Yearbook 2000
Luxembourg. Grand Duke Jean abdicated in the fall in favor of his son Prince Henri. Jean had been head of government for the past 35 years, as the country evolved from a secluded, second-class industry into a center for satellite communications and financial services.
Luxembourg agreed during the year on a compromise within the EU, which meant that the country where bank accounts exist with foreign owners should tax interest income or submit information to the account holder’s home country.
An armed man entered a preschool in the city of Wasserbillig in eastern L. in the summer and took children and teachers hostage. The man was lured out on the pretext of being allowed to speak for the press. A police officer disguised as a TV journalist shot the man in the head, causing a storm of protests from journalists around the world.
- ABBREVIATIONFINDER: Offers three letter and two letter abbreviations for the country of Luxembourg. Also covers country profile such as geography, society and economy.
A report by a French parliamentary commission in January 2002 accused Luxembourg of sabotaging the fight against money laundering and financial corruption. The report’s central arguments for this claim were the country’s banking secrecy and administrative slowdown whenever cooperation with the authorities was required. Also in January, the country, like 12 other EU countries, got its currency changed with the euro.
In February 2004, rumors circulated that Prime Minister Juncker had been appointed to the post of European Commission President. It was the start of the elections to be held in June. The same month, statistics showed that the unemployment rate was 4.5%.
On March 1, 2004, workers, government and EU representatives met to define Luxembourg’s position on the Kyoto Protocol on CO2 emissions.
In June, Jean-Claude Juncker received the most votes in the Chamber of Deputies and was re-elected as Prime Minister. He went on to form a new coalition government.
Despite the fall of the EU in the referendum in France and the Netherlands, in July 2005 57% of Luxembourg’s citizens voted in favor of the constitution. Despite other EU countries deciding to give their peoples a year to think after the defeat of the Constitution in France and the Netherlands, the Luxembourg Parliament in Luxembourg decided to carry out the referendum as planned. Up to the vote, Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker had also threatened to withdraw from the post unless the people voted yes. According to former Foreign Minister Lydie Polfer, Juncker had made the same political mistake as the French in linking national politics with the European one. Despite Luxembourg’s status as the richest country within the EU – and at the same time the country receiving the most support per country. population – there was some uncertainty in the population about the future of the country. Concerns most closely linked to cross-border crime, immigration and rising unemployment. Observers felt that even if these themes had nothing to do with the vote directly, they would be able to intensify opposition to the constitution, already aroused by the fear of globalization and the EU’s expansion to the east.
Population 2000
According to COUNTRYAAH, the population of Luxembourg in 2000 was 435,992, ranking number 168 in the world. The population growth rate was 1.330% yearly, and the population density was 168.3795 people per km2.
