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Lawmakers in Denmark have voted to get rid of Nice Prayer Day, a non secular vacation that dates again greater than three centuries, in order that employees can produce additional tax income that could possibly be used for army spending because the nation goals to fulfill its NATO goal.
The federal government estimated that scrapping the general public vacation, one among 11 within the nation, and maintaining companies open would offer a further three billion Danish kroner, about $430 million, that could possibly be added to the army finances. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen cited the warfare in Ukraine as an argument for needing the additional funds.
However the effort to scrap the vacation beginning subsequent yr, as first proposed by Ms. Frederiksen in December, has proved unpopular with the public, drawing criticism from commerce unions, clergy members and opposition events. Asking individuals to forgo the vacation, which comes with its personal rituals however is handled by many Danes as simply one other day without work, set off a nationwide debate about work, faith, custom and warfare.
Lizette Risgaard, the president of the Danish Confederation of Commerce Unions, said on Twitter that there have been “large issues with the federal government’s proposal,” calling it a de facto wage discount for workers and lamenting the lack of free time.
On Tuesday, Parliament voted 95-68 in favor of dropping the vacation, which falls on the fourth Friday after Easter. The vote got here after hours of deliberation, throughout which an effort to place the query to a referendum was defeated.
Proponents have argued that the transfer is important to assist enhance army spending to 2 p.c of the nation’s financial output, a goal for all NATO members (however one which most member countries do not meet). The Danish army finances for 2022 was about $3.9 billion.
Ms. Frederiksen stated that the transfer would “present funding to safe the way forward for our society,” and that the federal government was able to endure any backlash.
In December, Parliament pledged about $43 million for the warfare effort in Ukraine, which has been largely supported among the many public. However 1000’s have protested ending the vacation at a number of demonstrations in current months.
Almost 500,000 individuals signed a petition to maintain Nice Prayer Day, and a survey commissioned by the Danish Broadcasting Company discovered that 70 percent of respondents opposed dropping the vacation.
Jasmina Nielsen contributed reporting.
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