SOCIAL DEMOCRACY

Denmark has the lowest home price-to-income ratio among 35 European countries


By Dr. Tim Sandle
November 6, 2024

Since the 2009 Self-Government Act, only Greenland's currency, justice system, foreign and security affairs fall under Denmark's authority - Copyright PRU/AFP/File Handout

Across many industrial sectors, salaries are struggling keep up with inflation and the increasing prices of real estate across most of Europe makes purchasing property challenging. This is the subject of a new report, comparing the home price-to-income ratio in 35 European countries.

The company that has compiled the report is BestBrokers, who have checked the average prices of real estate from the price comparison website Numbeo as well as research the net salary employees earn on average in 62 countries, including 35 in Europe.

The firm also considered the inflation and applied the projected inflation percentage for the third quarter of the year to the monthly wage. This allowed them to see the current situation income-wise in these countries and estimate the real affordability of homes.

The calculations show that Denmark, one of the most expensive countries in Europe and the world, has the most affordable residential real estate when the average monthly salary is taken into account. A home of 100 square metres in the Scandinavian country costs roughly €441,791.15, which is equivalent to around 114 average real net salaries.

In comparison, the average cost of homes of the same size across Europe is much higher and is the equivalent of 190 salaries.

Ireland ranks second in Europe with 123 monthly salaries needed to purchase a home of this size, followed by Sweden in third place with 129 monthly salaries.

In contrast, the European country with the worst home price-to-income ratio is Slovakia where the price of 100 sq. metres of residential real estate is equivalent to roughly 297 monthly wages. To afford a home of this size, those on the average salary there need to save their entire earnings for 24 years and 9 months. The countries with the highest home sales prices in Europe are Switzerland (€14,185 per sq. m.) and Luxembourg (€8,953 per sq. m.), while the lowest prices are in Moldova (€1,319 per sq. m.) and North Macedonia (€1,420 per sq. m.).

Further with Switzerland, it is the nation with the highest real net salary in Europe at €5,829, followed by Denmark (€3,857). The lowest wages are in Moldova (€566) and North Macedonia (€661).

Top 10 countries where homes cost the most monthly wages in EuropeSlovakia – real net salary of €1,121, €3,332.65 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 297 wages
Czechia – real net salary of €1,420, €3,900.52 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 274 wages
Slovenia – real net salary of €1,449, €3,786.65 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 261 wages
Montenegro – real net salary of €819, €2,100.45 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 256 wages
Bosnia and Herzegovina – real net salary of €672, €1,714.73 per sq. metre, 100-sq. metre home costs 255 wages
Luxembourg – real net salary of €3,632, €8,953.05 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 246 wages
Switzerland – real net salary of €5,829, €14,185.05 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 243 wages
Poland – real net salary of €1,258, €3,051.77 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 243 wages
Croatia – real net salary of €1,289, €3,067.34 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 238 wages
Portugal – real net salary of €1,226, €2,873.41 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 234 wages

Top 10 countries where 100-sq.metre homes cost the fewest average salariesDenmark – real net salary of €3,856.49, €4,417.91 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 114 wages
Ireland – real net salary of €3,282.83, €4,036.42 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 123 wages
Sweden – real net salary of €3,083.62, €3,989.38 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 139 wages
Spain – real net salary of €2,139.88, €2,825.11 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 132 wages
Belgium – real net salary of €2,524.55, €3,333.86 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 132 wages
Cyprus – real net salary of €1,804.41, €2,508.63 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 139 wages
Norway – real net salary of €3,469.20, €4,869.36 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 140 wages
Netherlands – real net salary of €3,197.86, €4,944.11 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 154 wages
Latvia – real net salary of €1,198.44, €1,903.02 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 159 wages
Romania – real net salary of €993.20, €1,715.82 per sq. metre, 100-sq.metre home costs 173 wages

With the data computation, he price to income ratio is the nominal house price index divided by the nominal disposable income per head and can be considered as a measure of affordability.

Bolivia demonstrators announce 72-hour suspension of blockades


By AFP
November 6, 2024

Supporters of Bolivian ex-president Evo Morales face off with police in Parotani, in Cochabamba department, on November 1, 2024

 - Copyright AFP/File FERNANDO CARTAGENA

Supporters of former Bolivian president Evo Morales, who have been blocking roads in the center of the country for three weeks in a standoff with the government, on Wednesday announced a 72-hour “humanitarian” pause.

The protests began on October 14 after prosecutors charged Morales, who led the country from 2006 to 2019, with statutory rape over his alleged relationship with a 15-year-old girl while in office.

Morales says the charges, which he denies, were brought by the government of his former-ally-turned-rival President Luis Arce to prevent him making a political comeback.

The blockades have dealt a blow to the Bolivian economy and caused the prices of food and fuel to rocket.

“We are going to pause… for humanitarian reasons,” Humberto Claros, general secretary of Bolivia’s union of rural laborers, told Kawsachun Coca radio station, which is close to Morales.

Claros claimed that four demonstrators had been killed and “at least 100” others were injured in clashes with the security forces since the protests began.

The government denies any deaths during the clashes, saying that 127 people have been injured, 92 of them police officers, adding 180 arrests had been made.

Bolivia’s ombudsman’s office also told AFP it had received “no reports” of any deaths.

The announcement of the suspension of the blockades comes after the security forces cleared several key roads leading from the central Cochabamba department, the country’s breadbasket, to the capital La Paz and other cities in recent days.

“We have managed to reduce the blockades to the minimum,” Interior Minister Eduardo Del Castillo told a press conference on Wednesday.

The Bolivian Highway Administration reported there were no remaining roadblocks in the country as of Wednesday night, after more than 20 had been reported during the peak of the protests.

Morales resigned under a cloud in 2019 after elections marked by fraud but is eyeing a comeback, despite being barred from seeking a fourth term.

On Friday, he went on hunger strike to press for dialogue with the government.

He also called for a temporary lifting of the blockades.

His mainly Indigenous supporters blocked access to the Cochabamba region to denounce what they called the “judicial persecution” of the 65-year-old.

But they are now also demanding that Arce, whom they hold responsible for an economic crisis that predated the protests, resign.

On Friday, the standoff took a dramatic turn when protesters besieged three army barracks in the central region of Chapare.

The government says they are holding around 200 soldiers hostage.

Ottawa to shut TikTok’s Canada operations, says app can still be used

By AFP
November 6, 2024

TikTok has come under scrutiny for its ownership under China-based ByteDance. - Copyright AFP/File Antonin UTZ

Ottawa said Wednesday it is shutting TikTok’s operations in Canada following a security review, but Canadians will still be allowed to use the popular video sharing app.

“The government is taking action to address the specific national security risks related to ByteDance Ltd.’s operations in Canada,” Francois-Philippe Champagne, minister of innovation, science and industry, said in a statement.

Ottawa is not imposing restrictions on Canadian users of TikTok, which has come under scrutiny for its ownership under China-based ByteDance.

“The decision to use a social media application or platform is a personal choice,” Champagne said.

Canada banned TikTok from all government devices last year and launched a security review of the application.

Champagne said Wednesday’s decision was made in accordance with a law that “allows for the review of foreign investments that may be injurious to Canada’s national security.”

A cyber expert at the University of Ottawa, Michael Geist, said “there may well be good reasons” to ban the app but warned the move could be counterproductive.

“Banning the company rather than the app may actually make matters worse since the risks associated with the app will remain but the ability to hold the company accountable will be weakened,” Geist wrote in an online post.

TikTok also faces a ban in the United States if it remains owned by ByteDance — a threat the company is battling in a federal appeals court, arguing that it violates free speech rights.

The US government alleges that TikTok allows Beijing to collect data and spy on users. It also says the platform is a conduit to spread propaganda.

China and the company strongly deny these claims.

Australia moves to ban children under 16 from social media

By AFP
November 6, 2024

Australia's government says unchecked social media algorithms are serving up disturbing content to highly impressionable children and teenagers - Copyright AFP/File JOEL SAGET

Australia will move to pass new laws banning children under 16 from social media, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Thursday, vowing to crack down on tech giants failing to protect vulnerable users.

Platforms such as Facebook, TikTok and Instagram would be held responsible for enforcing the age ban, Albanese said, and face potentially hefty fines for failing to do so.

The Australian government first mooted a social media age limit earlier this year, and the idea enjoys broad bipartisan support among lawmakers.

“This one is for the mums and dads. Social media is doing real harm to kids and I’m calling time on it,” Albanese said.

The new laws would be presented to state and territory leaders this week, before being introduced to parliament in late November.

Tech platforms would then be given a one-year grace period to figure out how they would implement the ban.

Albanese said unchecked social media algorithms were serving up disturbing content to highly impressionable children and teenagers.

“I get things popping up on my system that I don’t want to see. Let alone a vulnerable 14-year-old,” he said.

“Young women see images of particular body shapes that have a real impact.”

Albanese said he had settled on 16 as an appropriate age after a series of age verification trials conducted by the government.

Analysts have previously expressed doubt that it would be technically possible to enforce such a strict age ban.

– ‘Truly world-leading’ –

“We already know that present age verification methods are unreliable, too easy to circumvent, or risk user privacy,” University of Melbourne researcher Toby Murray said earlier this year.

A series of exemptions would be decided for platforms such as YouTube, which teenagers may need to use for school work or other reasons.

Australia has been at the vanguard of global efforts to clean up social media.

The government introduced a “combating misinformation” bill earlier this year, outlining sweeping powers to fine tech giants for breaching online safety obligations.

Australia’s online watchdog is locked in a running battle with Elon Musk’s X, accusing the platform of failing to stamp out harmful posts.

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said the reforms were “truly world-leading”.

Social media platforms were repeatedly “falling short”, she said at Wednesday’s press briefing with Albanese.

“Social media companies have been put on notice,” Rowland said.

“They need to ensure their practices are made safer.”

Rowland flagged that there would be financial penalties for tech companies that failed to comply.

‘We don’t feel safe’: Serbians lash out after fatal roof collapse


By AFP
November 6, 2024

Thousands have protested following last week's accident 

 - Copyright AFP Jim WATSON
Ognjen ZORIC

For years, Serbia’s leaders boasted of launching a building spree across the country that had touched off a new era of prosperity in the Balkan country.

But following the deaths of 14 people after a roof collapsed at a train last week, a new tide of anger has been unleashed at authorities. That public ire has largely focused on reports of alleged short cuts made with building projects, reports that have left many with a new sense of vulnerability.

On Tuesday evening, more than 20,000 protestors rallied in the city of Novi Sad outside the train station where the fatal incident occurred. Many in the crowd chanted “Prison, prison!” while waving signs that read: “How many more dead children?”

“We’ve been unhappy as a people for a very long time,” Djordje Mitrovic, 30, told AFP at the rally. “We don’t live well. We don’t feel well… And now we don’t feel safe either.”

Amid mounting public pressure, the country’s Construction Minister Goran Vesic resigned Tuesday, citing his ministry’s oversight of development projects.

Vesic refused, however, to “accept the guilt for the deaths of 14 people”.

The central railway station in Novi Sad underwent three years of renovation that was completed in July, though Serbia Railways said the collapsed outdoor roof had not been part of that work.

The construction was handled by a Chinese consortium comprising China Railway International Co. Ltd and China Communications Construction Company Ltd.

The authorities have vowed to investigate.



– ‘Land of cranes’ –



After years of war in 1990s followed by attempts to kickstart Serbia’s economy, the Serbian Progressive Party led by President Aleksandar Vucic was elected into office more than a decade ago, promising a new era of stability in the country.

In the decade that followed, the promised renewal was most visible in the string of projects Vucic and the party launched across the country — including bridges, roads and a massive waterfront development in the capital Belgrade.

Vucic often boasted of transforming Serbia into “a land of cranes”.

But following the fatal accident in Novi Sad, analysts have warned that Vucic’s political trump card is now at risk of turning into a liability.

“When a part of a building that stood for 50 years collapses shortly after renovations, the safety of newly constructed, extended, and restored public structures becomes a matter of common sense,” sociologist Dario Hajric told AFP.

After the roof’s collapse, people have taken to both streets and social media questioning the safety of several new projects set to open in the coming years — including an underground metro network and bridge in Belgrade.

“Today, as we walk around the city, we have to consider whether something might fall on our heads,” opposition figure Stevan Babic told reporters.

“It is a direct result of corruption, rigged tenders, and crony connections,” added Ana Oreg, a member of parliament and Novi Sad resident.

– ‘Accountability’ –

Vucic visited Novi Sad late Tuesday shortly after the protest, insisting that the government has taken all necessary steps to punish those responsible for the railway station tragedy.

“No one will escape accountability if they made a mistake,” Vucic vowed.

Since the accident, prosecutors in Novi Sad have questioned over 50 individuals, including Vesic and officials from Serbian Railways.

The prosecutor’s office has also gathered documents as part of its investigation into what caused the disaster and who might be responsible.

Ultimately however, the transparency of the probe may serve as the true litmus test when it comes to regaining public trust.

In findings published earlier this year, Transparency International warned that Serbia was “witnessing a democratic decline, with its autocratic government using special laws to limit transparency in large-scale projects”.

Many observers are worried that officials will now duck responsiblity for the train station accident.

“The authorities don’t need the truth but rather a version of reality in which they bear no blame,” said the sociologist, Hajric.

Israelis in Jerusalem see Trump return as ‘God’s plan’

ZIONIST WET DREAM

By AFP
November 6, 2024

 - Copyright AFP/File Olivier Touron

Ruth EGLASH

Israelis in Jerusalem welcomed Donald Trump’s US election triumph on Wednesday, hoping he might help end the wars devastating the region, while some called it “part of God’s plan”.

“I believe in God, so this is part of God’s plan,” Esther Henderson, 44, a shopper in the ancient city’s popular Mahane Yehuda market, told AFP.

“I feel like this is part of God showing us that the evil side, the more corrupt, the globalism, is starting to fall down,” she said.

“It’s not that I love Trump so much,” said Henderson. “I just don’t like what’s been going on in the world lately.”

Recent surveys have shown that a majority of Israelis, 66 percent according to one conducted by Israel’s Channel 12 News, were hoping to see Trump return to the White House.

That sentiment was echoed by many people at the market in Jerusalem on Wednesday when it became clear that Trump had won.

Divided Jerusalem is considered holy by the world’s three main monotheistic religions and is home to many conservative Israelis.

“This is excellent, he is good for the Jews,” said Yossi Mizrachi, 51, a fruit vendor.

“Now we just need him to give us weapons,” he said, adding that he believed Trump would be able to “bring an end to the war.”

In a cafe, Yechiel Hajbi, 57, also said he was “very happy” that Trump had won and felt hopeful that his return to power would “bring peace.”



– ‘Unstable opinions’ –



He said he expected Trump to use his business skills to mediate a peace deal similar to the 2020 Abraham Accords.

“He is strong… I believe in him,” Hajbi said. “I believe he can make peace with the Arabs… they like him.”

He said he had been less impressed with Trump’s Democrat rival Vice President Kamala Harris, calling her “weak” and saying she would not have been able to manage the conflicts raging in the Middle East.

Natan Shlomo, 36, also dismissed Harris’s ability to stand by Israel despite vowing in her campaign to do so, using an expletive to refer to President Joe Biden.

Trump, he said, will “act like a man, like the way the classic man is supposed to act”.

But other shoppers were less certain.

“I have mixed feelings,” said Assa Izhar, 63, who was visiting Jerusalem from the central Israeli city of Modiin.

“I am a little worried about Trump because he, in my opinion, is fickle and could be fickle about us too,” he said.

“On the other hand, he made the Abraham Accords and other agreements, so I hope that, as I heard this morning… he does not start wars, he finishes them,” Izhar said.

“I hope that is what he’ll do, end wars,” he said.

Dganit Yasmin, 56, also said she was unsure if Trump’s return would be good or bad for Israel.

“Honestly, I didn’t know who I prefer,” she said. “I have concerns about Trump but I also had concerns about Kamala.”

“I just hope whoever is elected will be good to Israel, that’s ultimately what is important to us,” Yasmin said.

“I hope he will be on our side, because I know that sometimes he has unstable opinions.”

Spain’s young flood helpers smash ‘snowflake’ stereotype


By AFP
November 6, 2024

Youths have been at the forefront of a wave of solidarity during Spain's devastating floods 

- Copyright AFP/File Olivier Touron

Alfons LUNA

Young volunteers have spearheaded a humanitarian campaign for victims of Spain’s deadliest floods in decades, smashing stereotypes of an apathetic and feeble “snowflake generation” interested in nothing other than themselves.

“Hundreds, perhaps thousands have come, they have conducted themselves magnificently,” said Noelia Saez, a 48-year-old from the devastated town of Catarroja.

The altruism also overjoyed 62-year-old Teresa Gisbert, a resident of the ruined town of Sedavi, where dozens of young volunteers rushed to assist as mud covered the streets and her home.

“They bring us food, they have helped us… they are angels,” she told AFP.

Their towns are in the eastern Valencia region, where almost all the destruction and the more than 200 deaths have been recorded since the floods struck a week ago.

With the authorities absent from some of the worst-affected areas for days, an army of ordinary citizens travelled on foot to provide food, water and cleaning equipment to clear the mud.

Youths have been at the forefront of this wave of solidarity and were at work again in Catarroja on Wednesday, loading trucks with fresh supplies, an AFP journalist saw.

It was a far cry from stereotypes caricaturing the generation born in this millennium as self-centred “snowflakes” addicted to endless scrolling on social media.

“The elderly are always going to say that people who aren’t from their generation are worse,” said Angela Noblejas, a 19-year-old industrial engineering student.

“But now that they’ve given us an opportunity, that maybe they wouldn’t have given us, because it’s not a good situation, we young have responded pretty well.”

– ‘A real goal’ –

Noblejas and her fellow millennial friends spent Tuesday immersed in muck and debris in the town of Algemesi to aid the clean-up.

Her grandfather had told her of a 1957 flood that razed the Valencia region and killed dozens. Now Noblejas believes she is creating stories for her children and grandchildren.

“I think going, getting covered in mud, helping, will have been much better than telling them, ‘No, I stayed at home without doing anything’,” she said.

Her friend Gisela Huguet also dismissed the accusation that today’s young are always on their mobile phones avidly seeking the next “like”.

“We’re concerned about society,” the 19-year-old IT and mathematics student told AFP, saying the victims were “people from our town, people like us, university buddies”.

For Jose Antonio Lopez-Guitian, a 61-year-old humourist from the city of Valencia who has joined the volunteer mobilisation, modern youths are “soft” because they live in “times that are perhaps not so hard”.

“They are people of their time, and with their mobiles there’s no reason why they should be like those who came before,” he said.

“Young people don’t have the chance to do something meaningful,” he said, but Spain’s greatest crisis in living memory has given them “a real goal, which above all is to help”.

Solidarity rally planned in Victoria BC

for postal workers who prepare for 

potential strike

Wednesday, November 6th, 2024
ByCurtis Blandy


The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) is planning a solidarity rally as negotiations remain at a standstill with Canada Post.

CUPW say that for nearly a year, they have been bargaining with Canada Post for fair wages, safe working conditions, the right for all workers to retire with dignity and the expansion of public postal services for all communities.

Thus far, neither party has issued a 72-hour notice of strike or lockout.

“Throughout this process, Canada Post has not dropped its proposed rollbacks and is asking for many of our major issues to be resolved through arbitration instead of at the bargaining table,” wrote Kate Holowatiuk, President of CUPW Victoria Local 850 in a media release.

According to the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations and Employment Board (FPSLREB), if the parties involved cannot reach an agreement at the bargaining table, either one may ask to use the arbitration process.

From there, the third party arbitrator creates a binding report that considers the factors of both parties’ positions on outstanding issues.

This report forms the terms and conditions for the new collective agreement.

If the arbitration process is utilized in disputes, the union loses its right to initiate a strike.

Canada Post says that for now they are continuing to negotiate and are currently in the process of reviewing a counter offer from CUPW on November 5th that was made in response to an offer they made on October 29th.

As the negotiations continue, CUPW has planned a solidarity rally on Thursday, November 7th in an effort to pressure Canada Post to agree to their terms.

“When unionized workers make gains, it brings widespread benefits to other workers and communities,” Holowatiuk said.

CUPW says that labour and union allies will be turning out in solidarity with postal workers as they fight for better conditions and wages.

The rally will be held outside the Victoria Mail Processing Plant, located at 4181 Glanford Avenue, and will begin at 2 p.m.

Physicians’ advocacy group calls for an end to sick note requirements in Canada

By Curtis Blandy

An advocacy group for doctors and nurses in Canada is calling for legislation that would end workplaces requiring sick notes as it is counter productive to medical professionals’ workloads.

The organization calling for this legislation is the Canadian Medical Association (CMA), who work with the media and all levels of government to communicate how to improve medical workers’ lives.

They say the elimination of sick notes for short-term minor illnesses could prevent as many as 12.5 million unnecessary health-care interactions in a single year across the country.

This data comes from a study done by Abacus Data in which one-third of Canadian respondents answered that they were asked by their employers to produce a sick note for a short-term absence at least once in the last year.

“Sick notes are not a health systems issue, they’re a human resources issue,” says Dr. Joss Reimer, president of the CMA.

“We understand that organizations have policies in place to manage their human resources, but when 6.5 million Canadians don’t have access to a family doctor and patients wait far too long for specialty care, physicians need to focus their time caring for patients who need medical care.”

In 2021, the CMA conducted a National Physician Health Survey, which indicated that 53% of physicians feel “highly burned out”.

This is in part due to the burden of administrative work that physicians must endure—including writing sick notes.

The CMA is calling for action from the government to make this change to sick note policy, which they say would improve the working conditions and lives of physicians across Canada.

This is a change that would need to be made at the provincial government level.

B.C.’s new cabinet to be sworn in Nov. 18

By Staff The Canadian Press
Posted November 6, 2024


Elections BC says human error is the reason for uncounted ballots in the provincial election. There are now calls for an independent review and an all-party committee is being proposed to examine what happened. Richard Zussman has more.

British Columbia’s new cabinet is set to be sworn in on Nov. 18, one month after the provincial election that gave Premier David Eby’s NDP the slimmest of majorities, pending recounts.

A statement from Eby’s office says the swearing-in dates of cabinet and members of the legislature have been set based on the judicial recounts in three ridings and reporting information from Elections BC.


Uncounted B.C. ballot box blamed on ‘human error’


Elections BC provides update on uncounted Prince George-Mackenzie ballot box


B.C. Premier David Eby expected to announce cabinet soon


Eby says the judicial recounts taking place Thursday and Friday will ensure every vote is counted.

After those recounts, he says B.C. residents want to see “urgent action” on priorities including affordability and housing, health care, and building a strong economy.

Eby says the first step is swearing in the new cabinet at a ceremony in Victoria, where he will present his recommendations to Lt.-Gov. Janet Austin.

The statement says a transition team co-chaired by Eby’s special counsel on Indigenous reconciliation, Doug White, and Shannon Salter, the premier’s deputy minister and head of the public service, will make recommendations about selection of ministers and the formation of ministries in the new government.

Newly elected members of the legislature are set to be sworn in and formally invited to take their seats before cabinet’s swearing in, it says.

The Opposition caucus and BC Green Party MLAs are scheduled to be sworn in on Nov. 12., while government caucus MLAs will be sworn in the next day.