The Reykjavík Grapevine's Iceland Roundup brings you the top news with a healthy dash of local views. In this episode, Grapevine publisher Jón Trausti Sigurðarson is joined by Grapevine journalist Elías Þórsson, and Grapevine friend and contributor Sindri Eldon to roundup the stories making headlines in recent weeks. On the docket this week is;

[00:02:10] Increased Sales Of The Icelandic Flag

This summer saw a major increase in sales of flagpoles and the Icelandic flag according to Brynjar Húnfjörð, the CEO of Íslandshús, a company that sells flagpoles. Brynjar cites a recent change in Icelandic law: until this summer, it was illegal to hoist the flag after darkness or specific hours of the day. The change allowed the flag to be hoisted around the clock between May 1 and August 15.

[00:15:55] High Speed Ride-Sharing Car-Chase

This Saturday, the police in Reykjavík engaged in a high-speed chase after a reportedly intoxicated man who had rented a ride-share car from local ride-sharing company Hopp, driven at speeds up to 140 km/h, and hit several vehicles along the way. At least five police cars and two police motorcycles went in pursuit, eventually catching the driver in Víðidalur, Reykjavík. He was arrested and taken into custody “until he was fit to be interrogated,” according to the police.

[00:19:54] Free Media TV News In Iceland Comes To An End

The Icelandic media market was one of the main topics of discussion this weekend, following media company SÝN's announcement that it was discontinuing its TV news, which had run since 1986. This means that Iceland only has a single TV news program left, run by the State Broadcasting Service, RÚV. Iceland also only has a single daily paper left, Morgunblaðið. Logi Einarsson, the minister responsible for the media in Iceland, was interviewed both by RÚV and Vísir on the topic, and former minister of the media Lilja Alfreðsdóttir was also interviewed, making the point that RÚV had expanded over the past few years at the expense of free media in Iceland, going on to say that parliament wasn’t taking the dire situation of media in Iceland seriously enough.

[00:34:16] Icelandic Car Rental Companies Face Billions In Backtaxes

Icelandic car rental companies face billions of krónur in back taxes. Last week, it came to light that the Icelandic tax authorities might charge many of the biggest car rental companies VAT on their sales of insurance to customers. Between 15 and 30% of a car rental company’s income stems from selling insurance on their vehicles, and if the taxation is backdated as far back as six years, companies such as Bílaleiga Akureyrar might have to pay up to 2 billion ISK. If this happens, many of the biggest car rental companies in Iceland might simply become insolvent, disrupting the car rental market in Iceland significantly.

[00:43:56] More Details On Biggest Cocaine Bust In Iceland's History

In late June, the police reported the largest cocaine bust in Iceland’s history–106 kg, which has a street value of around 3 billion ISK. The drugs were hidden in a small compartment underneath the Bulgarian aluminum freighter Koznitza, which was arriving from Brazil. Earlier that month, a specialized van with diving equipment arrived in the country on the Norræna ferry from Denmark. Two Brazilian divers also arrived to fetch the drugs and, according to the police, were “specialized in drug diving.” However, they ran into problems immediately, as their suits were too small, so they had to start by buying more gear, and it took them two tries to fetch the cocaine, which they had to swim 1.5 km to reach. To help them cover that distance, they used what’s called a ‘scooter’—a James Bond-esque propeller device. But to add insult to injury, the police had been tracking the drugs all the way from Brazil, and before the divers even reached the ship, the cocaine had been replaced with fake material. The investigation is expected to conclude this week.

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The Reykjavík Grapevine is an alternative monthly magazine published in Iceland since 2003. We bringing you the news and views on Icelandic culture and society, sprinkled with music coverage, travel content, restaurant reviews and more. More on https://www.grapevine.is
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