Forecast for the development of the global tourism industry
The World Travel and Tourism Council published a forecast for the development of the global tourism industry for 2007-2016. Latvia was among the ten countries that will progress at the fastest rate.
In particular, the forecast named the countries with the most dynamically progressing tourism sector. In Asia, China and India will remain the most active market players, and Montenegro's resorts will make the country the fastest developing tourist destination in Europe. Namibia and Brunei also have great tourism potential.
Montenegro tops the list of ten countries - it is expected that the tourism industry in this country will grow by more than 10% annually. Of the countries that were once part of the USSR, only Latvia made it into the top ten fastest developing, taking seventh place. // LETA
Norwegians oppose joining the EU
49.8% of the country's citizens do not want Norway to join the European Union. This is evidenced by the results of a February poll, according to Belgian media.
In January of this year, the share of opponents of Norway's accession to the EU was 51.3%. In February, 38% of respondents spoke in favor of joining this regional organization, and in January - 36.4%. A total of one thousand people were surveyed.
Twice, in referendums in 1972 and 1994, Norwegian residents voted by a majority against their country joining the EU.
In Japan, foreigners will have their fingerprints taken
The Japanese government approved amendments to the immigration law, according to which fingerprints will be taken from foreigners arriving in the country. This was announced at a press conference in Tokyo by the head of the immigration bureau of Japan's Ministry of Justice, Chiho Nakai.
According to him, such measures are taken to combat illegal immigration and prevent terrorist acts. Fingerprints will not be taken from persons under 16 years of age, permanent residents of Japan, as well as from members of official delegations arriving in the country, Nakai noted, adding that passenger lists of planes and ships must be provided to the authorities before arriving in the country.
"One cannot deny that the question of human rights arises here, but when we fight terrorism, we should think about what is more important," said Japan's Minister of Justice Seiken Sugiura at another press conference. The amended law will be sent for approval to the country's parliament on June 18.
Germanwings to reward active passengers
Budget airline Germanwings launched its own frequent flyer program, Boomerang Club. The company became the first European low-cost carrier to have such a program. Boomerang Club has been in effect since January 18.
Today, about 38,000 program participants have already been registered, although the airline initially expected Boomerang Club to attract 50,000 over the entire 2006, according to the airline's press release.
Boomerang Club is managed exclusively online: its members register on the Germanwings website, print their membership card themselves, and book award flights in a special section of the site. After completing eight round-trip flights on Germanwings, a program member receives one free round-trip flight.
Latvia's Constitutional Court abolished "rent ceilings"
The Constitutional Court of Latvia decided to abolish the law on so-called "rent ceilings" as inconsistent with the republic's constitution.
"Rent ceilings" is a law adopted in 2004 by the Saeima in the interests of 40,000 families from denationalized houses. According to this law, owners of privatized houses could charge rent from tenants (who had lived in their apartments most of their lives) no higher than that established by law. In 2006, it could not exceed $1 per square meter.
As a result of the abolition of "rent ceilings", after January 1, 2007, residents of denationalized houses will be forced to pay whatever rent the owner of the house sets without any restrictions. Currently, about 40,000 families live in denationalized (privatized) houses in Latvia - mostly socially vulnerable ones.
"Rent ceilings" were abolished upon a complaint from the Association of Owners of Denationalized Houses. They considered that their property rights were violated, since "rent ceilings" were established only for private owners, but not for houses owned by the state.
Let us recall that after the restoration of Latvia's independence, the country declared restitution - descendants of owners of pre-war Latvian houses were given the right to reclaim their ancestors' property that had been nationalized during the Soviet years. The houses were returned along with the residents, who became tenants. However, the state regulated rent through "rent ceilings".
In Estonia, prisoners will be under electronic monitoring
Estonia's Ministry of Justice plans to increase the number of prisoners released early from prison, while applying an electronic monitoring system to them, according to the newspaper Eesti Paevaleht.
Such a measure will apply only to those prisoners who cannot yet be released without great risk to society, the publication notes. The supervised person must wear a bracelet with a transmitter on the arm or leg, which sends a coded signal at certain intervals. The transmitter's range is about 50 meters.
A control unit installed at a probationer's home receives the transmitter signal and sends it via the telephone network to a duty center. The computer compares signals from each control unit with the movement schedule set for each probationer. All of them must report to work or an educational institution at a set time, and the rest of the time stay at home, within the signal reception zone of the control unit.
Second-generation equipment, which is expected to appear in a couple of years, will allow even stricter control over probationers via the global positioning system (GPS), the newspaper writes. In Estonia, about 20% of prisoners are currently released early. There are approximately 4,600 people in places of detention.
US colleges mistakenly did not admit 4,000 applicants
In the United States, four thousand college applicants were affected by errors in calculating the total score of test assignments, CNN reports. They received lower scores, which affected their prospects of admission to educational institutions.
In the United States, there is an old test assignment system called SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) for determining readiness for higher education. It is claimed that out of almost two and a half thousand test items, from 100 to 130 items were incorrectly calculated. Applicants took this test in October of last year.
The technical problem affected colleges mainly located on the East Coast of the United States. Representatives of educational institutions officially acknowledged the error as a system failure. All affected applicants for admission to colleges were notified of what had happened, and the leadership of higher schools promises to re-check their test assignments.
The SAT test assignment system was developed in the United States in the 1920s and consists of two parts. The first is designed to test language proficiency and mathematical abilities; the second part contains assignments on individual subjects. Four hours are allotted for their completion.
English schoolchildren will be paid for good behavior
British Finance Minister Gordon Brown has come up with an initiative to reward every English schoolchild for good behavior with a sum of 25 pounds per month. As The Guardian newspaper writes, this money will be transferred either to special cards or issued in the form of vouchers, so that teenagers cannot spend the funds on extraneous needs. They are to be used for special sports programs and organized leisure activities for school students.
Teenagers aged 13 to 19 will take part in the experiment. However, the amount of payments will vary depending on the affluence of the region, from 12 to 25 pounds. Ten counties and cities of the UK have been chosen to test the project: Bolton, Cambridgeshire, Camden, Durham, Lincolnshire, Liverpool, Nottingham, Suffolk, Sunderland, Tower Hamlets.
Brown's plan will require an increase in spending on youth policy in the amount of 115 million pounds over the next two years. These funds will be needed to organize necessary services and programs for young people and to maintain sports and cultural complexes.
In Italy fewer people marry than in the rest of Europe
The number of marriages per thousand people in Italy does not exceed 4.3, while the average for the European Union is 4.7. In Greece, Portugal, and Spain, people marry much more often - the "marriage rate" in these countries reaches 5.3, 5.1, and 5, respectively.
Meanwhile, 40 years ago there were eight marriages per 1,000 Italian citizens. Now, according to data obtained by the Eurispes research institute, 67.1% of women prefer cohabitation without marriage.
As for men, four out of ten Italians still believe that housework should be entirely placed on women's shoulders. Incidentally, working women in Italy are also fewer than in other EU countries – 45.1%. In France it is 57.8%, and in Germany – 60.2%.
Based on materials from news agencies.