Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Friday
Faroese elections, continuing traffic woes, and a new peak for electricity prices are among the top news stories in Denmark on Friday.
Faroese to form new government after elections
The Faroese Social Democrats (or Javnaðarflokkurin) took home 9 out of 33 mandates in the Faroe Island's December 8th elections, making them the largest party in the parliament (Lagting).
Party leader Aksel Johannesen is expected to be able to form a government, newswire Ritzau reports — he'll be courting the two other parties that had joined the Faroese Social Democrats in opposition, Tjóðveldi and Framsókn, to reach the 18 mandates necessary to govern.
Danish airport closes
Central Jutland (not South Denmark, where Billund Airport is located) will soon be without an airport after the last flights take off on December 9th, broadcaster TV2 reports.
Between low demand and high fuel costs, Karup Airport simply isn't profitable, according to Danish Air Transport, the company that's run the airport for the past seven years. Pre-COVID, the airport served about 120,000 passengers a year, while in 2022, that number plummeted to just 20,000 according to TV2.
Local officials say the Central Jutland airport should receive state aid, like the Bornholm and Sønderborg airports.
Denmark scraps recommendation to isolate after positive COVID test
As of December 8th, the Danish Health Authority (Sundhedsstyrelsen) no longer considers COVID an illness of special concern. It's a remarkable announcement ahead of the winter holidays, when the coronavirus and flu often spike, and the same week the Danish infectious disease agency reported an increase in COVID infections and hospitalisations.
“We can now take even more steps towards normal conditions in relation to the Covid-19 response in both the community and the health service,” the Health Authority’s acting head of department Line Raahauge Hvass said in the statement.
“There is no longer any need for very specific requirements for Covid-19 in relation to other diseases, for example for a person with a positive Covid-19 test to isolate for at least four days,” she said.
It's a popular move among the Danish political parties. Per Larsen, spokesman for the Conservatives, told DR he welcomes the loosening of restrictions and was certain the winter flu and corona seasons will go well if Danes remember hand hygiene. (This represents a grave misunderstanding of how COVID-19 is spread three years into the pandemic — since it's airborne, handwashing will have little to no effect.)
READ MORE: Denmark’s health authority scraps isolation guidelines for Covid-19
Traffic accidents continue as icy conditions persist
Southern Denmark and Zealand both report highway accidents on the morning of December 9, and with sleet and snow in today's forecast, traffic conditions are unlikely to improve in the next several days.
The Danish Meteorological Institute says hazardous road conditions are likely to continue through the weekend as the temperatures hover around freezing and additional precipitation is forecast.
READ MORE: Essential rain gear for a wet Danish winter
Denmark sees highest electricity prices in months
On December 9th, Danish consumers can look forward to the highest average electricity price since September, broadcaster TV2 reports.
Not counting VAT, tariffs, and tax, a kilowatt-hour of energy from the Nordic electricity exchange will set you back just over 3 kroner. That's still a far cry from August's record of 4.3 kroner per. kilowatt-hour.
Another wrinkle is that prices will fluctuate less during the day than normal, TV2 says, making it harder to schedule your dishwasher or laundry machine cycle during a time when prices are cheaper.
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Faroese to form new government after elections
The Faroese Social Democrats (or Javnaðarflokkurin) took home 9 out of 33 mandates in the Faroe Island's December 8th elections, making them the largest party in the parliament (Lagting).
Party leader Aksel Johannesen is expected to be able to form a government, newswire Ritzau reports — he'll be courting the two other parties that had joined the Faroese Social Democrats in opposition, Tjóðveldi and Framsókn, to reach the 18 mandates necessary to govern.
Danish airport closes
Central Jutland (not South Denmark, where Billund Airport is located) will soon be without an airport after the last flights take off on December 9th, broadcaster TV2 reports.
Between low demand and high fuel costs, Karup Airport simply isn't profitable, according to Danish Air Transport, the company that's run the airport for the past seven years. Pre-COVID, the airport served about 120,000 passengers a year, while in 2022, that number plummeted to just 20,000 according to TV2.
Local officials say the Central Jutland airport should receive state aid, like the Bornholm and Sønderborg airports.
Denmark scraps recommendation to isolate after positive COVID test
As of December 8th, the Danish Health Authority (Sundhedsstyrelsen) no longer considers COVID an illness of special concern. It's a remarkable announcement ahead of the winter holidays, when the coronavirus and flu often spike, and the same week the Danish infectious disease agency reported an increase in COVID infections and hospitalisations.
“We can now take even more steps towards normal conditions in relation to the Covid-19 response in both the community and the health service,” the Health Authority’s acting head of department Line Raahauge Hvass said in the statement.
“There is no longer any need for very specific requirements for Covid-19 in relation to other diseases, for example for a person with a positive Covid-19 test to isolate for at least four days,” she said.
It's a popular move among the Danish political parties. Per Larsen, spokesman for the Conservatives, told DR he welcomes the loosening of restrictions and was certain the winter flu and corona seasons will go well if Danes remember hand hygiene. (This represents a grave misunderstanding of how COVID-19 is spread three years into the pandemic — since it's airborne, handwashing will have little to no effect.)
READ MORE: Denmark’s health authority scraps isolation guidelines for Covid-19
Traffic accidents continue as icy conditions persist
Southern Denmark and Zealand both report highway accidents on the morning of December 9, and with sleet and snow in today's forecast, traffic conditions are unlikely to improve in the next several days.
The Danish Meteorological Institute says hazardous road conditions are likely to continue through the weekend as the temperatures hover around freezing and additional precipitation is forecast.
READ MORE: Essential rain gear for a wet Danish winter
Denmark sees highest electricity prices in months
On December 9th, Danish consumers can look forward to the highest average electricity price since September, broadcaster TV2 reports.
Not counting VAT, tariffs, and tax, a kilowatt-hour of energy from the Nordic electricity exchange will set you back just over 3 kroner. That's still a far cry from August's record of 4.3 kroner per. kilowatt-hour.
Another wrinkle is that prices will fluctuate less during the day than normal, TV2 says, making it harder to schedule your dishwasher or laundry machine cycle during a time when prices are cheaper.
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