Svandís Svavarsdóttir
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Left-Greens Not Participating In Caretaker Government
Vinstri Græn (the Left-Green Movement) have decided not to participate in the caretaker government that will oversee parliament until the Nov. 30 election. Party leader and outgoing infrastructure minister Svandís Svavarsdóttir denied President Halla Tómasdóttir’s request for the party’s ongoing participation in…
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Minister Grants Permit To Allow Whaling To Resume
Minister of Food and Agriculture Bjarkey Olsen Gunnarsdóttir has granted the whaling company Hvalur ehf. a licence for hunting fin whales. The minister announced her decision following a government meeting on June 11. The permit is active for one year, allowing 128…
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Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir Seriously Considering Presidential Bid (For Real)
Though the Grapevine crafted a side-slappingly good April Fool’s article on the topic, Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir said in a recent interview with RÚV that she actually is seriously considering running for president. She will announce her decision in the coming days.…
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The Indefensible Defence Of An Obsolete Industry
Examining the past, present and still uncertain future of whaling in Iceland “It’s been a crazy day,” Valgerður Árnadóttir says, a clear tone of concern in her voice as she looks out the large picture windows of Röst café toward the long…
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Whaling Ban Ended With Concession
The moratorium on whaling, enacted by Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries Svandís Svavarsdóttir on June 20, has been lifted. This decision follows a cabinet meeting taking place at Egilsstaðir today. In May, a report made by the Icelandic Food and Veterinary…
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No Whaling Will Happen This Summer
Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture Svandís Svavarsdóttir has announced her decision to stop Iceland’s hunt for fin whales this summer, Vísir reports. The commercial whaling season was scheduled to get underway June 21, despite ongoing public protest against the practice. The decision…
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Whaling Season Begins Today
Ships from Hvalur hf., Iceland’s only fin whaling company, are set to depart from Reykjavík Harbour today, marking the start of their first whaling season in four years. [su_pullquote]Summer Sale on T-Shirts in the Grapevine shop! We only have a chance to…
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Domestic Pandemic Restrictions To Be Relaxed
The Icelandic Minister of Health announced yesterday that she plans to relax the country’s domestic pandemic restrictions. RÚV reports that Svandís Svavarsdóttir made the announcement in Parliament, following recommendations along the same lines made by Chief Epidemiologist Þórólfur Guðnason. The move follows…
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Domestic Pandemic Restrictions Relaxed
The Minister of Health today announced a relaxation of domestic pandemic measures in Iceland, following advice from the nation’s chief epidemiologist. The minister, Svandís Svavarsdóttir, revealed a revised set of regulations following a government meeting, Vísir reports. The two-metre rule and mask…
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Small Relaxation Of Coronavirus Measures: Pools To Open
The Minister of Health, Svandís Svavarsdóttir, has announced changes to coronavirus prevention measures in Iceland. These will come into effect on December 10th, and have been revealed on the official website of the Prime Minister’s Office, Stjórnarráðið Íslands. The changes will apply…
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Ágúst Ólaf Ágústsson Apologises Following Misogyny Allegation By Svandís Svavarsdóttir
Vísir reported this morning that the Minister of Health, Svandís Svavarsdóttir, had accused Ágúst Ólaf Ágústsson, a member of the Samfylkingin party, of “bottomless contempt for women” following a comment made in an interview on Saturday. In the interview, Ágúst said that…
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What Are Icelanders Talking About? : The Latest Talking Points From Social Media
If there’s one topic that is always red hot amongst Icelanders, especially on social media, it’s tourism and its inevitable decline. Public broadcasting service RÚV reported that, in the wake of a forecast that there would soon be slightly fewer tourists to…
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Here Be Dragons
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, French and American geologists conducted surveys in the Norwegian Sea and discovered the Jan Mayen Microcontinent about 1,000 metres below sea level. It is a fragment left over from when the borders of Norway and…
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WHERE WERE WE? WHERE ARE WE? WHERE ARE WE HEADED?
To mark the beginning of a new year, we posed two questions to dozens of Icelanders, old and new. Representatives of every single political party, ministers, mayors and machinists alike (as per usual, the governing parties mostly ignored our queries). We asked…
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No Authority
Unfortunately, I fear that 2014 will be remembered as the year when Iceland took a turn from being a Nordic welfare state, towards becoming a society marked by neoliberalism and harsh individualism. Iceland’s right-wing government is currently engaging in a full-scale attack…