Parliament concludes before summer: Hot topics in 16 continuous hours and intensive debates – these are the highlights

On Wednesday, May 21, 2025, the Danish Parliament (Folketinget) held its traditional final debate, which lasted for more than 16 hours, from 8:00 AM until shortly after midnight. This marathon session witnessed heated discussions on a variety of issues, including Gaza and war casualties, immigration, Syrian refugees, prayer rooms in universities, rising food prices, and internal and external security. It concluded with one independent MP comparing his fellow parliamentarians to animals in a zoo and the Danish constitution to The Jungle Book.

Opening of the discussion and speech by the Prime Minister

The debate began with a speech by the Social Democratic Party's political spokesman, Christian Rabjerg Madsen, who criticized the unconventional start to the session, in which right-wing opposition parties submitted a separate inquiry to the Prime Minister, breaking with a 60-year tradition.

In her speech, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen addressed a number of domestic and international issues. She described herself as a “passionate European” despite her love for her country, Denmark, and emphasized the importance of the European Union, particularly in the area of security.

Frederiksen also addressed the unacceptable pressure Denmark has recently been subjected to, referring to US President Donald Trump's statements about acquiring Greenland, saying: "Who in their dreams would have imagined we would reach this point? We do not bow down, that is not our nature."“

Regarding the global security situation, Frederiksen said, “There is no reason to believe that the Russians will stop at Kyiv,” adding, “Just as it was a mistake to bow down to Hitler in the 1930s, it is a mistake to bow down today.” She emphasized the need to rebuild Danish and European defense.

Immigration and Internal Security

Frederiksen addressed the issue of immigration in detail, describing it as “the biggest internal threat to the Nordic countries.” She emphasized that “those who come here and do not respect the rules must be deported.”

In response to opposition criticism regarding increased immigration from Islamic countries during her time in office, Frederiksen explained that this increase was due to students and skilled workers, and that the government had simultaneously tightened legislation in this area.

She also announced that she would travel to Italy to meet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to discuss ways to strengthen the protection of Europe’s external borders against “unwanted migration”.”

In response to a question from Inger Støjberg about the deportation of Syrians, Frederiksen said: “With the developments we are seeing in Syria, we should be able to bring more people home from Denmark,” noting that there is no longer an active conflict in the country.

The situation in Gaza: “It will change when Hamas lays down its arms,” and he refused to receive wounded from Gaza.

Franciska Rosenkilde, leader of the Alternative party, criticized Israel's actions in Gaza, describing them as "evil in its purest form," and stating, "We are failing human rights." She called for a halt to Danish arms sales to Israel and directed questions to the Prime Minister regarding Gaza and the condemnation of Israel.

In response to a question about the situation in Gaza, the Prime Minister described it as “extremely worrying.” She said, “The population is left to their own devices in a tragic and deeply inhumane situation. But it is a situation that can end the moment Hamas lays down its arms.”.

She stressed that she has always supported Israel's right to defend itself, but added: "But this does not justify blockading humanitarian aid."“

In a brief press conference during a break in the session, Frederiksen said: “The humanitarian situation in Gaza is unacceptable. Women and children are being denied aid, and we must exert more pressure on Israel.”

When asked whether Denmark would accept children from Gaza receiving medical treatment without the necessary anesthesia, Frederiksen declined, saying that Denmark could do more if aid was provided in neighboring areas.

Other notable files

The session also addressed a number of other issues, including:

Prayer rooms in universities:

When asked about her opinion on the creation of prayer rooms in some universities, Frederiksen said: “Basically, I don’t like the idea of a place meant for learning and acquiring knowledge having a prayer room, especially when it’s segregated by gender.” However, she added that she doesn’t want to impose a ban at this time.

• Intelligence Service Act:

In response to a question about a controversial law concerning the Danish intelligence service, which would grant additional powers to the intelligence agency, Frederiksen said: “I am not worried about the intelligence service law. I am worried about terrorists who want to kill.”.

• Malnutrition among the elderly:

Frederiksen addressed the issue of malnutrition among the elderly in care homes, responding to a question from Marlene Harpsøe of the Denmark Democrats. She stated, “We need to follow the elderly care reform we proposed in government, where decisions can be made more at the local level. We shouldn’t start controlling the details here in Christiansborg,” while simultaneously emphasizing that she “believes food is important.”.

• Rising prices of food and meat

The discussion also touched on rising food prices, including red meat. Pelle Dragsted, the political spokesperson for the Unity List (Enhedslisten), criticized the significant increase in the prices of basic food items over the past year.

Droughtsted said: “These are essential goods for ordinary people. Those who are most affected are the least, and that’s tragic.” He criticized ”food giants,” pointing to producers and supermarket chains as some of those responsible for the price hikes.

He added: “It is not a natural law that prices continue to rise. It is also a political choice.”

The issue of meat production was also raised in a debate between Morten Messerschmidt of the Danish People's Party and Inger Støjberg of the Danish Democrats. Both criticized the Unity List's proposal to halve meat production in Denmark.

Messerschmitt said: “I think there are many, like myself and Ms. Inger Støjberg, who like a good mince steak, who will be influenced by this.”

He pointed out that reducing meat production would either lead to higher meat prices or a shift of production to Eastern Europe, where animal welfare is “much worse” than in Denmark.

Støjberg agreed, saying: “It is unrealistic to think that we can keep food prices low in Denmark if we reduce production.”

• Tensions with Russia and the defense file

The issue of relations with Russia sparked debate during the session. Sjúrður Skaale, a member of parliament from the Faroe Islands, pointed out that the Faroe Islands still has a fisheries cooperation agreement with Russia. He said, “It’s strange that it was so easy for Russia to conclude a free trade agreement, while it was so difficult for the European Union.”.

The controversial military agreement with the United States, which would allow for the presence of American troops at bases in Denmark, was also discussed. Torsten Gejl of the Alternative party criticized the agreement, pointing to the lack of sufficient environmental requirements, arguing that the US would have "free rein" to damage Danish nature at the bases.

• Greenland and Faroe Islands issues

Concerns have been raised about the unequal treatment of Greenland and Faroe Islands representatives in parliament. Anna Falkenberg of the Socialist Party of the Faroe Islands criticized the division of parliamentarians into “A” and ”B” categories.

She said: “We have seen colleagues expressing their view that members from the Faroe Islands and Greenland should not interfere in so-called internal political matters,” adding: “The division of members of parliament into Category A and Category B members is an attack on the very foundation upon which we build our society.”.

Aaja Chemnitz from Greenland spoke about the challenges facing the Greenlandic community, saying, “While Trump is talking about wanting to annex Greenland, we have a series of challenges in the Greenlandic community.” Among these challenges, she cited limited access to healthcare and the high cost of living.

She added: “We have to acknowledge that large parts of Greenland are underdeveloped. The one thing we can agree on with Trump is that parts of Greenland are underinvested.”

• Wolves in Denmark:

Frederiksen noted that the presence of wolves has created a sense of insecurity, particularly after attacks on sheep flocks and sightings in residential areas. She confirmed that the government has relaxed regulations regarding wolf population control.

The discussion concluded with a comparison of Parliament to a zoo.

The marathon session ended shortly after midnight with a speech by independent MP Mike Fonseca, who concluded the debate with a controversial analogy, comparing his colleagues in parliament to animals in a zoo and describing the Danish constitution as “The Jungle Book.”.

Earlier, another independent MP, Jeppe Søe, gave a short speech about democracy, expressing his concern about Danish popular sovereignty. He said, “The magic is missing from the conventions we always describe as historic. We need to reboot popular sovereignty.” He followed his remarks with a song he said was intended to inspire hope.

This concluding debate is an annual tradition in the Danish Parliament in which key issues are discussed before the summer recess, and this year it lasted for more than 16 hours.