North_rhine-westphalia

The following articles have been tagged with "North_rhine-westphalia":

MP faces investigation over use of dodgy 'Dr' title

Politics: 10 Mar 10
State prosecutors are investigating a member of the German parliament over his use of a dodgy doctor title, daily Süddeutsche Zeitung reported Wednesday. READ »

Turkish culture club firebombed in Münster

National: 9 Mar 10
Three days after an attack on the Turkish consulate in Münster, unknown perpetrators have firebombed a Turkish culture club in the same northern German city, police reported on Tuesday. READ »

Study finds German women better drivers than men

Society: 8 Mar 10
Though men like to deride women’s allegedly poor driving skills, a new study published by Germany’s ACE automobile club on Monday showed the country's female divers are significantly less dangerous on the roads. READ »

New snowfall causes series of road accidents

Society: 6 Mar 10
Dogged winter weather caused a slew of road accidents across Germany overnight and clogged several motorways with traffic jams. READ »

German tourist killed as giant waves batter cruise ship

Society: 4 Mar 10
A 69-year-old German tourist was among two casualties that resulted from several giant waves that hit a cruise ship off the coast of Spain on Wednesday night, injuring up to 20 other passengers. READ »

Violent storm 'Xynthia' cuts deadly path

National: 1 Mar 10
The vicious Atlantic storm “Xynthia” ravaged Germany overnight, killing at least six and injuring dozens. National railway Deutsche Bahn said Monday morning that commuter traffic was “relatively stable” after wind downed countless trees. READ »

SPD launches NRW election campaign with optimism

Politics: 28 Feb 10
Ten weeks ahead of the state election in Germany’s most populous state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the political parties have been rallying supporters, with the Social Democrats suddenly feeling optimistic about their chances. READ »

North Rhine-Westphalia buys info on tax cheats

National: 27 Feb 10
Germany's most populous state North Rhine-Westphalia has purchased stolen information on 1,500 suspected German tax cheats holding bank accounts in Switzerland, a regional government spokesman said on Saturday. READ »

Westerwelle inflating the obvious on welfare, says Merkel

Politics: 25 Feb 10
Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday took a swipe at her coalition partner Guido Westerwelle on Thursday, suggesting he was inflaming the debate over welfare by trumpeting himself as the lone voice on “taboo” topics. READ »

Rhineland CDU official resigns over influence peddling affair

Politics: 22 Feb 10
Hendrik Wüst, general secretary for the Christian Democrats in North Rhine-Westphalia, resigned on Monday following revelations the party offered meetings with state premier Jürgen Rüttgers in exchange for sponsorship money. READ »

WestLB expects profits but warns of job cuts

Business & Money: 21 Feb 10
The head of beleagured Düsseldorf-based bank WestLB said he expected it to turn a profit in 2010, based on figures that suggest the bank remained operative in 2009 without the need for restructuring. READ »

Deadbeats should have dole benefits docked, Westerwelle says

Politics: 19 Feb 10
Continuing his fiery criticism of Germany’s social welfare system, head of the pro-business Free Democrats Guido Westerwelle on Friday advocated tough action against those who abuse the dole. READ »

Metalworkers' union reaches wage deal

Business & Money: 18 Feb 10
Metalworkers’ union IG Metall reached a provisional agreement with employers on Thursday after lengthy negotiations for some 700,000 workers in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. READ »

Boisterous Westerwelle still shedding popularity

Politics: 17 Feb 10
German Vice Chancellor Guido Westerwelle’s fiery rhetoric over welfare has failed to turn around his slide in popularity, with a poll released Wednesday showing the approval rating of his Free Democrats sinking to 7 percent. READ »

Thieves steal road salt as harsh winter depletes supply

Society: 15 Feb 10
The exceptionally harsh winter this year has spurred enterprising criminals in Lower Saxony to steal a tonne of road salt, a police spokesperson told The Local on Monday. READ »

Terrified tax dodgers turning themselves in

Business & Money: 15 Feb 10
The number of tax dodgers turning themselves in has reportedly risen dramatically in recent days, following the German government’s decision to purchase stolen bank data on secret Swiss accounts. READ »

Organised crime may have caused Cologne archive collapse

National: 15 Feb 10
Suspicion that organised crime may have been behind the deadly collapse of Cologne’s city archive grew on Monday as more falsified building protocols emerged. READ »

More shoddy building uncovered in Cologne

National: 13 Feb 10
Fresh claims that shoddy work practices caused the collapse of the historical Cologne archive building emerged Saturday, including a report that construction firms were skimping on concrete. READ »

Metal employers' group slams wage claim

Business & Money: 13 Feb 10
The head of the leading metal industry employers’ group, Gesamtmetall, has hit back against union demands for a wage rise, warning any pay claim was irresponsible when 700,000 jobs were at risk. READ »

Karneval off to a chilly start

Society: 11 Feb 10
Tens of thousands of Jecken hit the streets in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate on Thursday morning to kick off several days of alcohol-fuelled Karneval celebrations ahead of Lent. READ »

Rampaging 'wild cows' near A1 autobahn shot dead

Society: 10 Feb 10
Police said on Wednesday they were forced to shoot two cows that went on a rampage in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia when they threatened to endanger traffic. READ »

Smallest Karneval parade faces curtain call

Society: 8 Feb 10
The party could soon be over for Germany’s smallest Karneval parade unless the town of Unna in North Rhine-Westphalia can find a replacement for its retiring merry jester. READ »

Swiss data to be bought this weekend: report

National: 6 Feb 10
German tax investigators were in France this weekend to buy the now-notorious stolen Swiss bank data on 1,500 alleged tax cheats, magazine Focus reported Saturday. READ »

Brutal winter devastates German roadways

National: 5 Feb 10
The extreme winter weather has damaged up to 40 percent of Germany’s roads, creating problems that will be extremely expensive for cities already struggling financially, technical inspection association TÜV reported on Friday. READ »

FDP proposes national road salt stockpile as shortage looms

National: 4 Feb 10
After more than five weeks of snowy weather, German municipalities are precariously close to running out of road salt, spurring the Free Democrats on Thursday to propose building a national salt reserve for extreme winters. READ »

New round of public worker strikes hit air and commuter traffic

National: 4 Feb 10
Temporary strikes by public workers continued into a second day on Thursday, delaying flights and crippling public transportation across the country just as the morning rush began. READ »

‘Miriam’ wreaks winter havoc

National: 3 Feb 10
The winter storm “Miriam” created chaotic traffic conditions across Germany on Wednesday, as the military used helicopters to bring food and supplies to the Baltic Sea island of Hiddensee. READ »

Rhineland suffers spate of naked and drunk train passengers

Society: 3 Feb 10
Despite the extremely cold winter, police in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia have had to contend with an unusual rash of train passengers preferring to take their journeys in the nude. READ »

Germany grapples with relentless winter weather

Society: 2 Feb 10
Unrelenting winter weather forced the evacuation of a Baltic Sea island and caused hundreds of traffic accidents in Germany on Tuesday, as another storm threatened to dump more snow across much of the country. READ »

CDU and FDP consider U-turn on hotel tax

Politics: 31 Jan 10
More government politicians have come out in support of overturning the reduction in sales tax on hotel stays. The tax has received considerable criticism from economic experts, party members and the opposition. READ »

Snow causes chaos in the north

Society: 30 Jan 10
More than 25 centimetres of new snow disabled traffic throughout northern Germany on Saturday, particularly in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, where Baltic islands have been cut off. READ »

Parents on dole must repay €20 windfall

Society: 26 Jan 10
Most of Germany’s unemployed parents receiving Hartz IV welfare support will be obligated to return an extra €20 in child benefit mistakenly paid out this month. READ »

Extremist Swede gives anti-Islam party millions

Society: 24 Jan 10
Swedish far-right businessman Patrik Brinkmann has announced he will pour €5 million into the coffers of Pro NRW, an anti-Islam populist party based in Cologne. READ »

Man hospitalised after nuclear plant leak

National: 22 Jan 10
A leak in a uranium enrichment plant in Gronau, Germany exposed an employee to a high level of radiation but posed no danger to people outside the facility, the firm operating the plant said on Friday. READ »

Courts hear business cases in English

National: 10 Jan 10
Courts in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia have offered to handle business cases in English for a pilot project under keen observation by other courts, which could soon follow their example. READ »

Teen boy charged with attempted murder for Kassandra attack

Society: 6 Jan 10
Prosecutors have charged a 14-year-old boy with attempted murder over an attack last September in which a nine-year-old girl was beaten and left to die in a drainage ditch, daily Bild reported Wednesday. READ »

Tenants association fears impending apartment shortage

Society: 31 Dec 09
The German national tenants association (DMB) has warned the government that unless investment in new construction is increased, the country could face an acute housing shortage in urban areas in the next two or three years. READ »

States only want half as much swine flu vaccine

National: 30 Dec 09
The health ministers of Germany's states said Wednesday they only need half of the 50 million vaccine doses previously ordered. READ »

FDP and Greens report record membership

Politics: 30 Dec 09
2009 was more than a triumphant election year for the pro-business Free Democratic Party (FDP) and the eco-friendly Green party. They each made a record number of new members. READ »

Icy roads cause series of accidents

National: 29 Dec 09
Icy roads in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia caused a death and several injuries early Tuesday morning. Hamburg was also severely affected by surface ice during Monday night. READ »

Man goes to jail after illegal street crossing

Society: 28 Dec 09
A man caught crossing the street on a red light in Finnentrop, North Rhine-Westphalia has ended up in jail after the police officer who stopped him found that a warrant was out for his arrest. READ »

Five dead in Christmas Day fire

National: 25 Dec 09
At least five people died after a pre-dawn Christmas Day fire in a house in the German town of Unna in North Rhine-Westphalia, the police said on Friday. READ »

Traditional Christmas recipes

Lifestyle: 22 Dec 09
Still not sure what to cook for Christmas? Try some of these German recipes collected by Christiane Keders for Deutsch Perfekt magazine. READ »

Ice and snow cause traffic chaos

National: 19 Dec 09
The biting cold that has blanketed Germany in snow and ice caused chaos on the roads at the beginning of the weekend, killing at least two people and causing thousands of accidents, particularly in the west of the country. READ »

The Local's guide to skiing in Germany

Travel: 18 Dec 09
There’s more to skiing in Germany than the northernmost bits of the Alps. As the new season begins, The Local’s Kristen Allen introduces some alternative slopes that just might be closer than you think. READ »

Retiree makes emergency call for more toilet paper

Society: 14 Dec 09
A Bochum woman in her nineties called emergency services this weekend regarding a delicate matter – she was out of toilet paper, police reported. READ »

Two people put each other in hospital over shopping cart

National: 13 Dec 09
A row between a 74-year-old man and a 35-year-old woman over a supermarket cart in Aachen escalated into a violent altercation in which two people required emergency treatment. READ »

Westerwelle promises more domestic time

Politics: 13 Dec 09
Guido Westerwelle, Germany's tyro foreign minister and leader of the Free Democratic Party, said he would devote more time to domestic politics in the new year after a hectic and exhausting opening spell. READ »

Online Advent calendars collecting children's personal information

Society: 10 Dec 09
German consumer protection advocates on Thursday warned parents to beware of online Advent calendar games for children that promise prizes to collect their personal information. READ »

FDP must pay €3.5-mln fine for illegal donations

Politics: 8 Dec 09
A court on Tuesday said Germany’s pro-business Free Democratic Party (FDP) must pay almost €3.5 million in fines for illegal political donations collected in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. READ »

Police ram bike to nab fugitive from Aachen

National: 1 Dec 09
Police on Tuesday apprehended convicted murderer Peter Paul Michalski after five days on the run following a dramatic escape from an Aachen maximum-security prison. They reportedly rammed him off of a bicycle to make the arrest. READ »

Police narrowly miss Aachen fugitive

National: 30 Nov 09
Police said on Monday they narrowly missed nabbing escaped convict Peter Paul Michalski in Mülheim an der Ruhr early, but called on the dangerous criminal to give himself up before someone is harmed. READ »

Police snare Aachen prison fugitive

National: 29 Nov 09
Police have caught one of the men who broke out of Aachen prison in a daring escape, authorities in Cologne announced Sunday afternoon. READ »

Guard accused of helping with prison breakout

National: 28 Nov 09
Police have arrested a prison guard on suspicion he helped in the dramatic escape of two violent inmates from the maximum-security Aachen jail, authorities announced Saturday, as the hunt for the two men continued. READ »

Football scandal spills over to tennis, basketball

Society: 28 Nov 09
The football match-fixing scandal grew to engulf tennis and basketball on Saturday, with Der Spiegel magazine reporting prosecutors had expanded their investigations to include the other sports. READ »

States mutiny against Merkel's tax cut bill

Business & Money: 27 Nov 09
The tax cuts planned by Chancellor Angela Merkel's new centre-right coalition faced an uncertain future on Friday amid growing resistance from Germany's states. There is now discussion of pushing the changes back to 2011. READ »

Merkel expects 'thank you' as GM repays loans

Business & Money: 24 Nov 09
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Tuesday she was expecting a "thank-you letter" from General Motors after the US firm paid Berlin back for huge loans to keep its Opel unit afloat. READ »

Disabled woman fired for eating pâté meant for patients

Society: 20 Nov 09
A disabled Hannover woman working at a nursing home has been fired after 18 years on the job for eating pâté intended for patients, daily Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung reported on Friday. READ »

Brüderle's refusal to help Opel angers state premiers

Business & Money: 16 Nov 09
Premiers from German states with Opel plants clashed on Monday with Economy Minister Rainer Brüderle over his insistence that the struggling carmaker would get no federal financial help. READ »

Unitymedia buy expands Liberty Global in Europe

Business & Money: 13 Nov 09
US giant Liberty Global announced on Friday a further expansion of its European presence with the acquisition of Germany's Unitymedia, Europe's third-biggest broadband cable operator. READ »

New programme teaches Turkish imams to lead prayer in German

Society: 12 Nov 09
A new programme is helping 17 Turkish imams learn German in a bid for improved integration, a North Rhine-Westphalian cultural organisation said on Thursday. READ »

Opel is not the world

Analysis & Opinion: 12 Nov 09
International solidarity among autoworkers? Malte Lehming from Berlin daily Der Tagesspiegel believes German outrage over GM’s decision not to sell Opel needs to be put in transatlantic perspective. READ »

Thief accidentally steals circus lion

Society: 11 Nov 09
A truck thief unintentionally stole a circus lion in Wuppertal before crashing the vehicle and fleeing the scene, police in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia told The Local on Wednesday. READ »

'Gas explosion' caused by man's buttocks

Society: 10 Nov 09
A reported explosion sparked a dramatic effort to save a 21-year-old man until authorities realised he had simply sat on a gas pistol in a drunken haze, police in North Rhine-Westphalia reported on Tuesday. READ »

Oldest blogger in Germany chronicles 80 years of history

Society: 10 Nov 09
At 80-years-old, Hans Frackowiak is the oldest blogger in Germany. The former miner from the Ruhr region chronicles major events of 20th century Germany history from a personal perspective. READ »

GM Europe boss quits in disgust

Business & Money: 6 Nov 09
General Motors Europe head Carl-Peter Forster is quitting in disgust at GM's decision to hang on to its European unit Opel/Vauxhall, an inside source said on Friday. READ »

Opel workers protest against General Motors

Business & Money: 5 Nov 09
Ten of thousands of angry German auto workers protested on Thursday against General Motors' decision to keep its Opel unit – a move called a slap in the face for Chancellor Angela Merkel by the country's media. READ »

Crime experts suggest ban on biker gangs

National: 2 Nov 09
A organization representing German police officers has called for a ban of biker gangs, following a weekend of violence between the Hells Angels and Bandidos, daily Rheinische Post reported. READ »

Drug-dealing biker gang busted

Society: 25 Oct 09
The notorious German biker gang and organised criminal organisation the Bandidos was the target of a nationwide police operation which caught 15 suspected drug-dealers and smugglers. READ »

New German technology could allow liquids on planes again

Science & Technology: 21 Oct 09
German scientists said on Tuesday they have developed a new technology that could allow air passengers to take liquids on planes again by instantly being able to tell if they are explosive. READ »

Another employee sacked for taking home leftover food

National: 16 Oct 09
Not long after a German woman made headlines for being fired over swiping meatballs at work, a court in Baden-Württemberg ruled on Friday that a nursing home worker was rightfully sacked for taking home leftover Maultaschen. READ »

Eight-year-old tries to buy candy with €1,680

Society: 14 Oct 09
An eight-year-old boy in Viersen, North Rhine-Westphalia tried to buy a large amount of candy at a kiosk with a bundle of cash he swiped from his parents, police reported late on Tuesday. READ »

Meatball-snacking secretary can have her job back, boss says

Society: 12 Oct 09
The Dortmund secretary who made headlines last week for being fired after 34 years on the job due to a conference buffet meatball snack can have her job back, her employer said on Sunday evening. READ »

Man shot in Duisburg biker bar bathroom

Society: 9 Oct 09
A 32-year-old man is dead after a shoot-out at a biker gang bar in Duisburg, police in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia said on Friday morning. READ »

Police say 9-year-old Kassandra can't remember attack

National: 8 Oct 09
The nine-year-old girl who was brutally attacked and dumped in a gully in North Rhine-Westphalia last month cannot remember what happened to her, police said after questioning her. READ »

Heavy rainstorms flood streets overnight

National: 8 Oct 09
Storms bringing heavy rain swept through parts of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony early on Thursday morning, flooding roads and causing power outages, according to the police. READ »

Secretary fired over meatball snack after 34 years on the job

Society: 7 Oct 09
A Dortmund secretary is fighting for her job of 34 years after being fired for snacking on a meatball from a conference buffet on the job, daily Bild reported on Wednesday. READ »

Claudia Schiffer exits the catwalk

Society: 6 Oct 09
German supermodel Claudia Schiffer will never grace a catwalk again, Italian magazine Donna Moderna reported on Tuesday. READ »

Police find 10 people stuffed into small car on autobahn

Society: 6 Oct 09
Police on Tuesday reported they found ten people crammed into a small car during a routine traffic stop on a North Rhine-Westphalian motorway. READ »

Consumers paying too much for electricity

Business & Money: 6 Oct 09
Despite wholesale electricity prices dropping some 50 percent recently, German households paid 5.8 percent more for power than last year, daily Bild reported on Tuesday. READ »

14-year-old boy arrested for assaulting 9-year-old

National: 4 Oct 09
A 14-year-old boy has been arrested for assaulting and seriously harming a 9-year-old-girl and stuffing her down a manhole last month in North Rhine-Westphalia. READ »

Conservatives lay out road map for tax cuts

Politics: 2 Oct 09
Angela Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrats and their Bavarian allies have struck and agreement over tax relief ahead of coalition negotiations with the Free Democrats next week, promising cuts but not setting a firm date. READ »

Pirate Party fires broadside at German political establishment

Politics: 28 Sep 09
While it didn’t get enough votes to enter parliament, one of Germany's newest parties, the swashbuckling Pirate Party, took a surprising sixth place in the national election on Sunday. READ »

Duisburg high school closed after attack threat

Society: 28 Sep 09
A high school in Duisburg will be closed on Monday after its director received a threatening email, police in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia reported. READ »

Swine flu vaccines expected to arrive in mid-October

National: 23 Sep 09
The first batch of 50 million A/H1N1 swine flu vaccinations is expected to arrive in Germany in mid-October, daily Westfalen Blatt reported on Wednesday. READ »

Five dead in bus crash

National: 22 Sep 09
Five people died in Radevormwald in North Rhine-Westphalia on Tuesday after the bus they were travelling in broke through a safety barrier before plunging 20 metres down a slope into the Wupper River. READ »

The Left's Sevim Dağdelen: ‘My origins don’t define my political beliefs’

Politics: 22 Sep 09
In the final week before Germany's election, The Local’s series on politicians with non-German roots features The Left party’s MP Sevim Dağdelen, a Turkish-German socialist who says she’s fighting for equality and economic security. READ »

Nine-year-old girl found seriously injured in gully

National: 15 Sep 09
Police in the town of Velbert, North Rhine-Westphalia have found a critically injured nine-year-old girl in a gully after she was reported missing by her parents on Monday night. READ »

Munich stays Germany's priciest place to rent

Business & Money: 11 Sep 09
Rents in Germany are on the rise, but there continues to be wide geographic disparity in the cost of a flat, according to a new survey. Unsurprisingly, Munich remains the country's priciest place to live. READ »

Hessian border town changing states after 50-year campaign

National: 9 Sep 09
Exasperated citizens of Stormbruch in Hesse will likely secede to North Rhine-Westphalia in a state parliamentary vote on Wednesday to make a border change the town has wanted since state-lines were redrawn after World War II. READ »

NRW premier Rüttgers apologises after insulting Romanians

Politics: 5 Sep 09
The state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia, Jürgen Rüttgers, has come under heavy criticism and been forced to apologise for saying that Romanian workers are undisciplined and do not know what they are doing. READ »

Beatnik Berlin fostering high-tech start-ups

Science & Technology: 3 Sep 09
Long a magnet for artsy, creative types, Berlin has also become a hotbed for technology start-ups. Sabine Devins reports on the German capital's new IT entrepreneurs. READ »

Once filthy Ruhr River safe again for salmon

Science & Technology: 3 Sep 09
Residents near the Ruhr River are celebrating the return of salmon to the once uninhabitable waters near Essen this week. READ »

Man knifes teen girl and threatens to blow up building

Society: 1 Sep 09
An Aachen man injured a 15-year-old girl with a knife and then threatened to blow up his apartment building on Monday evening, police reported. READ »

Politicians say Twitter 'damages democracy' after exit poll leak

Politics: 31 Aug 09
German politicians were outraged on Monday after election results for three states were relayed over micro-blogging site Twitter 1.5 hours before polls closed on Sunday evening. READ »

CDU loses state polls in Saarland and Thuringia

Politics: 30 Aug 09
Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives on Sunday suffered a setback a month before Germany's general election, with exit polls indicating the Christian Democrats could lose power in Saarland and Thuringia. READ »

Stimulus package funding goes untapped in four states

Business & Money: 27 Aug 09
Six months after the passage of Germany's stimulus package, four of the country's 16 states have yet to tap the €10 billion set aside by the federal government to stimulate growth, daily Bild reported on Thursday. READ »

Teachers rejoice as swine flu brings soap back to schools

National: 26 Aug 09
State health officials said on Wednesday they were gearing up to fight swine flu across Germany ahead of the new school year. Teachers are celebrating the return of soap after budgetary cuts left many school restroom dispensers empty. READ »

Police kill bank robber in getaway chase shoot-out

Society: 21 Aug 09
Police shot and killed a bank robber in the North Rhine-Westphalian city of Ruppichteroth on Thursday night during a getaway chase that also left an officer critically injured. READ »

Greens remove campaign poster featuring bare buttocks

Politics: 14 Aug 09
The Green party in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia have decided to take down campaign posters featuring a white woman’s hands grabbing a black woman’s bare buttocks after critics said it was racist and offensive. READ »

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