News round up

  • News round up

    New rules guarantee young Danes mental health treatment within 30 days

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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.