The crisis caused by mass migration is not only testing Sweden’s patience, but it also puts a strain on Denmark’s welfare system. Denmark’s government is sounding the alarm over the number of migrants applying for disability pensions. The governing party appears ready to finally take action after a report put out by the Danish Employers’ Confederation showed that immigrants from Iraq, Lebanon and Somalia are claiming disability pensions at a much higher rate than those from other countries.
According to Labour Minister Ane Halsboe-Jorgensen, a politician of the Social Democrats, as many as 12 percent of non-Western foreigners were receiving disability pensions in 2023, compared to only 6 percent of Danes. But if we were to single out individual non-Western countries, some of the rates are astronomical: claims by Lebanese and Iraqi nationals are at 41, and 32 per cent, respectively.
Troels Lund Poulsen, Denmark’s deputy prime minister and leader of the liberal Venstre party (the coalition partner of the Social Democrats), told the Berlingske news portal that the numbers indicate a tendency for more leniency or no checks at all in the approval of disability pensions to these groups. Recently, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called on Syrians to return home after the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad. There are currently around 35 thousand Syrians residing in Denmark, many without permanent residence permits. The government has also announced that it is to halt individual permit applications from Syrian nationals.
The issue of retirement and pensions has also attracted media attention for other reasons in Denmark. Last month, a report revealed that two-thirds of Muslims over 50 in Denmark take early retirement, placing enormous strain on the country’s pension system.
Cover photo: Hungarian PM Viktor Orban (Photo: AFP)
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Publish date : 2025-01-06 04:43:00
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