Representatives of the current ruling coalition in Latvia’s Riga city council — New Unity, Code for Riga, National Alliance (NA), and the Latvian Association of Regions (LRA) — called for “statesmanlike thinking” in the work of the coalition, LETA reports. In a public statement, the factions emphasised that the current coalition should continue. Deputy mayor…
A fire broke out at the Live Square business centre in the city centre of the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, on 1 July 2023, DELFI reported. Firefighters and an ambulance arrived at the scene on Gediminas Avenue at around 2pm. The fire damaged a room on the first floor of the building. The cause of the…
Renovation work on the ground floor of Latvia’s Riga City Hall has started, LETA reports. The Riga City Council awarded the EUR 142,000 contract to Riga-based construction company UL Nami, which is owned by Uldis Lieknins. Under the project, the company will renovate the lobby on the ground floor of the City Hall building by…
Three people drowned in the Baltic Sea at the same time off the Latvian coast in Carnikava on 1 July 2023, DELFI reports. The three people — two young men and a 40-year-old woman — were swept away by strong waves and underwater currents. When rescuers arrived at the scene, the three persons were already…
Estonia’s Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority (TTJA) checked 50 websites of companies and entrepreneurs providing accommodation services in autumn and winter 2022/2023 for compliance, DELFI reports. TTJA checked if the website information on service providers, prices, and booking conditions was correct and sufficient. The agency found that price information was unclear in 20 cases,…
The Latvian nation was born 150 years ago during the Latvian Song Festival, President Egils Levits said at the opening ceremony of the Latvian Song and Dance Festival procession on 2 July 2023, LETA reported. People from Latvia’s Kurzeme, Vidzeme, and Zemgale regions united into a single Latvian nation at the first Song Festival in…
Latvian political scientists Juris Rozenvalds and Ilga Kreituse criticised outgoing president Egils Levits in an interview on DELFI’s podcast with Danuta Dembovska. Professor Rozenvalds of the University of Latvia said that Levits’s foreign policy activity was positive, whereas the president’s achievements in domestic policy were “zero.” Levits promised a lot but failed to deliver, Rozenvalds…
Lithuania remains an EU leader in terms of the market share of contraband cigarettes, according to KPMG’s market research, DELFI reports. The study found that altogether 2.63 billion cigarettes were consumed in Lithuania in 2022, which was 0.2 billion less than in 2021. Contraband cigarettes accounted for 0.59 billion of the total, which was 19.2%…
Local governments and educational institutions in Latvia are concerned about the financial benefits of the government’s planned school network reform, Diena reports. Several questions remain unresolved, including the quantitative criteria to decide on keeping or reorganising schools. The Ministry of Education and Science estimates that 120 schools are likely to be affected by the changes,…