LATVIA BREAKING NEWS

Latvia's parliament, the Saeima, on October 29th adopted amendments to the State Border Guard Law and the Criminal Procedure Law intended to give border guards clearer rights to act and to better protect border infrastructure from hybrid attacks,

A research into gambling conducted by the Ministry of Finance suggests that Latvia needs to clarify existing advertising restrictions and strengthen monitoring of their compliance in order to reduce the harm caused by gambling and lotteries, especially among young people.

From October 30th to 31st, a National Armed Forces Hockey Tournament called “For Latvia!” will take place in Jēkabpils, at the Jēkabpils Sports Centre Ice Hall.

Latvia's environmentally friendly credentials are sometimes bad and sometimes good, depending upon what precisely is being measured. The latest data from Eurostat, published on October 29th, leans rather more towards the positive than the negative side of things.

A fine has been introduced in Latvia for leading sports training sessions without the necessary qualifications. Appropriate qualifications were also previously required to teach sports, but not much could happen if there were none. The Latvian Radio programme “Open Files” investigated whether the…

According to the Central Statistical Bureau data published on October 29, retail trade turnover in September 2026 was 4.5 % higher than a year ago (calendar-adjusted data at constant prices).

Just over 6 per cent of the population have outstanding debts outside the credit sector, for example, for utilities, electricity, telephone services and car parking, according to a public survey carried out by the Credit Information Bureau (KIB), which was carried out in collaboration with the…

Estonia's state-owned passenger rail operator Elron wants to modernize the trains running between Tartu and Rīga to attract more passengers to the route. It would also like to rent the trains to Latvians for use on local routes, reports Estonian public media ERR News, citing a letter the company…

The head of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FID), Toms Platacis, has decided to leave the service as of December 11th, it has been announced. The FID spearheads Latvia's application of international sanctions, in addition to other areas of responsibility including preventing the use of the Latvian…

On October 28th, at the Splendid Palace cinema in Rīga, the Entrepreneurs for Peace Foundation (Fonds “Uzņēmēji mieram”) and microsurgeon Olafs Libermanis were awarded the Order of St. Panteleimon of Ukraine for their significant contribution to supporting Ukraine.

Tactile guide strips that come up against a post, gaps in the handrails, and lift doors that cannot be closed – this was the scene that greeted the disability association “Apeirons” when they visited the Jorģis Zemitāns Bridge, the reconstruction of which was completed just a month ago, Latvian…

During the upcoming national holiday celebrations in November, there will be several traffic restrictions in Rīga from 9 November onwards. Certain public transport routes will be shortened or rerouted, whilst gatherings will be prohibited on the Vanšu Bridge, said Rīga City Council.

As official coalition talks get underway, the outlines of the possible distribution of posts in the next government are also beginning to emerge, according to a report on Wednesday evening by the Latvian Television programme “Panorāma”.

Every evening at 21:00, Latvian Radio 1 broadcasts a five-minute summary of the day's news stories in a simplified language format called Ziņas vieglajā valodā ('News in simple language').

RIGA - In November, Latvia will hold the presidency of the UN Security Council for the first time in history, committing to prioritize the situation in Ukraine and the challenges and opportunities ...

The national airline ‘airBaltic’ plans to make around 100 pilots and 200 cabin crew members redundant. This was announced by the Latvian Aviation Trade Union (LAA). From Saturday, staff will begin to receive information on whether their employment contracts will be renewed. “airBaltic” has…

Swedbank is laying off around 100 staff in the Baltic states, while the bank says Artificial Intelligence (AI) could lead to further layoffs in future, reports ERR News in Estonia.

Europe has a peculiar problem. As one of the world's largest economies, we have the talent, capital, technology, and market size to compete. Yet we struggle to turn these advantages into economic success. Our companies face barriers to expansion, our savings fail to finance innovation, and…

On 30th October, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with the Latgale Planning Region, is organising a regional visit to Rēzekne for diplomats from foreign embassies, the Ministry said.

The writer and journalist Rimants Ziedonis (1962–2026) has passed away, his daughter Evelīna Ziedone announced on social media.

Law enforcement authorities have detained Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs' advisor on public administration issues Mārtiņš Brencis, reports Latvian Television.

Latvia has introduced major changes to its immigration rules, ending two investment-based residency programs, restricting residence permits for ...

On Wednesday morning, a Saudi Arabian flag was removed from the cables of the Vanšu Bridge, according to Ieva Lukaža-Apalupa, chief communications officer at the Riga Municipal Police (RPP), and newswire LETA.

The Latvian Science Council (LZP) has announced an open call for project applications for the "Defence Innovation Research Programme" for 2026–2029.

In October this year, the State Police arrested eleven ‘money mules’ and couriers. Among those arrested are both young people who have not yet reached legal age or have only recently done so, and a man of retirement age who has also committed crimes abroad, the State Police said in a statement.

A new report from the Latvian central bank says lending activity has grown "significantly" but that there is still room for further growth in the market.