Europe

About a quarter of Dutch freelancers report losing assignments as clients become more cautious under harder enforcement of self-employment rules, in effect since 2016 but now applied more strictly; findings come from a survey of over 3.000 entrepreneurs

The Consortium of Married Couples of Andorra la Vella celebrated its 250th anniversary with a program focused on tradition and historical recognition: a mass in Sant Esteve followed by official photograph on the steps of the Casa de la Vall and lunch

Foreign nationals who come to Denmark to work are less likely to commit crimes than Danish citizens, concludes a CEPOS think tank report based on register data from Danmarks Statistik

Protesters and journalists gathered in front of National Theatre in Novi Sad say they were attacked by hooded assailants; demonstration coincided with a state ceremony with senior officials celebrating 200 years of cultural institution Matica Srpska

About 3.000 tulips and 2.500 roses were cut for the upcoming spring holidays on 16 February, the first day of the 'cutting season' for the Vitebsk Zelenstroi enterprise

Croatia has among the highest death rates from cancer in the EU, due to poor organisation of the healthcare system at every level, which often results in the absence of support for patients who are unsure of treatment options and rights

Germany defied Schengen spirit with the extension of random checks at the border with Belgium, that will continue until September 2026 if latest decisions aren't revised

The number of vacancies requiring a university degree has fallen to an all-time low, -35% y-o-y with market losing 23% of job offers; administrative and IT are the less required jobs as experts say artificial intelligence is not the only cause

The Princely Family spent the weekend together watching women’s curling events at the Stadio Olimpico del Ghiaccio in Cortina; both spouses have been Olympic athletes: him as a bobsleigh pilot in five editions, she as South Africa swimmer at Sydney 2000

The Kremlin has denied Russia poisoned Navalny; the declaration follows the forensic analysis presented by five European countries that said poisoning with frog toxin was “likely the cause of his death”

Not a single Tesla model was among the ten best-selling new electric cars in Switzerland last month; the field is led by European manufacturers, with Škoda models Elroq and Enyaq lead the ranking followed by the Volvo EX30 and the BMW X1

189 employees are set to lose their jobs as production at a packaging manufacturer winds down in the next 18 months: another blow to Martin's region, once a stronghold of heavy engineering and paper production now seeing steady erosion of industrial jobs

20 people have been arrested in the port city of Durres as prosecution said they played a role in shipping hazardous waste produced by an Albanian steel mill to Thailand; the operation is being continued for the arrests of 13 other suspects