PRESS EUROPEAN

Denmark

Best place

TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL’S annual report on 180 countries pronounced Denmark as the world’s least corrupt country in 2022, awarding it 90 points, followed by Finland and New Zealand in second place with 87. Somalia in Africa, embroiled in ongoing conflict, was ranked last with 12 points.

The Netherlands

Coffee joint

CANNABIS sellers in The Netherlands are developing a national quality certificate for coffee shops to assist in improving relationships with local governments and the law. The PCN shop-owners’ union explained to members that obtaining the certificate would involve training for coffee shop employees and introduce product quality control.

Belgium

Powered down

BELGIUM shut down its Tihange 2 reactor on January 31 as the country winds down its reliance on nuclear power. The 40-year-old installation near to the German border was also a source of friction with its neighbour, who cited security concerns after cracks were found in the reactor’s pressure vessels.

Germany

Old-timers

ARCHEOLOGISTS believe Neanderthals lived in larger groups than previously thought, hunting elephants that tripled the size of today’s. After studying 125-year-old skeletons of straight-tusked elephants found near Halle in central German where Neanderthals once lived, researchers found these were clearly hunted by “large social units.”

France

Beetling off

A FACTORY in Dole (France) is the world’s largest vertical insect farm, accommodating approximately three trillion mealworm beetles which are raised from larvae to adults. When mature, they are humanely dispatched before being harvested for oil and fertiliser as well as protein for animal feed.

Norway

All alone

SINGLE men were likely to have lower quality of life than single women and were less satisfied with their social relationships, a survey by Statistics Norway, the country’s official data agency, discovered. It also found that men without a spouse or partner usually had poorer living conditions.

Finland

Cold comfort

JANUARY was “unusually and exceptionally mild” in much of Finland, the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) said. Average temperatures in some regions ranged between a benign two and five degrees while Rovaniemi City in Finnish Lapland saw its warmest January since monthly records began in the late 1950s.

Ireland

Another patron

IRELAND observed a public holiday honouring St Brigid of Kildare who is steadily gaining a following in Ireland and abroad rivalling the country’s traditional patron, St Patrick. Devotees see Brigid, and the ancient Irish goddess whose name and attributes she shares, as personifying feminine spirituality and empowerment.

Italy

Home truths

ITALY’S Supreme Appeals Court ruled that children need not see their grandparents unless they wished. The decision followed an appeal by the parents of two children after lower courts backed the grandparents’ complaints that they never saw the children, who allegedly did not enjoy the visits.

PORTUGAL Deadly bug

THE Xylella fastidiosa bacterium which has attacked trees in some parts of Spain is spreading fast in Portugal. Unlike Spain where the infestation has been largely limited to almonds, vines as well as trees bearing citrus fruit, cherries, peaches and olives have been affected in the Oporto area.

Ukraine

Clean sweep

UKRAINE launched a far-reaching anti-corruption drive that included raids on high-profile persons following increasing pressure from its Western partners, notably the EU, to tackle corruption. When voted into power in 2019, Ukraine’s president Volodymir Zelensky cited the fight against corruption as a principal priority.

Sweden

Hard task

SWEDEN’S Climate minister, 27-year-old Romina Pourmokhtari, said she would resign if the country’s ambitious climate and environment goals cannot be reached. This could prove difficult as the coalition government elected in October 2021 includes the Sweden Democrats party which regards climate change as ‘a myth’.