Euro Weekly News - Costa de Almeria 29 October - 4 November 2015 Issue 1582

ISSUENN . 1555 //2923 APRIL 2015 ISSUE O.O1582 Oct--29 4 Nov 2015

COSTA DE ALMERÍA

YOUR PAPER, YOUR VOICE, YOUR OPINION

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Shopping revolution!

A €365,000 boost to beautify public areas Christian Bale in Pulpi Albox town centre to become shopper-friendly

Mayor Feliz Lopez has made government funds available to revitalise the shopping experience in the town centre. Vera Town Hall is seeking to make the area more ‘competitive and attractive’ with a new See Page 5 open shopping precinct.

PROJECT will substantially improve Albox’s image

Actor to shoot second film in Almeria

By Eleanor Hawkins Public areas in Albox are to receive a huge makeover in the next nine months thanks to a regional government rural employment scheme.

A €365,000 budget has been set aside for work on parks and gardens, fountains, pavements and rural tracks in the area, the council explained.

Stage One of the project, which began last month and is due to be finished by June, includes improvements to green areas on squares and around public schools, building and repairing pavements, paving rural tracks, improving fountains and renovating the Los Collaos social centre.

Gardens will be upgraded on Plaza Mayor, Plaza de San Francisco and in districts including Los Segovias-Casicas, Llano de los Olleres, Mirador de La Santa Cruz, Las Pocicas, Locaiba-Los Quiles, Aljambra, Madroño and Santa Rosa.

Altogether there are 38 tasks planned within the pro-

Christian Bale is in Pulpi to film ‘The Promise’, a movie set in the early 1920s which sees Bale playing an American reporter.

This is the actor’s second time working in the area after ‘Exodus’ was filmed in the region in See Page 8 2013.

Solution for water cuts Benahadux Mayor directs funding for works The town hall in Benahadux has contracted a local firm to undertake the renewal of water pipes at a cost of €20,136. The work is expected to begin shortly and will be welcomed by locals who have been experiencing numerous water issues.

See Page 17

Comeback for olive oil ject, with the main priorities being paving rural tracks including Rambla Agua Sala, Barranco del Infierno,

Camino de la Aljambra, Camino Los Serenises and Rambla Honda, building new pavements on Calle Arrabal

and opposite the Agua y Salud centre, and repairing pavements on Calle Mendoza and Calle Jaen.

Huercal-Overa reopens oil press virgin olive oil and organic Local olives no longer have olives. The move is expected to leave the area as a new to boost the economy of the unit opens and has already See Page 19 region. begun production on extra

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LOCAL NEWS

Fast breeders GREEN parakeets arrived in Almeria City during the 90’s and do not yet threaten native birds. This could change,

wildlife experts warned, as they breed rapidly and could eventually outnumber pigeons.

Money matters INCOME tax reforms have left an extra €64 million in the pockets of Almeria Province taxpayers, announced Treasury official Miguel Ferre. Having more money around will boost employment, he predicted.

Tough customers AN Almeria criminal court found three young men guilty of beating up a motorcyclist af-

ter they were all involved in a road accident. Each received a suspended 18-month sentence.

Halloween treat ENTRY fees will be waived for Almeria City’s municipal museums during the Noche en Negro until 12 midnight. This has been introduced as a special feature to encourage people into the exhibitions.

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NEWS

Superb water there for the taking THUMBS-UP from independent laboratories

By Linda Hall THE water that has flowed for centuries from Mojacar’s Fuente Mora fountain is still used today.

It is analysed monthly by an independent laboratory and as usual the latest results have pronounced it ‘superb’ and fit for human consumption.

Residents from nearby - and further away - would use nothing else for drinking and cooking, they say.

The fountain in Calle de la Fuente was rebuilt in the 19th century but Arabic texts prove that it was there in Moorish times and its presence was instrumental in founding the town.

FOUNTAIN: Has been in use for centuries.

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Ikea invite

FEATURED NEWS

Opening stores

Antoni Gaudí was a true artist in both stone and mosaic

SWEDISH chain Ikea is currently encountering difficulties in opening stores in both Granada and Alicante. The multinational would not encounter similar problems in Almeria City, pledged City Planning councillor Ramon Fernandez Pacheco.

Credit Brian Kinney Shutterstock

HELPED make Barcelona a splendid city with his creations

Care needed Fishponds neglected THE Friends of the Cabo de Gata-Nijar National Park collective complained that the Torregarcia tower and adjoining Roman fishponds are neglected. The association called for more commitment and adequate protection.

Short order Film festival FORTY short films from 20 countries will compete in the Almeria en Corto film festival between December 1 and 6. A total of 1,972 entries have been received, 638 more than last year.

Hitting out Water disagreement

Architect Saint A controversial matter

CASA BATLLO BARCELONA: One example of Gaudi’s work in the city.

By John Smith BORN in 1852 to a family of artisans in Tarragona whose ancestors had emigrated from France in the 17th century, Antoni Gaudí was a sickly child who suffered from rheumatism at an early age.

As he grew up, he trekked around Catalonia observing nature which was to influence his future development. A solitary figure who embraced vegetarianism and the catholic religion, he never married and it is said only ever showed any interest in just one woman, who did not reciprocate his feelings.

Although forced to undertake national service, he was on sick leave most of the

18 is the number of towers appearing in the original design of the Sagrada Família representing the 12 apostles, the four evangelists, the Virgin Mary, and the tallest Jesus Christ.

time and took advantage of this to study architecture. When he graduated in 1878, the director of the college said to him ‘We have given this academic title to either a fool or a genius. Time will tell.’

He was of course a genius and the leader of the Catalan Modernist movement, creating designs of all sorts which took inspiration from the art nouveau era and nature in general. Looking around Barcelona, there are many examples of his virtuosity, the most noticeable perhaps being the Sagrada Família (Church of the Holy Family) which was started in 1882 and may be finished by 2026.

HAVING died under the wheels of a tram in Barcelona, Antoni Gaudí has won much posthumous praise but perhaps the most unusual and possibly controversial matter surrounding the man known as ‘God’s Architect’ is the proposal that he should be declared a saint of the Catholic Church.

Quote of the Week He should get in his DeLorean and go back to 1985 and stay there David Cameron referring to Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn

Almeria is a firm location favourite THE gap left by the departing Game of Thrones film crew and actors was soon filled.

While the directors, technicians and stars of the American fantasy television series were packing up and heading back to

Belfast, a Danish contingent was settling in.

After becoming Westeros for Game of Thrones, Almeria has now doubled as the Middle East for the second series of the television thriller series, Dicte.

Following in the footsteps of The Killing, Government and other series that have gained cult status outside Denmark, Dicte is a crime reporter who lives and works in Aarhus and often finds herself at odds with

the police. It will be shown in the UK early next year.

This was the first time the series has been set outside Denmark and the El Puche and Pescaderia neighbourhoods as well as Calle Altamira were

chosen for the first day’s locations. Filming continued the next day in Calle Gerona, Calle Real and Calle Braulio Moreno before moving on to Tabernas.

This is an ideal substitute for the Middle East.

A TRES VILLAS resident received a €180 fine and a six-month restraining order for threatening Mayor Virtudes Perez with a baseball bat. Previously they had disagreed over the water supply for a property.

Wait for it Suppliers owed ALMERIA City Hall owes suppliers €16.15 million, double the €8.3 million that it has paid. The average wait for settlement between June and August ranged from 34.90 days and 37.19 days.

Too fast Respect limits NINETEEN people died on Almeria Province roads last year, eight fewer than in 2014. Five were pedestrians, prompting the DGT traffic authority to call on drivers to respect urban speed limits.

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Featured News 3

Good news and a wait for Palomares town

European Press 32

AN end to the problem is easier said than done

INDEX News 1 - 30

Jose Guerrero Rodriguez.

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Russian Press 33

Finance 35 - 40

Stocks 36

Leapy Lee 41

Our View 48

Colin Bird 48

Mike Walsh 48

Daily TV 50

Letters 54

Time Out 56 - 57

Health & Beauty 58 - 59

Ric Polansky 60

Social Scene 61 - 64

Albox 67 - 74

Homes & Gardens 75

Pets 76 - 77

Property 78 - 79

Classifieds 81 - 83

Motoring 84 - 85

Sport 87 - 88

PALOMARES: A very different picture from 1966.

By Linda Hall AGREEMENT between Washington and Madrid over Palomares’ contaminated soil was long-delayed but welcome.

Almost 50 years after four thermonuclear bombs fell from a US Air Force plane following a mid-air collis io n o v e r P alo mare s , Wa s hington agreed to remove 50,000 cubic metres of still-contaminated soil. This will eventually be stored at the Nevada Na-

tional Security Site.

There was more good news when landowners learnt that plots cordonedoff after the 1966 incident will be returned to them.

Then came the announcement that the €640 million cost of the operation will have to be shared between Spain and the US. An international treaty must first be ratified by the Spanish parliament and with general elections on December 20 this will be delayed until the New Year at the earliest.

A 100-kilometre road will be built between Palomares and the port of Cartagena (Murcia) so that the soil can be shipped to the US. The authorities will also have to take out civil liability insurance to cover possible accidents be tw een Pal om ar es and Car t agena port.

The entire procedure could take two years, government sources revealed.

An end to Palomares’ problem is undeniably in sight - but the wait isn’t over yet.

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Shopping revolution for Vera COMMERCIAL boost on the way that will benefit the town’s tourist profile

By Linda Hall VERA Town Hall will use government funds to make the town centre an open shopping precinct (CCA).

“The economic crisis makes it more necessary than ever to look for formulas to make us competitive and attractive to customers,” Vera’s Mayor Felix Lopez told local shopkeepers and business owners.

He was speaking during a meeting held in the council chamber, explaining that the town hall was interested in hearing what they had to say.

“This is a joint effort,” Lopez said. “We also want our coastline to be reflected in this CCA. We are going to give Vera a commercial boost that will energise the town’s cultural, gastronomic and tourist profile.”

It was a big step to take, the mayor declared, but Vera already possessed the essential characteristics for a CCA.

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NEWS EXTRA

Extra tlc MAINTENANCE and repairs at Mojacar cemetery continue year-round but it recently received extra attention in readiness for November 1 when flowers are traditionally taken to loved ones’ graves.

No-show

VERA: The town centre will be more pedestrian and shopper-friendly.

The meeting with the shopkeepers followed on from the formal presentation of the central government’s ‘Comprehensive Support Plan for Retail Trade Competitiveness’ at the Almeria Chamber of Commerce. This has been developed by the Spanish Chamber of Commerce and the ministry of Economy and is co-financed by the EU’s Feder fund.

A NIJAR woman faces a 12-month sentence and €5,800 fine for keeping Kiko Rivera’s fees to DJ at a local disco. The celebrity failed to appear, causing €4,000 losses for the discotheque.

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NEWS EXTRA

Left out THERE were 3,709 applicants for the 3,126 places at Almeria City’s Official School of Languages.

Of the 583 who were not admitted, 470 had hoped to study English.

Dirty haul DOZENS of volunteers cleared two tons of rubbish from Aguadulce marina and the beach.

Most was found by divers in the port, whose haul included an airconditioning unit and a car engine.

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New look for Nijar landmark €200,000 project is entering its final stages THE Atalaya, the tower that has stood watch over Nijar since the 13th century, has been extensively restored.

The €200,000 project that began before the summer is entering its final stages and the round tower must look the way the original builders intended - minus 21st century lighting and interior flooring.

There is also a newly-paved path from Calle San Anton with several rest areas and handrails that will make the walk up to the tower less challenging for today’s visitors than it would have been eight centuries ago.

Although the Atalaya is believed to have been built in the 13th century, it appears to have been restored during the middle part of the 14th century.

Before work started the tower was so deteriorated that its survival was in doubt but the foundations have been strengthened to prevent more fissures appearing in the tower’s stonework and existing cracks were sealed.

Only traditional building materials and traditional methods were used to ensure that the Atalaya’s original appearance was not modified.

STANDING WATCH: The Atalaya has been sympathically restored.

Bike registry suggestion ALMERIA City Hall is in the process of compiling bylaws now that the cycle lane network is complete.

The ne xt s te p c ould be the setting up of a bicycle register, explained Tra ns port C ounc illor Maria Vazquez.

She me ntione d this option in the course of talks with the Alpedal association. The councillor stressed that sign-

i ng up t o t he r egi st r y would be on a voluntary basis.

Never t hel ess, she added, i t woul d be of help in preventing robber i es and l ocat i ng those that were lost.

Councillor Vazquez added that it would also make it easier to identif y cycl i st s i n cases where bicycles needed to be immobilised or removed from the streets.

Dear oh dear!

POPULAR chat show presenter Jorge Javier Vazquez was shocked by the price of plane tickets to Almeria.

Vazquez, who is on tour and recently appeared in El Ejido, told an interviewer that he was surprised by the difficulty in getting to Almeria and even more surprised by the cost.

“Fares are really prohibitive and I can’t understand it, not when the province has so many good things and so many people want to go there,” he said.

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Clean up our city streets demand CALLE QUESADA residents have organised a petition, calling for Alicante City to remove prostitutes from their street.

More than 1,000 people have already signed, said Francisca Ventura whose idea it was to launch the petition. Prostitution has affected this small street that links Avenida Cabo de Gata and the Paseo for years, she said. The problem centres on a duplex and an apartment building where the women take their clients.

Residents are tired of the violence and marginalisation that prostitution has brought both to Calle Quesada and Calle Gibraltar Español.

Almeria businesses fear they will miss the train SOCIAL platform Califal, which is pressing for better rail communication, has the backing of 200 leading Almeria figures.

A manifesto issued by the group – its full name is Platform Against Neglect of Almeria’s Rail Structure – was signed by Carmelo Rodriguez, rector of Almeria University, Cajamar bank president Antonio Perez Lao, the president of Cosentino, Francisco MartinezCosentino and film director Manuel Martin Cuenca amongst others.

The Califal manifesto entitled ‘Almeria: Get on the train!’ calls for more than co-operation from the province’s political institutions in raising awareness of the need for better rail com-

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Domestic abuse on rise

INADEQUATE rail infrastructure is to blame

By Linda Hall

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Maimay

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GENDER violence rose this year in Vicar with 56 reported cases compared with 41 throughout 2014.

Forty-four per cent of victims were immigrants, the majority Moroccan women aged between 21 and 30.

Early olives OLIVES have ripened earlier than usual in the area around Canjayar.

Pressing and processing began in mid-October, one of the earliest starts anywhere in Andalucia.

Top exporter ALMERIA RAILWAY: Calls for immediate improvements. munications. It is also asking them to take steps resulting in an immediate improvement in the province’s railway service.

“There are no words for what is happening with our rail links and the Almeria-Murcia high

speed train,” declared Jose Cano, president of the Asempal business-owners’ association.

Another public figure who has put his name to the manifesto, he said that the business community was tired of Almeria’s

deficient rail infrastructure.

“Why are we fed up to the back teeth?” Cano asked rhetorically. Political considerations were 95 per cent to blame but Almeria’s own conformity was 5 per cent responsible, he said.

ALMERIA province is Andalucia’s fourth-most important exporter with foreign sales totalling €2.7 billion in 2014. Germany, France, the UK, the Netherlands and Italy head the client list in that order.

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NEWS

Hints of safety issues surround PITA explosion WELDER lost his life and four more people were injured

By Linda Hall THE Almeria judge investigating an explosion that killed a workman has now summoned several people to give evidence.

The workman, a welder, died at the scene of the explosion at the Hintes Oil Europa plant on the Parque Cientifico Tecnologico (PITA) industrial estate in Almeria City.

Two men suffered extensive burns and two more were injured in an explosion as they soldered a fuel tank at the biofuel processing plant.

According to court sources, the judge will interview five people and representatives from Hintes Oil and Fergon. The latter are subcontractors who employed the dead welder and his injured colleagues to carry out work at the plant.

The same sources revealed that workers present during the explosion later mentioned possible safety issues. Asked if there were inflammable products in the area where the explosion occurred, an employee said that he believed the fuel tank was empty but did not rule out a build-up of gases inside it.

At least one worker answered ‘no’ when asked if the men were issued with protective clothing and another added what he wore ‘was his own.’

If sources are correct, investigators were also surprised by the admission from an office administrator that the company was ‘negotiating’ liability cover with an insurance company.

No charges have been formulated, the sources said, although the witnesses have been advised that they may attend with a lawyer if they wish.

RETURN: Bale’s second film in Almeria.

Bale is back in Almeria CHRISTIAN BALE is in Pulpi, filming ‘The Promise.’

The movie is directed by Terry George who directed ‘Hotel Rwanda’ and wrote the ‘In the name of the Father’ screenplay. This is Bale’s second film in Almeria Province, following ‘Exodus’ in 2013.

‘The Promise’ is set in the final days of the Ottoman Empire in the early 1920s, with Bale playing an American reporter.

The choice of Pulpi was welcomed by Pulpi’s Tourism councillor Juan Bautista: “It provides great publicity,” he said.

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Extremely public show of affection EXPLICIT video is doing the rounds

By Linda Hall AN explicit WhatsApp video has gone viral in Almeria City.

It shows a couple having sex on a bench in Calle Marques de Comillas while watching girls cheer them on.

The bench is near the Cibeles club, recently closed down following 14 years of protests of excessive noise.

The disco was one of the reasons behind the De-

NIGHTTIME: Not always peaceful in Almeria City. rochadormir platform, as residents demanded their right to sleep in peace.

One source of aggravation

has been removed, they agreed, but they must still contend with episodes like that in the video.

Poachers apprehended ANYONE may pick wild mushrooms but Andalucia’s environment protection regulations limit this to five kilos a day.

When police recently stopped a van in Sierra de Filabres they found 47 kilos of prized and expensive niscalos (saffron milk caps), which

were seized and destroyed, the police revealed.

Impounded foodstuffs are often donated to charitable institutions but the mushrooms were considered unsuitable for human consumption as it was possible that inedible varieties were mixed in with the milk-caps.

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FINANCE

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Wealth Tax Set To Continue For Another Year Spanish wealth tax was effectively abolished in 2008 when the government approved a measure to apply a 100% tax credit against an individual’s wealth tax liability.

However, it was reinstated in 2011, as part of austerity measures. At the time the intention was to apply it for two years, but it keeps being extended.

When Revenue Minister, Cristóbal Montoro announced the 2016 draft budget in August, he described it as “rigorous and consistent”.

As part of the proposals, the Government agreed to extend wealth tax to 2016, in order to help sustain the consolidation of public finances.

It was the first time that the Government announced the budget so early, but this is a general election year in Spain (20th December 2015).

The budget has gone through the normal parliamentary procedures.

After being approved by the Senate, it was approved by Congress on 20th October, after including some

By Gerald Turner, Partner, Blevins Franks amendments, with the government political party’s votes - and despite the European Commission warning about the deficit target.

Wealth tax rules Wealth tax is an annual tax, payable on the total value of your taxable assets as at 31st December. If you are resident in Spain you are liable to the tax on your worldwide assets; if nonresident, then only on your Spanish assets.

Each resident individual has a tax free allowance of €700,000, plus a €300,000 allowance on his own home. If a couple owns a property in joint names, each gets the €300,000 allowance.

Non-residents receive the individual allowance of €700,000, but no allowance against their Spanish property.

The state progressive state tax rates range from 0.2% for assets up to €167,129, to 2.5% on assets over €10,695,996. The Autonomous Communities can vary these rates, and the top rate is 3.03% in Andalucía.

The tax is payable on the value of most of your assets, such as real estate, savings and investments, jewellery, art, cars, boats etc.

Some assets are exempt from wealth tax, such as household contents (but excluding jewels, fur coats, vehicles, boats, art and antiques); pension rights (but not purchased annuities); owner managed small businesses and

business assets (with conditions).

Certain shareholdings are exempt where you carry out managerial duties and derive a salary.

Loans are deductible in calculating your net taxable wealth provided they were not used to buy or invest in assets exempt from Spanish wealth tax.

Limiting wealth tax Your cumulative wealth and income taxes cannot exceed 60% of the ‘general and savings taxable income bases’ of residents (but excluding from savings income any gains on assets held for more than one year, and the associated tax rates). This is subject to paying a minimum of 20% of the full wealth tax liability.

This liability cannot be reduced at all on assets that do not produce an income, such as your home and other property that is not let out.

There may be other steps you can take to reduce a wealth tax

liability, or eliminate it completely, particularly on your investment assets.

If wealth tax, or other Spanish taxes, are a concern for you, consult an experienced tax and wealth management advisory firm like Blevins Franks to establish if you can lower your wealth tax liability and mitigate higher taxes on your savings and investments.

Tax rates, scope and reliefs may change. Any statements concerning taxation are based upon our understanding of current taxation laws and practices which are subject to change.

Tax information has been summarised; an individual is advised to seek personalised advice.

To keep in touch with the latest developments in the offshore world, check out the latest news on our website www.blevinsfranks.com

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Onland fish farming A CUEVAS DEL ALMANZORA firm is growing something a little different in its greenhouses.

The ‘something different’ is fish. Freshwater red tilapia are now being bred and farmed on a 600-hectare site in Cuevas and Sociedad Agraria de Transformacion (SAT) expects to be producing an annual 100 tons

of tilapia by next year. This will be marketed through the big supermarket chains, revealed the company’s CEO Matias Gomez Cervellera.

Diversifying crops is a principal goal for the agrifood sector which in the past has made forays into edible microalgae and snails.

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Inflatable bull run in Huercal

FIESTAS: Fun event for the children.

A HIGH spot in HuercalOvera’s recently concluded town fiesta was the bull running event for children.

There was no blood, gore, suffering or peril involved because neither were there

any bulls.

Some 500 children took part in an “encierro” that set out from the Plaza de la Constitucion, pursuing and sometimes being pursued by, huge inflatable bulls.

This was the second time that this vegetarian version of bull running was held during the Huercal-Overa fiestas and is sure to be repeated next year, said Mayor Domingo Fernandez.

Indoor swimming in Nijar THE indoor swimming pool at Campohermoso (Nijar) is now ready for winter swimmers.

“We are backing sport as a healthy and integrating activity for all our residents,” said Nijar’s Mayor Esperanza Perez.

The council is doing everything possible to widen and improve Nijar’s sports offer, she added. “There is a demand for sport from residents and it’s up to us to provide access. We have also extended the opening hours as we want children as well as adults to be able enjoy

the covered pool.”

The pool is heated and, according to the town hall, it is warmer than others in the province, thanks to its biomass boiler.

There will be swimming lessons for levels zero, one, two and advanced together with courses for adults and babies as well as aquagym.

The covered pool is used by more than 600 people and is open from 8am until 10.30pm on weekdays and 9am until 2pm on Saturdays.

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Graffiti with a tale to tell HISTORIC citations on Purchena’s walls

By Linda hall PURCHENA intends to tell its history by turning literary references that cite the town into graffiti.

They will include Antonio Galaz, Jose Zorrilla, Gines Perez de Hita, the 19th century English writer Samuel Edward Cook, and the American composer Albert Hay Malotte.

Best remembered for the score of the Disney film Ferdinand the Bull, and a setting for the Lord’s Prayer, Malotte also wrote “Fiesta in Purchena” which was inspired by Moorish games held in 1589 although he never visited the town.

Purchena town hall’s Centro de Informacion Juvenil and the Gustavo Villapalos Library are promoting the Ruta Historica (RUHI) project which was suggested by local youth asso-

PURCHENA: Town inspired American composer. ciations. The initiative has received a €4,500 grant from the Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP).

Local artists Jota de Art and Mode will supervise the graffitied quotations at the town hall, the Casa del Fiscal, the nursery school, old washhouse and Plaza de España.

The results will later be displayed on the website now being developed by the journalist Remedios Serrano.

Each work on the webpage will be accompanied by a QR code – readable with a smartphone – leading to links with more information and the background to each literary extract.

Prison likely for ‘patera’ bosses PEOPLE traffickers who organised a clandestine crossing from Algeria will stand trial in January for causing a passenger’s death.

The man and two companions jumped overboard when a drum of petrol caught fire and set fire to their clothes. Two managed to

return to the boat but owing to the swell and bad weather, the third man disappeared.

The Public Prosecutor recommended sentences totalling 11 years for manslaughter for the ringleader and 10 years for his associate.

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Dangerous driver rearrested after drugs are found

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Three cyclists hit by car which failed to stop EMERGENCY services were fast to respond to the incident

The man was however charged for dangerous driving, driving under the effects of amphetamines and cannabis and driving without a licence.

Days later a local resident reported having spotted some parcels wrapped in black plastic hidden under some bushes on the detour the van had taken and a search revealed 602 kilos of hashish.

Suspecting that the man h ad man ag ed to u n loa d and hide the drugs when he shook officers off on th e d a y o f th e ch as e , he was once again arrested fo r a n a lle g ed c rime against public health for transporting drugs.

ACCORDING to a resident who lives just outside of Cantoria, the peace of her quiet country road was disturbed at about 11am on October 23 by a helicopter which landed with great skill on a patch of land opposite her house.

She was advised that this was an air ambulance which had been summoned by local officials following what appeared to be a ‘hit and run’ accident which had happened earlier in the day when a speeding car hit three cyclists.

At least one of the injured cyclists was airlifted out of the area and the helicopter was seen to head in the direction of Almeria. It would appear that police were of the opinion that all three cyclists were English, although this has not yet been

Photo Credit Clare Goodyear

By John Smith THE Guardia Civil has arrested a man from France for dangerous driving under the effects of drugs, avoiding a police checkpoint and allegedly transporting more than 600 kilos of hashish.

Th e 3 8 - y e a r- o l d man from Chateaurenard, France, was arrested near Huercal-Overa after a police chase during which he tried to knock officers off their motorbikes.

The driver managed to shake the police off briefly, and later surprised them by his subdued attitude when they managed to stop and arrest them. Suspiciously, a search of the Mercedes van he was driving found it to be empty.

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AIR AMBULANCE: One of the cyclists was airlifted out of the area. confirmed.

The person who contacted us advised that she had seen one helmet and quite a lot of blood in the road and her

neighbours were complimentary about the speed of response of both the police and ambulance service.

She mentioned although

this was a small unclassified road, cars do have a tendency to drive too fast along it and she hopes the injured cyclists will all recover.

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Lasting solution for Benahadux cuts BENAHADUX town hall is taking action to solve the problem of continual cuts in the water supply.

Work is due to start shortly on renewing water pipes in Calle Zuloaga and Calle Miguel Angel Blanco Garrido, two streets where the water is frequently cut off.

“From the outset the town hall has been looking for a definitive solution to prevent more bursts rather than patch up water pipes,” said Benahadux mayor Juan Jimenez.

“We have analysed the problem, worked out the best possible solutions and allocated funding,” Jimenez added. The contract has gone to a local firm and will cost the town hall €20,136.

‘Joke’ leaves boy with lasting scars AN underage boy who threw sulphuric acid at a friend must pay €80,000 compensation.

A second boy was acquitted after an Almeria juvenile court decided that there was insufficient evidence to link him to the attack. The two friends decided to play a joke on the third boy while he was showering and tipped the acid over the cubicle

wall. They used drain cleaner that was 89 per cent sulphuric acid, ignoring the health warning on the label.

The victim spent three weeks in hospital after suffering chemical burns on his head, chest, hands and feet which needed skin grafts. They took 240 days to heal completely and the boy still has scars.

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NEWS

Noche en Negro will bring lots of fun and fear to Halloween THIRTY different activities have been planned to take place throughout the night

By Linda Hall HALLOWEEN is no longer exclusive to English-speaking residents and has become a popular Spanish fiesta too.

Almeria City is organising a Noche en Negro when shops, bars and restaurants will stay open until late to boost local commerce. In keeping with the Halloween theme there will be a full complement of witches, warlocks, weirdos and zombies.

Noche en Negro begins in Puerta Purchena at 8.30pm with an ‘Aerial spectacle.’

This is followed at 9pm by a parade with ‘batucada’ drummers, monsters and as many members of the public who want to join in, with the only proviso that they wear a

Halloween costume.

Plaza de la Constitucion will be set aside for the young from 7pm until 11pm, themed on the Juan sin Miedo (Fearless John) story.

Plaza Pablo Cazard becomes a Boarding School of Horrors for the over-14s with the promise of ‘terror, intrigue and mystery.’

The parade that started in Puerta Purchena will end at 10pm at Plaza del Educador where there will be dancing and a DJ from 9pm.

A mystery market opens at 8pm in Paseo de Almeria with a zumba display at 9.30pm and Halloween karaoke from 10.30pm.

Noche en Negro will have a total of 30 different activities and 250 businesses will remain open.

OPEN LATE: Shops, bars and restaurants will stay open to boost local commerce.

The flu season is here

HEALTH CENTRES: From October 26 jabs can be given to the general public.

BEARING in mind that this year is unlikely to be vastly different to other years, along with the wind and rain, we can expect to catch the flu!

However, as the chilly season starts and temperatures start to drop, the flu-jab campaign heats up as regional health departments spring into action with their respective vaccination campaigns.

As of Monday October 26, health centres throughout Andalucia will catch up with the rest of the country and begin to give the jabs to the general public on request. The reason being for the slow start to the campaign in

Malaga is due to the fact that the southern climate is a little more benign than that of other parts of Spain, and therefore starts later than elsewhere.

People over 65, and those who are part of groups at particular risk (who are eligible for the health service) such as sufferers of pulmonary or cardiovascular problems, or healthcare workers can ask for an appointment directly at their health centre.

For more information, contact the Servicio Andaluz de Salud on: 902 505 060 Or for more general advice visit: www.andalucia.com/health/helpline.htm

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Oil press reopens

OIL PRESS: Plant in Huercal-Overa will also process olives from local towns.

By Linda Hall HUERCAL-OVERA was making olive oil centuries before tourism and expat residents transformed Almeria Province.

The area still produces oil in industrial quantities as well as limited amounts for family use but when autumn arrives, all growers face the same problem.

The local oil-pressing plant

closed some time ago and the olives go elsewhere to be processed, bringing extra expense which is later reflected in prices.

Until now, that is, because Huercal-Overa once again has an oil press, which has reopened as Oleo Jarico and is operated by the group of the same name. The plant will process not only HuercalOvera’s produce but also that of other local towns.

Mayor Domingo Fernandez, who is also president of the Mancomunidad de Municipios del Levante Almeriense group of towns, recently attended the formal opening. The plant will prove an incentive to the area’s economy while boosting Huercal-Overa’s, he said.

The first olives are now being pressed at the plant which has a production line for extra virgin olive oil and another for organic olives.

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One-armed bandits have addicts in their grip GAMBLING has been unaffected by the financial crisis

By Linda Hall ALMERIA Province spent approximately €143 million on bingo and slot machines last year.

More than 90 per cent was fed into one-armed bandits, according to the regional government, and Almeria Province spent €2 million more last year than in 2013. Without taking online gambling into account, Almeria spent an average

€34.46 for every man, woman and child in 2014.

Gambling can become an addiction and associations and support groups for addicts in Almeria Province say they are faced with never-ending work.

One of these groups, Indalajer, calculates that Andalucia probably has at least 100,000 people who need help with a gambling habit. More than 8,000 of them live in this province, said Indalajer’s president Manuel Fer-

nandez, although barely 1 per cent receive treatment.

Indalajer is currently helping 131 people trying to cure an addiction, Fernandez said, and includes four minors: “They came to us with a serious addiction to videogames.”

The most common profile of a gambling addict is a male aged between 18 and 24 who is out of work although the numbers of women seeking help has increased in recent years.

SLOT MACHINES: Addictive for many.

NEWS

Spain in NATO exercise THIRTY-SIX THOUSAND members of the armed forces from 30 countries are currently posted in Spain, Italy and Portugal.

They are participating in ‘Trident Juncture’ NATO’s biggest exercise since the end of the Cold War which has now entered its second phase, LIVEX. This focuses on tactical training in the fictitious region of Soroton, applying lessons learnt over the last 20 years.

Reflecting today’s security challenges this phase also provides scope to experiment for future operations.

Twenty thousand troops are stationed in Viator and Cadiz as well as Spanish Air Force bases in Madrid, Palma de Mallorca, Albacete, and Zaragoza.

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What a swell party that must have been!

A 25-YEAR-OLD accused of breaking and entering a Vera house claimed not to know how he got there.

He had been to a party, he told the Guardia Civil officers, who detained him after answering a call from a couple living in Vera Playa.

They had heard noises coming from the ground floor of their home, they said, and on investigating discovered that a laptop, two packets of cigarettes, three lighters and €15 were

missing. They also found a lighted candle and a cigarette end on the stairs.

The alleged thief was caught as he tried to escape through the grounds of the urbanisation. He explained to the Guardia Civil officers that he had been to a party and had no idea how he came to be carrying a laptop, two packets of cigarettes, three lighters and €15.

The case has now been passed to the Vera courts.

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The busy and notso-busy politicians PSOE members more active in Madrid

By Linda Hall IN 2011, the Noticias de Almeria newspaper scrutinised the amount of work put in by the province’s MPs and senators.

Partido Popular (PP) politicians were clear winners at the time but the same newspaper found that the situation changed during the four-year interval.

Juan Carlos Perez Navas, PSOE senator for Almeria, was responsible for 547 interventions spread over written and oral questions, control sessions, plenary sessions and senate committees.

Luis Rogelio RodriguezComendador, a PP senator and also Mayor of Almeria City, was involved in 18 Senate actions.

Socialist MPs representing Almeria Province in the Lower

NEWS

NEWS EXTRA

Learning curve WHEN Berja’s Municipal School of Music opened in 2011 there were 47 pupils.

This has risen threefold to the present 150 who enrolled for the 2015-2016 course.

More water THE Balerma desalination plant is now distributing water throughout Poniente. Able to process an annual 30 cubic hectometres of water, it will supply 300,000 people and 8,000 hectares of land.

SENATE: Spain’s Upper House in Madrid.

Chamber were also more active. Gracia Fernandez made 826 interventions and Consuelo Rumi a total of 506. In contrast Jesus Caicedo contributed 23, Juan Jose Marti nine and Rafael Hernando 10.

The situation was very different at the end of the 20082011 legislation when Rafael Hernando, a PP MP for Almeria was responsible for a grand total of 2,354 interventions.

New station WORK will begin within two months on transforming Canjayar’s old Antigua Alcoholera building into a fire station. The Diputacion will meet the project’s €60,000 cost.

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NEWS

Deeds are done APARTMENTS now in owners’ names FIFTY-FIVE years on, eight tenants of right-to-buy social housing in El Tagarete have the deeds to their homes.

After years of red-tape and inaction, the documents were signed by the central government’s sub-delegate for Almeria, Andres Garcia Lorca, and a notary.

The 22 El Tagarete (Almeria City) blocks with their 384 apartments were built between 1960 and 1969 by the Patronato de Viviendas Primero de Abril for working class tenants.

The homes were rented with the option to buy but by the time tenants should have received the deeds to their homes, Franco was dead and Spain’s dictatorship had ended. Democracy was installed and the Patronato wound up without resolving the ownership issue.

The recent handover was the result of effort and hard work on the part of the central government to find a solution for the El Tagarete dilemma, Garcia Lorca said. Tenants had struggled for years to put the apartments in their names and this was an act of justice after they had paid their quotas religiously

FINALLY SIGNED: Two owners of a home in El Tagarete. without the benefit of ownership.

It was an emotional moment, he continued, to fulfil the promise that the government made four years ago of finding a solution.

Despite the satisfactory outcome for

the eight owners, many face the problem of demonstrating their right to an El Tagarete property. Others are unable to comply with the legal requirements needed to prove that they are the heirs to the property or to pay the fees involved.

NEWS

29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

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Donor session at Guardia Civil

DONORS: Guardia Civil members and families gave blood.

AS they do two or three times a year, Guardia Civil officers and their families have donated blood.

Staff from the provincial Transfusion Centre went to the

Guardia Civil headquarters in Almeria City and went away with 39 donations, nine more than they collected during the previous session held in March.

“The idea of donating is gradually catching on and more members of the force and their families are coming forward each time,” Guardia Civil sources said.

CONSTRUCTION COMPANY: Copsa given two months to complete the work.

New roundabout

by Mojacar beach WORK will include renewing other services in the area WORK has started to build a new roundabout on Mojacar seafront in the area known as Vista de Los Angeles.

The project, part of work planned under Almeria Provincial Council’s Road Plan in collaboration with Mojacar Town Hall, has a

budget of €150,000.

The construction will be done by Copsa company, which has been given two months to complete the work.

The roundabout will have a 25 metre diameter and is intended to improve traffic conditions on the main street by

Mojacar beach, especially in the summer months when the area becomes inundated with extra vehicles.

Work will also include renewing and organising local services in the area including the bus-stop, gardens and pedestrian areas.

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NEWS

Another room for Adra’s museum ROOM to be added in a €100,000 revamp

MUSEUM: Adra’s mayor (foreground) and councillors contemplate work in progress.

AN extra room is to be added to the second floor of Adra’s museum in a €100,000 revamp.

A 16-metre walkway and ramp will also con-

nect the building with the adjoining Cerro de Montecristo archaeological park with excavations that date back to the Fourth Century BC.

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29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

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NEWS EXTRA

New start JOSEFA TORRES was chosen to represent Almeria Province in the gypsy collective Union Romani.

Her priorities are education, entering the employment market and improving the gypsy community’s image.

Church robbed THIEVES took the Caritas collection box from Balerma parish church.

They caused considerable damage and stole objects of great symbolic value, including a small chalice from the tabernacle.

New recruits THIRTY of the 500 men and women from Almeria Province who applied to join Spain’s armed forces were accepted.

‘Stolen baby’ will not give up her fight ASCENSION LOPEZ found guilty of defamation

By Linda Hall ASCENSION LOPEZ, continues to insist that she is the victim of an irregular adoption.

An Almeria high court has now ordered her to pay a €3,000 fine and €40,000 damages to Sor Dolores Baena, her adoptive father’s sister.

Lopez is president of the Almeria branch of ‘SOS Bebes robados,’ a support group for adults who believe that they or a relative were given up for adoption at birth without their mothers’ knowledge for large sums of money.

She learnt that she was adopted when she was eight, Lopez said, and claims that her father told her he “bought” her for 250,000 pesetas (€1,500).

Dolores Baena was the gobetween in the arrangement, maintained Lopez who produced neither documents nor

BABY SCANDAL: Some were adopted without mothers’ knowledge witnesses to back the accusation.

Her aunt responded by taking her to court for damaging her reputation, that of the Sisters of Charity and Nuevo

Rumbo, the rehabilitation programme for drug addicts that she runs in Almeria.

The high court found in the nun’s favour, ruling that Lopez used expressions in-

tended to “seriously injure the honour of the witness.”

She was surprised by the verdict, Lopez said afterwards and revealed that she would make an appeal.

Your Belgian estate agent at the coast!

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Fireman’s lift had to substitute TWO primary school teachers have been carrying a pupil up two flights of stairs to his classroom each day.

The seven-year-old has a broken leg and the lift at San Indalecio school in La Cañada (Almeria City) was out of order for more than two weeks. The lift has had no maintenance inspections since the construction company’s guarantee expired and city hall has not yet taken over.

A father, who gave his name as Carlos, criticised the city hall’s slowness in servicing the lift which was installed to assist those with mobility problems.

Other parents described the lift as only “the tip of the iceberg.”

Storm drains in the immediate area cannot prevent flooding during periods of torrential rain, they said, and the infants’ section was so badly affected during recent downpours that classes were suspended.

E W N 29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

High court determines error made by jury A MAN from Canjayar who was sentenced to five and a half years in jail as accomplice to a crime of manslaughter over a man shot dead in November 2012 has had his sentence partially revoked by the Andalucian High Court.

The court has determined that the jury made an error in his accusation as it failed to explain exactly how BHG helped carry out the murder, and declared he would no longer have to pay his 20 per cent portion of the €200,000 for civil responsibility initially ordered by an Almeria Criminal Court.

The entire amount now falls upon JJGH, the man accused of the murder and of illegal arms possession, whose 18-year jail sentence also remains intact.

The high court judge declared BHG’s only part in events was during an argument which broke out between the two men and the deceased, and his presence neither aided nor impeded the killer’s trip to find a gun and to shoot the victim.

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NEWS

Luxury passengers are due into port SHIP carries 212 passengers and 124 crew members

By Eleanor Hawkins LUXURY liner Star Legend will be calling into Almeria first thing tomorrow morning (Friday 29) the port authorities have announced.

This will be the third time this year that the cruise liner comes for a visit as part of its Spanish Serenade eight-night tours which also visit Palma de Mallorca, Malaga, Gibraltar, Sevilla and Portimau and Lisbon in Portugal.

Sailing under a NassauBahamas flag, the ship carries 212 passengers and 124 crew members and is part of luxury Windstar Cruises, which has been named as the best small cruise company in the world by Conde Nast Travelers.

Photo credit flickr by Jpbazard

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STAR LEGEND: This will be the third time the liner has visited Almeria port this year.

Although this is the last time the luxury ship, formerly called Seabourn Leg-

end, is due to visit this year, there are another five cruise liners due to call into

port in what remains of 2015, the port authority has confirmed.

Officer accused of theft A LOCAL Police officer from Mojacar has been charged by the Guardia Civil for allegedly withdrawing €50 from a cash machine with a credit card he found inside a lost wallet.

The Guardia Civil reported that the wallet’s owner reported it missing at the end of August and that somebody had withdrawn €50 with the card without his consent.

The wallet was found, but the Local Police officer, who they suspect used the card also took €300 from the wallet.

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Former mayor in tractor accident FRANCISCO MARTINEZ injured when driving tractor THE former mayor of Albanchez Francisco Martinez was injured after being involved in an accident when driving a tractor in the area of Rambla de Los Gomares.

According to Spanish daily La Comarca Noticias, the ex-mayor was carrying out farming works when, for reasons still unknown, the vehicle overturned and trapped Mr Martinez’s leg under it.

The mayor was able to call his wife himself who requested an ambulance and he was taken by helicopter to the Torrecardenas Hospital.

According to the same sources, Mr Martinez did not sustain injuries to his head or chest, but his ankle was in a very bad condition and he underwent surgery to reconstruct it.

NEWS

Prepare to be scared in Nijar FOR the second year running, Nijar is holding a “Noche en Negro” for Halloween.

O rg a n i s e d b y t h e town hall in conjunction with local business and civic associations, the celebrations will centre on Carretera Las Negras, Calle Isabel la Catolica Norte and the Camino de Vera Boulevard in Campohermoso.

“Carretera Las Negras will be oc-

cupied with ghosts and vampires, the Boulevard will have a terror theme and Isabel la Catolica has been allocated to witches,” explained Culture councillor Yolanda Lozano.

Nijareños should be prepared to be scared out of their wits from 7pm until 12 midnight but can recover from the fright in the shops, bars and restaurants m a n y o ff e r i n g d i s counts - that are opening until late.

Fuel return THE Junta announced that it will return regional fuel tax to professional drivers.

Almeria Province’s taxis, buses and 8,000 lorries could make average yearly savings of around €2,000.

VEHICLE overturned and Mr Martinez’s leg was trapped underneath.

How integrated are you in Spain?

TAKE the consular teams ‘Integrometer’ survey to find out

By Gemma Quinn YOU eat in Spanish restaurants, you attend the odd local fiesta, but have you ever wondered how integrated you really are into life in Spain? Now you can take the Brits in Spain ‘Integrometer’ survey and find out.

The popular ‘Brits in Spain’ Facebook page (www.facebook.com/BritsLivinginSpain) by the British Embassy and Consulate, are carrying out the light-hearted, fact-finding and totally anonymous survey via the Facebook page.

The survey takes just a couple minutes to complete and will gauge how integrated into life in Spain you actually are.

Key results from the ‘Integrometer’ survey will be shared via ‘Brits living in Spain’ social media channels, so you can compare your level of integration with other British residents.

The results will also help the British consular network behind ‘Brits living in Spain’ to continue to provide up-to-date, reliable infor-

17,000 people follow the 'Brits living in Spain' Facebook page

mation about the big issues that most concern British expats.

The ‘Brits Living in Spain’ Facebook page is one of the biggest expat forums in Spain and now has 17,000 followers. It offers a combination of factual information and a lively interchange of experiences and reliable information about expat life.

Residents who are Twitter fans and want the latest news from the Consular network can also follow @BritsliveSpain, as well as keeping up with the comments and thoughts of the British Ambassador by following @Simon ManleyFCO.

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GERMAN

EUROPEAN PRESS SCANDINAVIAN PRESS

No room SWEDEN: The Prime Minister has said the country is close to reaching maximum capacity for accepting refugees. So far 99,000 people have launched asylum cases in 2015.

Church to home SWEDEN: A man is about to start renovation on a church in Landskrona, south Sweden, that he purchased for just one Swedish krona, less than one euro, after officials said they would rather give it to him than demolish it.

PRESS

Arguing book

Military help

HOW to win an argument AN Oxford-based professor has written a book called ‘How to Argue’ on how to always win an argument with your partner.

GERMANY may use military aircraft to repatriate migrants whose requests for asylum have been rejected, but only in the event that all civilian transport capacities are exhausted.

BRITISH PRESS

Art house ARTIST Damien Hirst has won a planning battle to build a large subterranean basement under his London mansion which will house his art collections. The plans were initially rejected for the number of trees that would have to be chopped down.

Stowaways POLICE found 28 migrants stowed away on two Tesco delivery lorries in Essex trying to enter the UK from Calais. They were hidden amongst boxes of Christmas stock for the supermarket.

Football bribery

JEREMY CLARKSON: Can say what he wants.

Internet regulated REGULATOR Ofcom has announced it will extend its watchdog remit to internet TV shows, such as those on Amazon Prime; home of the new car show hosted by Jeremy Clarkson who previously said he was looking forward to being able to say what he wanted.

No to homework

DANISH toy giant Lego has warned it may be unable to deliver all European orders in the run-up to Christmas due to strong demand.

Tougher laws DENMARK is preparing harder residency and immigration laws, targeting those who want to obtain permanent residency in the country.

Back to future

Online hacking

Viking sword

Lego shortage

GERMANY was accused of bribing its way to secure the right to host the 2006 World Cup but now Adidas is feeling the heat over claims thousands was paid by Adidas’s former boss to the German Football Federation (DFB).

AS the world celebrated ‘Back to the Future Day’ German news broadcast show Tagesschau produced a fake news programme, reading the headlines seen in newspapers in the 1989 movie Back to the Future II.

NORWAY: Oslo’s new city council plans to trial abolishing homework for tens of thousands of students and is looking into alternatives methods of assessment.

NORWAY: A hiker walking an ancient route between western and eastern Norway found a 1,200-year-old Viking sword. An archaeologist has dated the artefact from around 750-800AD.

NEWS

OVER €1 million is likely to have been lost after hackers stole from dozens of people across Germany after finding a way around the security ‘mTan’ systems that text a code to confirm transactions to online banking users.

NEW BIKES: Over one million were sold in the Netherlands last year.

Bike business earns big profits 223,000 electric bikes sold OVER one million new bikes were sold in the Netherlands last year; 223,000 of these were electric bikes generating a turnover of €414 million.

Illegal agreement THE tax agreement struck between the Netherlands and coffee company Starbucks is illegal.

That’s according to the European Commission who said: “Tax rulings

DUTCH PRESS that artificially reduce a company’s tax burden are not in line with EU state aid rules.”

Worst performers THE Netherlands is one of the

worst performers in Europe in terms of reducing greenhouse gases and improving energy efficiency and is not on track to meet renewable energy and energy efficiency targets.

Sporty nation AROUND one in four people in the Netherlands are members of sports clubs. Football clubs topped the list with 1.2 million members, followed by tennis and fishing. The biggest growth was in hockey.

Start ups BERLIN and Munich has ranked seventh and 10th for the best places for start up businesses according to a study by a UK-based innovation charity.

Town in mourning GERMAN Chancellor Angela Merkel visited the town of Haltern am See to mourn with the parents and other relatives of the 16 schoolchildren and two teachers killed in the Germanwings plane crash in March.

NEWS

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RUSSIAN P RESS

Bar promoting company wines ALCOHOL advertising was banned in 2008

CHAMPAGNE BAR: Has opened off Red Square.

WINEMAKER Abrau-Durso has opened a Champagne bar off Red Square in a bid to promote the company’s wines after alcohol advertising was banned in 2008.

Half price VISITORS to Russian hotels can now pay a half-day rate if they stay for less than 12 hours.

The new government decree also states that hotels with more than 50 rooms must provide 24hour service.

Expat survey RUSSIA ranked 60th out of 64, as most attractive destination for expats in terms of living standards and overall satisfaction, according to a survey from an online expat community site.

Logo design A RUSSIAN design firm has denied accusations of plagiarism after claims the logo it created for the city of Moscow was an almost exact match to a free downloadable image on a pattern-sharing website.

Facing closure RUSSIA’S only centre to specifically help victims of sex-

Not political A NIGHTCLUB with a mural of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin against the backdrop of a burning White House has claimed the painting had no political implications, after online criticism about the painting.

PUTIN: On a mural. ual assault faces closure due to a lack of funding after being open since 1994. In 2014, Russia’s courts convicted 4,720 people of rape and sexual assault charges.

Most wanted A REWARD of one million rubles (€13,600) has been offered for tips leading to the arrest of a businessman in the Moscow region who went on a killing spree. The whereabouts of Amiran Georgadze, who was added to a federal wanted list, is still unknown.

Home holidays THE number of Russians choosing to spend New Year abroad has decreased five-fold over the past two years, from

150,000 people in 2013 to 50,000 people last year, according to Russia’s Tour Operators Association (ATOR).

Moscow arrests INTELLLIGENCE agents have detained nearly two dozen members of a banned Islamic organisation in the Moscow region. It comes after 10 people from Central Asia were arrested in Moscow on suspicion of involvement with ISIS.

TB in nursery PARENTS in central Russia have criticised the decision not to close a nursery for quarantine after a teacher was diagnosed with TB. The teacher was hospitalised.

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Four million, the number of Talk Talk customers in the UK whose financial information may have been stolen by hackers.

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The EU rules on tax breaks

China UK nuclear deal

MORE to be paid by some large firms on ‘sweetheart’ deals

EDF Energy has reached an agreement with China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGN) for a nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point, Somerset. It was confirmed at a news conference by Prime Minister David Cameron and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The mainly state-owned EDF said the final cost would be £18bn (€24.6bn). State-owned CGN will pay £6bn (€8.2bn) for one third of it.

By John Smith THE European Union has been investigating a number of ‘sweetheart’ deals between multinational companies including Amazon, Apple, Fiat and Starbucks and various member states.

Rome’

is the amount that the EU is seeking for Fiat and Starbucks to pay in back taxes

LEGOLAND: A typical scene in the German park.

New Legoland park for China MERLIN Entertainments PLC, a British company and part of the FTSE 100 index, has signed an agreement with China Media Capital to establish a Legoland park in Shanghai. This is part of a deal between the two companies to explore opportunities to build visitor attractions throughout China.

Merlin already has five attractions in China, with another three due to open in the next 18 months, including a Legoland Discovery

So far a ruling has been made which declares that a Fiat agreement with Luxembourg and Starbucks agreement with the Netherlands are not appropriate and that additional taxes will need to be paid by

In some respects, the UK is the leading beneficiary of the famous Four Freedoms first set out in the 1957 Treaty of Mark Carney Governor of the Bank of England

Photo Credit forden shutterstock

Quote of the Week

€30M

BUSINESS EXTRA

Figures down THE number of unemployed Spaniards fell by 298,200 in the third quarter of 2015, according to the National Statistics Institute. The rate is now 21.18 per cent, and the total number of unemployed fell below five million for the first time since the third quarter of 2011, to 4.85 million.

Rehire staff

Centre in Shanghai. The existing attractions are Madame Tussauds in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Beijing and Wuhan, as well as Chang Feng Ocean World aquarium in Shanghai.

One of the concepts they have is the Kung Fu Panda adventure in co-operation with film maker DreamWorks, which would join the 124 attractions, 16 hotels and three holiday villages in 25 countries in which they currently operate.

AFTER sacking a member of staff who had told a customer that a particular product was only fit for the bin, a court has ruled that Mercadona should either reemploy or compensate the person who was fired.

Spain’s budget THE Spanish government approved its budget for 2016 without addressing calls from the European Commission to revise the plan to ensure the country meets its deficit target.

It is said to be designed to ease some spending restrictions after years of austerity, ahead of the general election.

The end of 1c and 2c coins?

SIX members of the European Union - Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Hungary, the Netherlands and Sweden - have already decided to phase out 1c and 2c coins, and now Ireland has announced that it will follow suit with effect from October 31.

Although the coins will remain legal tender, these countries will no longer produce any new

versions. Apart from the saving to each Treasury, it is considered likely that with a rounding up or down to the nearest 5c consumers will be happy to see these coins less and less in circulation, although those countries still producing the lowest value coins may well find that they are subsidising those which have stopped manufacturing them.

both corporations.

Unsurprisingly, companies and countries disagree with the ruling and intend to appeal, the results of which will be of particular interest to the others still being investigated.

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PRICE(P) CHANGE(P) COMPANY 3i Group 500.10 -3.40 Aberdeen Asset Management 365.45 14.05 Admiral Group 1,641.00 -16.00 Anglo American 602.65 -7.25 Antofagasta 570.50 -4.00 ARM Holdings 1,062.00 -11.00 Ashtead Group 1,001.00 -11.00 Associated British Foods 3,389.00 -10.00 AstraZeneca 4,075.00 5.50 Aviva 476.50 -4.10 Babcock International Group 991.75 -5.25 BAE Systems 451.90 -2.10 Barclays 251.33 0.08 Barratt Developments 645.50 -8.00 Berkeley Group Holdings 3,262.00 -37.00 BG Group 1,063.25 6.25 BHP Billiton 1,133.25 -7.25 BP 386.83 -1.27 British American Tobacco 3,805.25 -38.25 British Land Co 864.75 -0.75 BT Group 447.35 -2.85 Bunzl 1,824.00 -9.00 Burberry Group 1,333.00 -18.00 Capita Group (The) 1,266.00 -9.00 Carnival 3,572.00 -13.00 Centrica 233.90 -1.00 Coca-Cola HBC 1,555.50 -4.50 Compass Group 1,095.50 -4.50 CRH 1,814.00 -9.00 Diageo 1,851.50 -7.00 Direct Line Insurance Group 391.05 -1.45 Dixons Carphone 455.70 -2.50 easyJet 1,763.00 -3.00 Experian 1,116.00 -11.00 Fresnillo 754.25 -3.75 G4S 249.00 -2.00 GKN 291.80 -1.70 GlaxoSmithKline 1,364.50 -4.50 Glencore 118.28 -0.87 Hammerson 643.50 -1.50 Hargreaves Lansdown 1,433.50 -4.50 Hikma Pharmaceuticals 2,047.50 8.50 HSBC Holdings 514.20 -3.80 Imperial Tobacco Group 3,479.50 -19.50 Inmarsat 972.50 -3.50 InterContinental Hotels Grp 2,501.00 -15.00 International Consolidated Air 598.25 -0.25 Intertek Group 2,609.50 3.50 Intu Properties 353.35 0.15 ITV 253.20 -3.80

% CHG. NET VOL -0.68 4,896.34 4.00 4,656.84 -0.97 4,624.82 -1.19 8,549.80 -0.70 5,663.75 -1.03 15,103.57 -1.09 5,093.84 -0.29 26,909.01 0.14 51,423.90 -0.85 19,443.87 -0.53 5,026.84 -0.46 14,364.56 0.03 42,143.15 -1.22 6,505.28 -1.12 4,508.32 0.59 36,098.55 -0.64 24,088.18 -0.33 70,963.47 -1.00 71,649.93 -0.09 8,834.01 -0.63 37,535.86 -0.49 6,141.96 -1.33 6,009.70 -0.71 8,467.22 -0.36 7,749.10 -0.43 11,685.18 -0.29 5,684.53 -0.41 18,264.80 -0.49 14,972.30 -0.38 46,731.83 -0.37 5,887.50 -0.55 5,276.00 -0.17 7,014.70 -0.98 11,139.57 -0.49 5,585.65 -0.80 3,894.50 -0.58 4,837.04 -0.33 66,618.38 -0.73 17,379.46 -0.23 5,058.81 -0.31 6,820.70 0.42 4,055.16 -0.73 101,078.45 -0.56 33,488.61 -0.36 4,387.85 -0.60 5,940.71 -0.04 12,205.42 0.13 4,205.09 0.04 4,673.26 -1.48 10,345.30

COMPANY PRICE(P) CHANGE(P) Johnson Matthey 2,564.00 -22.00 Kingfisher 359.25 -2.25 Land Securities Group 1,334.00 -5.00 Legal & General Group 255.75 -0.75 Lloyds Banking Group ORD 77.43 -0.40 London Stock Exchange Grp 2,529.00 -18.00 Marks & Spencer Group 512.75 -4.75 Meggitt 478.30 -3.90 Merlin Entertainments 397.30 -1.00 Mondi 1,466.00 -11.00 Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets 173.70 -1.30 National Grid 929.05 -4.95 Next 7,922.50 -27.50 Old Mutual 212.55 -0.15 Pearson 899.75 -0.75 Persimmon 1,998.00 -26.00 Prudential 1,527.00 -8.00 Randgold Resources 4,605.00 -10.00 Reckitt Benckiser Group 6,190.00 -59.00 RELX 1,163.50 -10.50 Rio Tinto 2,481.25 -25.25 Rolls-Royce Group 690.00 2.00 Royal Bank of Scotland Group 327.85 -2.15 Royal Dutch Shell 1,771.75 9.25 Royal Dutch Shell 1,786.50 11.00 Royal Mail 450.35 1.75 RSA Insurance Group 413.20 -1.80 SABMiller 3,931.25 -8.75 Sage Group (The) 538.75 -1.25 Sainsbury (J) 267.50 -1.70 Schroders 2,940.50 -20.50 Severn Trent 2,247.00 -23.00 Shire 4,610.50 -30.50 Sky 1,109.00 -11.00 Smith & Nephew 1,149.50 2.50 Smiths Group 996.00 -6.00 Sports Direct International 672.50 -7.00 SSE 1,566.50 -11.50 St James's Place 926.25 2.75 Standard Chartered 737.30 -6.90 Standard Life 419.70 -3.00 Taylor Wimpey 194.35 -1.95 Tesco 190.20 -0.40 Travis Perkins 1,902.00 -37.00 TUI AG 1,216.00 8.00 Unilever 2,935.50 -12.50 United Utilities Group 986.50 -7.50 Vodafone Group 216.15 -1.85 Whitbread 4,892.00 -43.00 Wolseley 3,812.00 -45.00 WPP Group 1,454.50 -25.50

% CHG. -0.85 -0.62 -0.37 -0.29 -0.51 -0.71 -0.92 -0.81 -0.25 -0.74 -0.74 -0.53 -0.35 -0.07 -0.08 -1.28 -0.52 -0.22 -0.94 -0.89 -1.01 0.29 -0.65 0.52 0.62 0.39 -0.43 -0.22 -0.23 -0.63 -0.69 -1.01 -0.66 -0.98 0.22 -0.60 -1.03 -0.73 0.30 -0.93 -0.71 -0.99 -0.21 -1.91 0.66 -0.42 -0.75 -0.85 -0.87 -1.17 -1.72

NET VOL 5,299.17 8,427.61 10,585.38 15,242.75 55,550.18 8,845.24 8,529.76 3,797.85 4,037.75 7,171.63 4,086.41 34,942.94 12,153.45 10,477.93 7,386.69 6,204.41 39,464.64 4,297.94 44,633.90 13,192.67 35,259.62 12,649.53 21,238.98 68,642.06 43,329.49 4,486.00 4,219.54 63,685.41 5,817.95 5,171.12 6,692.52 5,399.41 27,458.56 19,252.99 10,258.67 3,955.67 4,066.57 15,670.58 4,826.20 18,947.01 8,323.75 6,386.55 15,508.17 4,824.85 7,086.17 37,836.38 6,777.97 57,797.69 8,968.83 10,030.39 19,317.47

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0.71971

1.38944 Units per €

US dollar ......................................................................1.10411 Japan yen..................................................................135.521 Switzerland franc.................................................1.07870 Denmark kroner..................................................7.46044 Norway kroner .....................................................9.22937

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DOW JONES C LOSING P RICES O CTOBER 26

COMPANY MMM 3M AXP American Express AAPL Apple BA Boeing CAT Caterpillar CVX Chevron CSCO Cisco KO Coca-Cola DIS Disney DD E I du Pont de Nemours and Co XOM Exxon Mobil GE General Electric GS Goldman Sachs HD Home Depot IBM IBM INTC Intel JNJ Johnson & Johnson JPM JPMorgan Chase MCD McDonald's MRK Merck MSFT Microsoft NKE Nike PFE Pfizer PG Procter & Gamble TRV Travelers Companies Inc UTX United Technologies UNH UnitedHealth VZ Verizon V Visa WMT Wal-Mart

PRICE CHANGE %CHANGE VOLUME 155.79 -0.21 -0.13% 3.0M 74.59 +2.09 +2.88% 9.3M 119.08 +3.58 +3.10% 59.4M 146.70 +0.39 +0.27% 4.7M 71.75 +0.87 +1.23% 7.9M 91.24 -0.38 -0.41% 8.1M 29.35 +0.34 +1.17% 26.1M 42.79 -0.45 -1.04% 18.8M 113.09 -0.16 -0.14% 7.9M 60.27 +1.08 +1.82% 7.7M 82.98 +0.09 +0.11% 13.2M 29.51 -0.07 -0.24% 76.9M 185.50 +1.94 +1.06% 2.9M 124.61 +0.25 +0.20% 5.3M 144.68 +0.59 +0.41% 5.4M 34.90 +0.50 +1.45% 42.8M 100.31 +0.78 +0.78% 9.2M 63.87 +0.68 +1.08% 17.0M 112.59 +1.72 +1.55% 11.7M 52.88 +0.87 +1.67% 15.7M 52.87 +4.84 +10.08% 135.2M 130.53 -1.88 -1.42% 5.3M 34.05 +0.72 +2.16% 27.5M 77.03 +2.18 +2.91% 16.5M 112.28 -0.04 -0.04% 2.3M 100.62 +0.83 +0.83% 5.0M 115.92 +2.11 +1.85% 5.5M 46.16 +0.27 +0.59% 13.3M 77.07 +0.65 +0.85% 12.0M 58.30 -0.60 -1.02% 13.0M

NASDAQ C LOSING P RICES O CTOBER 26

COMPANY

PRICE

CHANGE NET / %

Most Advanced Horizon Pharma plc NETGEAR, Inc. athenahealth, Inc. Vital Therapies, Inc. Concordia Healthcare Corp.

Arctic Cat Inc. QLogic Corporation Akorn, Inc. Celyad SA Relypsa, Inc. Quality Systems, Inc.

$ 17.06 $ 41.85 $ 163.37 $ 6.87 $ 33.20 $ 19.90 $ 13.25 $ 25.92 $ 39.91 $ 13.80 $ 15.05

3.94 ▲ 30.03% 9.15 ▲ 27.98% 35.28 ▲ 27.54% 1.36 ▲ 24.68% 5.56 ▲ 20.12% 3.26 ▲ 19.59% 2.10 ▲ 18.83% 3.86 ▲ 17.50% 5.91 ▲ 17.38% 2.04 ▲ 17.35% 2.19 ▲ 17.03%

$ 7.18 $ 8.58 $ 2.20 $ 17.91 $ 24.74 $ 46.62 $ 4.47 $ 5.33 $ 120.31 $ 34.91 $ 7.40

7.88 ▼ 52.32% 3.74 ▼ 30.36% 0.79 ▼ 26.42% 6.19 ▼ 25.68% 7.98 ▼ 24.39% 14.86 ▼ 24.17% 1.15 ▼ 20.46% 1.31 ▼ 19.73% 28.73 ▼ 19.28% 8.33 ▼ 19.26% 1.39 ▼ 15.81%

Most Declined Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. Westmoreland Coal Company Mid-Con Energy Partners, LP Merit Medical Systems, Inc. Addus HomeCare Corporation Huron Consulting Group Inc. Sientra, Inc. Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Stericycle, Inc. Fortinet, Inc. Acacia Research Corporation

38

E W N 29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

www.euroweeklynews.com

FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL

Dyson takes competitors to court over the misleading of consumers TH E v a c u u m c l e a n e r c o mp a n y Dyson is taking rivals Bosch and Siemens to court around the EU after accusing them of misleading consumers about the power rating of their cleaners.

Sir James Dyson, founder of the company said “Consumers purchasing these machines on the basis of their widely advertised stated AAAA rating are being misled.”

“Dyson has issued proceedings against Siemens in Germany and Belgium and Bosch in the Netherlands and France.”

“Their behaviour is akin to that seen in the Volkswagen scandal,” he added.

The company claims that independent testing had shown that the S iemen s Q8 . 0 a n d B o s c h GL80/In'Genius ProPerform models contained a sensor which in-

Steel industry in meltdown THE last three months have seen dire news for those involved in Britain’s steel industry with potential job losses of up 5,000 in an industry that employs just over 20,000.

Thai owned SSI was unable to pay all of its wages and was forced to lay off 2,200 people and this was followed in October by Indian owned Tata steel announcing 1,200 redundancies and Caparo Industries, also with Indian connections, going into administration with the possible loss of a further 1,700 jobs in the future.

The British steel industry blames the poor economy of China which has seen a drop in local demand for steel products, meaning that not only have exports disappeared, but Chinese manufacturers are now resorting to exporting their own steel at knock down prices to generate more income.

Photo Credit The Royal Society Wikimedia

By John Smith

SIR JAMES DYSON: Accuses competitors of acting like Volkswagen.

creased power when dust was detected - more than doubling their power output.

It argued the testing demanded under European rules, designed to root out and outlaw electricity-

Consumers purchasing these machines are being widely misled by the advertising.

hungry vacuums, failed to pick up on the device as no dust is present when models undergo their official checks.

A joint statement on behalf of the brands involved strongly denied that consumers were being misled.

Take the boy out of career choices Loose change Jane Plunkett A look at finance for females THE other day the topic of children’s toys came up in a conversation. We were discussing how society has dictated what is considered a girl’s toy and what is considered a boy’s toy.

So much so that some parents freak out if their little toddler boy picks up a doll or pushes a toy pram, or vice versa if their little girl happens to love playing with a train set or cars. These are ridiculous prejudices that we adults put on unassuming innocent children. And it really isn’t a healthy practice in this day and age.

The whole conversation got me thinking about a related issue. That of jobs - and how our pre-conceived and conditioned ideas of what a man’s job is and what a women’s job is actually do nothing but hinder personal progress and close doors on both men and women when it comes to job opportunities and making choices about a future profession.

MORE WOMEN: Being encouraged to work in the field of engineering.

Even to this day, some (silly) people will smirk at the idea of a man wanting to become a nurse, whereas a woman working in the field of engineering is a rare sighting. It is well documented that Stem (science, technology, engineering and maths) industries are not greatly populated by women. According to the Women’s Engineering Society in Britain, just 6 per cent of the engineering work-

force is female. And this has negative effects on the engineering industry.

For example, a successful bicycle manufacturing company in the UK says it wants to hire more females but struggles to find women engineers to employ. At the moment they have one in a team of 17 - something they are keen to change, as it makes no sense to have a workforce that is predominantly made up of men

catering for a consumer base made up of both sexes in equal parts.

Some women may not instinctively want to work in areas like engineering, and that’s fine, but we need to be more proactive in encouraging the women that might like to be engineers. This starts with education, and breaking down discriminatory ideals of what a girl’s job is and what a boy’s job is!

FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL

www.euroweeklynews.com

29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

EWN

39

Unsolicited testimonials Using testimonials is an excellent way to enlist customer goodwill

Talking shop Mike Walsh Mike Walsh was for 20 years Regional Assessment Manager for the Guild of Master Craftsmen, Britain’s biggest quality assurance body for businesses.

www.michaelwalsh.es • 966 786 932

IMAGINE you receive an enquiry from a potential client. Beaming from ear to ear you arrive and prepare to set out your stall. With you are several former clients. This of course is not going to happen.

There is an excellent way to enlist customer goodwill. Simply turn up armed with customer testimonials. Sadly, unsolicited customer recommendations take time to gather. A satisfied client can show appreciation in several ways but rarely does it occur to them to set their thanks down in writing.

You can invite a client to recommend you in writing. However, a requested testimonial is worthless for good reasons. Although your client likes you and wishes you well he may be merely satisfied with work carried out. This does not imply he feels strongly enough about the quality of your work to compose a written recommendation.

Your request poses a dilemma for your buyer.

Does he cause offence by refusing you? If inclined towards setting down his thoughts, he might lack

TRIBUTE NOTE: Rarely does a satisfied client show appreciation in writing.

the finesse to do so in a way that is both honest and helpful. For this reason the unsolicited testimonial is worth its weight in gold.

Occasionally clients anticipate your desire to use their note of satisfaction. They might head a tribute with ‘To whom it may concern’. If it does not, then you are on the horns of a dilemma; do you request permission to publish his recommendation or do you presume you can. If you request permission, which is granted, it can hardly be described as unsolicited. Therefore, it’s as bent as a dog’s back leg. You have no right to describe the tribute as unsolicited.

You are perfectly entitled to publish unless the client has specified that the tribute is for your eyes only. If you do presume the sender is happy for you to publish, there is a small risk that such was not their intention. As far as I can recall I caused offence only on one occasion. The solution is simple: apologise and remove the unsolicited tribute.

OPINION & COMMENT

29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

www.euroweeklynews.com

EWN

Health and safety gone mad again!

SCOUTS and Girl Guides banned from marching in Remembrance Sunday parade LEAPY LEE SAYS IT

OTHERS THINK IT BIT of a pot-pourri this week. First out of the ‘pot’ is my thanks to everyone for a veritable avalanche of mail re the Tom Jones piece.

Most were extremely positive; a number truly mind-boggling and some disturbingly sad. I think it’s now a case of ‘nuff said’.

Something that truly made my blood boil was the report that the Scouts and Girl Guides had been banned from marching in a Remembrance Sunday parade, for ‘health and safety’ reasons. The organisation apparently made the decision in case the event was ‘disrupted by protest groups’! Oh? And who might they be, I wonder? I don’t think we have to look too far for the answer to that. When are we going to stop kowtowing to these people, who are hellbent on changing our whole heritage and culture? Ha! Don’t hold yer breath!

What a veritable feast of rugby we have experienced over the last few weeks! And what a refreshing change from the pontificating, minc-

POT-POURRI: A hotchpotch of offerings this week. ing minnows of the footballing fraternity. Proper men, broken-nosed and bloody, playing on with injuries that would have the round ball

brigade carried off on stretchers.

Plus, through all the courage, blood and muddy gore, still retaining the utmost respect

for the referee and his officials. What an example to our young people! Instead of the message of disrespect, whinging and egotistic narcissism delivered by the simpering soccer brigade. Well done, all of you, it has been a real blast.

The X factor (what I could watch of it) has to my reckoning hit an all-time low. Classic this week was their interpretation of one of Judge Nick Grimshaw’s statements, when he was referring to the number of seats he was allocated. ‘I wanted to have sex like everyone else,’ it stated. ‘So we had to bring somebody out!’

Headline of the week: ‘England treated my lad like a horse, nags Klopp’. Brilliant!

And the biggest revelation of the week. The meaning of Freddie Mercury’s mysterious lyrics for his Bohemian Rhapsody. Despite what they appeared to be, they were in fact a reference to his coming out, his misgivings, and an apology to his mum. Listen again. What a genius!

Keep the faith Love Leapy leapylee2002@gmail.com

41

E W N 29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

www.euroweeklynews.com

OPINION & COMMENT

Brussels declares war on the EU

OUR VIEW Photo Credit SL Design shutterstock

48

TOUGHER visa regimes will prevent millions from visiting EU nations Mike Walsh Mike, based in Mediterranean Spain, is an international journalist, author and professional writer.

GERMAN Chancellor Angela Merkel, who by the way, heads an unconstitutional regime, encourages hundreds of thousands of faux refugees to Germany and the European Union. At the same time she backs sanctions against Russia.

The burden to the 28 EU nations of this decrepit copy of the USSR is said to be €100 billion each year.

The EU has rebuilt the Berlin Wall. Brussels have now brought in a tougher visa regime that makes it impractical for millions of Russians to visit the EU. New Schengen rules now require biometric data, fingerprints and digital photographs. A visa application involves a personal visit to the embassy of the destination country.

The geographical size of Russia excludes millions wishing to visit Europe from doing so.

In my opinion, the EU economic

ANGELA MERKEL: Head of an unconstitutional regime. war is conducted by an invisible and accountable cabal. Its purpose is to apply pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin. It fails to do so but such is their hubris the clique never listens.

Russian tourism abroad has falle n by 40 pe r c e nt. R e me mbe r when UK Prime Minister David Cameron urged Britons to holiday at home; keep their money in England. Well, idiot, Russians have

taken your advice.

Expect ‘wish you were here’ postcards from Russia’s Costa Crimea. There, tourism has increased by 32 per cent and guess where the profits are going? They are going to Russia.

The Americans have a saying; ‘you can’t fix stupid.’ Well, they coined the expression and the EU appears to be Washington’s dupe.

Each time the EU sanctions Russia, the Russians despise us more.

Worse, Russian trade worth hundreds of billions is redirected to the EU’s rivals. Simultaneously, EU nations are burdened by a refugee crisis. As far as I’m concerned, desire for ethic protection swings Europe towards xenophobic nationalism.

As a direct consequence of treacherous EU leadership, future generations of Western Europeans, long after Merkel and her henchmen are departed, will carry the burden of their treachery.

“Those whom the gods would destroy, the gods first make mad.”

There is uncertainty as to who coined this expression. May the unfortunate citizens of the EU now claim it their own?

We have won something!

BRITAIN surprisingly rated as the best place to die Colin Bird A weekly look Each week, Colin brings his slightly off-thewall view of the world to the pages of EWN in his own irreverent style.

A GLOBAL survey by The Economist, recently placed Great Britain as the best place to die, beating the Ozzies into second place and New Zealand into third.

Germany was seventh. Yeah, that’ll teach ‘em.

The reasons according to Ros Taylor of Hospice UK are simple: Good knowledge of pain control and conversations about things that really matter. Huh? Pain control I can understand, but the only conversation that would matter to me, would be to learn that I was going to live a lot longer.

But I know what she means.

I just find it hard to believe that we have actually come top of this poll although I suspect that The Economist researchers have simply

CARE: Britain tops global survey on palliative care. taken only the very best that Britain has to offer and this is what we have been judged on. Which is great of course.

The Hospice system and organi-

sations such as Macmillan Nurses, Marie Curie and others are simply wonderful and do an amazing - no, stupendous - job.

But the fact remains that we still

Charity awareness ribbons.

Readers raise funds for charities WORKING in a busy newspaper office, not only do we see breaking news from around the world, much of it quite depressing, we also see local news coming in from the six areas we publish for.

What is very heartwarming is to see the number of people, many of them British although by no means all, who devote so much time to raising funds for charity.

There are charity shops, fundraising dinners, music events, bake offs, balloon launches, walks and even sponsored sky dives.

The range of causes is as diverse as the way in which money is raised, and apart from the animal support our expatriates are often associated with, every type of charity is represented especially, but not exclusively, those connected with ill health.

In the week this article is being written, we have seen fundraising events for the fight against Butterfly skin, cancer, injured ex-servicemen as well as leukaemia and homeless families, with Remembrance Day and poppy appeals still to come.

Considering world economy has been difficult since 2007, it is most heartwarming to see so many people care enough about those worse off than themselves that they spend so much time and money on supporting an incredibly wide range of charities.

We at Euro Weekly News try to do our bit by sponsoring some of the events and devoting as much space as we can to charity fundraisers.

have the reality of people dying alone and in squalor. And the unforgivable situation in hospitals where people die through lack of care, a shortage of compassionate staff, or simply left alone in corridors. No comforting words, no proper palliative care and no dignity.

It’s a disgrace and if we had been told 30 or 40 years ago that these sorts of instances were to happen on a daily basis in British hospitals in the 21st century, we simply would not have believed it.

And if even one such case had been reported back then, it would have elicited a massive public outcry prompting immediate action.

The fact is we have become almost immune to such reports in our newspapers which often only involve a column or two on an inside page.

Now we The sick and elderly in the UK are want to increasingly regarded as a damn nuihear your views. sance and when society endorses projects like the sweetly YOUR PAPER - YOUR VOICE named but deeply sinister Liv- YOUR OPINION erpool Care Pathway, then it is a www.euroweeklynews.com slippery slope indeed.

50

E W N 29 October - 4 November / Costa de AlmerĂ­a

www.euroweeklynews.com

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THURSDAY 29 OCTOBER

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F.A. Cup Gymnastics Rugby League Caribbean with Simon Reeve Earth's Wildest Waters Britain's Ultimate Pilots: Inside the RAF Match of the Day 2 Family Guy Family Guy

3:25pm 5:50pm

Eggheads Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two Grand Tours of the Scottish Islands Only Connect University Challenge Simply Nigella Autumnwatch Mock the Week Newsnight Eggheads Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two Rick Stein From Venice to Istanbul Autumnwatch The Great Pottery Throw Down Later Live... with Jools Holland Newsnight The Wonder of Animals Antiques Roadshow Eggheads Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two Rick Stein From Venice to Istanbul Autumnwatch The Apprentice: You're Fired!

Newsnight Weather

9:00pm 11:25pm 12:30am

7:35pm 7:45pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm 11:20pm 12:20am 6:00pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 8:30pm 9:00pm 9:30pm 10:00pm 11:00pm 11:45pm 5:00pm 6:00pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 8:30pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm

4:00pm 5:00pm 6:00pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 8:30pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm

Tipping Point The Chase ITV News London ITV Evening News Emmerdale Coronation Street Paul O'Grady: For The Love of Dogs Unforgotten ITV News at Ten and Weather

6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm

Judge Rinder Pick Me! Tipping Point The Chase ITV News London ITV Evening News Coronation Street Rugby World Cup ITV News Rugby World Cup Highlights

6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 8:30pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm

The X Factor Rugby World Cup 2015 Local News and Weather ITV News and Weather The Chase: Celebrity Special The X Factor The Jonathan Ross Show ITV News and Weather

2:00pm 2:30pm 4:55pm 5:25pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm

The X Factor Everything or Nothing: The Untold Stories of 007 Local News and Weather ITV News and Weather Jekyll and Hyde The X Factor Downton Abbey ITV News and Weather Bond Girls are Forever The Chase

4:00pm 6:40pm 7:05pm

The Chase Local News and Weather ITV Evening News Emmerdale Coronation Street Countrywise Coronation Street Doc Martin ITV News at Ten and Weather The Job Lot

6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 9:30pm 10:00pm 11:00pm 12:05am

Tipping Point The Chase Local News and Weather ITV Evening News Emmerdale Deals, Wheels and Steals Eternal Glory Lewis ITV News at Ten and Weather

6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm

Pick Me! Tipping Point The Chase Local News and Weather ITV Evening News Emmerdale Coronation Street All Star Mr and Mrs Joanna Lumley: Elvis and Me UEFA Champions League Highlights

5:00pm

10:00pm 11:00pm 12:05am

12:05am

10:30pm 11:30pm

8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:05pm 12:10am 2:00am

10:00pm 11:00pm 11:35pm 12:35am

6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm 12:00am

Four in a Bed Come Dine with Me The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News George Clarke's Amazing Spaces Kitchen Impossible with Michel Roux Jr First Dates Gogglebox

6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm

11:00pm 1:15am

5 News at 5 Neighbours Home and Away 5 News Tonight Secrets of Great British Castles Chasing Monsters Chris Tarrant: Extreme Railway Journeys King Arthur Super Casino

Four in a Bed Come Dine with Me The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News Unreported World TFI Friday Gogglebox Alan Carr: Chatty Man First Dates

4:15pm 6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm 11:55pm 12:55am

Oliver's Ghost 5 News at 5 Neighbours Home and Away 5 News Tonight Police Interceptors Conspiracy NCIS: New Orleans NCIS NCIS: Los Angeles Access

The Simpsons Channel 4 Racing Come Dine with Me Come Dine with Me Channel 4 News Grand Designs How to be Queen: 63 Years and Counting It Was Alright in the 1970's TFI Friday

3:25pm

The Ghost of Greville Lodge Fail Army Now That's Funny!

Can't Pay? We'll Take it Away!

Superman III 5 News Weekend Football League Tonight The Cabin in the Woods White Noise

10:00am 11:00am 1:00pm 3:45pm 4:45pm 6:15pm 6:30pm 6:45pm 6:55pm 9:00pm 11:00pm

The Fantasy Football Club Soccer A.M. Football The F1 Show Mexican GP: Practice Darts Gold Football Gold Football Gold Football SNF: Game of the Day SNF: Match Choice

10:00am

The Sunday Supplement Goals on Sunday Ford Super Sunday Ford Super Sunday Mexican Grand Prix Bpl Legends Ford Football Special FL72 Goals Bpl Legends Goals on Sunday

9:00pm 10:00pm

5:15pm 5:40pm 6:40pm 7:40pm 9:55pm 10:00pm 11:25pm 1:15am

The Core Channel 4 News A Place in the Sun: Winter Sun Restoring Britain's Landmarks Great Canal Journeys Homeland Gogglebox Warm Bodies Grand Designs

11:30am 1:00pm 1:55pm 2:55pm 3:55pm 5:30pm 7:15pm 7:20pm 9:00pm 11:05pm

Football League Tonight Ice Road Truckers Ice Road Truckers Ice Road Truckers Haunted Honeymoon High Spirits 5 News Weekend The Addams Family Values Arachnophobia The Haunting of Radcliffe House

Four in a Bed Come Dine with Me The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News Dispatches Food Unwrapped SAS: Who Dares Wins Fargo It Was Alright in the 1970's

3:15pm 4:15pm 6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm

NCIS Deadly Revenge 5 News at 5 Neighbours Home and Away 5 News Tonight The Gadget Show Police Interceptors On Benefits: 26 Kids and Claiming Britain's Horror Homes

Four in a Bed Come Dine with Me The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News The Secret Life of 4 Year Olds 24 Hours in A and E Catastrophe Tattoo Fixers Bodyshockers

4:15pm 6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm 11:00pm 11:55pm 12:50am

Burden of Evil 5 News at 5 Neighbours Home and Away 5 News Tonight Now That's Funny!

Pets Who Hate Vets How the Other Half Live CSI: Cyber The Mysteries of Laura The Mysteries of Laura

A Place in the Sun: Winter Sun Four in a Bed Come Dine with Me The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News Restoring Britain's Landmarks Grand Designs My Psychic Life 24 Hours in A and E

3:15pm 4:15pm 6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:00pm 9:00pm 10:00pm

NCIS: Los Angeles The Good Witch's Destiny 5 News at 5 Neighbours Home and Away 5 News Tonight Secrets of the Scammers GPs: Behind Closed Doors Can't Pay? We'll Take it Away!

The Gift of Life Law and Order

11:00pm 12:00am

6:00pm 6:15pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 7:30pm 8:30pm 11:00pm 1:25am 3:30pm 4:00pm 5:00pm 6:00pm 6:30pm 7:00pm 8:00pm 11:15pm

11:30am 1:30pm 4:30pm 7:50pm 10:30pm 11:00pm 12:30am 1:30am 2:00am 2:30pm 3:30pm 5:00pm 5:30pm 6:00pm 7:00pm 8:00pm 12:00am 11:00am 11:00pm 11:30pm 12:00am 12:15am 12:30am 1:00am 1:30am 2:00am 2:30am 9:00am 9:30am 10:00am 10:30am 11:00pm 11:15pm 11:30pm 12:00am

Football Gold Football Gold Barclays Premier League World Fantasy Football Club Highlights Capital One Cup Round Up Football NFL Pre-Game Show NFL Premier League 100 Club Football Gold Capital One Cup Round Up Game Changers Barclays Premier League World The Fantasy Football Club Football Barclays Premier League Review

Goals on Sunday Ford Football Special Game Changers Fantasy Football Club Highlights Soccer A.M. - The Best Bits FL72 Goals Ford Monday Night Football FL72 Goals ATP Tennis: Paris Masters La Liga World 2015 MLS Round-Up Show Football Gold Football Gold Premier League Legends Sportswomen - Week MLS Round-Up Show La Liga World 2015 FL72 Goals Fantasy Football Club Highlights Football's Greatest Sportswomen - Week ATP Tennis: Paris Masters Football Gold Football Gold Premier League Legends Premier League Legends

52

E W N 29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

www.euroweeklynews.com

FEATURE

The end of the world and judgement day - or just a silly error of judgement?

FOOD scares and doomsday stories are becoming weirder and more contradictive hurry up a bit: Bruce Willis mightn’t be around that long to save us.

Then, there are all the food scare stories. Recently, we were warned to avoid sugar. Earlier, there were the horrific carb-and-saturated-fat threats, fruit is ‘unhealthy,’ potatoes too. Plus bread, white rice, pasta, red wine, dairy, milk, cheese, cream, butter. Yet other ‘scientific’ studies claim cream and butter should be eaten heartily, red wine prevents heart disease and baked potatoes are an excellent source of vitamins.

Convinced? Well, next week the government’s awarding research grants to figure out if water is wet.

After that, a study of Scotland’s favourite health snack: deep-fried Mars bars. Followed by a major research project to pin down the date of Christmas.

But are all these scare stories just red herrings? Are they leading us

Nora Johnson

Breaking Views Nora is the author of popular psychological suspense and crime thrillers and a freelance journalist.

To comment on any of the issues raised in her column, go to www.euroweeklynews.com/3.0.15/nora-johnson

IT’S the silly season - you know, that time of year when MPs buzz off for their summer hols and the papers are plastered with silly stories - still with us and merging with Halloween? Especially about food scares and doomsday scenarios.

For instance, a few weeks ago were reports of a gargantuan asteroid hurtling towards Earth, with enough power to wipe out life as we know it.

That was, we learnt, the belief of an online community of biblical nutters who predicted our collective demise.

It’s estimated in the 40 millionth century the galaxy of Andromeda will collide with ours. Well, could it

SCARE STORIES: Contradicting advice about what is ‘healthy.’

No through road Cassandra Nash A weekly look - and not entirely impartial reaction to the Spanish political scene

ARANTZA QUIROGA had to resign as the Partido Popular ’s secretary general in the Basque Region and has now left her seat in the regional parliament.

She put forward a proposal for a cross-party peace process without demanding that the Bildu radicals specifically condemned ETA. The outcry from her own party forced her to retract and later throw in the towel. Mother-offive Quiroga who is conservative with a lowercase ‘c’ and close to the ultra-Catholic sect Opus Dei saw that everyone must be included in any peace process.

The bitterness of victims and their families is justified and understandable but the inability to cooperate - if not forgive and forget - is an obstacle that blocks every route on the search for peace.

The worst thing KING JUAN CARLOS, who abdicated last year in favour of his son Felipe, saw Letizia

Mas the masochist PROSECUTING Cataluña’s regional president Artur Mas for organising a mini-referendum in November last year will bring the government only passing satisfaction.

Mas embraces martyrdom with masochistic relish, aware that this will do more for the independence cause amongst unconvinced Catalans than any amount of haranguing at the hustings.

Ortiz as the worst thing that could have happened to Spain’s royal family.

When the couple announced their engagement he predicted that she would destroy the monarchy, or so Spanish journalists Daniel Forcada and Alberto Lardies claim in a newlypublished book.

They’re probably right because Spain is as class-ridden as Britain and Juan Carlos was unlikely to welcome a divorcee with a taxi-driving grandfather. Of course that was before his son-in-law Iñaki Urdangarin was found si-

phoning off public money, and before he broke his hip while shooting elephants in Zimbabwe in the company of his mistress, when the recession was at its height.

Pantomime season ALBERT RIVERA’S Cs continue to creep up on the PP and PSOE in the opinion polls. It’s appropriate that the general election is set for December 20 at the start of the pantomime season with its cry of “He’s behind you!”

ARANTZA QUIROGA: Resigned after an outcry from her own party.

down dangerous dietary paths? For example, we’re advised that a mixed, varied and balanced diet is healthy.

No miracles required! Fine, but not everyone knows what that means. If you believe the advertising, you’d be having Coco Pops for breakfast, white sliced bread with Flora margarine, Pot Noodles, burger and chips later on. This makes me wonder if all these health stories that are regularly trotted out aren’t belated April Fools jokes. They’re certainly getting weirder. Fact: tall, thin men are more likely to lose their hair. I made this last bit up but you get the idea.

Trick or Treat deep-fried Coco Pops, anyone?

Nora Johnson’s thrillers ‘Landscape of Lies,’ ‘Retribution,’ ‘Soul Stealer,’ ‘The De Clerambault Code’ (www.nora-johnson.com) available from Amazon. All profits to Cudeca charity.

54

E W N 29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

LETTERS

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OPINION & COMMENT

YOUR PAPER - YOUR VOICE - YOUR OPINION

Letters for Your Say should be emailed to yoursay@euroweeklynews.com or make your comments straight on our website: www.euroweeklynews.com

It wasn’t unusual to find Tom’s wife all alone in a hotel room Re: Tom Jones FOLLOWING Leapy’s comments in EWN, I just have to write to confirm every word he says about Tom’s behaviour away from the public eye.

Before my retirement I worked as a legal secretary in London and became very good friends with a girl who worked part-time for my firm, but also worked part-time at a hotel in Mayfair - 47 Park Street. The same hotel where Tom Jones and his entourage, and wife Linda, would stay in a suite of rooms when he was performing in London. My friend would tell me that Linda would just be left there, alone, bored and with nothing to do whilst Tom carried on doing whatever he wanted. Linda was also a little agoraphobic and seemed shy and frightened to go out.

My friend felt so sorry for Linda and became very good friends with her over time and to cheer her up would go up to her room, tell her to dress up, and then my friend would pretend to take Linda out. She would take her arm and walk her along the corridors pointing out things like paintings as if they were going to an art gallery, or going out to tea (but would have it sent to her rooms), but all the time pretending they were out and about on the town.

Apparently Linda loved this and it really brought her out of herself. I doubt if Tom ever knew about their ‘outings’ or even cared!

So you see there are others out there who believe you, and others who should check their facts before they put pen to paper. It is good to have people in this world like you who have the courage to actually say what many of us think, myself for one. Keep writing your great articles and as always... keep the faith!

Pam, Duquesa and Kent, UK (Via email) PS: Please send me details on how to obtain a copy of your autobiography which has got to be a real must read! Thanks in advance.

Saying sorry!

Re: Jeremy Corbyn OH, MR LEE, an apology is most needed. Happy to oblige. I apologise

Photographs for possible publication should be sent by email with a full caption to: photonews@euroweeklynews.com

Plans in place to fight caterpillar invasion?

FOLLOWING last week’s article in the Costa del Sol edition regarding Mijas Council’s plans for a fumigation scheme, do you know if Malaga Council has a similar system? I have found one or two in my house. Should I be worried? I don’t have any animals. If I find the odd one, what is the best way to dispose of it please?

Barbara (Via website) Editor’s Note: Further advice on how to deal with infestations in the Malaga area may be sought from: www.malagaturismo.com/en or: www.malaga.eu

sincerely for misinterpreting your comparison of Mr Corbyn to Charles Manson. So you are actually comparing his AUDIENCES to those of past cult leaders, including Charles Manson Those AUDIENCES being the ordinary people of Great Britain who are sick and tired of a government which makes sure that the wealthy thrive more than anyone else, and want a compassionate leader who genuinely wants to help the needy in GB. I am not a great supporter of him but I believe him to be sincere.

Cut the comrade bit, communism is no more.

Once again you should be

ashamed of yourself to come out with statements like that.

Please, please change the name by the way, it’s so childish.

Philip, San Fulgencio

preferred you to him. As TJ gets older the less acceptable and seedy he becomes. My heart goes out to his wife Linda.

May my god be with you.

Tom, (Via website)

Not a fan

Not welcome

Re: Tom Jones I AM presently reading Engelbert Humperdinck’s autobiography ‘What’s in a Name?’.

He speaks fondly of Gordon Mills and his wife Jo. I have to wonder did he help Jo out or attend her funeral.

As for TJ, never been a fan. I even

Re: Migrants on British sovereign soil I MUST confess to being really confused.

When I ‘retired’ in 1997, my wife and I decided to have a look at the wider world and drive right across Europe, to end up in Cyprus.

While there, we took the opportunity to look up a friend who was serving at RAF Akrotiri. We tried to visit him there, but were denied entry to the base ‘for security reasons’ despite our having UK passports and my establishing that I was ex-RAF. So we had to meet up with our friend at a (Greek) bar down the road at Zakaki.

Then, when we drove back to the UK, on arrival at the Greek border at Ipsala, we were told by the very aggressive officials that, notwithstanding our UK (thus EU) passports, we would not be admitted into Greece because our passports revealed that we had journeyed via the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

We were seen off, literally at gunpoint, and had to re-route via Bulgaria into Yugoslavia.

Happily in both countries we were made more than welcome.

So I now wonder how it is that hordes of people - mostly without passports or provenance of any sort can so easily be welcomed into Greece, and now Cyprus - the ‘UK’ part of it in particular?

Should we perhaps have rounded up a few hundred down-and-outs to accompany us, in order to secure admission, in both cases?

John, Alicante (Via website)

No provision Re: Tom Jones LEAPY, couldn’t agree with you more re Tom Jones not looking after Jo. I was Tom’s pianist in The Squires along with Vernon whom you know. However, Gordon Mills was rich so not quite sure why he didn’t look after her.

Vic Cooper (Via website)

WHEN YOU WRITE All letters, whether by email or post, should carry the writer’s postal address, NIE and contact number though only the name and town will be published.

Letters may also be edited.

Readers who have missed earlier correspondence can see all letters posted on:

www.euroweeklynews.com

The views expressed and opinions given in Letters are not necessarily those of the EWN publishers. They accept no responsibility for accuracy of information, errors, omissions or statements, and reject claims arising out of any action that a company or individual may take on the basis of information contained therein.

56

E W N 29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

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SPONSORED BY

EURO WEEKLY’S SPACE FOR YOU TO TAKE A BREA

Word Ladder WOOD

TIME

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MADDOCKS’ VIEW ON LIFE

Almería

for next 7 days

weather

Move from the start word (WOOD) to the end word (MICE) in the same number of steps as there are rungs on the Word Ladder.

You must only change one letter at a time.

TOMORROW

TODAY VELEZ RUBIO

HUERCAL OVERA

ALBOX

VELEZ RUBIO GARRUCHA ALBOX

WOOD WORD WORE WIRE MIRE MICE

YOUR STARS

AQUARIUS (January 21 - February 19) A meeting midweek could mean a change to your finances for the better. In the short term, it may be necessary for you to rearrange money and appointments but try not to be too put

TARGET: Average: 19 Good: 25 Very good: 36 Excellent: 44

Alicante TODAY:

ROQUETAS

Fri Sat Sun -

MAX 22C, MIN 17C MAX MIN

22 17 S 22 17 S 21 17 Th

Mon - 21 16 Sh Tues - 21 17 Sh Wed - 21 16 Sh MAX 23C, MIN 16C Mon - 22 16 Sh Tues - 22 16 C Wed - 21 16 Sh

19 14 S 20 15 S 19 14 C

22 17 S 22 17 Cl 21 17 Th

S Sun,

Cl Clear,

Sh Showers,

10-Star Quiz

IRISH LOTTO

EURO MILLIONS

LA PRIMITIVA

EL GORDO DE LA PRIMITIVA

Saturday October 24

Saturday October 24

Saturday October 24

Friday October 23

Saturday October 24

Sunday October 25

55

58

59

15 33

30 34

3

12

15

19

23

32

BONUS BALL

THUNDERBALL

BONUS BALL

11

13

20

7

25 32

30 39

LUCKY STARS

2

8

1

15

20

33

46

47

REINTEGRO

40

9

SUNNY

MAX 21C, MIN 12C MAX MIN

23 13 S 23 14 Cl 21 14 Cl

Mon - 21 14 Cl Tues - 21 13 Cl Wed - 21 13 Cl

10

18 32

26 34

REINTEGRO

7

SUNNY MAX 25C, MIN 12C

TODAY:

MAX MIN

Mon - 21 16 Sh Tues - 21 17 Sh Wed - 21 16 Sh

UK THUNDERBALL

9

Fri Sat Sun -

MAX MIN

UK NATIONAL LOTTERY

43

MAX MIN

Mon - 22 17 Sh Tues - 23 17 S Wed - 22 17 Sh

Murcia

SUNNY MAX 22C, MIN 17C

Fill the grid so that every row, every column and every 3X3 box contains the digits 1-9. There’s no maths involved. You solve the puzzle with reasoning and logic.

31

SUNNY MAX 22C, MIN 16C 23 16 S 22 17 Cl 21 17 Sh

MAX MIN

Mon - 19 14 S Tues - 18 14 Cl Wed - 18 14 S

Sudoku

29

Fri Sat Sun TODAY:

MAX MIN

MAX MIN

Fri Sat Sun -

Mon - 17 9 Cl Tues - 18 9 Cl Wed - 19 9 Sh

Mallorca

CLOUDY MAX 21C, MIN 13C

Benidorm TODAY:

MAX MIN

21 9 S 17 9 Cl 16 9 Sh

MAX MIN

MAX MIN

23 16 S 23 16 S 21 16 Sh

MAX MIN

Fri Sat Sun -

Fri Sat Sun TODAY:

Barcelona TODAY:

MAX 18C, MIN 7C

MAX MIN

Malaga

SUNNY MAX MIN

Fri Sat Sun -

SUNNY

TODAY:

Almeria TODAY:

LIBRA (September 24 - October 23) It is clear that you really love your hearth and home but, every now and again, there is a small voice calling. The good things in life appeal and, to have these, an effort is involved. Do not underestimate the amount of pleasure that you will enjoy when putting in that extra effort. It does, after all, involve other people. Some of those people prove to be quite fascinating.

CANCER (June 22 - July 23) Being considerably more relaxed about those things which cannot be changed has taken a weight from your shoulders.

It is also easier to understand why others have taken this approach in the past.

There is, however, a balance to be found.

Don't be put off by people who have

Madrid

SUNNY MAX MIN

VIRGO (August 24 - September 23) Be your charming self this week without pushing too much. A natural approach when you are seeking a response is the best course of action. Simply being in the right place and under someone’s gaze is all that is required. Are you getting itchy because an offer is not forthcoming?

Well, if you absolutely must, then get a little bird to whisper in their ear.

GEMINI (May 22 - June 21) Make a point of putting on a happy face and your mood will stay high. There is still some more to be done to improve your social life and a recent offer of charity work may be just the thing. Avoid restricting the sort of folk who you are willing to mix with. Cultural differences apart, it is quite an eye-opener to find out how others live and think.

TAURUS (April 21 - May 21) Although last week was not run at the pace anticipated, now the pace certainly

dele duel duly eely leer lure lute lyre peel pelt pled pule purl reel rely rule yelp duple elder elude elute leery leper letup lured plyer puled redly repel reply ruled truly deeply dueler pelted pelter peltry pertly petrel purely purled rudely yelped yelper prelude drupelet REPUTEDLY

LEO (July 24 - August 23) Are you still patting yourself on the back for that recent achievement? Socially, this is a lovely week when old friendships are strengthened and new acquaintances prove to be relaxing. It is another mellow week but one in which you seriously consider making a major change.

picks up. Finances are still firmly on the agenda, but this time you will be able to deal on a more relaxed basis. A contact made recently gives you the opportunity not only to make some money but also to enlarge your circle of friends.

ARIES (March 21 - April 20) A pleasant surprise makes you a little more optimistic midweek. It is possible for you to take on negativity too quickly.

The next time something does not go according to plan, hold fire. It is amazing what a little time and distance will solve.

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION

RETAMAR

ALMERIA

become sloppy in their approach because this is not going to affect you.

(October 24 - November 22)

PISCES (February 20 - March 20) There is so much that has come to light in the past few weeks, it is no wonder that your mind is reeling. All will become clear in the weeks ahead and this cannot be rushed. However, there is a need to look after your health and get out in the fresh air. Any thought of joining a walking club or health group should be pursued.

How many English words of four letters or more can you make from the nine letters in our Nonagram puzzle?

Each letter may be used only once (unless the letter appears twice). Each word MUST CONTAIN THE CENTRE LETTER (in this case C) and there must be AT LEAST ONE NINE LETTER WORD. Plurals, vulgarities or proper nouns are not allowed.

MOJACAR

ADRA

out. Change is perhaps something that we become less tolerant of after a situation has gone on for a time.

Nonagram

ROQUETAS

‘WHO WANTS VINEGAR ON THEIR CHIPS?’

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION

CAPRICORN (December 22 - January 20) Your mind is still sharp this week and there are many questions that you would like answered. Doing a bit of research proves fruitful and also quite amusing. A recent contact may not come up with the proposition hoped for, but realise that it is still early days.

GARRUCHA

Having put in extra effort to bring a zing into your life, it is important that you keep the impetus going. This is not only good for your health and wealth, but also your mind. Although trying something new brings a few odd remarks your way, try not to be sidetracked.

SCORPIO

HUERCAL OVERA

RETAMAR

ADRA

LOTTERY

SAGITTARIUS (November 23 - December 21) There is still a strong accent on family matters and getting things sorted out.

The way ahead is clear. If you are able to persuade someone that an idea was theirs and not yours, so much the better. Being in a practical mood serves you well because it is possible to get a lot done in the next few days. The weekend, however, is another matter.

ALMERIA

Fri Sat Sun -

F Fog, Sn Snow,

MAX MIN

25 14 S 24 16 Cl 22 16 Sh

Mon - 22 15 Sh Tues - 23 15 Cl Wed - 24 14 Sh

C Cloudy, Th Thunder

BROTHERS IN ARMS 1. Eat A Peach (1972), Brothers and Sisters (1973) and Win, Lose or Draw (1975) were all best-selling albums by which American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969?

2. The Brothers Karmazov, first published in 1880, was the final work by which Russian novelist?

3. What was the name of the English painter, writer and poet, who was the brother of the Brontë sisters?

4. What was the name of the medieval detective who was played on television by actor Derek Jacobi between 1994 and 1998?

5. What were the names of the two American brothers who won Olympic gold medals at different weights (light heavyweight and middleweight) in Montreal in 1976?

6. ‘When he was nearly 13, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow’ is the opening line of which Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Harper Lee? 7. Which 1954 musical film was based on the short story The Sobbin’ Women, by Stephen Vincent Benét, which was based in turn on the Ancient Roman legend of The Rape of the Sabine Women?

8. Which family comedy act starred in the films Animal Crackers (1930), A Night at the Opera (1935) and A Day at the Races (1937)?

9. Which US city is nicknamed the City of Brotherly Love?

10. With which form of transport would you principally associate the Montgolfier brothers, Jacques Etienne and Josef Michel?

Not a lot of people know that… The Eagles’ Joe Walsh makes a brief appearance as a prisoner at the end of the 1980 musical comedy film The Blues Brothers.

1. ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND, 2. FYODOR DOSTOYEVSKY, 3. PATRICK BRANWELL BRONTË, 4.

BROTHER CAEDFAEL, 5. LEON AND MICHAEL SPINKS, 6. TO KILL A MOCKING BIRD, 7. SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS, 8. MARX BROTHERS, 9. PHILADELPHIA, 10. HOT-AIR

MICE BACK

MOJACAR

OUT

29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

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AK, BE INFORMED AND ENJOY A CHALLENGE

Enjoy filling in the following puzzles and check the answers in next week’s edition

Quick

Code Breaker

Across 1 Be present at (6) 4 Not wide (6) 9 Disperse (7) 10 Happen (5) 11 Come or go into (5) 12 Larval frog or toad (7) 13 Substitute (11) 18 Supposes (7) 20 Person who tends the sick (5) 22 Refrain from harming (5) 23 Easily agitated (7) 24 Eating dinner (6) 25 Finishes (6)

Each number in the Code Breaker grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. In this week’s puzzle, 1 represents F and 18 represents Z, so fill in F every time the figure 1 appears and Z every time the figure 18 appears. Now, using your knowledge of the English language, work out which letters should go in the missing squares. As you discover the letters, fill in other squares with the same number in the main grid and the control grid.

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTIONS CRYPTIC Across: 1 Scared, 4 Stays, 8 Abode, 9 Adamant, 10 Everton, 11 Bone, 12 Set, 14 Used, 15 Edam, 18 End, 21 Apse, 23 Remorse, 25 Reasons, 26 Aware, 27 Sieve, 28 Deceit.

Down: 1 Scales, 2 Avocets, 3 Eventide, 4 Slap, 5 Alamo, 6 Setter, 7 Pains, 13 Teammate, 16 Acreage, 17 Bairns, 19 Dress, 20 Newest, 22 Shake, 24 Bore.

QUICK Across:

Down 1 React verbally (6) 2 Make brown and crisp by heating (5) 3 In accordance with nature (7) 5 Using the voice (5) 8 Finding fault with (11) 6 Smallish American carnivore with 14 Make plain and comprehensible black-striped tail and face (7) (7) 7 Notified of danger, potential harm or 15 Inorganic substance that is risk (6) essential to nutrition (7)

English - Spanish

1 Starts, 4 Plates, 9 Attract, 10 Scale, 11 Exciting, 13 Bets, 14 Scare, 17 Trust, 20 Sink, 21 Accurate, 25 Leave, 26 Private, 27 Single, 28 Recent.

16 Stopped (6) 17 Banquets (6) 19 Free from dirt or impurities (5) 21 Public acts of violence by unruly mobs (5)

Down: 1 Shared, 2 Attic, 3 Tractor, 5 List, 6 Travels, 7 Steps, 8 Stun, 12 Get, 15 Contain, 16 Era, 18 Routine, 19 Defeat, 20 Sells, 22 Copy, 23 Awake, 24 Deal.

The clues are mixed, some clues are in Spanish and some are in English.

Across 1 Desayuno (9) 7 Influenza (5) 8 Letter (mail) (5) 9 Six (4) 10 Camas (muebles) (4) 13 Friend (5) 14 Now (at this time, immediately) (5) 16 Maíz dulce (9)

ENGLISH-SPANISH Across:

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION

1 Jewellery, 8 Isles, 9 Above, 11 Tyre, 12 Fist, 14 Este, 16 Owls, 19 Arder, 21 Oveja, 22 Carpenter.

Down: 2 Ellas, 3 East, 4 Liar, 5 Rio, 6 Disfraz, 7 Recetas, 10 Bee, 13 Toe, 15 Siete, 17 Wrap, 18 Soon, 20 Día.

Down 1 Bolsa (para llevar algo) (3) 2 Buildings (houses, offices etc) (9) 3 Rodilla (4) 4 Arch (4) 5 Earthquake (9) 6 Habas (5) 9 Bufanda (5) 11 Cuerda (4) 12 Último (final) (4) 15 Still (even) (3)

Hexagram

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Crossword

EWN

Cryptic The purpose of the Hexagram puzzle is to place the 19 six-letter words into the 19 cells. The letters at the edges of interlocking cells MUST BE THE SAME. The letters in the words must be written CLOCKWISE. The word in cell 10 (ARMADA) and one letter in four other cells are given as clues.

APLOMB

HELMET

ARMADA (10)

LECHER

CHALET

MARTIN

CREATE

MUTTER

CURLEW

STRESS

DEEPEN

TABLET

DISPEL

TEASEL

ELAPSE

UNDONE

ERRANT

WEALTH

FIXATE

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION 1 Search 2 Cheesy 3 Strain 4 Spring 5 Nectar 6 Hoyden 7 Depend 8 Teasel 9 Stored 10 Dredge 11 Denial 12 Rudder 13 Tanned 14 Tissue 15 Emerge 16 Animal 17 Adhere 18 Tenant 19 Dreamt

Across 1 Post the money for a bet (5) 4 Light fog, by the sound of it, is left out (6) 9 Worry when it’s in a barrier (7) 10 Line dancing can go wild (5) 11 Middle East location: a place for thieves? (4) 12 First Lady taking break on mountain (7) 13/23 The result of a Serbia landing field (3,4) 14 The French with Norway produce fine linen (4) 16 Stop me backing on to street (4) 18 In the direction of the east, an extremity (3) 20 White ant is a form of emitter (7) 21 Dejected Cambridge sportsman (4) 24 Claim a goal for partially or fully developed insect (5) 25 Fasten particle over water creature (3-4) 26 A choice of one in two, or possibly one in three (6) 27 Turn out little Susan after the nurse (5) Down 1 Spurious article required by medicine man (6)

2 Albert and I have become animated (5) 3 Use a converted Old Testament character (4) 5 Additional pay for a sincere sort (8) 6 Evil church about to become free of hypocrisy (7) 7 Note the world shortage (6) 8 Lifting device found in the cleverest hiding place (5)

13 Remedy into date order (8) 15 Bats are arranged side by side (7) 17 Bar’s rubbish after first of September (6) 18 Irish following Troubles, initially laconic (5) 19 Making a scene, in which spirits might be produced (6) 22 Haunts bad liars (5) 23 See 13 Across

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E W N Costa de Almeria

29 October - 4 November 2015

VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.EWNLIFESTYLE.COM

TO READ MORE

HEALTH BEAUTY

&

The benefits of the perfect pillow CHOOSE the right pillow for a good night’s sleep.

CHOOSING the correct pillow is just as important as the mattress.

A BAD night’s sleep can have impacts on your physical and psychological well-being, with a good rest essential to health.

The pillows you use are often overlooked but can be essential to helping you get a good night’s sleep.

The General Council of physiotherapist’s schools of

Spain (CGCFE) emphasises that the choice of the pillow should be adapted to the morphology of each individual in order to achieve better sleep.

President of CGCFE, Miguel Villafaina, recognises that usually people spend more time choosing a mattress but the pillow is just as important: “The

right pillow can help improve posture and help prevent injury.”

For those who often sleep on their backs, the recommended height of pillows is between 1013cm and up to 15cm for those who sleep on their side. If you sleep on your stomach, pillows should be up to 10cm.

Airports damage health A STUDY has found that living within six miles of an airport makes people more likely to suffer from asthma and heart problems with researchers blaming carbon monoxide for the effects, with the pollutant being pumped out at higher levels when planes are going along the runways at lower speeds.

The study at Colombia University and the University of California looked at the exposure close to the 12 biggest airports in California, USA and found that hospital admissions for heart problems were 9 per cent higher for those living within six miles of an airport.

HEALTH & BEAUTY

Ask The Doctor

Brought to you by Helicopteros Sanitarios.

Lingering pain

SPECIALIST: Dr Luis Perez Belmonte.

This week, Dr Luis Perez Belmonte replies to a reader’s questions on leg pains: Our reader (name supplied) wrote: Dear doctor, I am a Belgian lady.

The day before leaving for Spain (September 24) I suffered from pain in my left leg and went to the Belgian doctor.

He g a v e m e a n an tiinflammatory injection and I h a d t o t a k e p ills for one week.

Arriving in Spain after t h a t we e k t h e p ain had not gone.

I called Helicopteros Sanitarios. This doctor again gave me an injection a n d p i l l s f o r o n e week.

Af t e r t h i s we e k th e pain still has not gone.

Would it be useful to see a chiropractor? Or is it bett e r t o m a k e a n a p pointment in a hospital for an x-ray of my spine and leg?

C a n y o u g i v e me some advice?

29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almeria E W N

www.euroweeklynews.com

The doctor replied: Dear patient: T h e s y mp to ms y o u describe appear to point to s c ia tic p ain w h ich usually originates from a tra p p e d n e rv e in th e spine.

As you have followed trea tme n t fo r a few weeks with no improvements you should go to a hospital for a spine xray an d p ro b ab ly a n MRI as well if you see no improvements after seeing a Trauma specialist.

Yo u s h o u ld als o s ee a chiropractor or phys io th era p is t w h o c a n help you relieve tension in th e affec te d a re a an d s ig n ifica n tly imp ro v e y o u r s y mp toms.

If you have any questions for Dr Perez Belmonte, please send them to: askyourgp@ euroweeklynews.com

The Coast’s Home GP service - wherever you are - at home - in the office - in the car - on the golf course your GP will get to see you anytime, anywhere.

A priceless service at an affordable price.

Keep the peel BANANA peel is being branded as the new ‘superfood’ as it is packed with nutrients that are beneficial to the body.

Using the peel is not unusual in India and the Caribbean where banana peel is often used in cooking to add flavour and substance and now, nutritionists say there is a whole host of benefits with the nutrients, compounds and minerals within the skin being able to help aid weight loss, and boost your mood.

The peels contain high amounts of vitamin B6 and B12, as well as magnesium and potassium, and some fibre and protein. B6 helps the body’s immune system and regulates blood sugar levels and B12 helps the brain and nervous system. It also contains vitamin A which promotes healthy teeth and bones.

Typically, banana peels are served cooked, boiled or fried but they can be blended to add extra fibre to a smoothie. ‘The riper the banana, the sweeter its skin.’

If you can’t stomach the idea of eating the peel, it still has numerous uses, and has had medical uses in the past such as easing the pain of poison ivy rashes and soothing itching bites. India has often used it inside out to treat warts and if you have bruises, tape banana peel to the skin overnight to speed up the healing process.

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Exercise is the best way to fight depression FitFoxy

Looking Good, Staying Trim

I DISCOVERED long before I was a qualified trainer that Exercise and Depression are very closely linked. I started training at age 22, with a basic no frills gym programme prescribed by my local Leisure Centre. I learned a whole new way of giving my body the physical stimulation it needed whilst also releasing endorphins (feel good hormones) into my brain, helping me to feel better about myself and live a happier existence.

With many years of exercise and fitness experience under my belt, I’m aware that when I’m feeling low, the far more attractive option would be to reach for a piece of chocolate cake or a Jack Daniels and coke, rather than do a half hour of exercise but I recognise that I am going to feel 10 times worse afterwards if I take the first option, thus escalate my depressed state. This is the tricky part for most people, they cannot find the discipline or willpower when they are feeling low to make the better choice.

The Exercise and Depression theory is often not recognised or considered. The most obvious reason that people have to take up an exercise plan is for weight-loss. However in my many years of Personal Training with clients I have found from the first few sessions that their mental outlook changes rapidly, they become more positive and motivated, they seem to have more confidence in themselves and seem to come out of depression.

Health Food Shop & Community Centre Are you looking for inspiration?

You’ll be surprised at the range of natural & organic products available to inspire you.

In the Community Centre Kids Karate, kids Gymnastics Art classes, Pilates, Yoga, Tai-Chi, Salsa-size Spanish lessons and health screening

C/Malaga s/n, Albox, Almeria, Tel: 639 089 170 Mon-Fri 10am-6pm Sat 10am-2pm email: alboxgirasol@hotmail.com

RELEASE endorphins and feel happier.

Once I have helped them to get to this positive mental place they then start to achieve the physical results and begin to shed their unwanted body weight.

Of course there are those people that tell me that they cannot bear the idea of exercising, and see it as some form of torture. In these circumstances I can only recommend that they try a few exercise classes at their local gym. Any exercise needs to have some element of fun to it whether you enjoy boxing classes, combat, spinning or even dancing.

I do not know many people that don’t enjoy dancing. Zumba (mix of Salsa/ Latino/Street Dance) has taken off in a huge way, due to the fact that it’s a lot of fun and you get to jump about for up to an hour with your friends. You find yourself releasing feel good endorphins and having a good laugh at the same time.

I can confidently say that NO CLIENT ever leaves any of my training sessions, with the negative feelings they may have arrived with… IT IS IMPOSSIBLE.

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www.euroweeklynews.com

OPINION & COMMENT

Where have all the gypsies gone?

THEY were becoming a disappearing lot in Spain

Ric Polansky Ric Polansky moved to Mojacar in 1969 as a pioneer developer. He reads extensively and has travelled in South America panning gold and looking for El Dorado.

BACK in 1969 I made my first trip to distant Murcia. As I neared Murcia I came across an interesting scene, horse drawn colourful caravans parked on a grassy plot of land. Lots of children were frolicking and women were attending an open fire and cooking while the men smoked and took care of their animals.

Such a novel vision had to be investigated.

Brakes slammed on, I leapt from the car and approached. As I came close their eyes flashed about to each other and winces and uncommon gestures alerted me not to come too near. I stopped and observed. The women returned to their caravans but the men didn’t move an inch other than eyeing me with ferocious dark eyes.

I retreated to my car and carried on with my journey making special reference to ask about who they were. I later learned they were ‘gypsies’ and were a disappearing lot in Spain, not being as frequent as previous years. Many had apparently settled down and

SETTLED DOWN: Many gypsies apparently formed and settled in cities including Turre. formed cities; Turre and Cuevas del Almanzora were mentioned.

The very word gypsy still conjures up malice and dread amongst many Spaniards and definite curiosity amongst the foreigners.

That one word became conjugated into a world of adventure, crime and mystery.

I learned that in Turre they kept together and were proud of their flamenco music.

They leaped at the chance to perform especially if they got paid for it. About October time in Turre they would have a festival and anyone that claimed he was a gypsy jumped at the chance to get on stage and sing and

dance; even old women that could barely walk climb those steep rickety steps to become youthful and sprite again once the music started.

I learned a lot, then forgot it all again when I went drinking with them afterward.

I learned it was worse than a sin to go home before the sun rose the next day.

Turre had hundreds of bars then and it was considered grossly impolite not to have a drink in each of them. A lot of the men worked for us so I always felt safe even though I didn’t understand their dialect of Spanish.

Caves abounded in Almeria too. There were large hills of them completely covered with tiny doors on the main hillside as you drove into town. Those hills were further alive with dogs leaping, stray donkies roaming and thousands of children, all poorly dressed and dirty bolting about.

Almeria’s main streets were always crowded too, but not with shoppers but thousands of shoe shine folk. You couldn’t refuse them or they would starve. Once you paid the 25 pesetas rescue money they wiped the dust from your sandals and proudly walked on while you remained proud and erect for having saved a life. But, you couldn’t walk two steps more without encountering another duo equally as destitute and hungry.

Manilva author may have discovered second Sphinx at Giza Pyramids A MANILVA author and paranormal explorer has spent the last 20 years searching and be-

lieves that he has discovered the whereabouts of the lost Ark of the Covenant and is also cer-

tain that he has uncovered the Riddle of the Sphinx; there is a second one waiting to be unearthed.

When Napoleon visited the Sphinx in 1798–99, all that was visible was its shoulders and head and it wasn’t until 1817 that a dig uncovered its chest, with the rest of the body following in later years.

Gerry Cannon met a number of Egyptian officials, and many archaeologists in Cairo, and he was given permission to enter the Khafre (the name of the Pharaoh on which the Sphinx’s face is said to be based) Pyramid after it was closed to the public. Before leaving, he suddenly and unaccountably turned to the General Director of Giza Pyramids, saying: “When I return, I’m going to tell you something about the Sphinx!”

As he left the pyramid, he gazed in the direction of the Sphinx, thinking that there is more than one Sphinx as the Chinese Imperial guardian lions

SECOND DISCOVERY: Gerry Cannon believes he has uncovered the Riddle of the Sphinx.

that guard temples are in pairs and pairs of sphinxes exist elsewhere in Egypt.

North of the Sphinx is a large mound which is currently unexplored and this could be the location of a possible buried second Sphinx.

Between the paws of the Sphinx is an ancient plaque with two sphinxes carved at its top. A close examination shows that they are different to each other. The left-hand sphinx’s face looks male and the right-

hand face looks female, which apparently nobody noticed before.

The Russian archaeologist, Dr. Kormysheva, spent years researching part of the mound but never obtained permission to dig in the area in question.

According to Mr Cannon, a sensing company sent him an image of the relevant area of the mound that showed signs of something under it.

For more information contact Gerry Cannon on

arkquest2002@yahoo.com and perhaps a university or other organisation may become involved in getting the mound investigated using ground-penetrating radar.

If signs of a sphinx-shaped abnormality under it are shown, then an application can be submitted for a permit to carry out a detailed excavation.

Details on Gerry Cannon and his search for the Ark of the Covenant can be read at http://www.gerrysarkquest.com.

S

OCIAL CENE

29 October - 4 November 2015

TO READ MORE

Composer invited to UN 70TH anniversary celebrations

By Declan Scanlan COMPOSER and friend of the Euro Weekly Dario Poli was honoured to be invited to The Hague over the weekend to attend the International Gala celebrating the 70 years anniversary of the founding of the UN. Dario was earlier invited to write a new music composition for The Peace and Justice Foundation, a newly established venture at The Hague.

The new composition will be presented at an exclusive gala event in September 2016 and Dario took time out from writing and his other projects to attend The Peace Palace building at The Hague.

The 70th anniversary of the founding of the UN was marked around the world and Dario told us that he will be returning to The Hague again for

DARIO POLI: New music. further meetings as he continues to prepare the composition for the The Peace and Justice Foundation.

Dario will be presented at the gala as will the music he is creating especially for the event.

Among his other ongoing projects at the moment is Amsterdam, a new musical he is planning to launch in Holland.

Costa de AlmerĂ­a

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RBL, Mojacar Branch invited to the Spanish Legion ON Wednesday October 21 the Royal British Legion District North was proud to be invited to the Spanish Legion Base in Viator, Almeria to join them in a joint service of Remembrance.

In the first ever event of its kind District Standards, including that of Mojacar Branch, were paraded and members and family attended the ceremony. Wreaths were laid at the memorial by the Spanish

Legion and the Royal British Legion. After the service lunch was served in the Officers Mess followed by a guided tour of the Legion’s museum.

This could become an annual event.

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www.euroweeklynews.com

SOCIAL SCENE

Albox Feria 2015 THE annual Feria de Todos los Santos (All Saints Fair) is one of the most important fairs in the province of Almeria and begins on Thursday October 29.

Among the many highlights is the Feria del Mediodia, a tapas sampling event which can

continue until midnight. The party takes place in the Recinto Ferial next to the main square in a large tent. The bars within the tent are usually operated by various charities and non-profit associations and the proceeds go towards their causes. Vari-

ous bands are on hand to keep the party going.

On Thursday October 29, the switching on of the lights takes place in the Recinto Ferial.

On Friday October 30 festivities kick off at 2pm with the Feria del Mediodia and the Ilusiones band are entertaining.

The party continues with a 5pm dancing display at the Municipal School of Cerricos and at 10pm the Orchestra Norte are at the Caseta Muncipal.

Among the highlights on Saturday are a day long birds exhibition: the Partridge Exhibition and Fair at Plaza de Abastos, and a parade involving a Charanga Band. The official ceremony of the Feria is on at the town hall of Albox in the Salon de Actos at 12.30.

In the evening horse riders compete to capture suspended ribbons after which you can see a performance by the orchestra Orquesta Maxims at the Caseta Municipal.

On Sunday, there is a livestock fair in the morning and the day long 4x4 Route Villa de Albox which leaves from Calle Poeta Juan Berbel.

Call Miguel on 697 312 801 or Juanjo on 696 932 731.

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SOCIAL SCENE

Anyone for ‘Walkies’?

THE DOGHOUSE FOUNDATION in HuercalOvera, Almeria are having a ‘Making Friends and Having Fun Day.’ They invite you to come along, choose a canine companion, and take a walk in the Rambla. Have fun while enjoying fresh air and making friends both canine and human.

The Doghouse Foundation provides a home, hopefully temporary, to lost, abandoned or just

unwanted, dogs. They come in all shapes and sizes, with lots of different breeds.

Light refreshments will be vailable. A donation of collars and/or leads would be appreciated.

Walks will be held on: December 6, January 3, February 7, March 6 Details of how to find us are in ‘Contact us’ on www.thedoghouse-huercal-overa.webs.com.

Call Paul 646 809 599.

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E W N 29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

Such bad service!

Mike Senker

In my opinion Views of a Grumpy Old Man I WAS in retail for all of my working life and the thing I was most concerned with was customer service.

So the moan of the week is the lack of it and what happened? I purchased a new car a couple of years ago and it had a three year guarantee and three year free servicing so when the second service came up I took it to the dealer that it came from and took in my ‘Gold’ service book only to be told that they aren’t agents for that make anymore and, in fact, Chevrolet don’t sell cars in Spain anymore! “So what shall I do?” I asked. And I got the ‘shrug’. You know the one - the shoulders go up, head sinks in twisty smirk and then he walks away to go answer the phone!

Now I’m peed off enough as it is but to top it off he’s now left me because the thing on the desk that makes the noise is more important than the person in front of you. Doesn’t matter where you are – bank or store - you might have been in line for 30 minutes, you get to the counter and the person who is serving you just stops and talks to the person on the phone! The person who has just got instant bloody service after I’ve been waiting

for 30 minutes!! Well me being the patient understanding person that I am said, “Oi I haven’t finished talking to you”. He puts his hand over the phone and says “Phone GM in Madrid they will have to sort it out”. And that was it! Not the slightest bit interested. And what about this for customer service? The ever suffering Mrs S and our daughter Dr S went to Hong Kong for a wedding.

She goes online to check something about the flight and right across the top in red it says Madrid to London leg has been cancelled and therefore the London to Hong Kong leg has been cancelled too.

She phones BA immediately and they just say sorry. Sorry? Is that all? If she hadn’t had a look online they would have got to the airport only to find their whole holiday had been messed up.

I have been in touch with BA. Are they interested? Not one iota. They just keep sending the same BS emails saying absolute corporation nonsense and absolutely no explanation as to why she wasn’t notified or what would have happened if she hadn’t checked. Customer service departments need to learn one lesson. Get off your backsides and step out from behind your desk. Look at the problem from the customer’s point of view and pretend it’s you with the problem.

And ask yourself would you be happy with an answer that is about as useful as a chocolate teapot!

www.euroweeklynews.com

FEATURE

LEGALLY SPEAKING

Traffic fine details now in English AS part of a new series, we answer some common driving questions, kindly provided by members of the Guardia Civil based in Torrevieja, Costa Blanca, who set up the N332 website and Facebook page to help break down barriers.

MORE information is now available in English online.

THE DGT Spanish traffic department is now offering more information in English. Some of the information on their website is now in more languages other than Spanish, namely English, French and German.

On the main page of their website, http://www.dgt.es/es/ information is now available in English which tells you what to do if you receive a traffic violation ticket.

Once you click on the link in English, the sections are presented in five topics, detailing what to do if you have received a traffic violation ticket, how to identify the offending driver if it was not the vehicle owner, and details of how to appeal against and pay a fine, as well as their contact details.

Each one of the topics then explains, in detail, the procedures to follow. You can read the information at any time, whether you

have received a fine or not.

BTP being removed from licences From January 1, 2016, the ‘btp’ classification on Spanish driving licences will be removed, in line with EU legislation.

The ‘btp’ classification is already only valid in Spain and the removal is part of the Single European Driving Licence standardisation programme. The classification is a specific category for drivers of certain types of vehicles, such as priority or emergency service vehicles, taxis and school transport, with a maximum weight not exceeding 3,500kg mass and the number of seats, including the driver, not exceeding nine.

Drivers of these vehicles will still be permitted to drive them as their standard licences will cover the validity, namely category ‘B’ so long as all other criteria is met.

For more news and articles visit www.n332.es or search N332 on Facebook.

Where do I get a Minutes book?

Last year I was elected President of our small Community and I am learning as I go! I have two questions.

First, is there any publication that might help me? Second, where does one purchase a new Libro de Actas, the official If your local bookstore does not carry books for accounting and registry, they are available from Amazon or Google shopping, under Libro de Actas, for less than 20 euros.

It has been a normal practice to take this official book with the Com-

Minutes book of the AGM? The Notary sent me to a newsagent, the newsagent sent me to the bank. The bank copies the Minutes for their legal department but does not know where you get a new book.

S.S. (Costa Blanca)

David Searl You and the Law in Spain

munity stamp on it to the bank in order to change the signatures on the Community bank account when new officers are elected. Now you should

have the Administrator or President produce a stamped certificate instead. Spain’s Data Protection Agency has ruled that giving the bank access to the entire book violates members’ privacy.

For a helpful book, you might try You and the Law in Spain by David Searl.

Send your questions for David Searl through lawyers Ubeda-Retana & Associates in Fuengirola at Ask@lawtaxspain.com, or call 952 667 090.

ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS

www.euroweeklynews.com

Less water worries for families in need COMPANIES will be recipients of the discounts

By Eleanor Hawkins FAMILIES in need and entrepreneurs are in luck in Albox as the council has reached an agreement with local water company Gestagua to reduce their water bills.

Negotiations between Gestagua, local Mayor Rogelio Mena, Treasury councillor Francisco Carrillo and Social Services councillor Ana Belen Trinidad have resulted in the company promising to provide a €12,000 per year fund to be used to reduce water bills for new businesses and needy families.

Companies using 1,000 cubic metres of water per year that generate employment and families going through hard times will be the recipients of the discounts, the mayor explained.

The town hall’s Social Services department will study individual cases of possible social

exclusion and vulnerability, and families that qualify for the discounts and use less than 10 cubic

metres of water per month will benefit from discounts of up to 100 per cent, Trinidad said.

29 October - 4 November 2015 / Costa de Almería

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ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS

Man, 59 dies in collision A MAN died and a woman was injured last week in a car crash in Seron.

A Seat Toledo and a Nissan Kuvistar met in a head-on collision on the A334 road near Hijate and the Nissan driver, a 59-year-old man from Baza was killed by the impact.

Meanwhile the woman driving the Seat, who was on her way home to Los Zoilos, was taken to hospital. The force of the crash, for which the reasons remain unknown, was such that one of the cars overturned, Emergency Services reported.

Firefighters, police and ambulances from Baza and Albox were sent to the scene and firefighters had to rescue the body of the deceased, which was trapped inside his car.

ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS

Local towns take over old road ALBOX, Arboleas and Cantoria councils will be taking over responsibility for an 8.5 kilometre stretch of the A334 road from the Junta de Andalucia regional government.

At a meeting last week between the mayors of the three towns and Public Works and Development delegate Joaquin Jimenez, an agreement was reached to start proceedings to hand the road over to the municipal authorities.

The three councils requested responsibility for the stretch, which is of vital importance on a local level, be handed over to them following the opening of the Almanzora motorway accesses.

The motorway has meant the road is of little importance on a regional level, the Junta delegate explained, meaning the three towns will now be able to make the most of it as a municipal road.

www.euroweeklynews.com

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ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS

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ALBOX & SURROUNDING AREAS

Funds nothing to write home about TWO million euros have been included in the Junta de Andalucia regional government’s 2016 budget for spending on the Almanzora motorway, while the remaining €23.5 million for the project have been left for 2017.

While the announced €2 million may seem a lot, if the Albox ringroad stretch opened last March is anything to go by, at a cost of €46.3 million for just 8.7 kilometres, next year’s fund

will only cover about 500 metres of motorway, local residents have complained.

However things look a little better if European average costs are taken into account.

Whereas in Spain each kilometre of motorway reportedly costs €500,000, in Europe as a whole this is reduced to €287,000, meaning next year’s allowance would cover almost seven kilometres.

Donations wanted for charity fashion show THE APSA Charity Catwalk Fashion Show will take place at Maloans bar and restaurant in Albox on Wednesday November 25.

Doors open at 4pm and tickets at €7 are available from Maloans and the APSA charity shop in Avenida Lepanto.

The fundraising event is always a sell-out with a fashion show, auction, raffle, APSA stall, tombola etc and lots of lovely clothes and accessories to buy in all sizes.

Organiser Sue is busy preparing the clothes for sale, she is asking for anyone with

any special outfits or accessories (including shoes) that are new or nearly new to donate them so there is plenty to sell on the evening.

Please take donations to the APSA shop, open Monday to Saturday 10.00 to 2.00 or see Sue in the shop Wednesdays.

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How to obtain plants for free

THERE are many ways to get plants without paying including seeds dropped by birds or swaps with friends Dick Handscombe

Gardening Corner

By Spain’s best known expatriate gardening author living in Spain for 25 years.

LAST week we looked at where one can buy plants with a look at how plants can be obtained free. That concept is expanded on in this week’s column.

For simplicity of text we include small plants, shrubs and trees in the term ‘plants.’

In practice free sources include the following.

- Seeds dropped by birds.

- Self seeded from existing plants.

- Self seeded along the roadside or on vacant plots.

- Propagation from cuttings.

- Splitting of perennials.

- Splitting of bulbs, corms and tubers.

- Splitting of oversized plants purchased from garden centres.

- Collection of seed and sowing.

- Overhanging plants from next door or along pavements.

- Swaps with neighbours and

friends.

We comment on each below.

Seeds dropped by birds.

From the day we took over our piece of mountainside we adopted and nurtured many plants that have grown up where birds or strong winds had dropped their seeds.

Self seeded from existing plants.

Among plants that regularly self seed are freesias, hollyhocks, marigolds, alyssum, laurel, and lavender.

Self seeded along the roadside.

Unmade earth pavements, especially with road edging

blocks that cause water to be retained after rain, can be a good harvesting area. Look out for saplings growing under overhanging trees.

Propagation from cuttings.

Cuttings can be taken and successfully rooted at almost any time of the year in Spanish gardens.

Splitting of perennials.

Many perennials such as leonotis, sages, succulents and gazanias can be easily split.

Splitting of clumps of bulbs, corms and rhizomes.

Every few years dig up and split established clumps of daffodils, crocuses, lilies, irises,

agapanthus and monbretia.

Splitting or taking cuttings from from garden centre plants.

Sometimes the potted plants purchased from garden centres are too large for convenient planting out in the garden.

Collection of seeds/ sowing.

Try collecting ripe seed heads or pods of marigolds, poppies, and the Devils tongue tree.

Overhanging branches.

Often the branches of one’s neighbours flowering trees and

climbers can add touches.

Swaps with friends.

It is possible to add interesting cacti, succulents, sages, shrubs etc in this way. © Dick Handscombe www.gardenspain.com

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Facebook saves a puppy’s day FACEBOOK has saved the day for a tiny puppy hurled to his death in a plastic bag in Brazil.

Marcia Lutz, who spotted the dog wrapped in plastic in a ravine in Rondon, Brazil posted a desperate plea on an animal r e sc u e g r o u p ’s Facebook page saying: “He’s been thrown down the r a v i n e i n a p l a s tic bag. It’s hard to access, I can ’t sa v e h i m . C an anyone help me?”

Two nurses working nea r b y r u sh e d t o h e lp and climbed down the ravine to save the tiny dog, which they found inside a bag full of its own waste but was later reported to have no lasting health issues.

The lucky puppy was later adopted by another user who saw the story unfold on Facebook and decided to help out.

PETS PAGE www.euroweeklynews.com

Muzzles don’t always mean that a dog is dangerous CAN also be used a preventative measure

David THE Dogman Listen to David on TRE every Saturday 10am to 11am Costa del Sol (Gibraltar/Sotogrande) 98.7fm (San Roque to Calahonda) 91.9fm (Calahonda to Motril) 88.9, Costa Calida 92.7fm Costa Blanca (Torrevieja to Elche) 105.1fm (Elche to Calpe) 88.2fm, (Calpe to Gandia & Ibiza) 104.6fm, (Denia to Valencia) 95.3fm Mallorca 103.9fm

MANY people have different opinions on muzzles. Of course anyone that sees a dog with a muzzle automatically assumes the dog is dangerous. There are many types and when choosing one make sure the dog is able to breathe.

The muzzle that I recommend is the Baskerville which is marketed by the eminent Roger Mugford. This is a basket design and allows near unrestricted mouth opening for panting and drinking. These are available at most good pet shops and many vets stock them too. They come in 12 sizes to ensure that a good fit is available for most breeds of dogs. Available through The Company of Animals, PO Box 23 Chersey, Surrey KT16 OPU UK. I encourage all owners to train their dogs to wear a muzzle, the earlier in the dog’s life the better. Most young dogs are destructive; a muzzle will protect your home from being eaten. It will en-

ENCOURAGEMENT: The earlier a dog wears a muzzle the better. sure that your dog is unable to eat any rubbish or poison on the ground and that alone is worth training for.

Wearing a muzzle is another way of preventing them from licking wounds.

In the event of an emergency, if you do

not have a muzzle then you can always tie the leash around the dog’s mouth to prevent it from biting.

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New dog photo gadget invented INVENTOR has come up with idea to ensure perfect pet snaps

PET SNAPS: New gadget makes taking pet selfies easier.

TAKIN G p h o t o s o f o u r four-legged friends is never easy as t h e y c a n g e t d is tracted b y a n y t h i n g an d everything and we can hardly order them to sit still and say cheese.

This has led a San Francisco inventor, Jason Hernandez, to come up with a system to ensure perfect pet snaps.

Jason owns a company called Clever Dog Products

which creates gadgets for pets and has created Pooch Selfie, which incorporates a ball that can be attached to a mobile phone to catch the dog’s attention and get them smiling for the camera.

Of course, the plan will only work for dogs with a decent amount of self-control or gre a t tra ining a nd could well result in owners needing to buy a new mobile.

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Not just humans, pets can suffer the blues too AUTUMN i s one of t he times of year cases of the blues tend to be more common and experts have revealed this is also the case for pets.

The return to routine after holidays is the most common cause for humans to be down in the dumps, and this also upsets household pets al ong wi t h wor seni ng weather and fewer hours of daylight, animal rights and environmental writer Carolina Pineda reported.

Miguel Ibañez, a veterinary professor at Madrid’s

Com pl ut ense Uni ver si t y, explained that animals are just as prone to depression as a result of anxiety and emotional conflicts as humans are.

Pets suddenly cooped up indoors and left alone for hours after a long summer br eak wi t h t hei r f am i l i es and plenty of fresh air can get upset over the lack of company and space.

“The same could happen to a human stuck in a flat with little chance of socialising or leaving the house,” Ibañez said.

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Look no further for a home.

2-page special starts here...

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PROPERTY S P E C I A L www.euroweeklynews.com

Advertising feature

Voss Homes estate agents now welcome Hannah to the team OFFER a straight-forward, no sale / no fee, professional and friendly service to property owners and buyers VOSS HOMES is a British, family run estate agency with an office in the thriving market town of HuercalOvera. Their belief is that by focusing on a smaller area in which they live, shop, eat out, buy goods and socialise they can give both buyer and seller a better, more focused service. They concentrate on selling properties and long term rentals in just the HuercalOvera, Taberno, Zurgena, La Alfoquia and San Juan de Los Terreros areas.

Andy and Anna Voss and their daughter Jess look after property sales and Adele Newlove is in charge of long term property rentals. Voss Homes are now very proud to welcome Hannah Smith to the team. It will be Hannah’s job to organise the

HANNAH SMITH: Will look after the reception. team and look after the administration and reception. All the team have lived in the Huercal-Overa area for over 10 years.

Voss Homes prefer to give more “honesty is the best policy,” straight-forward, no sale / no fee, no

fancy tricks or gimmicks, professional and friendly service to their property owners and buyers.

Having an impressive, well located office gives both property sellers and buyers more confidence, shows long term commitment and guarantees more sales. The Voss Homes office is just 1km off exit 553 of the A7 motorway, 100m past Lidl. There is plenty of parking.

All the team speak Spanish and also have a very large number of Belgian, Dutch, French, German and Scandinavian clients who generally speak excellent English, but we have a number of translators to help out when needed. They even have a Russian translator.

As well as extensive newspaper and magazine advertising they have their own website and advertise on the major portal websites such as Right Move, A Place in the Sun, Kyero and Zoopla etc in various languages to attract more buyers from all over the world.

They also work with many other trusted estate agents to make sure all properties get maximum exposure.

Please contact Voss Homes now.

Voss Homes Estate Agents, 155a Carretera Estacion, Huércal-Overa, 04600, Almeria Office Tel: 0034 950 616 827 Mobile: 0034 678 002 006 or 667 891 741 Website: www.vosshomesspain.com Email: info@vosshomesspain.com

Increased interest in new build properties CLIENTS can choose exactly what they want in design, size and layout

By Buster Smith

NEW BUILDS: Can now be made fully automated, incorporating high end technology.

BUYERS are increasingly turning to new build properties throughout the Costa Blanca North as a preference over

more traditional older properties and for many good reasons, explains Helen, the sales and marketing manager at Hamiltons of London in Moraira.

“The main reason their popu-

larity is increasing is that clients can choose exactly what they want, from the design, size and layout, to the technology incorporated into the home. We are seeing a lot more clients interested in new build construction,” she explains.

New build properties have several advantages over the more traditional and older houses, not just because of the choice and flexibility it offers investors over the design and layout of their house, but because of the type of technology they can now include, much of which was not available before, making them more energy effi-

cient and therefore more environmentally friendly.

From solar energy powering the property, from the electrical supply to heating the water, under floor heating and improved insulation, air conditioning, the property can literally be made fully automated, incorporating high end technology, which enables owners to be able to control and monitor their home from their iPhone or smartphone, wherever they are, even being able to detect water leaks.

The new build properties for many are also stunning to look at and are efficient investments that work for the owner.

PROPERTY SPECIAL

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FEATURE

Advertising feature

Try taking a walk on the wild side, Globelink will keep you covered David Deverson GLOBELINK INTERNATIONAL Insurance correspondent david@globelink.co.uk

WALKING HOLIDAYS: Demand is increasing for challenging treks.

Great Wall of China is also increasingly popular. For an equally stretching stroll, how about Jordan? The week-long trek takes you from the Dead Sea to the pink city of Petra (ideal for finding your inner Indiana Jones.)

Unsurprisingly, with some of the best hiking on our doorstep, many of our clients are choos-

ing Europe. Madeira’s volcanic scenery and rushing levadas make it a walker’s paradise and not all of the day trails are ‘a piece of cake’, either! For many, France has it all. Iconic trails, like Corsica’s gruelling GR20 or the Tour du Mont Blanc, put even the best to the test, and are well-served by all-inclusive packages.

Spain may use drones to monitor traffic Photo credit csiro, Wikipedia

IT’S a strange thing, but if the boom in walking holidays is anything to go by, the less we have to walk, the more we seem to want to. No other type of holiday lets you experience your surroundings quite so intimately, while boosting your mental and physical fitness.

At Globelink Travel Insurance, we cover all sorts of itchy feet. Planning a leisurely ramble around the vineyards of Alsace? No problem we have policies for people aged up to 84. Out to conquer Kilimanjaro? We’re with you all the way. Unlike many insurers, our specialist trekking policies cover you up to an altitude of 6,000 metres. That includes helicopter rescue should you be unlucky enough to have a medical emergency - along with the other essential cover you need if and when ‘stuff’ happens.

More of us are living longer, fuller, fitter lives, hence the demand for challenging treks in Nepal or Machu Picchu. Hiking a stretch of the

On the other hand, when it comes to softer hiking, tailoring your own walk couldn’t be easier. Just map out your route from a 180,000km network of well-signed footpaths, and munch your way around the Loire valley or the beaches of Brittany.

If that’s too déjà vu for you, Slovenia is a good bet, offering sparkling alpine and lake scenery in Triglav National Park. Croatia offers stunning hill walking, with the Adriatic as a backdrop and a stay in Dubrovnik a highlight on most tours. And look out for Albania; it’s already emerging as an outstanding destination for discerning hikers.

Wherever you’re headed, go safely with the three essentials - a first aid kit, the right equipment and a decent travel insurance policy. Enjoy your trip!

Globelink Travel Insurance: for people living in Spain and all other EU countries. For an instant quote and to arrange cover securely online, enabling you to print your policy documents immediately, by visiting www.globelink.co.uk – the leading travel insurer for people living in EU Countries. Or you can telephone Globelink on 00 44 1353 699082 or their Spanish links line on 966 265 000 or 951 242 434.

DRONES: An unmanned aerial vehicle being used to monitor power lines.

THE highway agency in Spain may have unmanned drones to patrol traffic and monitor roads ready for operation next year.

The agency is developing the aircraft in conjunction with Sistemas y Montajes Industriales, a Spanish technology company.

The drones are being built with the specific purpose of monitoring traffic on public highways.

Alberto de Laorden, the director of Sistems, was at the Seventh National Road Safety

Congress in Valencia and he confirmed the prototype is on course to be ready by next year.

Laorden spoke about the advantages of the aircraft at the Congress, “Much cheaper than a helicopter and faster to deploy, drones could be used to monitor problem areas such as zones affected by floods or other natural disaster.”

At the moment however the use of drones for general road surveillance is against the law.

Legislation demands that the operator keep the drone within sight which would make it impossible for the aircraft to be used to track hundreds of kilometres of motorways.

Laorden also said the benefits of drones being developed reach beyond monitoring traffic. The aircraft could be fitted with cameras to detect issues with road surfaces, recognise number plates and record traffic violations he told the Congress.

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Motoring shorts

Electric DeLorean TO coincide with the ‘Back to the Future’ special date of October 21, staff and students at Queen’s University Belfast revealed their own high tech electric DeLorean.

Dr David Laverty, who posed with the car, was in charge of the project and quoting Doc Brown from the film said “if you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything.” He went on to say “we are very proud of what our students have accomplished during this project.”

New Saab for Turkey WHILST biting back the comment that we hope ‘they haven’t been sold a Turkey’, we can report that the owners of the Saab brand have agreed to assist in the development of a new national car for Turkey.

National Electric Vehicle Sweden AB has sold the rights to the Saab 9-3 saloon to the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey so that they can produce this model within their country.

Clarkson Quote of theWeek

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Driving the Audi R8 Driving most supercars is like trying to manhandle a cow up a back staircase. . .this is like smearing honey onto Keira Knightley.

Some might say...

New way to own a piece of Ferrari

Picture courtesy of BMW UK

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CHRYSLER put 10 per cent of the company up for sale

By John Smith APART from purchasing the Ferraris owned by former King Juan Carlos, there is a somewhat cheaper way to own a piece of Ferrari as majority owner Fiat Chrysler put 10 per cent of the company up for sale through the US stock market on October 21.

Enzo Ferrari started his company to produce racing cars in 1929 and it wasn’t until 1947 that Ferrari produced its first road car, the 125S. The iconic prancing horse symbol of the firm was originally used by Italian World War 1 pilot, Francesco Baracca, who had it painted on the fuselage of his aircraft.

In 1969, Ferrari sold a 50 per cent stake in t h e company to the Fiat group, which was increased to 90 per cent in 1988.

The shares were launched at $52 (€46) each raising $893 million (€790 million) for Fiat and finished 15 per cent up on the

Ferrari 458 Spider.

day. Fiat continues to own 80 per cent of the Ferrari business whilst the Ferrari family own just 10 per cent.

The company currently only produces 7,000 cars each year, as this classifies it as a specialist maker in the USA so does not have to meet some of the stringent requirements that mass market manufacturers have to comply with. It has however indicated that it will increase production to 9,000 cars.

The company is unlikely to make investors enormous profits if it is to remain a manufacturer of exclusive and sought after cars, but with the worldwide popularity of the brand, shareholders are likely to be enthusiasts in for the long term.

Photo Credit Alf van Beem wikimedia.

PRODUCTION: New lines will begin this year.

BMW invest in UK plant A LARGE investment programme to develop the BMW Hams Hall engine plant near Birmingham is complete. The production of new three and four-cylinder engines is already being ramped up on brand-new production lines, and over one million components will be machined at the plant for the first time this year as supply extends to other plants in the Group.

The investment project, part of £750m (€1bn) that has been spent across BMW Group’s UK manufacturing sites, has ensured the Hams Hall site remains a state-of-the-art facility, capable of producing the next generation of engines and securing a long-term future for the plant.

Engines, as well as machined components manufactured at BMW Plant in Hams Hall, contribute to a range of cars across BMW Group’s product portfolio. This includes MINI as well as the new BMW 7 Series.

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Toyota and Vauxhall to recall problem cars DEFECTS in certain models could cause fires VAUXHALL is said to be considering recalling some of its Zafira models after a problem with the dashboard caused dozens to burst into flames. Drivers of more than 130 of the cars, made between 2005 and 2014, have reported the issue that originates behind the glove box causing the area to heat up.

The affected models have manual air-conditioning and owners who have electronic climate control have not reported any problems. So far, all of the cars which have experienced problems have been right-hand drive and were built between 2005 and 2014.

Japanese carmaker Toyota has said it will recall 6.5 million vehicles globally over a faulty window switch which could short-circuit, causing

Courtesy of Vauxhall Motors

By John Smith

FAULTY MODELS: Cars have been sold worldwide.

parts to overheat and potentially lead to a fire.

The defective window switch affects cars produced between 2005 and 2010 including the Corolla, Camry, RAV4, Highlander, Yaris and others. Of the total, about 2.7 million cars were sold in North America, 1.2 million in Europe, and 600,000 in Japan, according to the company.

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Take a bow Lewis Hamilton three-time World Champion ONLY the second Brit ever to achieve this feat, Jackie Stewart being the first in the 1970s Tony Matthews International Sports A former player and now the world’s most prolific author of football books with almost 150 published since 1975, Tony is also the sports correspondent for Spectrum Radio and lives on La Pilica in the Sierra Cabrera Mountains overlooking Turre.

Costa de Almeria

LEWIS HAMILTON, with some great driving skills, won last Sunday’s terrific and watchable US Grand Prix in Texas to become a three-time F1 World Champion. Only the second Brit ever to achieve this feat, Jackie Stewart being the first in the 1970s, Lewis is also the first to win back to back titles after this, his 10th victory of 2015. Top man, top driver.

Miserable Nico Rosberg was second with Sebastian Vettel third.

The next race is in Mexico on Sunday.

SOCCER ROUND-UP Last weekend, the UnitedCity showdown at Old Trafford ended all square at 0-0…

Sunderland made it six TyneWear derby wins on the trot by beating 10-man Newcastle 3-0… Spurs, with a Harry Kane hat-trick, hammered Bournemouth 5-1… West Ham edged past Chelsea 2-1, thus inflicting more misery on José Mourinho who was sent off along with his coach and midfielder Nemanja Matic…

Arsenal topped the PL for the first time in 20 months (albeit briefly) with a 2-1 win over Everton who had Gareth Barry red-carded… The Ayew brothers, Andre (Swansea) and Jordan, scored against each other in the Welsh club’s 2-1 win over Aston Villa who then sacked manager Tim Sherwood… WBA registered their fourth 1-0 victory and kept their sixth clean sheet of the season with victory at Norwich… Jamie Vardy’s goal earned Leicester the points over Crystal Palace… Watford ruined Mark Hughes’ 100th game in charge of Stoke by winning 2-0 in the Potteries… and Southampton drew 1-1 at Liverpool.

At the start of this week, undefeated Brighton headed the ChamVALENTINO ROSSI: Finished third in Malaysia.

DID YOU KNOW? The lowest attendance ever for a single day’s play in a Test Match is just 54 - on day one of the Pakistan-England game in Abu Dhabi earlier this month. The full five-day total was 717, while under 1,000 turned up to watch the last five-day Test in Dubai.

pionship from Hull, Derby and Middlesbrough who inflicted upon Wolves their second successive home defeat.

Gillingham and Plymouth led FLs 1 and 2.

• This week there have been eight fourth round League Cup-ties: Everton-Norwich, H u l l - L e i c e s t e r- S h e ff i e l d Wednesday-Arsenal and Stoke-Chelsea on Tuesday and Liverpool-Bournemouth, Manchester City-Crystal Palace, Southampton-Villa and Manchester United-Middlesbrough last night.

• The Champions League continues next week with Sevilla-Manchester City, Manchester United-CSKA and Real Madrid-PSG on Tuesday followed by Bayern Munich-Arsenal, BarcelonaBATE and Chelsea-Dynamo Kiev on Wednesday. Celtic, Liverpool and Spurs compete in the Europa League next Thursday.

• The PL games this weekend are: Chelsea-Liverpool, Crystal Palace-Manchester United, Everton-Sunderland, Manchester City-Norwich, Newcastle-Stoke, Southampton-Bournemouth, SwanseaArsenal, Tottenham-Aston Villa, Watford-West Ham and

WBA-Leicester. The top Championship match is Birmingham-Wolves; Walsall play Gillingham in FL1 and it’s Plymouth-Morecambe in FL2 while Celtic meet Aberdeen in the SPL. RUGBY WORLD CUP Tomorrow South Africa meet Argentina in the third/fourth place play-off game while on Saturday at Twickenham, New Zealand play in their fourth final against Australia.

MOTOGP - Valentino Rossi ‘kicked’ Marc Marquez off his machine when finishing third in Malaysia. Dani Pedrosa won the race from Jorge Lorenzo who is seven points behind Rossi in the rider’s championship with one race left, here in Spain on November 8. Handed a three-point penalty, Rossi will start at the back of the grid.

CRICKET - Pakistan (378 and 354-6 dec.) beat England (242 and 312) by 178 runs with 6.3 overs remaining. The third and final Test starts in Sharjah on Sunday.

LEWIS HAMILTON: Great driving skills.

GOLF - GB’s Justin Rose won the Hong Kong Open by one stroke from Denmark’s Lucas Bjerregaard - the eighth tour victory of his career. And Lydia Ko clinched the LPGA Taiwan to become the women’s world number one.

AMERIC A N F O O TBALL - Last Sunday, the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Buffalo Bills 34-31 in front of 84,021 fans at Wembley. The Kansas

City Chiefs play the Detroit Lions at the same venue this Sunday.

EVENTS - The World Artistic Gymnastic Championships are taking place in Glasgow; the WTA Tennis tournament is underway in Singapore and the famous Melbourne Cup horse race will be run in Flemington.

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Costa de Almería HARRY KANE: Scored a hat-trick for Spurs against Bournemouth at the weekend, with a final score of 5-1.

Costa de Almería’s best guide to local sport

29 October - 4 November 2015

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SPORT www.euroweeklynews.com

Marina Phoenix Golf Society team game CLEAR win for Ali Mahmud, Don Atkins, Marcos Caparros and Linda King who scored 106 points LAST week’s team game was a fourball event with three to count on par three’s and two on four’s and five’s.

The result was a clear win for Ali Mahmud, Don Atkins, Marcos Caparros and Linda King who scored 106 points against a par of 82. Followed at a respectful distance by Jim Budd, José Nistal, José Urroz and Jackie Dale on 92. Third place went to Victor Bee, Eamon Keating, Liam MacNamee and Margaret Budd (89).

There were nearest the pin prizes for Liam MacNamee (5th) and Ali Mahmud (14th).

The individual stableford at

THURSDAY WINNERS: This week it was a fourball event with three to count on par 3’s and two on 4’s and 5’s.

Marina Phoenix, on Monday 19th, saw Terry Oliver take the winner’s prize voucher with 38 points ahead of Ali Mahmud (35), in second, followed by Jim Budd (34) third.

Isobel Jones headed the ladies division with 34 points.

Glennys Oliver was second (32) and Linda King third (30).

There were two’s prizes for Terry Oliver (9th), Derick Dale (2nd) and Ali Mahmud (17th).

Marina Phoenix play Mondays (individual) and Thursdays (team game). €25 green fee. Ring Jim on 950 162 727 / 600 353 670 or Rosalie 950 397 117/ 697 512 882.