Good afternoon. To keep you up to date, we summarize the five most important news topics of this Friday. One article, five minutes. If you read this, you will be informed again.
1/5 | Scientists in Outbreak Management Team Critically Endangered
The overheating of the corona debate does not only affect the safety of politicians. The members of the Outbreak Management Team (OMT) are now also burdened by threats and intimidation. Various members have confirmed this in conversations with Nu.nl.
Intensivist Diederik Gommers, who says he is not a victim himself, speaks of “serious threats”. In some cases there would now also be security.
The fate of the OMT members fits seamlessly into this autumn’s trend. President of the House of Representatives Arib has already warned that MPs feel intimidated on the street and the NOS removed its own logo from the satellite vans because the reporters would otherwise not be safe.
2/5 | Payroll companies can inadvertently collect millions due to a loophole in corona support
Payroll companies have been able to collect support for millions of corona support that was not intended for that purpose. This is the result of legislation that had to make payrolling – hiring people and then “lending them” – more unattractive. The companies have been able to recover part of the revenue decline that this caused thanks to the corona support measures
Entrepreneurs who suffer at least 20 percent loss of turnover for a period of three months can, since mid-March, receive a subsidy through the temporary Emergency Measure Bridging Employment (NOW) to continue paying wages. The revenue loss is calculated by comparing the current revenue with the average quarterly revenue of 2019.
Payroll companies were already experiencing loss of turnover around the turn of the year because the Balanced Labor Market Act came into force at the time. This law prescribes that payrollers receive the same terms of employment as employees who are employed by the hiring company.
3/5 | “Lawyers as crown witness Nabil B. are on death list for role in Mocro-mafia trial”
Counselors Peter Schouten and Onno de Jong, who assist witness Nabil B. in the controversial Marengo trial, are on a death list from the underworld. The two lawyers confirm to De Telegraaf that the National Coordinator for Counterterrorism and Security (NCTV) has informed them. According to the newspaper, B.’s “confidant” Peter R. de Vries is also “in serious danger”.
“We will continue to do our job,” says De Jong. “The crown witness can continue to count on us.” Peter Schouten does not want to budge either: “I made a conscious choice at the time to defend Nabil B. This extremely annoying message will not change that. ”
4/5 | Most European countries will start to vaccinate in January
Most European countries start vaccinating in January. On Thursday, France and Portugal announced that they will vaccinate next month. This has already happened in Italy, Spain, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Almost all countries opt for a similar strategy: the most vulnerable come first, such as residents of nursing homes. Healthcare personnel are also given priority.
Turkey wants to start vaccinating with the experimental Chinese CoronaVac this month, although research into the vaccine has not yet been completed. This would make Turkey one of the first countries in the world to actually start vaccinating.
5/5 | Biden: Trump’s presence at inauguration would be message of strength and stability
President-elect Joe Biden hopes outgoing President Donald Trump will attend his inauguration in January, as the peaceful transfer of power in the United States sends a message of strength and stability to the rest of the world. Biden said this in an interview to CNN, along with future vice president Kamala Harris.
Biden added that it was personally unimportant to him whether or not Trump showed up. But presenting two formal rivals standing together when someone takes office sees the upcoming Democratic president as an important part of American democracy. “More than the impact on domestic politics, I am really concerned about the image we present to the rest of the world.”
The news in five minutes contains the news from Friday December 4 until 12:15 pm.
