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Today in Denmark For Members

Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Tuesday

Michael Barrett
Michael Barrett - [email protected]
Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Tuesday
epa09651963 (L-R) Kosovo Minister of Economy Artane Rizvanolli, Danish Minister for Development Cooperation Flemming Moller Mortensen, Kosovo Justice Minister Albulena Haxhiu, and Danish Justice Minister Nick Haekkerup sign a letter of intent, in Pristina, Kosovo, 20 December 2021. Albulena Haxhiu and her Danish counterpart signed a letter of intent for renting 300 prison cells in Kosovo to house the overflowing Danish prison population for 210 million euros. The ratification process by respective parliaments is expected to take place in early 2022. EPA/VALDRIN XHEMAJ

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

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Convicted ex-minister faces expulsion by parliament

Former immigration minister Inger Støjberg today faces a vote that is likely to expel her from parliament, after she was convicted of violating migrants' rights by separating asylum-seeking couples.

Støjberg was hit with a 60-day jail term last week for flouting her responsibilities as a minister following a trial in a rarely used court that oversees the conduct of ministers.

Her order to separate asylum-seeking couples when the woman was under 18 with no individual examination of the cases was found to have violated the European Convention on Human Rights.

The 48-year-old self-styled champion of "Danish values", a hugely popular politician who served as minister from 2015 to 2019, is expected to attend debates in parliament on Tuesday that are likely to lead to her exclusion.

READ ALSO: OPINION: Why reaction to Støjberg verdict is important for democracy in Denmark

Denmark and Kosovo ink $17 million deal to rent 300 prison cells

Kosovo agreed with Denmark on Monday to rent the Scandinavian country 300 jail cells for an annual fee of 15 million euros to ease overcrowding in the Danish prison system, news wire AFP reports.

The agreement, which saw the two countries sign a declaration of intent Monday, will run for an initial period of five years, a joint statement said.

Last week, Copenhagen indicated that the prisoners sent to Kosovo will be foreigners subject to deportation after serving their sentences. 

Since 2015, the prison population in Denmark jumped nearly 20 percent and the number of prison guards dropped by the same proportion, causing issues with overcrowding.

READ ALSO: Denmark to rent 300 prison cells from Kosovo

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Dane charged with defending terror attacks in France

A Dane with dual nationality was yesterday charged with threatening to carry out attacks, inciting acts of terror and defending deadly attacks in France last year, prosecutors said according to AFP.

The 46-year-old man's posts on Twitter included a defence of two attacks in France in October 2020, said a statement from the prosecutor’s office.

The man faces up to four years in prison and the loss of his Danish nationality if convicted for his comments. The prosecutors did not specify the other nationality he holds.

Employment figures continue to climb

The number of people on the jobs market in Denmark increased in October for the ninth consecutive month.

A further 12,000 people were hired meaning the overall employment figure ticked upwards to 2,895,000. The data were published by Statistics Denmark.

Although the trend has been described as “impressive” analysts have also raised concerns about its potential to limit economic growth.

We’ll have more detail in a report on our website today.

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