Author: Press Room

Documents obtained by Euronews reveal the Commission’s protocol only officially communicated Ursula von der Leyen would not be attending the reopening ceremony of Notre Dame Cathedral a few hours before the event began. ADVERTISEMENTDocuments seen by Euronews have revealed the short timescale within which Commission President Ursula von der Leyen decided not to attend the reopening of Notre Dame last year, confirming that she appeared set to attend the event a couple of days beforehand.If the reopening of the iconic cathedral last December was a touchstone event for France following last year’s successful Olympic Games, it was also a fragile…

The ‘blitz on illegal working’ comes as Keir Starmer’s government faces mounting pressure from the increasingly popular Reform UK party. ADVERTISEMENTThe British government has defended its decision to publish footage of immigration raids, as it seeks to stem the rising popularity of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party. The Home Office is set to release videos of deportations later on Monday, a move critics have denounced as insensitive.It comes as national polls show that Reform UK, a far-right party that is vehemently against immigration, is gaining on the incumbent Labour government. Amid such political pressure, Labour has boasted that it has…

Companies from across the globe are zeroing in on striking gold in Otago and large swathes of the region are now staked out by prospectors. Resources Minister Shane Jones said yesterday with the government taking a more permissive approach towards mining, and the price of gold soaring, “people are prepared to chance their arm”. Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE) petroleum and minerals national manager John Buick-Constable said the data showed “steady interest” in the possibility of striking gold in Otago. Among those interested, Australian company Euro Gold Ventures applied for three prospecting permits in the region, covering more…

Two fishermen are “lucky to be alive” after a “complex” and “difficult” rescue off the rocks at Auckland’s Te Henga Bethells Beach last night.Surf Life Saving said lifeguards extracted the pair from the rocks at the blowhole at O’Neills Bay after one of them was swept off rocks just before 7.30pm.”Two other fishermen somehow got the injured and unconscious man back onto the rocks and one walked back to the beach to alert surf lifeguards,” a statement said.”With two metre-plus swells making it impossible to get an inflatable rescue boat (IRB) close enough, an incoming tide and fast-reducing light, rescue…

The European Commission will not commit to launching legal action against Poland after Donald Tusk openly threatened to disregard the Migration Pact. ADVERTISEMENTThe European Commission is scrambling to defend the Pact on Migration and Asylum after Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk doubled down on his refusal to implement the legislation, casting doubt over its practical viability.Notably, the Commission refrained from committing to launching legal action against Poland or any other member state that bypasses the five interlinked laws under the Pact.The response stands in stark contrast with previous remarks from high-level officials.Last year, Ylva Johansson, the former European Commissioner for…

US President Donald Trump has signalled an imminent announcement of 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports into the US, a trade policy which has the potential to impact New Zealand. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One as he flew to New Orleans to attend the Super Bowl, Trump also reaffirmed that he would announce “reciprocal tariffs” —“probably Tuesday or Wednesday” — meaning that the US would impose import duties on products in cases where another country has levied duties on US goods.”If they are charging us 130% and we’re charging them nothing, it’s not going to stay…

Brigitte Haas will be the wealthy municipality’s first female head of government after her Fatherhood Union party won an election on Sunday. ADVERTISEMENTLiechtenstein is set for its first female prime minister after Brigitte Haas’ conservative Fatherland Union won a general election in the tiny Alpine principality.Haas’ party received 38.3% of the vote in Sunday’s election for the legislature in Vaduz, a slight gain compared with the last election four years ago when it had 35.9%. That gave the party an unchanged tally of 10 seats in the country’s 25-member parliament.The Fatherland Union has traditionally formed coalitions with the Progressive Citizens’…

Companies from across the globe are zeroing in on striking gold in Otago and large swathes of the region are now staked out by prospectors. Resources Minister Shane Jones said yesterday with the government taking a more permissive approach towards mining, and the price of gold soaring, “people are prepared to chance their arm”. Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE) petroleum and minerals national manager John Buick-Constable said the data showed “steady interest” in the possibility of striking gold in Otago. Among those interested, Australian company Euro Gold Ventures applied for three prospecting permits in the region, covering more…

A Taradale man is facing charges after a machete was allegedly swung at police officers in the early hours of this morning.A police inspector said “a moment’s delay could have been fatal” for the one of the officers, saying training played a role but “nothing prepares you for seeing your colleague being threatened with a machete”.The incident began after a vehicle was seen driving with its headlights off at 1.30am on Kennedy Road in Napier.A member of public directed police toward Clive where the vehicle was spotted doing “double the speed limit”, said police inspector Lincoln Sycamore.Police were planning to…

Romania is the latest country to join a supermarket that has gained traction across the Balkans, with far-right ultranationalist Călin Georgescu calling on his supporters to join the initiative. ADVERTISEMENTA supermarket boycott that was started in Croatia last month has now reached Romania.The movement, which quickly caught on across the Balkans, began as a protest against rising grocery prices and a deepening cost of living crisis.In Romania, the far-right ultranationalist presidential candidate Călin Georgescu, who ran as an independent in the cancelled election that took place last year, has taken to social media in support of the boycott, urging his…