FINLAND

Snakes alive

ADDERS, Finland’s only dangerous snakes, will become a protected species in June. In future, people will no longer be permitted to kill them without reasonable cause or disturb them in their natural habitats, although Turku Animal Protection Association’s president, Britt-Marie Juup, foresaw “heated discussions.”

Ireland

Too good

IRELAND has one of the highest rates of overqualification in the EU, according to newly released Eurostat data. Just under 29 per cent of the country’s employees were working in occupations not requiring a third-level degree despite having one, making the country's workforce the EU’s most educated.

Italy

Free pill

ITALY will make free contraception medication available to women of all ages, a move applauded by women’s rights activists nationwide but condemned by anti-abortion advocates. The Pricing and Reimbursement Committee of AIFA, the Italian Medicines Agency now awaits approval from the agency’s board of directors.

PORTUGAL Stony broke

FORMER Banco Espirito Santo (BES) bank boss Ricardo Salgado, out on €3 million bail since 2014, owes more than €30,000 in court costs, which his defence team claims he cannot pay as his assets were impounded by the state. The costs mounted up in unsuccessful appeals to the Constitutional Court.

Ukraine

Looking ahead

UKRAINE lost a third of its economic output in 2022 as eight million people fell into poverty, creating a 15-year setback in poverty reduction goals. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development pledged that when the time came for reconstruction “people will be there, human capital will be there.”

Sweden

New fashion

DRUG busts involving designer drug 3-CMC increased dramatically in Sweden after gaining a foothold during the pandemic, the country’s media said. Between 2019 and 2022 Swedish Customs and the police seized quantities ranging from four to 104 kilos, saying 3-CMC was now more common than cocaine.

THIS year’s edition of the Xàbia Folk Festival takes place from Friday May 5 to Sunday May 7.

The two main concerts will be at the marquee at the Plaça de la Constitució at 10.30pm on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Portuguese singer Teresa Salgueiro, with more than 30 years’ experience as a professional musician and having performed over 1,000 concerts in some of the most prestigious venues all over the world, will take to the stage on the Friday to present her latest album