18th January 2019

SOME PENSIONERS ARE POOR

Nearly 10% of Luxembourg’s pensioners are living below or just above the poverty line.  There has been a sharp increase in the proportion in recent years, and it is nearly twice the level it was 15 years ago.  Nevertheless the data from Eurostat suggests it is still lower than the European average, which is over 14%.  The country with the highest level of pensioner poverty is Estonia, where around 45% live at or below the poverty line. 

SCAFFOLDING COLLAPSE IN TRIER

A construction worker sustained serious injuries after a scaffolding collapsed in Trier yesterday.  The injured worker was about 4 meters up the building when part of it, and the attached scaffolding fell suddenly onto the Paulinerstrasse.  It landed on a passing car, though its occupants were unharmed.  

BEST TO WALK

Three major construction sites linked to the tram network are going to make driving around the capital difficult.  The first two, at the  Boulevard Jospeh II and the Avenue de la Liberté are likely to be bottlenecks only for a week or so if work goes to plan.  The third on the Buchler bridge near the station will involve lane closures for most of the next 2 years.  Luxembourg City council adds that they haven’t really been able to prioritise busses at these sites, and frankly, people might be better off just walking, at least for the next week. 

SALMONELLA IN DOG SNACKS

Salmonella has been detected in two dog snacks sold by the Fressnapf chain.  The first is the Real Nature Wilderness 100% Ostrich snacks.  The other is made by FriGera, and is dried cows head skin.  Only a limited number of batches are affected and you can check these serial numbers on the agriculture ministry website.