Battle royale: Astrid Krag will not enjoy a cakewalk into the Socialistisk Folkeparti (SF) party leader post after all. On Sunday, Annette Vilhelmsen (pictured), an SF MP and the party’s business spokesperson, threw her hat into the ring. All indications are that the drama-riddled party will have even more on its hands, now that Vilhelmsen has shown herself to have a large backing amongst SF’s rank and file. Krag, meanwhile, has the party’s ministers on her side: outgoing party boss Villy Søvndal, the foreign minister; Thor Möger Pedersen, the tax minister; and Ida Auken, the environment minister, who was one of the early rumoured picks for the post.
Pricey place: Swiss bank UBS reveal
ed its annual survey of the world’s most expensive cities last week. Copenhagen came in as the fifth most expensive, while our northern neighbour Oslo nabbed the top spot. The study compared 122 different commodities and services throughout the 72 cities investigated, with prices adjusted for currency fluctuation. The cost of living for each city was measured by dividing the price of goods by a weighted net hourly wage. Along with Oslo and Copenhagen, Zurich, Tokyo, and Geneva rounded off the top five. The cheapest cities to live, according to the study, are Delhi and Mumbai, which are both in India.
More fraud: The financial crisis has contributed to a record number of Danes committing fraud. According to police statistics, in 2009 there were 3,872 cases of fraud, but this rose to 9,332 in 2011. The generally wealthy North Zealand area had the most fraud charges with 2,044. Copenhagen was a close second at 1,917, while south Jutland had 1,274. Fraud stats from the police include everything from social benefit fraud, illegal company loans, forgery, the misuse of credit cards and tax evasion. Most fraud cases are reported by public authorities. Fraud can be punished by up to eight years in prison.
Good find: Three amateur archaeologists struck gold … er, silver … outside Roskilde this week, uncovering a treasure trove of silver rings, bands and coins that date back to the Germanic Iron Age (400-500 AD). The finds will be given to Roskilde Museum for analysis and preservation
