Author: Press Room

ADVERTISEMENTNATO allies are readying themselves for a major ‘shift’ in responsibility for defending the continent, but diplomats told Euronews on the eve of a ministerial meeting in Brussels that the transfer of burden of responsibility is crucial to keep the US in the alliance.US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in Brussels on Thursday and Friday attending his first meeting of NATO foreign affairs ministers where he’s expected to hammer home US demands that the burden of security and defence of the alliance has ‘shifted’ to Europeans. But Europeans will have a message for him too: that it’s not a good move to try…

Four people have been charged after an “Aladdin’s cave” by a police investigation into a string of burglaries in the Auckland CBD over the past month.Police this morning carried out searches of two apartments inside a Hobson St complex as part of Operation Rocket, a police investigation into a series of burglaries at apartments and businesses in the city.“Our teams came across an Aladdin’s cave of stolen property and it’s going to take some time to work through where everything has come from,” Auckland central area commander Inspector Grant Tetzlaff said. Among the 80 stolen items recovered were “13 electric…

ADVERTISEMENTEnhancing European defense capabilities and bolstering military support for Ukraine are now priorities for the EU’s executive branch. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the EU has provided significant financial, humanitarian, and military aid, accounting for more than half of all international assistance to Ukraine. EU military support has reached 49.3 billion euros, with member states, excluding Hungary, agreeing to continue supplying arms. Some, like France and the UK, are considering sending troops to Ukraine after a potential peace agreement, though this remains a contentious issue. Devoid of a unified military force, the EU relies on NATO for defense, with…

Wool advocate Craig Smith says the global wool industry needs to wake up and ask if it is there for quality or simply to hit a price point. Mr Smith, general manager of Devold New Zealand, said companies blending poorer styles and shorter wools to hit a price point were giving the fibre a bad name. If there was a reason consumers were not reaching for woollen products, it was not just dollars and cents, but quality issues and brands needed to take ownership, he said. If the right wool could be sourced, with the right money paid, then garments…

Consultation has finally opened on a proposal to retain a 60km/h limit on a stretch of Nelson highway, but a local parent and low-speed advocate is concerned the survey is confusing.A 1.8km section of Queen Elizabeth II Drive/State Highway 6 that passes through the city’s northern suburb of Marybank is slated to increase in speed to 80km/h.The change is a result of a Coalition Government policy to reverse speed limit reductions brought in by the preceding Labour administration.However, the mandated increase was opposed by local parents and residents, the adjacent primary school, and elected representatives such as the city’s MP…

ADVERTISEMENTThe Catalan Prosecutor’s Office has announced its plans to appeal the acquittal of former Dani Alves, the Brazilian football star who was cleared of rape charges last week.In a landmark moment on Friday, a Spanish court of appeal stated there was “insufficient evidence” to rule out Alves’ presumption of innocence.The decision came more than a year after a February 2024 ruling found the Barcelona defender guilty of having raped a woman in a nightclub toilet back in December 2022.“Dani Alves is innocent, and that has been proven,” his defence lawyer Inés Guardiola told Catalan radio RAC1. “Justice has finally been served.”Although…

ADVERTISEMENTAfter a vote during a fractious meeting of the European Parliament’s environment committee, the row over the funding of non-governmental organisations in the EU policy bubble is rolling on, with a statement from the EU executive provoking criticism that it was bending to pressure from the political right.The conservative European People’s Party (EPP) and allies further to the right lost by one vote on Monday evening a motion objecting to the EU executive’s decision on funding NGOs through the LIFE Programme for the period 2025 to 2027.In a subsequent statement, the Commission noted that funding for NGOs was “explicitly provided for…

More than half of New Zealand workers — 54% — regret their choice of career and would choose differently if they had their time over, according to a survey by employment website Seek.The survey of more than 1000 workers found not earning enough was the top reason for regret, followed by changing interests and passions, unfulfilling work, and a poor work/life balance.Seek NZ manager Rob Clark said a standout finding of the report was that money weighed heavily on the minds of workers.”Amid persistent cost-of-living pressures, this could be why almost half of workers are feeling pessimistic about their future…

ADVERTISEMENTFrench far-right politician Marine Le Pen and eight other former members of the European Parliament from her party were found guilty of embezzling EU funds. But they were not alone and misuse of money earmarked to pay MEP’s assistants is quite common in the Parliament, multiple sources familiar with the Parliament’s internal working have told Euronews.Each MEP is entitled to a monthly sum earmarked for paying their assistants, which amounts to €30,769 in the current legislature (2024-2029), a slight rise from the previous one.At least 40% of this allowance is for accredited assistants (APA), those working in the Parliament’s premises in Brussels,…

With her new book out today, journalist Ali Mau talks about letting go of dark secrets, the incredibleness of her girlfriend and how she used to think she was fat.In her incendiary memoir Ali Mau shatters forever the glossy image of TV blonde perfection she struck back in the early aughts when she read the news with then husband Simon Dallow. Of course, Mau had already seriously cracked that mold, separating from Dallow in 2009 and having her new same-sex relationship roughly “outed” by some of our finest mags and rags the following year.Simon Dallow and Alison Mau in 2007.…