#EU: Danish Prime Minister Calls For Smaller European Union Budget Once #UK Leaves After #Brexit

[world politics news]

A smaller European Union should mean a smaller EU budget. That's the argument Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen is making for the post-Brexit EU after the United Kingdom leaves the trading and political bloc next year. Rasmussen tweeted that "a smaller EU should mean a smaller budget!" as the bloc will number 27 members after Brexit. He added that European taxpayers should not be asked "to pay for Brexit."

[FULL STORY HERE]

#DENMARK: PM Rasmussen Refuses To Drop "Socialist" Home Loan Plan Despite Internal Opposition

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen has denied rumors of a spilt within the Venstre (Liberal) party after a minister called a proposal for a state loan system “socialist." The plan calls for the government to take over issuing home loans. According to a news report, Venstre's political group chairman Søren Gade said that he considered the proposal to reflect socialist policy. Rasmussen said that he would move ahead with the proposal, despite the party's internal disagreement over it.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#DENMARK: Left- And Right-Leaning Centrist Parties Could Unite To Topple PM's Liberals

[world politics news]

The Danish People’s Party and the Social Democrats have long resided within their respective ‘blocs’ in the national political makeup, with the People's Party being a member of the right-of-center blue bloc and the Social Democrats, the leading party of the left-of-center red bloc. An alliance between them - rumored more loudly after a joint interview recently with the party's two leaders - could unite the nation's centrists and freeze out Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen’s Venstre party. 

[FULL STORY HERE]

Pictured: The People's Party's Kristian Thulesen Dahl, left, and the Social Democrats' Mette Frederiksen

#DENMARK: Center-Right PM Invites Libertarians, Conservatives Into Government

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen has shored up his minority government by bringing in the libertarian-leaning Liberal Alliance and the Conservative People's Party. Rasmussen presented a 22-member cabinet that includes six posts for LA and three for the Conservatives. In the cabinet shuffle, number of high profile politicians swapped portfolio and a handful of veteran politicians were left without a job.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#DENMARK: Seeking Support For Budget, PM Invites 2 Ptys To Form 3-Way Coalition

[world politics news]

After months of wrangling over a budget, and a weak position for his own party, Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen has begun talks with leaders of the Liberal Alliance and the Conservatives to discuss the creation of a new three-party coalition government. Rasmussen's centre-right Liberal Party holds only 34 out of 179 seats in parliament and needs the support of the anti-immigration Danish People's Party, the libertarian-leaning Liberal Alliance and the Conservatives to govern.

[FULL STORY HERE]

#DENMARK: PM Defends Proposed Law Requiring Refugees Help To Pay For Their Care

[world politics news]

Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen is defending pending legislation that would allow authorities to confiscate refugees' possessions that exceed US$1,360 in value in order to pay for their stay in asylum shelters. During a press briefing, Rasmussen said that the law is the "most misunderstood in Danish history."