REAL LIFE NEWS: SANTA IS GOING BANKRUPT
by Hazed
It may be a bit soon to write stories about Christmas, but it looks like poor Santa is in danger of going bankrupt thanks to the current financial crisis.
Specifically, the Santa Claus Office in Finland is in trouble because of falling visitor numbers from Greece, Spain, Italy and Russia.
Traditionally, the Lapland office receives hundreds of thousands of visits each year from children wanting to visit Santa. But it is struggling to repay £140,000 of debts and has been given less than a week to come up with the money – or if will face bankruptcy.
Takings were badly hit as austerity hit the southern European countries. Then Russians stopped coming because of the financial sanctions thanks to the Ukraine crisis.
However, tourism officials from the area say that the office is not the only Santa Claus themed business in the region, and the others remain open. So Christmas will still go ahead.
