Monday, May 31, 2010

Icelandic police protest pay contract delay

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alþingiAround 100 police officers gathered to protest outside the Icelandic parliament today to draw attention to the fact that their collective wage contract ran out a year ago.



According to RUV the police officers arrived to the protest with a birthday cake in celebration of the contract’s anniversary.

It was their intention to give the cake to Finance Minister Steingrimur J. Sigfusson; but a parliamentary guard took reception of the confection on his behalf.

Related Posts: Politicians' pride angers man on street in Reykjavik Reykjavik riots: tear gas from police point of view Protesters return to Reykjavik streets Protests in Iceland Man dies in Reykjavik

Iceland’s biggest municipalities vote for change

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Iceland-Referendum02The council majorities in Reykjavik, Kopavogur, Hafnarfjordur and Akureyri all fell at yesterday’s local elections – Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir described it as a boundary shift in Icelandic politics.

In Reykjavik the brand new Best Party – headed up by comedians and musicians with no political experience – got 35 percent of the vote and six councillors. The Independence Party received 34 percent of votes and have five councillors, down two. The Social Democrats lost one councillor and now have three from 20 percent of votes. The Left Green Movement received seven percent of votes and get one councillor down

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Landsbanki law suit could see Icesave payout cut to 30 percent

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landsbanki2A group of international banks has filed a legal challenge against the Landsbanki dissolution committee claiming that they should be treated as priority claimants. If they win, only 30-35 percent of the bank’s assets will go to pay Icesave.

According to Old Landsbanki, Iceland’s emergency banking laws allow the bank to classify the Dutch and British depositors’ insurance funds as priority claimants; but other creditors to the bankrupt bank, including big banks and bondholders, have decided to challenge the decision in court under Iceland’s bankruptcy laws.



It is clear that if the Reykjavik District Court finds in favour of the

Friday, May 28, 2010

Finland to save cash with larger day care centres

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finnishflags1Local governments across Finland are to save money by closing dozens of small day care centres and relocating children to larger, more cost-efficient units.

The move has come under scrutiny from the Finnish Association of Kindergarten Teachers which argues that there should be a cap on class sizes. “In my opinion, any daycare centre with more than a hundred children is too large. One must take into consideration that each centre’s director has to be able to have the possibility to act as a hands-on supervisor,” said Anne Liinola, the Association's chair.



The City of Espoo on the outskirts of

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Second Eurovision semifinal tonight

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eurovision-norway-little2Denmark and Sweden will both compete in the second semi final of the Eurovision Song Contest in Oslo this evening. Ten of the 17 participants will go through to Saturday's final.

The dress rehearsal for the show took place yesterday in front of a limited crowd of journalists and VIP pass holders.

Denmark's entry, fronted by Chanee & N’evergreen, is heavy on stage effects including a transparent wall which, when removed, allows the singers to hold hands.



Sweden’s entry – This is my Life by Anna Bergendahl – has no stage effects at all and features just the singer, her

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

South Iceland earthquake compensation

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iceland-sattelite22The Arborg municipality has been awarded ISK 392 million (USD 3 million) in compensation for the large earthquake in spring 2008.



The earthquake in spring 2008 measured 6.3 on the Richter scale and caused extensive damage, although no serious injury or loss of human life.

ISK 270 million comes from infrastructure insurance to compensate the municipality for repairs to property, sewers and hot and cold water mains. ISK 100 million comes from the central government and some ISK 30 million from the civil emergencies fund.

Related Posts: Breaking News: Earthquake hits Reykjavik, Iceland RMS releases report on Iceland's quake Large earthquake hits Iceland

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Iceland Volcano News gets foreign media attention

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eyjafallajokull76Foreign media, including BBC News and Sky News, are being inspired by Iceland in spreading the huge news of the Eyjafallajokull volcano starting to cool down. This kind of exposure is a reassuring boost for tourism in Iceland, as travellers are now being made aware of how safe the country really is, as well as the unrestricted flights to Iceland.



This exposure in the news and Iceland's search volume online has seen its greatest rise over the past few months, with a total increase of 800 percent global search volume – much higher the period during the banking crisis in