Author: Press Room

The multi-orbital satellite constellation, dubbed IRIS², is scheduled to come fully online in 2030. ADVERTISEMENTThe European Union on Monday moved forward with its plan to launch a multi-orbital constellation of satellites to boost its secure communication systems, in particular for security and defence.The European Commission signed 12-year concession contracts for the Infrastructure for Resilience, Interconnectivity and Security by Satellite (IRIS²) system with a consortium of companies made up of SES SA, Eutelsat SA, and Hispasat S.A.The project, worth €11 billion, will involve just under 290 satellites that will start being launched in 2029.The objective is to provide secure connectivity services…

A landmark agreement was reached between a Te Tai Tokerau iwi and Northland Regional Council during a hui at Moerewa last week.The deal will provide iwi Ngāti Hine with greater voice at the council table in a major step forward for the council’s resource management relationships with Māori.It is Te Tai Tokerau’s first Northland Regional Council-iwi Mana Whakahono ā Rohe (MWAR) agreement, signed with Ngāti Hine at Otiria Marae in Moerewa on Thursday.At one point towards the end of the often-heated hui, Northland Regional Council (NRC) indicated it might pause the agreement, ahead of the deal eventually being signed.“The kaikaunihera…

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov vowed retaliation for the attack, amid an escalation in drone and missile attacks betwen Kyiv’s and Moscow’s forces. ADVERTISEMENTA Ukrainian drone struck a facility belonging to Russia’s National Guard in Chechnya on Sunday, as Kyiv continues to fight back after a large-scale air attack by Moscow.Footage shared on social media captured the drone flying over the Chechen capital, Grozny, located 800 kilometres southeast of the front line in Ukraine, before exploding. No casualties were reported. Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov confirmed that the drone hit a site belonging to the Akhmat Grozny riot police battalion. Two other drones…

Residents of Wellington’s Mt Victoria say the city council has betrayed them by changing planning rules that may allow a seven-storey apartment building to go up in the neighbourhood.But the developer says the high-end residential block – named Mayfair – is the beginning of the suburb’s rejuvenation and the start of a fresh look for Wellington.Homes in Mount Victoria sit on sunny slopes between the city and the green belt. Real estate there is expensive, and features a number of heritage areas and well-kept character homes.Earlier this year, Wellington City Council voted to shrink the city’s ‘character areas’ and remove…

The EU has taken the first step to directly engage with HTS, the Syrian rebel force, while maintaining its designation of a terrorist organisation. ADVERTISEMENTKaja Kallas has instructed a senior diplomat from the European Union to directly engage with the provisional government set up by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the rebel force that led the offensive that toppled Bashar al-Assad’s autocracy.The move represents the strongest indication yet about the bloc’s willingness to begin normalising ties with HTS, which has been blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by the United Nations due to its previous alliance with al-Qaeda.The designation has been transposed…

The government’s financial outlook is expected to deteriorate as a sluggish economy and weaker tax take further delay a return to budget surplus and cause an increase in borrowing.The Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update (HYEFU) will be released tomorrow with updated financial and economic forecasts for the next few years and comparison against May’s budget.Westpac senior economist Darren Gibbs said he expected a deeper shade of red for the numbers.”The Government is trying to keep tight control of its spending, but even there spending is running ahead of the budget forecasts.”1News’ Business Correspondent Katie Bradford joined Breakfast to preview…

Prices for domestic flights rose 10.8% in November compared with October, Stats NZ said today.And the cost of domestic accommodation also rose by 6.9%.The jump in domestic airfare prices was the highest increase in domestic flight prices since July 2023, the agency said.”The higher prices for domestic flights coincided with performances by several global artists around New Zealand,” Stats NZ spokesperson Nicola Growden explained.”We also saw increased domestic hotel prices, so the cost of exploring New Zealand has become more expensive.”But anyone looking to travel further afield was in luck.”International airfares and international accommodation prices decreased 2.7% and 4.6% respectively,”…

Several online submissions on a proposed North Canterbury managed fill landfill have been lost.Environment Canterbury (ECan) has confirmed it was aware of issues with submissions on the resource consent applications by Protranz Ltd.Christchurch-based Protranz International Ltd has applied to ECan and the Waimakariri District Council for resource consents to establish and operate a quarry and landfill operation at White Rock.More than 500 submissions were received, but several more appear to have gone missing, ECan consents manager Aurora Grant confirmed.”While working through all the submissions we received, we have identified a technical issue with our online submission platform.”This resulted in some…

Qantas has apologised to passengers after a flight from Christchurch to Melbourne was forced to return to the airport not once, but twice this morning.Flight QF168 first took off for the Victorian capital at around 6.46am but turned around after reaching the Tasman Sea.A Qantas spokesperson said pilots chose to return to Christchurch due to an issue with their radio.”The issue was fixed by engineers and the aircraft cleared to return to service.”The Boeing 737 landed back in Christchurch two hours on from its departure.The plane was then back in the air just after 9.30am, but FlightRadar24.com showed it again…

New Zealand businessman Mark Bryers has been sentenced to eight and a half years in jail by an Australian court.The A$10 million fraud’s main beneficiary, George Alex, will spend more than six years behind bars for what was described as the “monetary form of rape and pillage”.The 53-year-old was sentenced on December 6 along with co-conspirators Bryers, 67, Pasquale “Peter” Loccisano, 55, Lindsay John Kirschberg, 66, and Gordon McAndrew, 62.Justice Desmond Fagan said Alex’s motivation was to maximise and accelerate the extraction of money from his labour-hire firms.”His approach to the business was a monetary form of rape and pillage,”…