Europe

Switzerland pays billions to foreign governments in tax deal

"The Swiss finance ministry said that Britain had received a payment of 372 million francs, and Austria, 515 million. A ministry spokesman said the payments were just the first in a series of monthly instalments running until June 2014. Under bilateral deals with Britain and Austria, Switzerland has offered two options to people who fail to declare money placed in Swiss banks. They can either turn themselves in to their homeland's revenue services, or have their accounts taxed by the Swiss, who then transfer the funds without naming the clients. It was under the latter system that Switzerland handed over the sums revealed on Thursday." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSwitzerland pays billions to foreign governments in tax deal

Ex-IMF Chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn charged with pimping

"Former IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn will be tried on charges of pimping, prosecutors said on Friday, capping an inquiry into sex parties attended by a man whose French presidential hopes were dashed by a separate 2011 U.S. sex scandal. The decision came as a surprise after a public prosecutor had recommended in June that the inquiry be dropped without trial. The so-called Carlton affair, named after a hotel in Lille, involves sex parties that Strauss-Kahn has acknowledged attending. He says he was unaware that the women who participated were prostitutes." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEx-IMF Chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn charged with pimping

12-year-old French girl caught writing bad checks for candy

"A 12-year-old girl in the southern French city of Bordeaux has been caught by police after using stolen cheques to buy 2,600 euros ($3,440) worth of candies and pastries. Local police said Thursday that the girl had stolen a chequebook in March from a neighbour and used it over several months to buy the sweets from local bakeries. Her criminal sweet tooth was uncovered when a local bakery tried to deposit 23 of the cheques and they bounced. She was quickly apprehended, questioned by police and released after her parents agreed to pay the bakery back." Continue reading →

Continue Reading12-year-old French girl caught writing bad checks for candy

Paris suburbs erupt in violent protests over veil ban

"The violence kicked off Friday evening, when some 400 people protested near the Trappes police station, southwest of Paris. They set fire to bins, destroyed bus stops and hurled stones at police who responded with tear gas. A 14-year-old boy suffered a serious eye injury and several police officers were also hurt. The veil ban, introduced in 2011, has outraged many in France’s Muslim community, which at an estimated four million is western Europe’s largest Muslim minority. Officials say more than 700 women have been stopped since the ban was introduced. The growing visibility of French Muslims has also sparked a backlash from nationalists." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingParis suburbs erupt in violent protests over veil ban

France drops law that makes insulting the president a criminal offense

"Being rude to the French president is no longer an offence after parliament amended legislation dating back to 1881 in favour of freedom of speech. Previously any rude remark risked a fine and criminal conviction for 'offending the head of state'. But the change was pushed through after criticism from the European court of human rights. In March, the court ruled that France had violated the right to freedom of expression after giving a criminal conviction to a man holding a cardboard sign telling the then-president Nicolas Sarkozy to get lost, uttered by Sarkozy himself months earlier when a man refused to shake his hand at an agricultural fair." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFrance drops law that makes insulting the president a criminal offense

Cheese shop owner on crusade to block FDA ban on mimolette

"The US fate of the bright-orange, mild-tasting French cheese has been in jeopardy for months and the Food and Drug Administration has blocked all further imports. Why? Because US regulators determined the cantaloupe-like rind of the cheese was covered with too many cheese mites, even though the tiny bugs give mimolette its unique flavor. 1.5 tonnes (3,300 pounds) of cheese were blocked from being imported. Benoit de Vitton of French import company Isigny says those 1.5 tonnes were eventually destroyed. Mmenus inform diners about the FDA decision, noting that mimolette has been 'the National Cheese of France since King Louis XIV.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCheese shop owner on crusade to block FDA ban on mimolette

Church of England declares war on payday loans firm

"Church of England leader Justin Welby has told a company offering short-term high-interest loans that the church wants to 'compete' it out of existence by promoting not-for-profit credit unions. Welby, who came into office in February, has launched a campaign to expand credit unions as an alternative to payday lending that he hopes will boost competition in the banking sector. Members of credit unions pool their savings in order to provide each other with low-interest credit and other financial services. The British government announced in April that it was investing £38 million in credit unions to help them provide an alternative to payday lenders." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingChurch of England declares war on payday loans firm

UK Information Commissioner Blasts License Plate Readers

"The UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) on Wednesday ordered a review of Hertfordshire Constabulary's use of the technology in Royston, the first town in England to adopt the technology. All six possible routes into and out of the town are covered by license plate cameras creating what police like to call a 'ring of steel.' The system keeps a log of the movements of all automobiles, something the commissioner found unnecessary. 'It is difficult to see why a small rural town such as Royston, requires cameras monitoring all traffic in and out of the town 24 hours a day,' ICO enforcement chief Stephen Eckersley said in a statement." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUK Information Commissioner Blasts License Plate Readers

Basta ‘La Casta’: No End in Sight to Italy’s Economic Decline

"Italy, despite being the third-largest economy in the euro zone after Germany and France, finds itself in dire straits, having been in decline for years. Its GDP has dropped by 7 percent since 2007. But economic growth only tells part of the story. More than half a million industrial jobs have been lost since 2007, and 15 percent of the country's industrial capacity is gone, says Luca Paolazzi, head of research for Confindustria, Italy's leading industry association. Paolazzi, Italy is experiencing an 'unprecedented process of deindustrialization.' According to Confindustria, the Italian economy faces a tax burden that is 20 percent higher than in Germany." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBasta ‘La Casta’: No End in Sight to Italy’s Economic Decline

Spanish Pension Raids Spell Bad News for Bond Sales

"Spain’s Treasury may find one of its best customers less eager to buy its bonds as budget woes lead Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to raid a government piggy-bank for a second year. Created in 2000 to guarantee pension payments in times of hardship, the 59.3 billion-euro ($78 billion) Fondo de Reserva was tapped for the first time in December for 7 billion euros to fund Christmas bonuses and a monthly increase for retirees. Further withdrawals will have taken an additional 4.5 billion euros by the end of this month, helping to pay for pensioners’ summer bonuses and tax refunds." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSpanish Pension Raids Spell Bad News for Bond Sales