TEETH OR PRISONS?

An odd choice, you might think. But one that the Danish body politic has apparently just made. The country has run out of prison space, as rockers and other assorted misfits are increasingly locked up in ageing buildings. 200 new cells are needed, at a cost of Dkr.1.7 billion. Everyone involved in the negotiations over the 2013 Finance Bill agrees that they would be a good thing. But in these straightened times, how to pay for them?

The answer, it seems, is our teeth. To be more precise, the state will sharply reduce, or even abolish, the subsidy for having your teeth cleaned at the dentist. From 1 January, we will be expected to pay for this ourselves; though children, and other priority groups, will presumably continue to get it for free.

Chew on that, voters!

Walter Blotscher