SORG OG GLÆDE
What do you do when your wife kills your 9-month old daughter with a kitchen knife in a fit of depression? That's the theme of Sorg og Glæde ("Grief and Happiness"), the new film by the well-known Danish director Nils Malmros. It's particularly relevant for Malmros, since that is exactly what his own wife did in 1984 to their baby. They are still together, though they have never had any other children.
Such a personal tragedy could have made the film sentimental, mawkish even. Reviews were mixed, the one in my paper rather damning. I saw it this evening and thought it was rather good. If you know the story and how it pans out, then the whole thing hangs on the quality of the acting, the cutting, the cinematography. And they were all excellent.
It also seems to appeal to the locals in my home town. A full house last night, around 50 tonight, a wet Wednesday at the end of November. Gravity from tomorrow, the Counselor next week, Hunger Games 2 before Christmas. They will all be rather different.
Walter Blotscher
Wednesday, 27 November 2013
Tuesday, 26 November 2013
IT'S ALL ABOUT BATHS
The current Danish Government is a three-party left-of-centre coalition, reliant for its Parliamentary majority on the support of the very left-wing Enhedslisten. However, that support has been less and less forthcoming in the course of the Government's two-year life, mainly because Enhedslisten thinks (rightly, in my view) that the Government has been ignoring it.
One area of politics where Danish minority Governments always face pressure is on the Budget. If a Budget is not passed, then it automatically leads to a vote of confidence; which, if lost, results in a fresh general election. So, for the past two months, the Social Democratic Finance Minister has been having endless discussions with Enhedslisten about what should be in the 2014 Budget. Those discussions have intensified in the past week because of the combination of a deadline for getting the bill ready and the results of last week's local elections. Enhedslisten had a good local election, and wanted to use that result as a springboard for putting their fingerprints all over the Budget.
In the end, it all came down (somewhat surrealistically) to a discussion about baths; should the elderly in an old people's home have the right to have a bath or a shower at least twice a week enshrined in law or not? The Government said no; matters to do with the elderly fall to local authorities, and although the Government was prepared to provide more money for the elderly in the form of block grants, it was not prepared to tell an individual local authority precisely how that money should be spent. Enhedslisten, on the other hand, wanted the right enshrined in law, not least because promises to give money to particular local authority areas have not always resulted in money being spent in these areas. It may seem bizarre that the Budget for a whole country should hang by such a thin thread; but hang it did, and there was no agreement when talks between the two sides broke up earlier today.
Enhedslisten does not have to present a Budget, but the Finance Minister does. So it was not so surprising that less than six hours later, he had stitched up a Budget deal with the right-wing opposition. The extra money for the elderly was still on the table, but he had to swallow some tax cuts and other goodies in order to get it through.
Why did the opposition agree to pass a Budget, why didn't they go for a vote of confidence instead? The judgement is almost certainly the one that if they had done that, then the Government and Enhedslisten would have made up and supported each other. Better to let the mistrust between the Government and its nominal support turn more and more bitter. The next general election is less than two years away, and the opposition can afford to wait.
Walter Blotscher
The current Danish Government is a three-party left-of-centre coalition, reliant for its Parliamentary majority on the support of the very left-wing Enhedslisten. However, that support has been less and less forthcoming in the course of the Government's two-year life, mainly because Enhedslisten thinks (rightly, in my view) that the Government has been ignoring it.
One area of politics where Danish minority Governments always face pressure is on the Budget. If a Budget is not passed, then it automatically leads to a vote of confidence; which, if lost, results in a fresh general election. So, for the past two months, the Social Democratic Finance Minister has been having endless discussions with Enhedslisten about what should be in the 2014 Budget. Those discussions have intensified in the past week because of the combination of a deadline for getting the bill ready and the results of last week's local elections. Enhedslisten had a good local election, and wanted to use that result as a springboard for putting their fingerprints all over the Budget.
In the end, it all came down (somewhat surrealistically) to a discussion about baths; should the elderly in an old people's home have the right to have a bath or a shower at least twice a week enshrined in law or not? The Government said no; matters to do with the elderly fall to local authorities, and although the Government was prepared to provide more money for the elderly in the form of block grants, it was not prepared to tell an individual local authority precisely how that money should be spent. Enhedslisten, on the other hand, wanted the right enshrined in law, not least because promises to give money to particular local authority areas have not always resulted in money being spent in these areas. It may seem bizarre that the Budget for a whole country should hang by such a thin thread; but hang it did, and there was no agreement when talks between the two sides broke up earlier today.
Enhedslisten does not have to present a Budget, but the Finance Minister does. So it was not so surprising that less than six hours later, he had stitched up a Budget deal with the right-wing opposition. The extra money for the elderly was still on the table, but he had to swallow some tax cuts and other goodies in order to get it through.
Why did the opposition agree to pass a Budget, why didn't they go for a vote of confidence instead? The judgement is almost certainly the one that if they had done that, then the Government and Enhedslisten would have made up and supported each other. Better to let the mistrust between the Government and its nominal support turn more and more bitter. The next general election is less than two years away, and the opposition can afford to wait.
Walter Blotscher
Monday, 25 November 2013
EXPENSIVE PROPERTY
Kensington and Chelsea is an inner London borough much favoured as a place to live by wealthy Brits, royalty, and foreign billionaires. The properties there are some of the most expensive in the U.K.
Just how expensive was brought home to me by a statistic I read the other day. The tax paid on home sales in that borough in the 2012-13 fiscal year exceeded the tax paid on all home sales in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland put together.
I can safely say that I will never live in Kensington and Chelsea.
Walter Blotscher
Kensington and Chelsea is an inner London borough much favoured as a place to live by wealthy Brits, royalty, and foreign billionaires. The properties there are some of the most expensive in the U.K.
Just how expensive was brought home to me by a statistic I read the other day. The tax paid on home sales in that borough in the 2012-13 fiscal year exceeded the tax paid on all home sales in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland put together.
I can safely say that I will never live in Kensington and Chelsea.
Walter Blotscher
Sunday, 24 November 2013
IT'S NOT OVER UNTIL IT'S OVER
One of the great things about sport is that until the final whistle blows, anything can happen. Two rugby matches this weekend proved that point yet again.
On Saturday, England played New Zealand at Wembley in the semi-final of the rugby league World Cup. New Zealand, the holders, had had a great tournament, scoring almost at will. But England have improved recently and really felt that they had a chance. It was a bruising contest, with England starting well, followed by New Zealand coming back and going ahead. Then, with 13 minutes to go, England scored a converted try to lead 18-14. The last period was frenetic, as New Zealand threw everything at the English defence, which held. Until a high tackle on a New Zealand forward led to a penalty and one last chance for the visitors. Shaun Johnson somehow eluded two England players to score a try to level the scores at 18-18; and then kicked the decisive conversion for a 20-18 result with the last kick of the game.
Today the New Zealand All Blacks were taking on Ireland at rugby union. The All Blacks are world champions and were aiming to become the first team in the professional era to win all their test matches in a calendar year. In 109 years of trying, Ireland have never beaten them, losing 26 of 27 matches, with only one draw back in 1973. However, New Zealand had nearly lost to England last weekend and were looking a bit end-of-season tired. Ireland came out roaring, scored three tries and led 19-0. New Zealand fought back gradually, but Ireland defended doggedly and it was still 22-17 as the clock ran down. With 30 seconds left, New Zealand were awarded a penalty, decided to run it, and finally scored a try almost two minutes after normal time (in rugby union the game continues after normal time until the first stoppage, and the try was the first stoppage). Aaron Cruden missed the conversion; but the Irish had run out too quickly, he was allowed to take it again, and he made it, giving New Zealand a 24-22 win.
If you were a New Zealand rugby fan, it must have been a great weekend. For everyone else, it was just great to watch.
Walter Blotscher
One of the great things about sport is that until the final whistle blows, anything can happen. Two rugby matches this weekend proved that point yet again.
On Saturday, England played New Zealand at Wembley in the semi-final of the rugby league World Cup. New Zealand, the holders, had had a great tournament, scoring almost at will. But England have improved recently and really felt that they had a chance. It was a bruising contest, with England starting well, followed by New Zealand coming back and going ahead. Then, with 13 minutes to go, England scored a converted try to lead 18-14. The last period was frenetic, as New Zealand threw everything at the English defence, which held. Until a high tackle on a New Zealand forward led to a penalty and one last chance for the visitors. Shaun Johnson somehow eluded two England players to score a try to level the scores at 18-18; and then kicked the decisive conversion for a 20-18 result with the last kick of the game.
Today the New Zealand All Blacks were taking on Ireland at rugby union. The All Blacks are world champions and were aiming to become the first team in the professional era to win all their test matches in a calendar year. In 109 years of trying, Ireland have never beaten them, losing 26 of 27 matches, with only one draw back in 1973. However, New Zealand had nearly lost to England last weekend and were looking a bit end-of-season tired. Ireland came out roaring, scored three tries and led 19-0. New Zealand fought back gradually, but Ireland defended doggedly and it was still 22-17 as the clock ran down. With 30 seconds left, New Zealand were awarded a penalty, decided to run it, and finally scored a try almost two minutes after normal time (in rugby union the game continues after normal time until the first stoppage, and the try was the first stoppage). Aaron Cruden missed the conversion; but the Irish had run out too quickly, he was allowed to take it again, and he made it, giving New Zealand a 24-22 win.
If you were a New Zealand rugby fan, it must have been a great weekend. For everyone else, it was just great to watch.
Walter Blotscher
Saturday, 23 November 2013
LOCAL ELECTIONS
There were a number of themes that came out of Tuesday's local elections for Denmark's 98 kommuner (local authorities) and 5 regions.
The first was a collective "fed-up'ness" with the current 3-party coalition minority national Government, reflected in the collapse of the Socialists' vote from 14.5% to 5.6%. Many of those votes went to the very left-wing Enhedslisten, up from 2.3% to 6.9%, which tends to support the Government and thereby give it a Parliamentary majority. It must be galling for the Socialists that locally, the Enhedslisten is now the bigger party.
The second trend was that although the national Government is unpopular, the main opposition party Venstre could not really take advantage. They increased their share of the vote from 24.8% to 26.6%; but after two years of opinion polls in the mid-30's, they were expecting more. The reason for that was party Chairman Lars Løkke Rasmussen's travel expenses.
The third trend was that the Social Democrats under Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt did better than expected (and many in the party had feared), falling only from 30.7% to 29.5%. Voters on its right-wing probably left and went to the opposition; but that was offset by voters on its left-wing who ditched the Socialists and could not stomach Enhedslisten. Furthermore, they retained the mayor's office in all four of the countries biggest cities, Copenhagen, Aarhus, Odense and Aalborg.
The fourth was the continuing rise of the Danish People's Party, a rise which has been almost continuous since its founding in 1995. The DPP is now the third largest party in local politics, and secured its first ever mayoral office, in Copenhagen (the capital has a super-mayor and a number of mayors).
The mayor's office is powerful in Denmark, since it is the only full-time job on the council and the mayor sets the political agenda. Who gets it is decided by a majority, and since it is very rare for one party to get an absolute majority, coalitions are the norm. Because of the intricacies of those coalitions, the Social Democrats and Venstre tend to end up with most of the mayors. In 2009, it was 49-31 (i.e. 80 out of 98); this time, it has turned around and is now 33-48. Most of the rest are held by the Conservatives, in local pockets of affluence. Despite their vote's falling from 11% to 8.6%, they held all of them, so they were another happy party.
Pulling all that together, it looks as if the national election in 2 years' time will be closer than it might have been. Local councils have much more influence in Denmark than (say) the U.K., and the Social Democrats' showing in particular will have done the Government a power of good. It is still looking like there will be a change of Government, but not a landslide change.
Walter Blotscher
There were a number of themes that came out of Tuesday's local elections for Denmark's 98 kommuner (local authorities) and 5 regions.
The first was a collective "fed-up'ness" with the current 3-party coalition minority national Government, reflected in the collapse of the Socialists' vote from 14.5% to 5.6%. Many of those votes went to the very left-wing Enhedslisten, up from 2.3% to 6.9%, which tends to support the Government and thereby give it a Parliamentary majority. It must be galling for the Socialists that locally, the Enhedslisten is now the bigger party.
The second trend was that although the national Government is unpopular, the main opposition party Venstre could not really take advantage. They increased their share of the vote from 24.8% to 26.6%; but after two years of opinion polls in the mid-30's, they were expecting more. The reason for that was party Chairman Lars Løkke Rasmussen's travel expenses.
The third trend was that the Social Democrats under Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt did better than expected (and many in the party had feared), falling only from 30.7% to 29.5%. Voters on its right-wing probably left and went to the opposition; but that was offset by voters on its left-wing who ditched the Socialists and could not stomach Enhedslisten. Furthermore, they retained the mayor's office in all four of the countries biggest cities, Copenhagen, Aarhus, Odense and Aalborg.
The fourth was the continuing rise of the Danish People's Party, a rise which has been almost continuous since its founding in 1995. The DPP is now the third largest party in local politics, and secured its first ever mayoral office, in Copenhagen (the capital has a super-mayor and a number of mayors).
The mayor's office is powerful in Denmark, since it is the only full-time job on the council and the mayor sets the political agenda. Who gets it is decided by a majority, and since it is very rare for one party to get an absolute majority, coalitions are the norm. Because of the intricacies of those coalitions, the Social Democrats and Venstre tend to end up with most of the mayors. In 2009, it was 49-31 (i.e. 80 out of 98); this time, it has turned around and is now 33-48. Most of the rest are held by the Conservatives, in local pockets of affluence. Despite their vote's falling from 11% to 8.6%, they held all of them, so they were another happy party.
Pulling all that together, it looks as if the national election in 2 years' time will be closer than it might have been. Local councils have much more influence in Denmark than (say) the U.K., and the Social Democrats' showing in particular will have done the Government a power of good. It is still looking like there will be a change of Government, but not a landslide change.
Walter Blotscher
Thursday, 21 November 2013
DANISH POLITICS (8)
The GGGI saga simply refuses to go away, and today claimed its first major political victim, when Development Minister Christian Friis Bach resigned.
Mr. Friis Bach is the minister charged with overseeing the kr.90m of taxpayers' money that has been poured into this organisation, and sits on its board. When details first emerged of GGGI Chairman Lars Løkke Rasmussen's extravagant travel costs, Mr. Friis Bach categorically denied, both to the general public and - even more important - to Parliament that he knew anything about Mr. Rasmussen's extraordinary travel rights and had not been present when the GGGI Board had approved the rules.
This turns out not to be true. He was there when the Budget was approved, and the travel rules were an appendix to that Budget. He had read the Budget, but had not read the appendices, and did not realise that in approving the Budget, he had also approved the rules. When the scandal broke, Mr. Friis Bach asked his officials on a number of occasions whether they were sure that he had not approved the rules, and they said no, thereby making the same mistake as he had.
Politicians on both sides of the political divide are saying that it is a shame that he has resigned (which was an entirely personal decision), and that it is all the fault of those officials. Mr. Friis Bach is well-liked, and is apparently a very good minister. I have less sympathy. Board positions carry responsibilities, foremost of which must be to read what is put in front of you as a basis for a decision. I used to be a civil servant and ministerial private secretary 25 years ago. The civil service could tolerate bad behaviour from a minister, intolerance, ingratitude and much else. The only thing it couldn't tolerate was a minister who did not read the brief. Mr. Bach Friis' experience shows why.
Walter Blotscher
The GGGI saga simply refuses to go away, and today claimed its first major political victim, when Development Minister Christian Friis Bach resigned.
Mr. Friis Bach is the minister charged with overseeing the kr.90m of taxpayers' money that has been poured into this organisation, and sits on its board. When details first emerged of GGGI Chairman Lars Løkke Rasmussen's extravagant travel costs, Mr. Friis Bach categorically denied, both to the general public and - even more important - to Parliament that he knew anything about Mr. Rasmussen's extraordinary travel rights and had not been present when the GGGI Board had approved the rules.
This turns out not to be true. He was there when the Budget was approved, and the travel rules were an appendix to that Budget. He had read the Budget, but had not read the appendices, and did not realise that in approving the Budget, he had also approved the rules. When the scandal broke, Mr. Friis Bach asked his officials on a number of occasions whether they were sure that he had not approved the rules, and they said no, thereby making the same mistake as he had.
Politicians on both sides of the political divide are saying that it is a shame that he has resigned (which was an entirely personal decision), and that it is all the fault of those officials. Mr. Friis Bach is well-liked, and is apparently a very good minister. I have less sympathy. Board positions carry responsibilities, foremost of which must be to read what is put in front of you as a basis for a decision. I used to be a civil servant and ministerial private secretary 25 years ago. The civil service could tolerate bad behaviour from a minister, intolerance, ingratitude and much else. The only thing it couldn't tolerate was a minister who did not read the brief. Mr. Bach Friis' experience shows why.
Walter Blotscher
Tuesday, 19 November 2013
NEW WORDS
One of the consequences of the internet is the spread of new words in the English language. Oxford Dictionaries, who know a thing or two about words, has just crowned "selfie" as 2013's word of the year. Apparently it means a photo taken of yourself and put onto social media. The new pope took one in August, which subsequently went viral.
Other shortlisted words included schmeat (a form of meat synthetically produced from biological tissue), twerk (the dance routine made famous by Miley Cyrus), binge-watch (watching lots of TV), showrooming (looking at a product physically before buying it online) and bitcoin (the virtual currency which may or may not take off in the future).
I can safely say that although I use a fair number of words, not least in this blog, I have never used any of the above.
Walter Blotscher
One of the consequences of the internet is the spread of new words in the English language. Oxford Dictionaries, who know a thing or two about words, has just crowned "selfie" as 2013's word of the year. Apparently it means a photo taken of yourself and put onto social media. The new pope took one in August, which subsequently went viral.
Other shortlisted words included schmeat (a form of meat synthetically produced from biological tissue), twerk (the dance routine made famous by Miley Cyrus), binge-watch (watching lots of TV), showrooming (looking at a product physically before buying it online) and bitcoin (the virtual currency which may or may not take off in the future).
I can safely say that although I use a fair number of words, not least in this blog, I have never used any of the above.
Walter Blotscher
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