Reykjavík Grapevine - 25.10.2019, Blaðsíða 4

What Are Icelanders
Talkin! About?
Pizza, whistleblowers
and cheap coke
Words: Andie Fontaine & Sam O'donnell Photo: Art Bicnick
In an effort to shore up
losses, UK-based master
franchise Domino’s Pizza Group
will be pulling out of four markets,
including Iceland. This should not,
however, affect the presence of
Domino’s pizza in Iceland. Back in
2016, Domino’s Pizza Group bought
a 50% share in Pizza-Pizza ehf., the
Icelandic company that operates
Domino’s in Iceland. They bought
a greater stake in 2017, with the
completion of the sale happening
this year. Domino’s Pizza Group will
now sell their share of the company,
and finding an Icelandic buyer is
highly likely. Therefore the pizza
chain will likely remain in operation
for the time being.
After shuttering their doors last
August, Iceland’s first Michelin-
starred restaurant Dill will open
again. The restaurant will change
location to the second floor of
Laugavegur 59, just above the Bónus
supermarket.
The location is an important
point; part of the reason why Dill
closed was due to its previous loca-
tion on Hverfisgata. Heavy construc-
tion that is still ongoing on that
street had a significant impact on
the business.
Years in the making, the draft
of a new bill from Prime Minister
Katrín Jakobsdóttir would, if passed,
finally provide the protections for
whistleblowers that organisations
such as Reporters Without Borders
have urged Iceland to adopt, and
which began with the adoption of
the Icelandic Modern Media Initia-
tive in 2010.
According to the language of
the bill, a whistleblower would be
defined as “those who in good faith
convey information or documenta-
tion regarding illegal or unethical
practices of their employers, whether
public or private.” Those who fit this
definition would be legally protected
from criminal prosecution or civil
damages.
When this new bill will be submit-
ted to Parliament is still undeter-
mined, the Prime Minister hopes to
complete the draft and introduce it
to Parliament during the current
parliamentary session.
The price of cocaine in Iceland
has decreased from 2017, and quan-
tities seized by police and admissions
to drug rehabs for cocaine addiction
have increased.
Inga Sæland, the chair of the
People’s Party, contends that the
cocaine arriving in Iceland is purer
than it has ever been. “Despite the
fact that police have seized up to 40
kilos of cocaine, the street value has
not gone up, which should tell us
that there’s more than enough of a
supply,” she said.
Arn!ór Jónsson, the chair of SÁÁ,
is urging national and municipal
cooperation in increasing housing
for drug addicts in Iceland.
4The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 19— 2019First
NEWS
Won't somebody think of the pizza!?
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rawlings
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