The Global South, a term which loosely refers to developing economies, is more satisfied with work life balance than countries in the EU, according to a recent study.

The study, carried out by Amrop, a leading global leadership and executive search consultancy, conducted The Meaning of Work study with 8,000 participants across Germany, France, Poland, the UK, the USA, China, India and Brazil.

The study saw German, French and Polish participants report satisfaction below 50%, whilst India reported a 73.3% satisfaction and the USA 59.9%, despite lower social and labour regulatory standards.

Global Chair of Amrop, Annika Farin, told Euronews that what surprised her the most from the study is Europe’s “non-willingness to step up and have the wish to go into a responsible role, be it in business or be it in politics.” She said she sees it as a wake-up call for European leaders.

“We should take that seriously and do something about it jointly,” Farin adds.

With the development of AI and shifting demographics, such as the Baby Boomer generation retiring and Gen Z entering the work force, societies are going to have to embrace changes all around.

“I think we cannot underestimate what’s coming. If we look at the demographics, we see what’s coming. We’ll have to have more people that we bring into our countries,” Farin says, urging more innovation regarding migration.

“What I liked in the study and was surprised to see, in a positive sense, was that it seems that a country like Germany remains attractive for other geographies and nearby countries,” she says.

According to the study, the USA (33%) is the top global choice when it comes to attractive working conditions, thanks to its strong job market, high salaries and diverse industries. Germany follows with 22%, ahead of Canada and the UK, each with 21% of global worker preferences.

“We should see that as an opportunity. Because that can also go away,” Farin says.

The study also shows that countries and age groups are united in their motivation to work for a good salary and in interesting jobs. Pensions are regarded as a hot topic amongst European countries, and have sparked major protests across France and fuelled political debate in Germany.

“One of the topics we really have to talk about, and I know that’s not always popular, is that people might have to work longer in some countries, in certain countries at least, particularly in European markets.” Farin suggests creating initiatives, such as lower taxation for pensioners that work for longer, and using entrepreneurial role models in the media and society to bridge the gap between older and younger people.

The study also shows that countries in the Global South show a stronger interest in leadership roles.

76% of Indian respondents and 66% of Brazilians aim for leadership or entrepreneurial roles. Comparatively, only 36% in Germany and 37% in France share this ambition.

Iceland’s new government has said it aims to put the question of EU membership to a referendum by 2027.

The incoming administration of Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir, which takes over on Sunday, also said it will set up a panel of experts to look into the advantages and disadvantages of retaining the Icelandic crown over adopting the Euro.

“We agreed that a motion in parliament be agreed upon, stating that we will have a referendum on the continuation of Iceland’s European Union accession talks and that this referendum be held no later than 2027,” said incoming Foreign Minister, Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir.

Gunnarsdóttir also heads the pro-EU Liberal Reform party and is widely expected to spearhead any accession talks.

According to a poll conducted by market research company Maskína in June, support for EU membership among Iceland’s population is growing.

That poll found just over 54% of respondents were in favour of joining the bloc, with the majority saying they thought households would be financially better off as part of the EU.

That’s a significant swing in favour of membership in a country that has generally been ambivalent about joining the EU.

In his ‘Public Opinion on the EU in Iceland since 1980’ paper published by Denmark’s Aarhus University, Ragnar Auðun Árnason said that for much of the 1980s and 1990s, Iceland was broadly split into three equal camps regarding EU membership; for, against and undecided.

But issues like the 2008 financial crisis, Brexit and a range of domestic issues has meant that Icelanders seem to be slowly warming to the idea of joining the bloc.

And a significant majority of those polled by Maskína – 74.2% – said it was important that the issue be decided by referendum.

New government unveiled

The new government was presented to the public by president Halla Tómasdóttir at a ceremony in the southwestern town of Hafnarfjörður.

Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir, who is the leader of the centre-left Social Democratic Alliance, said she aims to cut inflation and interest rates.

“This new government will face challenges united. Our first task is to stabilize the economy and lower interest rates with strong leadership in fiscal policy. In the meantime, this government will break the deadlock, and work towards greater creation of wealth in the private sector. The quality of life in the country will be increased through unity surrounding these challenges,” she said.

The Social Democratic Alliance became the biggest party in November’s snap elections, called after the previous coalition government led by Bjarni Benediktsson collapsed due to infighting.

It agreed to form a government with the Liberal Reform Party and the centrist People’s Party. It’s the first time in Iceland’s history that the leaders of all the governing parties will be women.

National broadcaster RUV reported that at 36, Frostadóttir will be Iceland’s youngest ever PM.

RUV also said that the incoming administration aims to reduce the number of government ministries in order to cut some administrative costs.

The bells of Magdeburg Cathedral have been rung to remember the victims of what is being treated as a deliberate attack on the city’s Christmas market that killed five people and injured around 200 others.

Magdeburg marked the tragedy on Saturday evening with church bells across the city tolling in unison at 7:04pm, the exact time of the attack on Friday in the city of roughly 240,000 people.

The alleged attack saw a man, named only as Taleb A. in the media, drive a car into the busy Christmas market.

A nine-year-old child and four adults were killed and around 41 people have been so badly hurt that authorities fear the death toll could rise.

“There is of course the incomprehensibility of the event, the grief with the relatives, with the injured, the incomprehension of how people can do this to other people. Sometimes you almost feel like you’re watching a movie. But the fact is, it is reality,” said Regina Stieler Hinz, Magdeburg’s Deputy Mayor.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz attended the Saturday evening service at the cathedral alongside his Vice-Chancellor Robert Habeck and President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

The driver of the vehicle, a 50-year-old doctor who immigrated from Saudi Arabia in 2006, surrendered to police at the scene.

He’s being investigated for five counts of suspected murder and 205 counts of suspected attempted murder, prosecutor Horst Walter Nopens said at a news conference.

Among other things, investigators are looking into whether the attack could have been motivated by the suspect’s dissatisfaction with the way Germany treats Saudi refugees, Nopens said.

Although Nopens mentioned the treatment of Saudi immigrants angle, authorities said that they still don’t know why the suspect drove his black BMW into the crowded market.

Describing himself as a former Muslim, the suspect appears to have been an active user of the social media platform X, sharing dozens of tweets and retweets daily focusing on anti-Islam themes, criticising the religion and congratulating Muslims who had left the faith.

He also accused German authorities of failing to do enough to combat what he referred to as the “Islamification of Europe”.

German authorities aware of Taleb A. for years

In 2013, he was convicted by the Rostock District Court of “disturbing the public peace through threats of violence” and fined the equivalent of 90 daily rates.

Furthermore, Saudi Arabia had reportedly issued three warnings to Germany about his extremist views, according to German news agencies. However, Der Spiegel reported that the specifics of these warnings remain unclear.

A year ago, German police planned to issue Taleb A. with a “Gefährderansprache”, a warning intended for individuals considered potential threats.

This measure, designed to alert individuals that they are under surveillance and deter criminal activity, was ultimately not carried out.

The reasons for this remain undisclosed, according to Tom-Oliver Langhans, director of the Magdeburg police, who spoke at a press conference following the attack.

Shock across Germany

The violence, just days before Christmas, has shocked Germany and prompted several communities across to cancel their weekend Christmas markets as a precaution and out of solidarity with Magdeburg’s loss.

“Especially these days, when the longing for love, security and an intact world is particularly strong, such an act is all the more frightening and abysmal. And somewhere we are also speechless and helpless, but volunteers, the emergency pastoral workers were on site and many helped out. And I am incredibly grateful for that,” said Magdeburg’s Catholic Bishop, Gerhard Feige.

Although many people went to the site with candles to mourn the victims, several hundred far-right protesters gathered in a central square in Magdeburg with a banner that read ‘remigration,’ German news agency dpa reported.

Berlin kept its many markets open but increased its police presence.

Germany has suffered a string of extremist attacks in recent years, including a knife attack that killed three people and wounded eight at a festival in the western city of Solingen in August.

Friday’s attack came eight years after an Islamic extremist drove a truck into a Christmas market in Berlin, killing 13 and injuring many others.

The attacker was killed days later in a shootout in Italy.