Weekly political overview
The next European Union Commissioner from Denmark is Dan Jørgensen. An EU Commissioner is like a minister. If approved by the EU Commission President, Ursula Von der Leyen, and the EU Parliament, Dan Jørgensen will receive a portfolio to manage. He was the former Minister of Development Aid and Global Climate Policy, so most likely he will be in charge of the environment and climate portfolio.
As part of its focus on Africa, Denmark will open three new embassies (Tunisia, Senegal, Rwanda) and strengthen its presence in Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, and Ghana. At the same time, the embassies in Burkina Faso and Mali will be closed due to those countries’ alignment with Russia.
“Denmark’s Arctic ambassador will be from Greenland,” says Mette Frederiksen, effectively ending the dispute over the position between the Greenlandic and Danish governments. At the same time, Denmark will pour 140 million DKK into the Greenlandic healthcare system.
Updates from the political parties
- DF (Nationalist Conservative) proposed a review of all citizenships given in the past 20 years. Under the scheme, everyone who received citizenship in the last eight years would retake a much more difficult test, while the ones who received it in the last 20 years and committed any crime would lose their citizenship.
- Pernille Vermund, former leader of the far-right Nye Borgerlige, regrets her anti-immigration remarks made in the past, as she turns over a new leaf as the business spokesperson for the Liberal Alliance.
- The government wants to cut 1,000 positions in state administration in 2025. SF (Socialists) and Liberal Alliance (Libertarian Conservatives) find that number unambitious.
Focus
Major government changes
- The Lord Mayor of Copenhagen, Sophie Hæstorp Andersen, has been promoted to the new Minister of Social Affairs and Housing. The former minister Pernille Rosenkrantz-Theil is preparing to run for the Lord Mayor of Copenhagen position in 2025.
- Three new ministries have been created: the Ministry of Europe, the Ministry of Green Tripartite, and the Ministry of Crisis Preparedness. The former Minister of Digitalization and Equality, Marie Bjerre, has been appointed as the Minister of Europe, while the former Minister of Taxation, Jeppe Bruus, has been named as the Minister of Green Tripartite. Torsten Schack Pedersen is the Minister of Crisis Preparedness.
- The new Minister of Taxation is Rasmus Stoklund, while the new Minister of Digitalization is Caroline Stage Olsen.
- You can see here what the ministers look like. This is the highest number of ministers ever (25).
Why the new ministries?
- Ministry of Europe: Denmark will take over the presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2025. The ministry has been created to prepare for the six-month term at the helm of the third most important EU institution (after the Commission and Parliament).
- Ministry of Green Tripartite: To implement the major reform, “Agreement on a Green Denmark,” a separate ministry from environment and climate has been created.
- Ministry of Crisis Preparedness: Denmark is preparing to overhaul and strengthen emergency services, and a ministry has been created to ensure prioritization. The focus will be on cybersecurity, critical infrastructure defense, population resilience, etc.
