Denmark cancels national holiday to boost defense budget
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The Folketing, Denmark’s unicameral parliament, has decided to cancel the public holiday – the Great Day of Prayer, which has been celebrated in the country since the 17th century. 95 deputies voted for the abolition, 68 voted against.
This measure was proposed by the government of Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen of the Social Democratic Party and is aimed at increasing funding for the defense budget. The Cabinet of Ministers calculated that the additional working day would bring about 3 billion Danish kroner (about 400 million euros) to the state treasury.
The government’s goal is to increase funding for the defense budget in order to reach the NATO requirement of 2% of GDP by 2030, and not by 2033, as originally planned. This was necessary in light of the conflict on the territory of Ukraine, Frederiksen noted.
“I don’t think it’s a problem to work one more day,” the head of government said. Governments face huge spending on defense, security, health care and green transformation, she said, and there is no financial room to maneuver.
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