Belgian news in brief, 30 August 2005

Struggle to tie the kangaroo down!

Police and firefighters near Liege had to call in a vet to capture a kangaroo on the run, spotted in a garden in Villers-le-Bouillet. The animal eluded the emergency services but finally allowed a vet to approach him and put him to sleep while he was being moved. The kangaroo, which was not violent but injured a horse while escaping, is believed to belong to a resident.

Ear specialists say they are witnessing a worrying increase in the numbers of 13-20-year-olds with hearing problems. Experts at the University Hospital of Saint-Luc told news agency Belga that Belgians around 18-20-years-old struggle to hear some sounds and blamed loud concerts, nightclubs and personal stereos for the damage.

Only half of single mothers in Belgium do paid work, according to a study by the Flemish interuniversity group Steunpunt Werkgelegenheid, Arbeid en Vorming. A total of two-thirds of mothers who live with a partner work. “I knew the situation was worrying in this social group but not to this extent,” said the Flemish minister for equal opportunities, Kathleen Van Brempt, stating that a shortage of childcare was the problem.

Fewer than one in three Belgians brush their teeth twice a day, according to a survey of 4,000 Europeans by toothpaste company Colgate. The figure puts Belgians below the European average when it comes to tooth care, reported the newspaper Le Soir. A total of 262 Belgians were interviewed in the study.

[Copyright Expatica 2005]

Subject: Belgian news