https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Europe in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed With less than one month to go until the general election in Sweden, we are again asking you to tell us how The Local can serve you best. https://www.thelocal.com/20260326/how-would-you-like-the-local-to-cover-the-swedish-election Thu, 26 Mar 2026 07:10:47 +0100 how-would-you-like-the-local-to-cover-the-swedish-election Fewer than 100 Swedish citizenship applications – and only 20 through naturalisation – were approved in July, the month after new and stricter citizenship rules came into force. https://www.thelocal.com/20260817/sweden-grants-fewer-than-100-new-citizenships-the-month-after-new-rules-come-into-force Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:47:52 +0200 sweden-grants-fewer-than-100-new-citizenships-the-month-after-new-rules-come-into-force Sweden's first civics test for citizenship was held on Saturday and largely went smoothly, although several examinees complained to The Local that some questions required knowledge and language that was not part of the preparation material. https://www.thelocal.com/20260817/i-got-confused-by-the-language-citizenship-applicants-rate-swedens-first-civics-test Mon, 17 Aug 2026 13:29:42 +0200 i-got-confused-by-the-language-citizenship-applicants-rate-swedens-first-civics-test Dozens of residents on Monday jeered the French prime minister as he arrived in an area hit by wildfires earlier this summer, in a show of anger over the government's handling of the worst such crisis in France in decades. https://www.thelocal.com/20260817/residents-jeer-french-pm-on-visit-to-fire-hit-region Mon, 17 Aug 2026 12:58:34 +0200 residents-jeer-french-pm-on-visit-to-fire-hit-region Scandinavian airline SAS has launched a new route between Mumbai and Copenhagen with five flights a week, making it the airline's first direct route between the two countries in 17 years. https://www.thelocal.com/20260817/sas-launch-direct-route-from-denmark-to-india-for-first-time-in-17-years Mon, 17 Aug 2026 12:45:56 +0200 sas-launch-direct-route-from-denmark-to-india-for-first-time-in-17-years Male job seekers with foreign names are hit harder by discrimination than women, according to a study from Stockholm University. https://www.thelocal.com/20260817/men-with-foreign-names-hit-hardest-by-hiring-bias-in-sweden Mon, 17 Aug 2026 10:38:51 +0200 men-with-foreign-names-hit-hardest-by-hiring-bias-in-sweden Sweden has begun to issue voting cards ahead of the September 13th election, with voters with a digital mailbox for the first time receiving theirs digitally. https://www.thelocal.com/20260817/voting-cards-land-in-inboxes-as-countdown-to-swedens-election-begins Mon, 17 Aug 2026 09:41:16 +0200 voting-cards-land-in-inboxes-as-countdown-to-swedens-election-begins Countries across Europe on Sunday continued to battle wildfires amid blistering temperatures and tinder-dry landscapes. https://www.thelocal.com/20260816/latest-europes-battle-with-wildfires-continues Sun, 16 Aug 2026 12:56:48 +0200 latest-europes-battle-with-wildfires-continues A fresh debate about whether foreigners should be able to speak German in the service industry has been reignited following a post from a cafe in Munich that defended staff over their language skills. https://www.thelocal.com/20260811/munich-cafe-goes-viral-for-defending-staff-for-not-speaking-german Tue, 11 Aug 2026 16:05:18 +0200 munich-cafe-goes-viral-for-defending-staff-for-not-speaking-german The EU pushed back Friday at renewed trade pressure from the United States, as Washington said the bloc was enabling Chinese evasion of US tariffs and stepped up calls for it to roll back flagship green rules on businesses. https://www.thelocal.com/20260815/eu-pushes-back-as-us-revives-trade-pressure-on-bloc Sat, 15 Aug 2026 14:54:42 +0200 eu-pushes-back-as-us-revives-trade-pressure-on-bloc Countries across Europe on Saturday battled wildfires amid blistering temperatures and tinder-dry landscapes, with thousands of people evacuated. https://www.thelocal.com/20260814/europe-battles-new-wave-of-wildfires Fri, 14 Aug 2026 14:49:54 +0200 europe-battles-new-wave-of-wildfires Spain's population density is a European anomaly, with 90 percent of residents living in just 2.6 percent of the country. Why is it that the cities are so crowded while huge parts of the country's interior are empty? https://www.thelocal.com/20260814/why-is-spains-population-so-poorly-distributed Fri, 14 Aug 2026 13:18:22 +0200 why-is-spains-population-so-poorly-distributed Millions of people across Europe -- particularly in France, Italy, Spain and Britain -- baked through a new wave of extreme temperatures Thursday as the continent's latest heatwave picked up. https://www.thelocal.com/20260812/europes-latest-heatwave-more-than-90-million-set-for-plus-35c-temperatures Wed, 12 Aug 2026 13:42:33 +0200 europes-latest-heatwave-more-than-90-million-set-for-plus-35c-temperatures Some 3,000 pieces of luggage have been unretrieved and up to 170 flights have been cancelled as the indefinite strike by ground staff at Barcelona airport continues into its second week, with no end in sight yet. https://www.thelocal.com/20260814/more-baggage-chaos-and-cancelled-flights-in-second-week-of-barcelona-airport-strike Fri, 14 Aug 2026 09:52:59 +0200 more-baggage-chaos-and-cancelled-flights-in-second-week-of-barcelona-airport-strike Around 40 flights have been cancelled, with likely more to come, as French cabin crew at easyJet begin a weekend strike. https://www.thelocal.com/20260812/latest-french-easyjet-staff-call-weekend-strike Wed, 12 Aug 2026 15:23:55 +0200 latest-french-easyjet-staff-call-weekend-strike Passengers arriving at Germany's two largest airports, in Frankfurt and Munich, faced some of the longest delays at passport controls in Europe due to the new system. https://www.thelocal.com/20260813/ees-delays-cause-wait-times-to-double-at-major-german-airports Thu, 13 Aug 2026 15:41:30 +0200 ees-delays-cause-wait-times-to-double-at-major-german-airports Eurovision Song Contest organisers announced Wednesday that they were excluding any country in an armed conflict from hosting the competition, as the Bulgarian Black Sea city of Burgas will host Eurovision 2027. https://www.thelocal.com/20260813/eurovision-to-bar-countries-at-war-from-hosting Thu, 13 Aug 2026 09:35:09 +0200 eurovision-to-bar-countries-at-war-from-hosting With a clever two-word slogan, a little known political party has captured voters' attention in the run-up to Berlin's September election. The Local spoke with Volt candidate Matt Bristow to ask exactly what his party plans to do. https://www.thelocal.com/20260813/what-is-volt-and-how-does-it-plan-to-unfck-berlin Thu, 13 Aug 2026 12:59:49 +0200 what-is-volt-and-how-does-it-plan-to-unfck-berlin Spectacular images of lava flowing down the slopes of an erupting Mount Etna have drawn flocks of sometimes ill-equipped tourists to the Italian volcano – drawing concern from local guides. https://www.thelocal.com/20260813/safety-warnings-as-tourists-rush-to-erupting-mount-etna Thu, 13 Aug 2026 09:26:10 +0200 safety-warnings-as-tourists-rush-to-erupting-mount-etna New EU restrictions on toxic substances known as "forever chemicals" in food packaging kicked in Wednesday along with broader rules on cutting packaging waste in the bloc. https://www.thelocal.com/20260812/eu-curbs-on-forever-chemicals-in-food-packaging-kick-in Wed, 12 Aug 2026 16:28:43 +0200 eu-curbs-on-forever-chemicals-in-food-packaging-kick-in