Government lacking growth plan funds
The government’s growth package is in its final phase of negotiations, but no one in Christiansborg can explain how the government will gain the 12 billion kroner needed to reach its goals. Government notations from on-going negotiations between the government, Venstre, Konservative and Dansk Folkeparti show that there is not an overall plan with concrete initiatives to describe how the needed money will be raised. One professor argued that it will be public employees who ultimately foot the bill. – Politiken
Former cancer patients to control themselves
The health minister, Astrid Krag (Socialistisk Folkeparti), has set a new course that requires former cancer patients to control their illnesses by themselves. Krag argued that it was a waste of resources for former cancer patients to go to specialists year after year to check whether their cancer has returned, and has suggested scrapping these routine controls. Instead, some patients will have to be cared for by their own personal doctors, others by nurses, while some can control themselves, and others will continue to go to the specialists. – Jyllands-Posten
Church taxes continue to rise
The church tax that people have to pay in order to be part of the Church of Denmark (folkekirken) continues to rise. New figures from the Church Ministry revealed that in 2011 the church claimed six billion kroner in taxes at an average of 1,350 kroner per member. In 1991, that figure was at 4.3 billion kroner, which equalled 950 kroner per member. The news comes at a precarious time for the church, which continues to lose members at an alarming rate and last year alone saw over 21,000 members leave. – Kristeligt-Dagblad
Schmidt-Nielsen loses out to Skipper
Left-wing party Enhedslisten’s members have selected their lead candidate for next year and, shockingly, party queen Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen finished second to rising star Pernille Skipper. Skipper, the party’s spokesperson on justice and an outspoken critic of the government's new freedom of information law, won the most votes by gaining 977 to Schmidt-Nielsen’s 923. Schmidt-Nielsen, however, still has a chance to lead the party because the final decision will be made during the party’s upcoming annual meeting. – Ekstra Bladet
