Eurotopics.net

Hundreds of thousands of people are taking part in the biggest industrial action in Britain for more than a decade. Over a million people in France have demonstrated against the planned pension reform. Concerns about rising living costs, affordable housing and adequate health care are on the rise across Europe. How do commentators assess the situation in their countries?

A heated debate has erupted over whether Europe is moving towards direct participation in the Ukraine war after several Western countries took the decision to supply battle tanks to Ukraine. While the Kremlin has declared that the West is increasingly acting like a warring party, Berlin and Paris have denied that the arms deliveries mean they are participating in the war. Commentators give their own assessments.

Mass protests against the pension reform in France, strikes over wages in the UK, inflation and the threat of recession everywhere: UN Secretary-General António Guterres spoke of a "winter of discontent" in Europe. Commentators look on with consternation.

The Italian anarchist Alfredo Cospito is serving a 20-year prison term for a foiled bomb attack on a police school and a gun attack on a company manager. Since May 2022 he has been held in solitary confinement under Article 41bis of the Italian Criminal Code, which many legal experts argue should be abolished because the conditions are tantamount to torture. After more than three months on a hunger strike, Cospito has now been transferred to the hospital section of Milan jail.

Based on a citizen's proposal, the Danish Health Minister Sophie Løhde has proposed introducing an opt-out system for organ donation in Denmark. According to the plan, everyone over 18 would automatically become an organ donor unless they actively opt out of donation. Currently the country has an opt-in system in which potential donors must have given their consent while they were alive, or relatives make the decision in the event of their death. Commentators are sceptical.