Fighting housing shortage: Airbnb & Co should share more data with authorities to prevent fraud 

Publicerad denFörfattareScoop Editorial

The business of platforms like Airbnb and Booking is booming: more and more private apartments are being rented out online. While this is good for tourists and hosts, it also leads to significant problems in many cities: fraud, housing shortages and rising rents can be the consequences. So far, there is no uniform system for data collection in the EU, which makes it difficult to control and prevent fraud and its negative effects. This is now set to change. Airbnb welcomes the EU’s breach.
Paris, Porto and Vienna: Europe’s major cities are popular travel destinations. Accordingly, many people vacation there. Around a quarter of all overnight stays are now booked via the major online platforms (Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and TripAdvisor). This is because the accommodations offered there are usually cheaper than hotels. This mainly benefits the hosts, platforms and travelers. 
At the same time, it causes immense problems for the cities concerned: lack of tourism taxes, housing shortages and rising rents are the result. This is mainly due to the fact that there is no reliable data on overnight stays. The EU now wants to change that.
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Platforms like Airbnb and booking.com to share data with authorities in future
If the EU Commission has its way, platforms such as Airbnb & Co. should share data with local authorities in the future. Specifically, the following information is to be made available: 

Who is the host?
Where is the accommodation?
How long is the accommodation rented out?

Private individuals who rent out accommodation are to be given a registration number, which is then also publicly available for all to see. This is not only to protect guests, but also to prevent fraud. Unregistered accommodations often lead to the evasion of taxes and tourism levies. The cities then miss out on these taxes when it comes to maintaining and expanding the necessary infrastructure (public transportation, waste disposal, etc.). 
Furthermore, the reporting obligation should contribute to fair competition with other providers such as hotels and youth hostels. In addition, the shared data makes it easier for authorities to manage the crowds in tourism hotspots.
Many cities, many different regulations: Airbnb welcomes EU breach
So far, there is no uniform regulation for the collection of data within the EU. That’s why more and more cities and municipalities are introducing their own. This complicates the business model of the platforms and the further development of the tourism industry. 
In an official statement, Airbnb welcomes the EU’s legislative proposal. This makes it easier to expand cooperation with governments and allows private individuals to rent out their homes without violating applicable rules.
Basically, cities benefit from tourism. Vacationers tend to consume more: they eat out more often, buy souvenirs, and go to the theater or other cultural events. In short, they spend money and that is good for the economy. And, of course, it’s good extra income for anyone who has a vacant apartment or room to rent out. Nevertheless, renting out private apartments in particular can lead to major social problems.
Andreas Schieder, head of the SPÖ-Delegation in the EU-Parliament, wants the new regulation to protect social housing in particular: 
“Short-term accommodation such as Airbnb is now an integral part of the tourism sector. Over the past few years, we have seen an enormous increase and therefore also observe new challenges. Particularly important to me is also the protection of municipal and social housing against misappropriation”.
Rising rents, increasingly expensive restaurants and congested infrastructure
On a random night in 2019, about 1.4 million tourist stayed in a short-term rental apartment. So demand is high. The lack of data and the resulting difficulty in regulation can lead to profound problem in the worst case. Among them, the following: 

Rising rents and less housing: it is often more profitable for landlords:inside to offer apartments as short-term accommodation. They earn more money that way. However, this reduces the supply of housing for the people who live there. 
Overloaded infrastructure: The large number of tourists overloads public transportation and strains waste disposal, since neither is designed for large numbers.
Changed cityscape: There are entire streets or blocks of houses that consist only of Airbnb apartments. 
Burdens for residents: The constantly changing residents can become a burden for neighbours. For example, through noise or the additional garbage that is created.

EU directive comes into force in 2025 at the earliest
Before the regulation on data collection and exchange comes into force, the EU Commission, the EU Parliament and the individual member states must first agree on a compromise. This so-called “trilogue” is to take place this year. After that, the EU member states will have two years – until 2025 at the latest – to implement the new regulations. Läs mer…

New EU Law oblige Google, TikTok & Co to be transparent about advertising on their Platforms

Publicerad denFörfattareIngo Geiger

Google, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram: All major Internet platforms with more than 45 million monthly users are now subject to stricter rules in Europe. For example, they must label advertising more clearly and disclose who is paying for it. Advertising aimed at children is thus banned altogether. Sensitive data such as origin, political opinion or sexual orientation may also no longer be used for advertising purposes. This is intended to protect younger users in particular.
Last week, the EU Commission published a list. This list includes 19 of the world’s largest Internet providers. Among them are US Internet giants such as Google, Facebook, Twitter and Amazon. But also the Chinese video platform TikTok. They were all selected because they have more than 45 million users per month. According to the Commission, they thus bear a great responsibility to society. That’s why the EU is now tightening the rules. What does that mean exactly? 
New rules for social media: combating hate speech and fake news 
The problems are well known: Hate speech, fake news and disinformation. In addition, poor data protection and insufficient transparency regarding the functioning of platforms are repeatedly criticized by data activists such as the Austrian Max Schrems. In most cases, platforms are powerful, but users are not. That is about to change. The new rules oblige Facebook, Google and others to take stronger action. 
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To do this, they must check their own platforms for risks. Does an online service distribute illegal content or gender-specific violence? Are minors and their mental health sufficiently protected? Does the platform endanger freedom of expression and democracy? These are the questions that online platforms will have to answer in a report in the future.
The risk report is to be written and reviewed annually. The European Center for Algorithmic Transparency (ECAT) will be responsible for the review. 
The data must then be published by the online platforms so that users and researchers can access it. 
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Advertising must be more clearly labelled, and it must be clear who is paying for it
Until now, it has been almost impossible for users to understand why they are seeing a particular advertisement or content. In the future, social media must disclose how they work. That is, how the algorithm that selects the content works. What criteria does it use? For example, does the algorithm only select content that is highly polarizing and aimed at an emotional reaction from users? 
A “Basic Law” for Social Media and Online Platforms
The new regulations are part of the EU’s Digital Service Act (DSA). A kind of basic law for online services, social media platforms and the digital space. The law was passed back in 2020 and came into force on November 16, 2022. 
The DSA is intended to protect users, make digital services more transparent and make the Internet giants more accountable. In a nutshell: Everything that is prohibited “offline” should also be prohibited “online” by the DSA. This includes, for example, insults, incitement of the people or re-activation, i.e. the distribution of national socialist content or signs. 
Facebook, Google, Amazon & Co. now have until August 25 to implement the new rules. Läs mer…

Swamps as a climate saver: Ireland stores tons of CO₂ through 33,000 hectares of new peatlands

Publicerad denFörfattareNoah Duker

Ireland is reforesting its swamps and bogs in a bid to fight climate change. Although marshlands cover only three percent of the earth, they store 25 percent of the world’s CO2. So far, around 8100 hectares on the “green island” have been flooded with water. The “watering” is intended to create optimum conditions for new peat land. Experts believe that the “renaturation” project will store enormous amounts of climate-damaging greenhouse gases.
Peatlands are considered to be the ecosystem with the greatest storage potential for CO₂. When a plant dies, the CO₂ stored in it is released into the water or into the marsh soil as it decays, rather than into the air. Bogs and marshlands are therefore true climate protectors!
Trees store CO₂ and release oxygen This process is called photosynthesis. When trees die and rot, they release the remaining CO₂ into the environment, especially into the air. However, if a tree falls into a swamp, the CO₂ is not released into the air but stored in the water and soil. If the swamp dries up, and thus also the CO₂-containing mixture, peat is formed. Over thousands of years, a well-known raw material is created from it: coal!
Ireland is reforesting swamps and peatlands to fight climate change
Until the industrial revolution, almost one fifth of Ireland was covered with peatlands. From the 1850s until today, people have destroyed large parts of Ireland’s nature – that is, besides marshlands, also countless forests. The partly state-owned company “Bord na Móna” wants to revive nature and make Ireland the green lung of Europe to fight climate change. For this reason, they are filling 33,000 hectares of alluvial land with water over the next few years. They also want to reintroduce native species of plants and animals that have been driven or wiped out over the years. Currently, just under a quarter, or 8125 hectares, has been “reforested.”
How Ireland’s marshlands were destroyed and rebuilt
The reason for the poor condition of Ireland’s peatlands is historical. The tradition of “peat cutting” has been preserved and carried on for generations. The peat, when dried, is a good fuel. For the economy, especially during the industrialization, the peat was in great demand because it could be found everywhere on the island and was therefore very cheap. Peat was also used to heat the houses in Ireland.
Another reason for the large-scale drainage of the Irish peatlands is agriculture. During the Industrial Revolution, Ireland developed not only railroads and cities, but also agriculture on a large scale. For the cultivation of food, large areas of marshland were destroyed.
Even at the beginning of industrialization, the destruction of the marshes was already underway: by the end of the 19th century, Ireland was more industrialized than the whole of Austro-Hungarian Empire or Spain, two countries that were significantly larger in terms of area and population. The partly state-owned Irish company “Bord na Móna” and others now wants to declare war on environmental destruction and make the “emerald isle” live up to its name again.
This work is licensed under the Creative Common License. In case of new republication, please cite NeueZeit.at/Noah Düker as the Source/Author and set a link to the article in English: https://scoop.me/ireland-climate-change-peatlands/
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Amsterdam Airport Schiphol bans Private Jets and Night Flights

Publicerad denFörfattareNoah Duker

The private jet ban is set to into effect at the end of 2025. This will lead to “more quiet, clean and better air travel” an airport official said in a statement. Other than that, larger and therefore louder aircraft like the Boeing 747 should no longer be commissioned to land at the Dutch airport. Local inhabitants and climate activists welcome Schiphol’s move towards better quality of live in the Amsterdam suburb. The wake of this decision now echoing through Europe as more cities want to push for similar policies in the future.
Speaking in numbers, this would mean about 10,000 fewer aircraft per year to land at Schiphol, their flights being cancelled with the ban. Recently the government also implemented directives for the airport to reduce the flights from 500 to 440 thousand flights, cutting an additional 40 thousand flights, starting November 2023. 
“For too long, we have only thought about growth and not enough about the associated costs. We need to be sustainable for our employees, the environment and the world.”, Says Ruud Sondag, CEO Royal Schiphol Group. 
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Lawsuit against guidelines – airlines fear reduced profits
Travel agencies and Airlines have complained about the changes. The Dutch Airline KLM, who’s main airport is Schiphol, was surprised, claiming that they had wished for coordinated action across the entire air travel industry. But the lack of actual plans stemming from big airlines might explain why Schiphol’s decision not to wait.
The shrinking of flight numbers at Schiphol was followed by a lawsuit by KLM and four other airlines in fear of having reduced profits. Early April 2023, a Dutch court now overruled the directive due to an issue regarding formalities in the law-making process. 
Climate activists are disappointed about the court’s ruling, setting back the efforts of CO2 reduction in the Netherlands drastically. Their hopes now lie with the airport’s lone push to at least save a fourth of the CO2 intended by the government.
Private jets as climate killer – Germany to consider ban in the future
German air travel expert Sussane Menge sees private jets as a “great climate injustice” and calls for airports in Germany to implement similar directives to Schiphol to combat rising CO2 emissions. 
“It is no longer plausible that many people are now combating global warming by insulating houses and replacing heating systems, while a small minority is pumping out jet fuel as if there were no tomorrow.” – German air travel expert Susanne Menge. 
Now the German Greens have announced that they are considering proposing a similar with support from opposition party “die Linke” (the Left) though the future of this legislation is unclear.
Most wealth – Most emissions
And the numbers add up, considering that in 2019, a year before the Private jet boom properly kicked off, private jets already accounted for 899,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2). In comparison, in the same year, the CO2 emissions on a global average per person accounted for about 4.78 tons per year.
A person with average carbon emission would take more than 627 thousand years to produce the amount of CO2 a billionaire emits in a Year. (Foto: Nate / Unsplash)
Considering these facts, it gets even more baffling when one considers that these 899 thousand tons of carbon dioxide is emitted by just about 22 thousand jets. Meaning that these approximately 22,000 private aircraft owners emit equally to about 188,000 people. And that’s only with their jets, accounting for other luxuries, these numbers can rise up to a staggering 3 million tons per year for the top 1 percent.
A person with average carbon emission would take more than 627 thousand years to produce the amount of CO2 a billionaire emits in a Year. Considering the shrinking CO2 budget, the rising temperatures and growing wealth inequality, considering bans like this might be a necessity all over Europe in the future. Läs mer…

EU Pay Transparency: Companies will have to disclose how they pay employees

Publicerad denFörfattareScoop Editorial

Women in the EU continue to be paid less than men. Not only because they tend to work in lower-paid jobs, but also for the same work in the same sector, women are paid less on average than their male colleagues. Most of the time, women don’t even know how much they are paid less because the wages are not publicly visible. This is now to change: The EU Pay Transparency Directive obliges companies to disclose how they pay their employees. This is to uncover and prevent a possible pay gap between men and women.
On 30 March, the EU Parliament adopted new directives in the fight against salary differences between men and women. The regulations oblige EU companies to be transparent about salaries. In future, all salaries paid by a company must be disclosed. This will allow workers to compare their salaries and identify differences. 
In the EU, women still earn on average 13 per cent less per hour than men. However, the gender pay gap varies greatly from country to country: while it is less than 4 per cent in Slovenia, Romania and Luxembourg, the pay gap is highest in Estonia and Latvia, at around 22 per cent. Austria and Germany are right behind with 18.9 and 18.1 percent respectively.
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Gender pay gap has mainly structural causes
The gender pay gap has mainly structural causes, as women in the EU are more often employed part-time and are less likely to hold management positions. On the other hand, they do unpaid care work more often. Professions in which more women tend to work than men, such as nursing, are also less well paid. But even if one disregards these structural causes, the gender pay gap remains: In Germany, for example, women with comparable qualifications in the same industry earn on average six percent less than their male colleagues.
Companies with more than 100 employees must disclose salaries
The pay gap between women and men is to be closed with the new pay transparency guidelines. The guidelines stipulate that all salaries in a company must be disclosed. Companies with more than 100 employees where the pay gap between women and men exceeds 5 percent will have to find a solution on how to equalise salaries in the future.
The EU Pay Transparency guidelines prohibit recruiters from asking applicants about their current salary. This is to prevent salary discrepancies from arising in the first place.
Social partners are to play an increased role in enforcing the guidelines. Companies that do not comply with the wage transparency guidelines will be fined. This is the only way to ensure compliance with the rules, emphasises the chief negotiator of the S&D group, Evelyn Regner.
EU Pay Transparency Directive: “Transparency of crucial importance”
Regner, member of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality and Vice-President of the European Parliament, identifies in a dispatch the crucial importance of transparency for an equal society:
“Without it, it is simply impossible to take action against wage discrimination. “With the new EU rules, workers – and women in particular – will be better equipped to assert their right to equal pay for the same work or work of equal value as men.”
According to Regner, all workers will be able to share information about their pay internally and externally. “This means an effective ban on non-disclosure clauses.” It is also crucial, she said, that it is not women who have to go to court to prove wage discrimination, but companies who have to prove the opposite.
Wage discrimination is a systematic problem, not an individual one. Therefore, it should also be tackled systematically. Läs mer…

A Berliner builds tiny houses and gives them to homeless people

Publicerad denFörfattareIngo Geiger

The association Little Homes e. V. builds tiny mobile houses and gives them to homeless people. To date, it has built nearly 248 of these shelters. In the meantime, 148 former residents have found a real home again. For them, the gift was a turning point. The small houses give them back security, peace and hope. Critics see it only as a temporary solution and worry about minimum standards.  
There is not much space. The 3.5 m² of living space is just enough for a bed, a shelf and a small kitchenette. And yet Uwe S. is happy, because for him, it means security, peace and new hope. For 15 years he was homeless and slept on the streets of Berlin. Then Sven Lüdecke gave him a “Little Home”. He lived in it for two years. In the meantime, Uwe has a flat with electricity and running water again and is standing on his own two feet. The “Little Home” was a turning point.
“Little Homes”: Small houses for homeless people
Sven Lüdecke is the founder of the association “Little Homes e. V.“. Since the end of 2016, he and a team of constantly changing volunteers have been building small houses and giving them to homeless people. Nuremberg, Cologne, Berlin: There are already 248 of these small shelters across Germany. For many, they are a stepping stone back into society: 148 former residents have now found a proper flat. 
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The houses are simply built: Four walls made of pressboard, a lockable door and a small window. They also have a mattress, a camping toilet, a fire extinguisher and a first aid kit. There is no electricity, no running water and no heating – only insulation made of Styrofoam. This protects against extreme cold. The residents usually provide their own water, for example, from public toilets or drinking water points. A “Little Home” costs around 1,000 euros. 
One important detail is that the houses are mobile. They are on wheels. If this were not the case, the association would need a building permit for each Little Home. 
Most of the houses are located on private parking lots, but the association cooperates with cities, districts and municipalities. For example, the Berlin district of Kreuzberg provides 40 parking spaces.
The houses are mobile – they are later on wheels and can be moved to different locations. (Photo: Little Home e.v.)
Criticism: The “Little Homes” do not meet the minimum standard of accommodation
Lüdecke’s project is also met with opposition. Critics suggest that minimum standards of housing are neglected. The tiny living space is inhumane and not a long-term solution. 
Werena Rosenke of the association “Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft Wohnungslosenhilfe” also takes a critical view of the project. She told Deutschlandfunk that “Little Homes” are not safe. They are often located in remote places. This is dangerous, especially for women. Nevertheless, she thinks it is a good idea to give homeless people some security and get them off the streets for a short time. The goal should be a real flat with a social worker to look after them.
Tiny houses for homeless people: No solution – but a temporary fix
Lüdecke sees it that way, too. He also does not see his project as a solution to the problem of homelessness. That is the task of politicians. The “Little Homes” are only a temporary solution, he says: 
“We are not the solution to the problem of homelessness, but a solution before the solution,” says Sven Lüdecke, Little Homes founder (interview).
There are now regional offshoots of the association in many cities. The simple construction of the Little Homes makes it possible. In the beginning, it was just a matter of building a reasonably safe shelter for homeless people. In the meantime, the association also helps with visits to the authorities, with applications for social benefits or with the search for a job. For this purpose, the association hires social workers or works together with them.
Critics warn that the small houses do not meet minimum shelter standards and could also lead communities to allocate fewer resources to the homeless. (Photo: Little Home e.v.)
Risks: Municipalities neglect their legal duty to help homeless people
In Germany, municipalities are legally obligated to help homeless people. They must provide humane housing for those affected. Rosenke emphasizes that this is a unique selling point that must not be jeopardized under any circumstances. 
As good as the idea of “Little Homes” is, it could lead to municipalities neglecting their duty. After all, people are no longer homeless. 
This concern is not entirely unfounded. You can see this, for example, in the example of the food banks. Food banks give donated food to people with low incomes. The problem is that the state relies too much on the aid and remains inactive itself. The symptoms of poverty are alleviated, but the causes remain. Inflation, poverty in old age and precarious working conditions in the low-wage sector are not being addressed, according to the fears of critics.
Homelessness on the rise in the EU, in Germany and also in Austria
According to a report by the German government, there are about 263,000 homeless people in Germany. According to Amnesty International, there are just under 20,000 in Austria, and more than 700,000 people in the European Union.  
However, the number of unreported cases is likely to be much higher, because many of those affected are not even recorded by the system. They are invisible because they are not registered anywhere, have no social insurance or are staying with friends and acquaintances.
This work is licensed under the Creative Common License. It can be republished for free, either translated or in the original language. In both cases, please cite / Ingo Geiger as the original source/author and set a link to this article on Scoop.me. https://scoop.me/tiny-houses-homeless/
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France: Mass protests against higher retirement age

Publicerad denFörfattareIngo Geiger

France’s President Emmanuel Macron wants to raise the retirement age by two years. However, 72 percent of French people are against the pension reform—and the trend is rising. Since mid-January, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets and workers have gone on strike throughout the country. In addition, there is a new form of protest: the union from the energy sector supplied schools, hospitals and poor families with free electricity for one day. In this way, the striking workers want to demonstrate their power and prevent the raising of the retirement age.
They call it a “Robin Hood action”: On January 26, 2023, trade unionist Sébastien Menesplier announced that on that day free electricity and gas would flow to schools, hospitals, social buildings and poor families. In the mass strikes in France, quite a few employees from the energy sector have not only stopped working, according to the report—but have used the levers they are sitting on to create a piece of social justice. “We decided this collectively in a general assembly,” Sébastien Menesplier told the BFMTV television channel. He is president of the National Federation of Mines and Energy (FNME) of the CGT union.
“We have given a favorable tariff to small traders such as bakers or artisans,” he announced. People who have had their electricity or gas cut off because of unpaid bills—”by unscrupulous suppliers and despite the winter,” Menesplier said—were now receiving gas and electricity again.
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“This is just the beginning,” said Fabrice Coudour, general secretary of the CGT-Energie union. “We can carry out Robin Hood actions at any moment.” French energy company EDF left a press inquiry from Kontrast unanswered—so neither confirmed nor denied the accounts.
Fourteen nuclear reactors out of 56 are at a standstill, refineries and gas stations are paralyzed all over the country, trains are not running, schools are not teaching, and employees have also stopped work in factories such as those of the canning company Bonduelles. Some are only striking selectively, on days of the general strike, which kicked off Jan. 19. Others continue to strike without interruption. The pressure of the population on politics is enormous—and also shows that there is more at stake in social justice in general than just this one pension reform. That is the bone of contention.
Trigger of the protests: attack on a central social achievement
It was exactly three years ago—when the masses on France’s streets had already prevented it once with strikes: the increase of the retirement age to 64. The country was at a standstill, the higher retirement age was prevented. Now the issue is back on the table—and the French population is once again on the streets. President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Elizabeth Borne want to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.
For some neighboring countries, retirement at 64 may sound downright idyllic—in Germany, for example, the current retirement age is 67, in Austria 65. In France, on the other hand, the increase to 64 is considered virtually sacrilegious. Why?
On the one hand, the low retirement age stands for a social achievement from the 1980s under then President François Mitterand: Anyone who attacks this achievement is, in the eyes of the French, attacking the entire social policy. This has been steadily dismantled by the governments of recent years.
Macron’s governments loosened protection against dismissal, cut housing benefits—and abolished the wealth tax. The low entry age therefore has a symbolic value as well as a practical one—less work.
Old-age poverty threatens to increase
It should also be taken into account that the planned pension reform threatens to make old-age poverty even more acute for many people than it already is. People who lose their jobs at the age of 60, for example, or become incapacitated due to physical ailments, are often unable to find new work. But they are then not entitled to a full pension rate. The state saves, those affected suffer.
In particular, people who take parental leave or have been unemployed in between are penalized by this reform—because these years are not counted. Then, in old age, these years are either added on in the form of even more years of working time—or the pension turns out to be particularly low. Since women still take more and longer parental leave than men, the reform would further exacerbate inequality.
Instead, the CGT union argues for higher contributions from working people—but especially from listed companies.
“As a reminder, in 2022, the top 40 listed companies in France made 80 billion euros in profits—an unprecedented peak!” a CGT paper says. That the missing money could be fetched from the super-rich and corporations is one of the main arguments of the opponents:of pension reform.
Despite arrests: Over a million people demonstrated
On January 19, 2023, over one million people took to the streets nationwide. The next large-scale mobilization is scheduled for January 31. In the time in between, however, the protest did not sleep—on the contrary. On many evenings in several cities—Paris, Strasbourg, Nantes—people with CGT flags and in torchlight processions wandered through the cities. A few hundred yellow vests also set off again on their traditional Saturday.

The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, is trying to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.
So the eight biggest unions across the country called a massive wave of strikes and protests today, with over 200 actions across the country.
pic.twitter.com/WiKOl69nQa
— Read Jackson Rising by @CooperationJXN (@JoshuaPHilll) January 19, 2023

Meanwhile, police repression is evident. Videos from the mass demonstration on Jan. 19 show images of police violence—even apart from that, there are dubious operations. At numerous universities throughout France, students are currently coming together to organize against the pension reform. To this end, “general assemblies” are being held in lecture halls. In Strasbourg and Paris on the Condorcet campus, such general assemblies were stormed by French riot police (CRS). Twenty-nine students were arrested in Paris on January 22 and were forced to hold out for 22 hours in custody, without food or drink. In both cases, the respective university directors ordered the police storming of the student general assembly.
“They want to prevent the student protests from structuring, from students organizing,” said a young woman named Erelle on Twitter—she is part of the anti-capitalist student collective “Raised Fist” (“Poing levé”).
Government wants to push through law without parliamentary approval
Meanwhile, tension is rising at the parliamentary and party political level. Each camp is pulling out all available stops. The government either wants to push the law through as 49-3 – a paragraph that allows a law to be pushed through without a parliamentary vote. Or the law will be pushed through as a purely financial project. Both paragraphs allow for “government bypass” of Parliament, without a vote. Many criticize the procedure as deeply undemocratic.
Meanwhile, the opposition is preparing for resistance from both the right and the left. Both the left-wing Nupes alliance and the extreme right-wing Rassemblement National want to call for a referendum, i.e., to have the French vote on the reform. The crux of the matter is that only one motion may be submitted. The far-right and the left-wing alliance must therefore agree on a text for the motion, or at least endorse the text of their opponents in a vote. A closing of ranks that the left-wing Nupes faction considers unacceptable. Now, the question remains whether the right-wingers will support the motion of the left-wing opponents.
If that happens, however, it remains unlikely that a referendum will actually be held—because ultimately it would require the final approval of the president. For the president, this would be a complete loss of face. According to surveys, 72 percent of French citizens are against the pension reform—and the trend is increasing every week. It is highly unlikely that Macron allows such a referendum.
Nevertheless, the pressure on the government is increasing. After all, the strikes not only bring crowds onto the streets, but also cause very real economic damage. In particular, when gasoline and energy sectors are at a standstill, the economy goes into a tailspin. The next large-scale mobilization is set for January 31. But the French rail union CGT-Cheminots is already announcing that it will go on an indefinite strike starting in mid-February. The fight over pension reform will also be one of endurance.
This work is licensed under the Creative Common License. It can be republished for free, either translated or in the original language. In both cases, please cite / Lea Fauth as the original source/author and set a link to this article on Scoop.me. https://scoop.me/france-retirement-reform/
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Rent cap in Denmark: rents may increase by a maximum of 4 percent

Publicerad denFörfattareKontrast.at

Denmark introduced a rent cap. The rents were set to rise by 10 percent because they are linked to inflation—as they are in Austria. But the Danish government has removed this link in order to ease the burden on households: rents may increase by a maximum of 4 percent until 2024, and increases that have already been made must even be reversed. 
In January, a letter arrived with the new rent—and it wasn’t a nasty surprise: For his 42-square-meter apartment in the middle of Copenhagen, the Dane will pay only 534 euros per month for 2023 instead of 623. The posting of the user “Piitaa-Pain” spread quickly on the Internet. The reason behind this is a rent cap introduced by the Danish government, which applies from January 2023. Denmark is governed by a coalition of social democrats, liberal conservatives and liberal moderates.
Rents to rise by 4 percent instead of 10 percent
In 2023 and 2024, rents in Denmark may rise by a maximum of 4 percent. Actually, rents in Denmark are linked to inflation, just like in Austria. So without government intervention, Danish property owners would have been allowed to raise rents by almost 10 percent. The 4 percent maximum cap applies to existing and new leases, but also to rents that have been increased above the 4 percent in recent months—those must be reduced again.
“It is crucial for the Danish government to take care of Danish tenants. They should not be forced out of their homes and apartments because of rampant inflation,” Interior and Housing Minister Christian Rabjerg Madsen said in a statement.
Madsen’s ministry presented the law limiting rent increases in September. The Danish government is also working on a new law on rent adjustment from 2025, because even then rents will no longer be able to be increased automatically by inflation.
Rents rise by 8.6 percent in Austria
In Austria, too, there is a discussion about a cap on rent increases: for almost 400,000 leases, rents will rise by 8.6 percent in April 2023 – after rent increases last year of over 6 percent. The reason is the automatic increase in rent by inflation (the “consumer price index”) stipulated in the law. In January, the Social Democrats in the National Council propose that the rent increase be completely suspended until 2025 and then capped at two percent.
Property owners are naturally opposed to this, saying that they would then lack the money to maintain the buildings. The Danish government met this objection: If property owners can prove large investments that are not covered by current rents, they can raise rents above 4 percent in exceptional cases. Landlords are not happy about this either and complain about the bureaucratic effort. Experts assume that this very rarely apply to any case.
All in all, according to the government’s calculations, Danes will save 2.7 billion Danish kroner (about 360 million euros) in additional rental costs. Denmark’s inflation rate reached 10.1% in October, its highest level in four decades, but has since fallen to 8.7%. Rent caps also exist in Spain, Portugal, Scotland, and France.
This work is licensed under the Creative Common License. It can be republished for free, either translated or in the original language. In both cases, please cite / Kontrast Redaktion as the original source/author and set a link to this article on Scoop.me. https://scoop.me/rent-cap-denmark/
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EU to severely restrict export of waste to third countries

Publicerad denFörfattareKontrast.at

The European Parliament voted in favor of a law that restricts the export of waste. Waste from the EU should be processed in an environmentally friendly way—and no longer exported on a large scale to third countries in the EU. There, it often pollutes entire regions via landfills or is incinerated and damages the environment.
On January 17, 2023, the European Parliament voted in Strasbourg in favor of a law that restricts the export of waste from the EU to countries outside the Union. The goal is to reduce pollution and ensure that materials like plastic are reused and recycled instead of thrown away. The whole thing is part of the European Green Deal.
In the future, waste is to be exported only to certain countries outside the OECD area—and they must prove that they process the waste in an environmentally friendly way. For hazardous waste, exports are to be banned altogether. Overall, less waste is to be shipped around the world and less processed in a way that is harmful to the climate, for example incinerated.
“Out of sight, out of mind: this is how we in the EU currently deal with our mountains of waste. In doing so, we not only export our problem, but also leave the task of fair disposal to countries outside the EU. The consequences of this are often illegal landfills, the price of which is paid by the environment and local people,” criticizes Delara Burkhardt, environmental policy spokeswoman for the Socialist S&D Group in the EU Parliament. So now that is to change.
The Parliament’s report on the EU Waste Shipment Regulation was adopted by a large majority: 594 votes in favor, 5 against and 43 abstentions. Talks between the European Parliament and EU member states are to take place this year to finalize the text. Only then can the law come into force.
Most EU waste ends up in Turkey
The amount of waste exchanged around the world is steadily increasing, with 182 million tons traded in 2018, according to the OECD. The European Union plays a central role in this: according to Eurostat, the European Union exported 33 million tons of waste to non-EU countries in 2021. That’s a 77 percent increase over 2004, and Turkey was the main destination for EU waste last year, with about 14.7 million tons—three times as much as in 2004.
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The second-highest amount of EU waste was exported to India this year—about 2.4 million tons. The countries behind are Egypt and Switzerland, with 1.9 and 1.7 million tons, respectively. Eurostat reports that the amount of waste shipped from the EU to China has decreased significantly in recent years. Namely, from a peak of 10.1 million tons in 2009 to 0.4 million tons in 2021.
The EU-Parliament also agreed on a new directive to give platform workers more rights. Including minimum wage, social security and paid vacation. As well as on a new pay transparency directive to end the pay gap between men and women.
This work is licensed under the Creative Common License. It can be republished for free, either translated or in the original language. In both cases, please cite / Kathrin Glösel as the original source/author and set a link to this article on Scoop.me. https://scoop.me/eu-restrict-waste-exports/
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England bans single-use plastic products and packaging

Publicerad denFörfattareIngo Geiger

England bans single-use plastic products. From October, plastic tableware, Styrofoam cups and certain food packaging may no longer be sold or used. This excludes packaging for ready meals. The ban applies to retail and food retailers, as well as snack bars and restaurants. Environmental organizations criticize this as insufficient. 
It is estimated that 2.7 billion disposable knives, forks, cups, and plates are used in England every year. Most of them are made of plastic. If they were strung together, they would go around the world more than 8 times. The big problem: Just 10 percent of them are recycled. Thérèse Coffey, Secretary of State for Environment, has now announced a ban on single-use plastic products. It will apply from October. 
Ban on plastic plates, cups, cutlery and certain packaging
From October 2023, single-use plastic plates, cups, cutlery, bowls and trays will be banned. The same applies to polystyrene cups (e.g., from vending machines) and certain food packaging. Packaging for ready meals is exempt. In the future, these products may then neither be sold nor used in retail outlets, snack bars or restaurants.
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Greenpeace criticizes the exemptions and calls the ban insufficient. The organization A Plastik Planet is also calling for further measures. Above all, they want a ban on the small plastic bags for mini-portions such as ketchup, soy sauce or cosmetic products. 

Check out A Plastic Planet’s co-founder, @siansutherland, speaking on Sky News this morning on the announcement of England’s new plastic bans.
Sian says, “Finally, the government is enacting this ban but imagine if we went further and changed the system not just the material.” pic.twitter.com/9JTrr18mKP
— A Plastic Planet (@aplastic_planet) January 14, 2023

Single-use plastic products: EU bans production—manufacturers must pay for cleaning
The European Union already enacted a similar ban in 2019. It bans the production of single-use plastic products such as plastic straws, cotton swabs and balloon sticks. Fast-food packaging made of Styrofoam is also banned. 
According to the directive on avoiding single-use plastic products, all plastic bottles must also be made of at least 30 percent recycled material from 2023. In addition, disposable products that are particularly harmful to the environment (cigarette filters, balloons, and hygiene products with plastic content) must be labeled.
The ban puts the onus on producers, as manufacturers of plastic products such as cigarette filters, fishing nets and plastic bags must now contribute to the costs of environmental cleaning. 
The directive aims to combat pollution of the environment and, above all, pollution of the ocean. 
Every minute, a truckload of plastic enters the sea
Products made of plastic are extremely long-lasting, degrade very slowly and mostly incompletely. They often end up as microplastics in the oceans. If there is no change in the way we handle single-use plastic products, there will be more than 12 billion tons of plastic in the environment by 2050, according to the UN. 
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Environmental organizations like Green Peace estimate that a truckload of plastic ends up in the ocean every minute. Much of this is single-use plastic products. If this continues, there will be more plastic than fish in the sea by 2030.  Läs mer…