a.m. after the announcement. Novo shares fell 0.2 percent.

    Novo said Monday that it would strengthen its diabetes and weight-loss businesses while expanding into liver and cardiovascular diseases.