It was planned to present the entire Rail Baltica track construction scenario for the first phase this week. But the press conference was canceled at the last minute - the plans have changed again. Now, the possibility of building Rail Baltica so that it can be first used in stages is being considered, reports Latvian Television's "De Facto" broadcast on September 15.
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The Riga Regional Court of Appeal on Wednesday found Vladimirs Kononovs, former Chairman of the Board of SJSC "Latvijas autoceļu uzturētājs" (Latvian Road Maintenance), guilty of non-performance of duties, and sentenced him to a suspended prison term of 2 years and six months, LETA and Latvian Television reported September 11.
About 400 million euros from European Union (EU) funds are currently awaiting distribution by the Ministry of Transport (SM). Most of this money was intended for investments in the railway sector, but it is clear that it will not be able to be used in the allocated period, reported LTV's De Facto August 25.
It has been reported numerous times that there are unclarities on where to get funding to build the Rail Baltica line so that it runs through Rīga. Latvian Television's De Facto reported on June 2 that there is still no certain answer though it is needed very soon.
In the last days of March, the Ombudsman, the State Police and the Council of the Jāzeps Vītols Music Academy (JVLMA) received another application regarding the currently suspended lecturer Māris Kupčs. The application has been signed by 28 current and former students and faculty members of the Academy and is accompanied by 11 specific signed testimonies, Latvian Television's De Facto" reported.
After the ethics scandal at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music, questions arose about higher education ethics in general. The codes of ethics of the largest state-owned universities most often contain general requirements to observe "good behavior" or "generally accepted norms of behavior", according to Latvian Television's De Facto.
By dividing the construction of Rail Baltica into stages, the total cost could be reduced, according to the Transport Ministry. However, even if it manages to attract all the hoped-for European money, there is still no answer on how to finance the missing part, which is about three billion euros by 2030, reports the Latvian Televizija (LTV) broadcast De Facto on March 24.
One of the founders and most influential members of the Latvian Security and Defense Industries Federation (LDAIF), the state-owned company Latvijas Mobilais Telefons (LMT), has quit the federation after expressing dissatisfaction with its management, reports the Latvian Television broadcast De Facto on March 18.
Following the attack on the Museum of the Occupation, plans are underway to speed up the establishment of a comprehensive video surveillance network throughout Latvia. The first step is to identify what is already there and what can be used. Interior Minister Rihards Kozlovskis (New Unity) has been tasked to do this within a month, reports Latvian Television's "De Facto" on March 10.
Although speed cameras working on roads in Latvia have been verified as accurate, both the Road Traffic Safety Directorate (CSDD) and the State Police are involved in the preparation of violation penalty protocols. Efforts are being made to ensure as little human involvement as possible, Latvian Television's De Facto reported on February 25.
Last week, livestock farms finally received long-awaited compensations for both the sharp drop in milk prices in the previous winter and the extreme drought that prevented preparing animal feed. Aid has been paid for two-thirds of registered animals. However, according to the Latvian Television broadcast De Facto of January 29, the aid equals to a half a roll of hay per bovine animal.
Research conducted by Latvian Radio and the news portal Delfi "Embrace of the Leader", which revealed underage girls systematically having been harassed by camp leaders, has resulted in considerations to raise requirements for becoming a camp leader, Latvian Television's De Facto reported on December 10.
Rīga City Council has already commissioned another expert examination so that it can prepare a legal justification and turn to the court for several million euro losses in the implementation of the Skanste district revitalization project, the Latvian Television broadcast De Facto reported on Sunday. Rough estimates suggest the loss could be at least three million euros.
Within the next two weeks, the issue of creating a state-owned company to develop a military manufacturing facility could come to the government for consideration. This is necessary to start a tender for co-financing of the European Commission (EC) to develop military production, reports Latvian Television's De Facto aired on November 12.
Fears that several tens of millions of euros of European Union (EU) funds could be lost have just been faced by Stradiņš Hospital, whereas Cohesion Fund money not spent on transport projects has been reallocated to cover last winter's heating bills. Rapid maneuvers and redistribution of money are ongoing due to the fact that EU funds of the previous period must be invested by December 31 this year, Latvian Television's De Facto reports October 15.
The Ministry of Health has committed to improving the system of reimbursable medicinal products together with doctors and experts of the World Health Organization, as well as to make the determination of criteria for prescribing medicinal products more transparent, especially if funding is limited, reports the Latvian Television broadcast De Facto on October 1.
To get an appointment with a specialist doctor, one often has to wait several months. At present, the longest lines are for rehabilitation, gastroenterologists, endocrinologists, and ultrasonography. In many health care facilities, everything is booked until the end of the year, reports the De Facto broadcast of Latvian Television, aired on August 27.
Instead of the much-criticized e-health, a new system to manage healthcare records is to be put in place over the following years. However, the initial finance and management model already highlights the risk of repeating the mistakes made with e-health, Latvian Television's De Facto reported on May 28.
The experience of the pandemic has not only contributed to the use of intoxicating and addictive substances, but also hampered the possibility of detecting networks of suppliers of these substances. According to the De Facto broadcast of Latvian Television aired May 7, the number of drug-related calls for medical help has increased significantly over the last 4 years, while crime related to narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances has halved.
The total costs of Rail Baltica's Latvian section have risen a lot. Instead of the two billion euros initially discussed, it could actually cost six or seven billion. The existing inflow of money could not even be enough for the construction works already ongoing, Latvian Television's De Facto reported on April 23.
Latvian Television's De Facto investigative show reported March 12 on the requirements of Latvia's recently-introduced 'lobbying law'. It is supposed to improve transparency in political lobbying of parliament, but according to De Facto, there is widespread ignorance and confusion about the law, even among those who are supposed to monitor it.
During the spread of various viruses, in several medical institutions, there was an advertisement for almost a miracle cure on the screens for two months, the “Xyntrus”, which protects against “all viruses”, reported Latvian Television's broadcast De Facto on February 5. The broadcast asked: How has it ended up at the medical establishments?
The prosecutor's office has completed an investigation and in November handed the court a case for large-scale theft of various goods from army warehouses for nearly ten years. Latvian Television broadcast De Facto reported December 4 that there were also night-vision goggles among the missing items, which the Latvian army had been given by the U.S. What happened was major chaos in the storage and listing of army goods.