Katrín Júlíusdóttir

Industry minister Katrín Júlíusdóttir said at the end of today’s government meeting the likelihood is that an agreement on the Magma issue will be reached in the coming days. “Yes, very much so, we’re getting close to [a solution]. It could happen today, or in the next few days.”

She went on to say that no rift has formed in the government as a result of the sale of natural energy resources to Magma Energy. “This rift, which has been fabricated by the media, does not exist, and we are reaching an agreement.”

Asked about the extent of the disagreement, Katrín said that the majority parties are focussing on different aspects of the issue. “The rift is not as deep, of course we have our different priorities on the issue, but on the fundamentals we are on the same page.”

At the end of the government meeting, another meeting began at the government offices. Prime minister Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, finance minister Steingrímur J. Sigfússon and minister for economic affairs Gylfi Magnússon were all in attendance.

Source: mbl.is
Image: Alþingi

Labels: Magmagate

We reported not too long ago on the Bolungarvík tunnel in the Westfjords, which is due to open in September. A new milestone in the tunnel’s construction was reached today, as preparation for tarmacking of the road surface inside began. Work on the tunnel is now reaching the closing stages, and is still on schedule for a formal opening in September.

The company Hlaðbær Colas is overseeing the laying of tarmac. Work on laying the surface dressing inside the 1.5km tunnel began at the Bolungarvík end this morning. Straight after the bank holiday weekend, the actual laying of the tarmac will begin. The work is estimated to take around ten days.

The town of Bolungarvík will to take the opportunity to pave some of the roads in the municipality, as a tarmacking centre has already been set up there. Lighting is also being installed inside the tunnel; this work is about half-finished at the moment.

Driving in the Westfjords in famously time-consuming, as to reach the isolated towns of Ísafjörður and its more northerly neighbour Bolungarvík requires driving in and out of each fjord along the coastline. Tunnels that have been constructed underneath mountains and fjords in Iceland dramatically cut journey times and keep remote communities accessible in winter. The first road tunnel in Iceland opened in 1967.

Source and image: mbl.is

Labels: Transport, Westfjords

Finance minister Steingrímur J. Sigfússon says that the coalition government is not in danger of breaking down over Magmagate.

“We will solve this problem, as we have done with others, and we are working on that. We will carry on with this.”

Steimgrímur declined to comment at length on the issue after the conclusion of this morning’s meeting, which was attended by the prime minister and the business minister.

“It is not opportune, I think, for us to comment on this to the media in depth further than we have done already, before we have reached land on what we are working with. This was a good meeting, and the group of cabinet ministers and representatives from the political parties are now working on this issue together.”

Source: mbl.is
Image: Alþingi

Labels: Magmagate

It is not very often that I stay in guesthouses or hotels in Iceland, as most times I am in the country I stay in rooms rented out from private homes. When my partner decided to visit me for a few days last week, we decided to book into a guesthouse together for a few days, as I cannot have guests stay where I am living.

Loki 101 Guesthouse is located on a quiet street in Central Reykjavík which runs parallel to Skólavörðustígur, a trendy and arty street packed with galleries and wool shops. The guesthouse takes its name from the street it is located on, Lokastígur.

The guesthouse is located at the top end of the street near to the famous Reykjavík landmark Hallgrímskirkja. This location is a bit of a double-edged sword: whilst being extremely central yet located away from the sometimes-noisy Laugavegur, the proximity to the church means your ears will ring with the chime of the church bells every fifteen minutes from about nine o’clock in the morning. Not a problem if you get up early.

Our double room was very clean yet basic, but as Loki is a low-budget guesthouse this is nothing to fuss about. Fitted out with modern IKEA furniture, the room provided two very comfortable single beds and free wi-fi access, which is always a plus. The bathrooms are communal; we stayed on the second floor and had a toilet-cum-shower-room at the end of the corridor. Whilst clean and modern, some fixtures were missing, but this turned out to be only a minor irritation.

Breakfast is served from 7am, and consists of a “continental” selection, that is to say help-yourself cornflakes, muesli, toast with jam and/or cheese, fruit, orange juice, tea and coffee. The kitchen and dining area was small yet homely, and provided a good opportunity to have a chat with some of the other guests staying in the house. The host had a very relaxed attitude towards the breakfast, letting us know we could get up at 11am for all she cared, as we were on holiday. Very nice.

We felt very well received by the host, whose name I neglect to remember. She greeted us warmly on the first day and was both light-hearted and funny. She was even friendly when we had a slight problem with the payment, but we managed to work it out in the end. She demonstrated perfectly the laid-back “þetta reddast” attitude that Icelanders seem to have. Cool as a cucumber.

Loki 101 Guesthouse is perfect for travellers on a budget looking for basic yet modern accommodation in the heart of Reykjavík. Our three-night stay for a double room came to 39,265 krónur (£207.17, €247 at the time of payment), which is very competitive with other guesthouses and hotels in the area. All in all, a great little guesthouse that won’t hurt the wallet with excellent and friendly service.

Rating: 4.5/5

Loki 101 Guesthouse
Lokastígur 24A, 101 Reykjavík
loki101.is

Labels: Reviews

Five cabinet ministers sitting on the committee set up to deal with the sale of natural resources to Canadian company Magma Energy will meet tomorrow morning, along with the party chairmen and vice party chairmen from the Left Green Party and Social Democratic Alliance. Party representatives from the Industry Committee are also expected to attend. The meeting will take place at the office of the prime minister at midday.

The five cabinet ministers that will be in attendance tomorrow are PM Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, finance minister Steingrímur J. Sigfússon, environment minister Svandís Svavarsdóttir, industry minister Katrín Júlíusdóttir and economy and trade minister Gylfi Magnússon.

Others who have been called to the meeting are Guðfríður Lilja Grétarsdóttir, party chairwoman for the Left Greens, minister representing the Left Greens on the Industry Commitee Atli Gíslason, head of the Industry Committee and vice party chairman for the Social Democratic Alliance Skúli Helgason, and vice party chairwoman for the Social Democrats Þórunn Sveinbjarnardóttir.

Labels: Magmagate

Firefighters and ambulance drivers took to the junction of Miklabraut and Kringlumýrarbraut earlier today as they strike. With placards bearing slogans such as “Go carefully, we’re on strike” and “Honk for the fire brigade”, the protesters are withstanding the inclement weather to get their point across.

Labels: Protests

Sigrún Ósk Sigurðardóttir, vice president of ÁTVR (Áfengis- og tóbaksverslun ríkisins), the state-owned off-licence chain, has clarified the company’s decision to ban the sale of Tempt Cider in Iceland due to its explicit packaging. “This is clear in our rules concerning product selection. When a product is requested, the matter is discussed and the product assessed based on the law and regulations.”

Labels: Alcohol

After a brief steamy spell earlier this week, activity surrounding the volcano under Eyjafjallajökull has once again died down. There is no longer any steam visible from the volcano. Geophysicist Magnús Tumi Guðmundsson says that in recent days there has been little change at the eruption site.

The flow of steam from the eruption site is ever-decreasing as the volcano continues to cool. The visibility of the steam cloud depends very much on the local humidity, general weather conditions and amount of cloud cover.

“There is a flow of steam from the vent and the eruption channel is cooling and subsiding gradually. The eruption channel heats ground water and creates an outflow of steam there, which is considerable in size,” said Magnús Tumi in an interview with mbl.is.

“How visible the steam cloud will be depends on the wind, relative humidity and cloud cover,” continues Magnús Tumi, adding that this is typical of a cooling volcano such as Eyjafjallajökull.

Source and image: mbl.is

Labels: Eyjafjallajökull

The unbelievably amazing weather that southwest Iceland has been experiencing over the past few days is set to continue until at least Monday. Reykjavík has been experiencing bright blue skies with few clouds and temperatures approaching the twenties in recent days.

On Tuesday and Wednesday the weather is expected to be mild, and at the end of the week it will be getting warmer in northern and eastern Iceland. The unusually hot weather follows a heat wave in the rest of Europe, where temperatures have reached over 40°C in some parts of the continent.

Recent prevailing northerlies and northeasterlies have brought with them extraordinarily sunny weather in southern and western regions, whilst bringing little spectacular weather to other parts of the country.

Source and image: mbl.is

Labels: Weather

The Ministry of Social Affairs and Social Security says that it has already begun preparations for a review of the law concerning community buildings and the right to keep a dog. The review will have a particular focus on those who require the animals to assist them with a disability.

Labels: Human rights

Recently a very controversial deal was made between Icelandic energy company HS Orka, and Canadian company Magma Energy, which many Icelanders have interpreted as the effective auctioning off of Iceland’s natural energy resources to a foreign company. The deal is expected to impact the lives of generations to come.

World-famous Icelandic singer Björk Guðmundsdóttir and some of her companions have requested a thorough review of the so-called “Magma issue” (or for the purposes of this article, Magmagate). Amongst those who have put also their name to the request are author Oddný Eir Ævarsdóttir, architect Jón Þórísson and special advisor to the nation Eva Joly.

In the submission, it is said that in light of how the course of events leading up to the sale and signing of the contract took place, and because they were controversial and lacked transparency, it is important that an ombudsman for the Alþingi conduct a review to find out whether the public’s best interests have been sufficiently protected.

The ombudsman would also investigate whether the government has handled the affairs legally and following the relevant procedures.

The submission goes on to say that the issue is an enormous one for the Icelandic public, and that those decisions which have been taken over the sale of energy resources will affect the current generation of Icelanders and those to come.

The full submission, in Icelandic, can be found on Morgunblaðið’s website.

Source: mbl.is
Photo: erinc salor

Labels: Björk, Energy, Magmagate

Statistics Iceland has released its latest population projections for the country, with the main statistic that Icelanders will number approximately 436,500 on 1st January 2060. The current population of the island is 317,600.

The figure of 436,500 is a medium variant of the projection, but the population could range anywhere from 386,500 to 493,800. The increase is mainly attributed to a high net migration figure, but net migration is predicted to have an overall negative impact on the population until 2012.

Statistics Iceland also predicts a positive change in life expectancy amongst Icelanders, with a projected range of 79.7 to 85.0 years for men, and 83.3 to 87.1 for women. The population is also predicted to age as a whole, in line with other European nations. Presently Iceland enjoys an unusually high birth rate for a European country, and has a younger population compared with other Northern European nations.

Sources: mbl.is, statice.is
Image: úlfhams_víkingur

Labels: Population

Indian restaurants are few and far between in Iceland. As a Brit, I’ve had my fair share of curries and I’ve got a certain idea of how an Indian restaurant experience should be. As everything is smaller in Iceland, I thought I’d try and judge Shalimar fairly. This turned out to be more difficult than expected.
Read more »

Labels: Reviews

Signs of recovery continue to appear here and there in Iceland as the country continues to pull itself out of the economic crisis. Good news in the form of unemployment figures broke today, which stood at 7.6% total employment for June, which translates to an actual figure of 12,988 people. In May, unemployment was at 8.3%, which means that there were 886 fewer unemployed people going into June.

Unemployment amongst men is decreasing faster than amongst women, with men making up 776 of the figure of 886, meaning that only 111 fewer women were unemployed. In terms of percentages, unemployment stands at 7.7% for men and 7.3% for women, according to the Directorate of Labour.

The decrease in numbers on the unemployment list is proportionally more in rural areas than in the city, with 8.5% unemployment in the city compared to just 5.3% in the countryside. The highest unemployment rate is in Suðurnes, the peninsula in southwest Iceland, which is currently 11.9%. The northwest region sees June’s lowest unemployment rate, where the figure is 2.6%.

The Directorate of Labour says that unemployment figures usually improve in July over June, due to seasonal fluctuations. In July 2009, unemployment stood at 8%, whereas in June of the same year the figure was 8.1%. The Directorate expects the figure to drop further in July, estimating a rate somewhere in the range of 7.2–7.6%.

Source: mbl.is
Image: Jenny Downing

Labels: Kreppa, Unemployment

Bjarni Benediktsson, head of the Independence Party, said in an interview with Bændablaðið today that if his party gets into power in a new coalition, then they would make withdrawing Iceland’s application to the European Union a priority.

“Yes, we would make it a priority. As mentioned in my speech [at the Independence Party’s AGM], we consider the current order of priorities to be wrong,” said Bjarni when asked whether the issue would be a requisite for a coalition.

Bjarni goes on to say that he has always been of to the opinion that remaining outside of the EU is in the best interest of Icelanders.

“After the crisis, I thought it right that people remained broad-minded about the debate, considering all options at the time. I am of the opinion that it was right to do that, and that it is of course necessary to assess Iceland’s situation and partnerships with other nations on a regular basis.”

Source: mbl.is
Image: Alþingi

Labels: EU

Whaling boat Hrafnreyður KÓ hunted a minke whale in Faxaflói today, the 33rd captured by a boat of the company Hrefnuveiðimanna ehf. this summer. According to Gunnar Bergmann Jónsson, the whaling went extremely well and the boats did not run into any trouble catching the whales.

The minke whale hunted today was captured just outside of the line marking the inner whale hunting zone. The catch has been considerably larger this year than last summer. The boat’s paint job has been attributed to its success in whaling, being black in colour.

“The hunt went very well. We’ve not needed to go on any wild goose chases, we’ve always managed to get [whales]. The weather has been very fine. Faxaflói is stuffed full of minke whales,” Gunnar said.

Source and image: mbl.is

Labels: Whaling

The Landsbjörg Rescue Team was called out this evening to search for two men in the Fimmvörðuháls area, which is located between the glaciers Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull in south Iceland.

Fimmvörðuháls was the site of volcanic activity before the larger eruption under Eyjafjallajökull earlier this year. The men intended to visit the eruption site themselves, but got lost in the thick fog which has been covering much of the country today.

One of the men is Icelandic and the other Danish, and both are experienced mountaineers according to information from Morgunblaðið. The men are in constant contact with the search and rescue team, who are now trying to locate them. The team is currently on its way up both of the larger mountains in the area.

The team received a message from the men just before midnight on Sunday that they saw the blue flashing lights of the rescue team somewhere near Þórsmörk. The image depicts a search and rescue team on Fimmvörðuháls.

Source and image: mbl.is

Labels: Eyjafjallajökull, Tourism

An offer for construction of a new custody and short-term detention centre will be put up for tender before the end of September. Justice and Human Rights Minister Ragna Árnadóttir has appointed a committee to formulate a long-term plan for the construction of the new facility. In the new prison there are expected to be 50 places, with a separate area for women.

The project has been in the preparation stages for a long time. It was officially decided in a meeting on 30th June to carry through the Justice and Human Rights Minister’s recommendation to start the project in the autumn, according to an announcement from her ministry.

The Government Purchasing Department will prepare the offer for tender on behalf of the state treasury, but it is expected that the winning contractor will foot the bill for construction and then lease the facility back to the government. Work on a feasibility study for the building has mostly been completed.

Now work on a basic plan and schema for the building is underway, which is intended to replace the penitentiary on Skólavörðustígur (pictured) and the facility in Kópavogur, which are currently both overcrowded. A location for the prison has not yet been decided upon.

Source: mbl.is
Image: gudmd.haralds

Labels: Construction, Crime