Social Democrat leader once again leading Danish government negotiations, roads expected to be busy today due to Royal Run and public holiday, and more news from Denmark on Monday.
Social Democrat leader once again leader of government negotiations
It’s been a busy weekend for Danish politics, to put it mildly.
Liberal leader Troels Lund Poulsen’s attempt to form a right-wing government made up of his party, the Conservatives and Liberal Alliance fell through after Moderate Party leader Lars Løkke Rasmussen refused to provide his support.
Another kongerunde took place to choose a new lead negotiatior, and the position has once again been given to Mette Frederiksen, leader of the Social Democrats.
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Frederiksen will now attempt ‒ yet again ‒ to form a centre-left government made up of the Moderates, the Social Liberals and the Social Democrats. Negotiations took place over the weekend and are expected to continue today.
Denmark has now been without a government for 61 days, and ongoing government negotiations are by far the longest in Danish history.
Danish vocabulary: kongelig undersøger ‒ royal investigator, essentially the person leading government negotiations
Queues expected on the roads due to Royal Run and public holiday
Today is pinsemandag, or Pentecost Monday, a public holiday in Denmark. It’s also the day where Royal Run is held in five Danish cities, which Denmark’s Road Directorate warns could lead to queues on the roads this afternoon.
Things are expected to be especially busy between 2pm and 6pm today, it said.
“A lot of people are heading home after Pentecost at that time, and you can expect heavy traffic and a risk of queues,” Tor Jakobsen, from the Road Directorate’s traffic centre, told the Ritzau news wire.
Eastbound roads are set to be especially busy, with people heading back to Zealand from summer houses in Jutland and Funen.
There are also more than 110,000 people running the Royal Run today, which will affect traffic in Randers, Ringkøbing, Middelfart, Helsingør and Copenhagen.
READ ALSO: How will traffic in Copenhagen be affected by Monday’s Royal Run?
“Remember to leave a good amount of time for your journey, check Trafikinfo.dk and follow along on P4,” Jakobsen said.
Danish vocabulary: tæt trafik og kødannelse ‒ heavy traffic and queues
Summer sun this week ‒ but it’s not set to last
The weather this week will start off sunny, Danish weather agency DMI says, although things will get cooler later in the week.
Jesper Eriksen, DMI’s on-duty meteorologist, told Ritzau that most of the country will enjoy sunshine on Monday, with temperatures of between 18 and 23 degrees.
It may be cloudy in periods on Funen and in Jutland, especially in the morning, with cooler temperatures on the western coast.
Expect temperatures to be similar on Tuesday at around 15-23 degrees, before dropping to 13-18 degrees on Wednesday and more or less the same temperature on Thursday.
Eriksen said that it’s still hard to tell what the weather will be like at the end of the week, but he did say that it’s a good idea to put some sun cream on this week.
“Even if it’s a bit cold, the UV-index is still high, and it could reach 6 around lunchtime and into the afternoon ‒ whether it’s 15 or 23 degrees. So you still need to watch out for the sun,” he said.
Danish vocabulary: en smag af sommervarme ‒ a taste of summer heat
Denmark launches new swimming guidelines
Four Danish organisations are launching national swimming guidelines for the first time in a bid to prevent drowning accidents.
Each year, around 100 people in Denmark die by drowning in Denmark when swimming along the coast, in lakes, harbours and in swimming pools.
Trygfonden, SvømDanmark, DGI and Dansk Skoleidræt, the organisations behind the new guidelines, stipulate that an adult should be able to swim for at least 200 metres without stopping and without the help of floatation devices or other equipment, including 25 metres swimming on their back.
Only 43 percent of adults in Denmark are believed to be able to swim at that level, according to a survey carried out by Epinion on behalf of Trygfonden.
“We live in a country surrounded by water, and that means that we need the skills to be able to react in the water ‒ whether that’s due to an accident, or because we want to enjoy the water,” René Højer, project manager at TrygFonden, told the Ritzau newswire.
Adults should also be able to save an unconscious person in the water (with the help of a floatation device), while children aged 12 or above are expected to be able to swim for at least 75 metres unassisted.
Danish vocabulary: nationale anbefalinger ‒ national recommendations or guidelines