News Snippets from the European Press

Netherlands: Harmful herbs The Netherlands’ Public Health and Environment Institute (RIVM) warned against herbal supplement  Tabernanthe iboga (ibogaine). The RIVM said that even when used according to instructions it could disrupt the heart’s rhythm and had caused “dozens of deaths” worldwide”, including some in the Netherlands.

Denmark: It’s magic The Danish Customs Agency (Toldstyrelsen) stopped 921 attempts to smuggle psychedelic mushrooms into the country in 2023, more than double the 453 cases detected in 2022.   The mushrooms were usually smuggled in the post, generally from the Netherlands but also from other countries, the Agency revealed.

Strong message Denmark’s currency reserves rose from 630.2 billion (€84.5 billion) to 636.7 billion kroner (€85.4 billion) in February 2024, underlining the country’s robust financial stability. International analysts said sent “a strong message” about Denmark’s resilience and expertise in managing its economic policies.”

Norway: Tragic fail A Sikorsky S-92 helicopter which crashed on a training mission to offshore oil and gas fields west of Bergen on February 28 would have stayed afloat if vital equipment had not failed, investigators concluded. A nurse in her 60s who worked for Equinor died in the accident and five people suffered minor injuries.

Super setting OPENING scenes for the Superman remake starring David Correnswet have been shot on location in Adventdalen, Svalbard, director James Gunn confirmed to the Svalbardposten newspaper.  “There were a lot of things that sold Svalbard to us above the other places. For one, its natural beauty,” Gunn said.

Italy: Fine gesture A Florence municipal police chief paid a traffic fine for a jobless ex-employee of the closed GKN engineering plant who asked if city hall would suspend a €74 fine until he was able to pay it. As the fine could not be frozen, the officer said she would pay it herself “to demonstrate solidarity with GKN workers.

Paint job Three climate activists in their 20s received eight-month suspended sentences for spraying the Senate building in Rome with orange paint in January 2023.  The Last Generation members, who will elude jail only on payment of €60,000 in damages, announced that they would appeal “and keep going.”

Belgium: Domino effect Following The Body Shop cosmetics chain’s collapse into administration in the UK, 20 stores belonging to its Belgian operation have now closed and gone into liquidation. Receivers in the Netherlands will be dealing with the bankruptcy as the shops were part of The Body Shop Benelux’s Dutch division.

Work it out Belgians on permanent contracts worked 33.5 hours per week in 2024, compared with 31.8 hours in 2014, a study by HR experts Acerta found.  Men now work 19 minutes more each week, amounting to an extra two days each year, but women work almost two hours more, equivalent to an annual 11 days.

Germany: Spy game Germany’s ambassador to the UK, Miguel Berger, said former Defence Secretary Ben Wallace had fallen into a Russian trap by slating German intelligence over a leaked phone call where army officers discussed support for Ukraine. “This is what Russia wanted by publishing this phone conversation,” he said.

Hot stuff Engineers decided that Hartheim, Breisach and Bad Krozingen were possible locations for a geothermal heating project after discovering water-bearing layers between 2,500 and 3,200 metres below ground. They said the geothermal heat stored in these layers should be able to support a heating and distribution plant.

France: Hands-on British artist Damien Hirst who dominated the UK art scene in the 90s launched an exhibition show of his works at Chateau La Coste, a 500-acre estate and vineyard located near Aix-en-Provence.  This includes an on-site chapel due to open in 2025 that will feature a 30-metre high bronze hand pointing skywards.

Heavy-handed Seventeen charities complained that the police were taking an over-tough line with Paris sex workers prior to next July’s Olympics and inflicting “heavy-handed” identity controls.  Officers would do better to focus on the criminal organisations which robbed, raped and assaulted them, a joint statement maintained.

Finland: Radar ruse Finnish meteorologists revealed that military exercises in northern regions of Finland, Sweden and Norway produced unusual images on radar observation maps on March 6. Apparent rain over Finland when none was falling probably originated, they said, in materials used to foil radar-spying by hostile neighbours.

Wages gap Official figures from Statistics Finland showed an overall 1.4 per cent reduction in January 2024 salaries when compared to those of 2023. Private sector wages were 4.3 per cent lower than a year ago, analysts found, although people employed in the public sector saw a 7.7 per cent increase during this same period.

Ireland: Measles alert The Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) confirmed that it had received notification of a second measles case and was taking all necessary public health precautions to prevent an epidemic.  The new case follows the death of a Westmeath man from measles in February, the first in more than 20 years.

Not a laugh Dublin doctors were worried about the number of teenagers they treat for frostbite associated with oxide, better known as laughing gas. When transferring the gas from canisters to balloons before inhaling it, spilled liquid can cause severe frostbite burns consultant Paediatric surgeon Dr Catherine de Blacam said.

Portugal: Lost and found A woman of 28 who vanished in October 2023 from a medical facility in Arevalo (Spain, where she was receiving treatment for mental health problems, was located by the Portuguese police on March 6.  She disappeared after receiving permission to go for a walk, and was said to be in good health when found.

Bank on it A survey of Portugal’s banking habits found that 53.4 per cent of the population had only one bank account while 29.5 per cent had two or more. The same study found that 59 per cent of the Portuguese habitually used contactless payments, secon. highest after the UK (69 per cent) and Spain (72 per cent).

Sweden: Not needed Police in southern Sweden want a ban on sales of bulletproof vests, maintaining that they belong to war zones and bring fear to peaceful communities. Dismissing claims that they protected the young from gang warfare, police officer Patrik Andersson said he believed that body armour “has no place in Swedish society.”

Flypast Escorted by two jets from the Swedish air force, two US bombers flew low over Stockholm, Arlanda and Uppsala on March 5. “We are doing this in a clear signal that we are protecting our national territory alongside our allies, creating safety and security for the Swedish population,” one of the Swedish officers said.