2027 BUDGET – Luxembourg's Finance Minister Gilles Roth says his 2027 budget is a "citizens' budget" aimed at easing the cost of living. Child benefit rises by €45 a month for under-12s and €60 for older children. The minimum wage goes up 3.8% in January, about €180 a month, and €200 in total from July. A new "cost of living" supplement replaces several existing aid schemes and is expected to reach over 100,000 people. Housing support for first-time buyers under 35 will also be increased.
Opposition parties criticised the budget, with The Greens warning of deficits and rising debt, the ADR predicting record borrowing, and the LSAP saying there is no clear direction, particularly on housing.
BANK ATMs – Five Luxembourg banks have launched a shared network of 237 cash machines. The blue, bank-neutral ATMs are run by LuxConstellation. Only seven are already in operation and locations are for others are still being finalised. Customers of Spuerkeess, BGL BNP Paribas, BIL, Post, and Raiffeisen can use them with no extra fees.
JOB SEEKERS – According to the Labour Minister Marc Spautz, nearly two thirds of jobseekers in Luxembourg who lost their unemployment benefits found new employment within three months. While one third remain registered with ADEM, a small percentage transitioned to the Revis social assistance scheme.
UKRAINE WAR – Russian attacks across Ukraine on Wednesday killed at least 28 people, Ukrainian officials say. 20 died when a missile hit an apartment block in Pryluky, in the north, including five children who were asleep. President Zelensky called it a deliberate choice of terror.
SPAIN HOUSING PROTESTS – Maricarmen Abascal, the 87-year-old Spanish woman whose dramatic eviction last month sparked mass housing protests that led to an early election in Spain, has died. Thousands marched on parliament after the news. Unions have called a general strike for 11 November.
RUSSIA PLAGUE – Russia has dismissed reports of a second suspected plague case in Siberia as false information following the death of a research institute employee, while international bodies are calling for transparency. Meanwhile, neighboring Mongolia has tightened border health surveillance as officials maintain the individual died of pneumonia with no epidemic risk.
FRANCE PROTESTS – Unions have again called for protests in French schools and universities today. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has now promised pupils and teachers better conditions, including more staff, improved buildings, and revised timetables.
RUGBY – The Luxembourg senior men's rugby selection has announced its squad for the upcoming Rugby Europe Conference fixtures as the team pursues promotion. The team will play Estonia away on 17 October and host Norway on 24 October with a roster featuring returning players and four new caps.
CYCLING – Slovenia's Primož Roglič has won the European time trial title. At the European Championships in Slovenia, he finished seven seconds clear of France's Bruno Armirail. In the women's race, Switzerland's Marlen Reusser took gold, 23 seconds ahead of the Netherlands' Demi Vollering.
FORMULA 1 – George Russell's hopes of winning the 2026 world championship have hit another bump after it was announced that because of an engine penalty he would have to start from the back of the grid in this weekend's Singapore Grand Prix.
It's another mixed bag today, with persistent cloud cover bringing along a few showers, especially this morning.The afternoon looks a bit brighter with the rain stopping and some intermittent sunshine popping out from behind the clouds. Temperature-wise, we are looking at 12–14 °Call day.
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