The Government is Distributing Food Cheques – Students Receive DKK 1,000 Tax-Free

On Tuesday morning, Minister of Finance Nicolai Wammen (Social Democrats) appeared before the press to present an agreement on the food cheque scheme announced by Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in her New Year's speech. In addition to the governing parties, the Social Democrats, the Moderates and the Danish Liberal Party, the Socialist People’s Party and the Red-Green Alliance are also part of the agreement. 

The parties agree to provide a cheque for DKK 2,500 to pensioners, families with children with an income of less than DKK 500,000 per adult, and Danes receiving transfer income. The agreement now also includes students, who can look forward to receiving DKK 1,000 in May. The students were not mentioned in the New Year's speech.

This is a one-off payment intended to help low-income Danes who have seen their purchasing power decline because of high food prices. 

"I am pleased that a broad majority has come together to provide rapid and targeted financial assistance to some of the people who are most affected by higher food prices. This assistance doesn’t solve all the problems, but it’s an important helping hand to, among others, pensioners and families with children who are most in need financially," said Finance Minister Nicolai Wammen in a press release (in Danish).

“A BAND-AID ON AN OPEN FRACTURE”

The student political organisations at Aarhus University have given the food cheque a lukewarm reception. Chair of the Student Council, Daniel Hjort, acknowledges that the politicians behind the agreement have recognised that high food prices also affect students. 

"Since the decision has now been made to distribute food cheques, we are pleased to be included. Most students would be delighted to receive DKK 1,000.”

But it’s a helping hand that is primarily symbolic in nature, the chair points out:

“As a student who must pay rent and food every month and has expenses for study books, DKK 1,000 doesn’t go very far. That corresponds to DKK 83 per month. I’d call it a band-aid on an open fracture. Because Students’ Grants have been eroded since 2014, when it was decided to reduce inflation coverage, resulting in us as students having significantly less purchasing power than if SU grants had kept pace with inflation," he says, pointing out that even though the Danish Students’ Grants and Loans Scheme (SU) was inflation-adjusted again in 2021, it had been eroded over a period of seven years. 

He continues:

“Alongside high food prices, we students are also experiencing high housing costs, which means that having a student job to supplement your SU grant is no longer just a bonus, it's a necessity. Therefore, I expect politicians to also consider more permanent solutions, such as increasing student grants, rather than a quick fix with a cheque for DKK 1,000.

Daniel Hjort himself has noticed that prices have risen during the two and a half years he has been a student in Aarhus.

The goods are more expensive when I shop, and meat in particular is expensive, so I don't really eat it. And rent prices in Aarhus are often higher than the SU grant, although I have been lucky enough to find a youth accommodation that I can share with a roommate.”

“A ROTTEN GIFT”

Nor does Søren Schrøder Rischel, chair of the Conservative Students, have much praise for the food cheques for students. He notes that everyone would be happy to receive DKK 1,000 tax-free, and for some, the amount would be a welcome help. Despite this, he believes that food stamps are a poor solution to a more structural problem. 

"It's a stopgap measure, because how far will DKK 1,000 go? It's a fun way to spend public funds. It would be better to let things mature and find a sustainable solution," he says, continuing:

"Actually, I think it's a rotten gift because it enriches the giver as the great 'benefactor' – it seems like something politicians do to appease voters," Søren Schrøder Rischel says, referring to the fact that general elections are to be held later this year. 

He also believes that students should allow their behaviour to be influenced by economic reality. 

"If you're a student and you want to eat beef every week, you've got a misguided view of reality. You have to think creatively and change your diet to something you can afford. You can go a long way by not buying expensive products," he says. 

When asked how he’d like politicians to help students in financial need, he replies:

"I think that instead, VAT should be removed on Danish fruit and vegetables, so that seasonal Danish produce becomes the cheapest option. It will be a more permanent solution.” 

The National Union of Students in Denmark is also calling for more structural solutions to students' financial difficulties. To DR News, chair Christoffer Rosenkvist states:

"DKK 1,000 is only a temporary band-aid on the wound. To truly improve our economy, it must be made cheaper to be a student in Denmark. This requires structural solutions, including an increase in student grants, more student housing and cheaper public transport." 

The food cheque is not the only initiative aimed at improving Danes’ purchasing power, the government emphasises, noting in the press release the pay rise for welfare workers, the increased senior cheque, the reduction of the electricity tax, the removal of duties on coffee and chocolate, as well as the abolition of VAT on books.

This text is machine translated and post-edited by Lisa Enevoldsen.