By Sarah Gill
10th Aug 2023
10th Aug 2023
Your speedy summary of today's must-read stories.
PSNI chief to be questioned over data breaches
Senior officers from the PSNI will attend a meeting of Northern Ireland’s Policing Board in the wake of two data breaches concerning officers and other members of staff. Chief Constable Simon Byrne cut short a family holiday to return to Belfast to be questioned by politicians at the emergency meeting. The significant data breach led to personal details about all serving PSNI officers and staff being mistakenly published online for a number of hours on Tuesday.
Ecuadorian presidential candidate assassinated
Fernando Villavicencio has been shot and killed by an unidentified gunman while at a political rally in the country’s capital of Quito. The killing on Wednesday comes amid a startling wave of violence in the South American nation, with drug trafficking and violent killings on the rise. Mr Lasso suggested organised crime was behind his slaying. Villavicencio was one of eight candidates in the August 20 presidential vote, though not the frontrunner.
Rent outside Dublin
According to the latest Rental Report by Daft.ie, market rents in the second quarter of 2023 rose by an average of 2.4% compared to the first three months of the year although Dublin lagged behind the rest of the country. Compared to a year ago, rents in the open-market are now 10.7% higher, with the average market rent nationwide in the second quarter just under €1,800 per month.
Amazon Summit
Brazil’s Amazon Summit has closed with a roadmap to protect tropical rainforests but without concrete commitments to end deforestation. Leaders and ministers from eight Amazon nations signed a declaration in Belem, Brazil, that laid out plans to drive economic development in their countries while preventing the Amazon’s ongoing demise “from reaching a point of no return.”