Euro Weekly News - Costa Blanca South 26 August - 1 September 2021 Issue 1886

News

The people’s paper Issue No. 1886

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

Lifesavers TWO patrolling Guardia Civil officers, alerted to an Almoradi emergency, rushed to the home of a 51-year-old woman who was choking on a piece of fruit, saving her life by repeatedly performing the Heimlich manoeuvre.

School help TORREVIEJA Town Hall has reintroduced its programme of nursery school grants for the parents of babies and children aged up to three years, having set aside €90,657 for allocations of up to €90 a month.

COSTA BLANCA SOUTH • WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM

CALENDAR

GIRLS

Phone abuse CLARA SANCHO DOMINGO, a psychologist and investigator at Elche’s Miguel Hernandez University, said that adolescents’ sleep quality was in decline “owing to unsuitable use of mobile phones, electronic devices and tablets” before going to bed.

Blue funk PUNTA PRIMA’S Cala Capitan beach was temporarily cleared as the Local Police and lifesavers scoured the waters after a possible sighting of two blue sharks, the same species recently spotted in Benidorm, Villajoyosa and Campello.

STRONG BOND: The women of all ages, shapes and sizes were willing to participate.

HAYLEY DAVIES has support‐ ed many local charities throughout the course of the last year.

This is all thanks to the raf‐ fles that she holds at the regu‐ lar events attended by her ladies group. Now Hayley has

also added a calendar for 2022 to her charity endeavours ‐ Glitz & Glamour ‐ Calendar Girls of Spain 2022. Her aim was to include as many ladies as were willing to participate of all ages, shapes and sizes.

“Whilst we didn’t all know

each other beforehand, we ended up being a strong com‐ munity of empowered women by the end!” said Hayley.

It was this feeling of a com‐ munity coming together that drove the decision to support

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26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021 from Front page »

Willing ladies

SANDRA ROSIN: Disappeared on Thursday August 19.

Missing teen VOLUNTEERS for Aguilas’s Civil Protection have been searching for miss‐ ing Sandra Rosin who disappeared on August 19 in Aguilas.

Officers began the search on the morning of Saturday, August 21 and the authorities have asked that the public cooperate, telling anybody who sees the missing teen to contact either the police or 112 Emergen‐ cy services immediately. The young girl is said to be 1.6 metres tall and is only 15 years old. She has blonde hair and blue eyes and when she disappeared was said to be wearing a dress which had blue and pink flowers on it, according to details provided by the SOS Desaparecidos Association. Many people have already taken to social media to share the picture of the missing girl in the hope of finding her.

People have shared the poster of the missing girl which not only has a photo, but also has details to help identify the missing girl too.

three charities; Samaritans tween the three in Spain, Help at Home and charities. Details of A Helping Hand Costa Blan‐ where to buy will be ca. Collectively they provide posted on Facebook emotional, practical and fi‐ and updated as nec‐ nancial support to those essary. who need it most.

Hayley would like With the ladies signed up to say a special thank and the charities agreed you to all the spon‐ upon, an intensive period sors including Euro of photoshoots quickly fol‐ Weekly for their sup‐ lowed. port, to Kirsty for her All of the ladies proved amazing photographs, to be willing participants to hair stylist Nick and thanks to photogra‐ Mooney for giving up pher Kirsty Wallwork’s re‐ his time, to Gareth laxed and friendly ap‐ Blake for the final de‐ Calendar is now available. proach, felt very much at sign and of course to all ease despite wearing very the ladies who took part. little!

If anyone is interested in joining Hayley’s To see the end result for yourself, the cal‐ Ladies who lunch group, check out the Face‐ endar is now available to purchase for €8 book page ‘Ladies Who Lunch’ ‐ in and with all proceeds being split equally be‐ around the Villamartin area.

Tourists up by 30% ELCHE Council has announced that the number of tourists com‐ ing to the town has increased by

30 per cent compared to 2019.

Councillor for Tourism, Carles Molina, said: “The data shows that tourism in Elche is getting better. So far in August, the number of national tourists has increased by more than 30 per cent, mainly from Navarra, the Basque Country, Catalonia and the Valencian Community.”

He added: “These good fig‐ ures show Elche as a tourist des‐ tination and confirm the good work that is being carried out from Visitelche.”

He said there was a decrease in international “tourists of 30 per cent compared to the fig‐ ures of 2019, which indicates that, despite the complicated situation in which we find our‐ selves, we have recovered 70 per cent of visitors with respect to the years before the pandem‐ ic.”

The councillor said that Elche had also had good figures in terms of hotel occupancy in the first fortnight of August, almost reaching full occupancy.

NEWS

Killed on crossing A SHOCKING accident happened on Monday August 23 at 9pm in Tor‐ revieja as a married cou‐ ple were crossing a pedestrian crossing and were struck by a van. The man aged 72 and the woman aged 69, who were both from Madrid, died in what is said to be a brutal impact.

According to reports the man died almost in‐ stantly and emergency services did everything they could to save the woman’s life, but they were unable to.

A French family had been travelling in the van which was said to be travelling at high speed and did not see the married couple as they made their way across the marked pedestrian crossing.

The driver allegedly did not break, and the couple were hit so hard that they were pushed 20 metres up the road.

€1M boost for Alicante THE Tourism department at Alicante City Council is giving away €1 million in aid to boost local tourism.

According to the coun‐ cil, €690,000 of the aid is aimed at non‐profit or‐ ganisations in the tourism sector, with grants ranging from €10,000 to €125,000. An‐ other €310,000 in grants will go to other compa‐ nies.

Officials said they have received 58 applications for the aid, with compa‐ nies presenting tourism plans related to sports, music and food.

The council said it wanted to boost Alicante as a destination for tourists with the fund‐ ing.

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NIBS EXTRA Sea change ALICANTE Province sea temperatures soared to 27.4 degrees in August, similar to those of the Caribbean, announced Jorge Olicina, director of Alicante University’s Climatology. These steadily rising temperatures were also responsible for high night-time temperatures as well as the Gota Fria storms and Upper Level Isolated Depressions (DANAs).

Cut price BUSINESS picked up for Santa Pola’s Tabarqueras, the Tabarca ferries in August, after a disappointing start to the season in Juune and July. Sources explained that reducing cost of tickets from €15 to €10 had made a difference, even prompting many Santa Pola residents to visit the nearby island.

Not wanted THE PSOE opposition party on Torrevieja Council is collecting signatures for a petition against plans for nine new apartment blocks on the Playa de los Naufragos beach. There was ‘massive disapproval’ of the project amongst residents in the San Roque district who would be affected, the PSOE said.

Mask up ELCHE’S Local Police recently detained a 19-year-old who was vandalising street furniture and had tipped over a rubbish container at 3.30am. Ignoring requests to calm down and put on his face mask, he instead punched one of the officers in the face and was later charged with resisting arrest.

Follow me EMILIO BASCUÑANA, Orihuela’s mayor, now has roughly 2,000 followers on Instagram. He still has a long way to go to overtake Alicante City mayor, Luis Barcala with 11,600 followers, or Elche mayor Carlos Gonzalez’s 8,900 but is well ahead of Alcoy’s mayor Toni Frances who has only 1,400.

Missing link ALICANTE airport first handled six million passengers 21 years ago, but still does not have the EU-stipulated direct rail connection for terminals of this size. Although the central government’s last Budget included a €10 million allocation for the €85 million project, this cannot happen for 10 years, sources said.

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

Choosing to recycle THE sailing school attached to Campoamor’s Club Nautico has joined Orihuela City Hall’s plastics recycling campaign.

“This initiative with Orihuela City Hall is one way of persuading people not to throw plastic into the sea,” explained the yacht club’s Sailing spokesman, Jose Antonio Tomas.

“That’s why we have chosen yellow sails, not only to make us more visible but also to get our message across,” he said.

Damaso Aparicio, Orihuela’s Environment and Street Cleaning councillor, stressed the importance of making people aware of

Photo credit: Orihuela town hall

YOUNG SAILORS: Learning early about the need to recycle. the need to recycle, both on land and at sea.

“We have great beaches but it’s essential to continue to in-

AS business gradually picks up for the hospi‐ tality industry, turnover in the province’s fish markets has increased by 10 per cent.

Spanish tourists’ demand for shellfish is as unchanged as ever, helping to push up prices which can reach €100 a kilo for fresh prawns, according to the local Spanish media.

They added that the panorama is very dif‐ ferent from last year when prices slumped owing to reduced demand, due to lockdown during the State of Alarm and continuing re‐ strictions when this was lifted.

Not just toys ALICANTE Province animal protection societies are overwhelmed with pets discarded by their owners.

In some cases, families are unable to care for them because they cannot af‐ ford to but whatever their motives, province‐wide the shelters are strug‐ gling to cope.

“Unless it’s an emergency we cannot take on all the cases that arrive each day,” an Alicante shelter told the Span‐ ish media.

The situation differs from last year when adoptions, especially of dogs, soared during the State of Alarm either for their company or because they pro‐ vided a ready‐made excuse for going for a walk during lockdown.

At present, the Elche‐based SPAP Protectora Baix association is looking after 10 dogs and eight cats. Like shel‐ ters everywhere in the province, they are overflowing and can only take in lit‐ ters of new‐born kittens or injured ani‐ mals needing immediate attention.

“Many of the dogs that are here now were given as Christmas presents and abandoned when the summer ar‐ rived and they had grown too big,” a Protectora Baix spokesperson said.

“They are a whim or a plaything for these people who are unaware that having an animal is a great responsibili‐ ty. We can’t allow this injustice to con‐ tinue.”

centivise and promote recycling through our ‘Orihuela Elige Reciclar - Orihuela Chooses to Recycle’ message,” Apari-

Fewer fish, higher prices Nevertheless, the prawn season was not what Guardamar fishermen were expecting.

“We have never known a campaign to start so late and finish so early,” said the local fishing guild’s secretary, Manoli Burgos who estimated that catches were reduced by 60

cio declared.

“City hall is always going to collaborate with this - and many other - initiatives,” he added.

per cent. “It has been a catastrophic year,” she added.

Torrevieja’s fishing guild also experienced problems, owing to the lack of sardines which are preyed upon by tuna.

“There are few sardines because the boats aren’t looking for them, and they come mainly from Portugal and the Gulf of Cadiz,” a guild spokesman said.

“As there are so few, they are going after anchovies, hoping this will earn more mon‐ ey.”

Early warning system THE Generalitat is working on an app that will alert the Vega Baja population to extreme weather con‐ ditions. The app is included in the regional govern‐ ment’s Plan Vega Renhace programme to assist the recovery of towns that were devastated by the storms and floods caused by the Upper Level Isolat‐ ed Depression (DANA) in September 2019.

Meteorological conditions like these will in‐ evitably become more frequent owing to climate change, the Generalitat has admitted, and the app will give prior warnings in real time.

These will be followed by messages detailing the evolution of weather conditions and the steps that local governments and residents should take to avoid dangerous situations.

“We aim to assist Vega Baja resilience in extreme circumstances like flooding by using new technolo‐ gy to minimise risks,” Generalitat sources said. The regional government also intends to create a mes‐ saging library in several languages that can send short, clear and concise messages to complement the network of alerts and emergency information.

Good August figures Routine check arrest THE number of Spanish tourists visiting Elche this summer was lower than in 2019, but well above 2020.

“In general, we are talk‐ ing about a reduction of 30 per cent on 2019,” said Elche’s Tourism councillor Carles Molina.

“But this means that de‐ spite the complicated situa‐ tion we are in, we have re‐ covered 70 per cent of our pre‐health crisis visitors,” he pointed out.

Most of the tourists ask‐ ing for information at the Tourism Office were gener‐ ally Spanish families of four

or five, the councillor said.

The majority came from the Valencian Community, Navarra, the Basque Re‐ gion and Catalonia and the most‐requested informa‐ tion invariably centred on the famous Palmeral palm forest, the councillor added. Overall this year’s figures were good, Molina said, despite the pandemic‐ enforced absence of the Nit de l’Alba fireworks festi‐ val on August 13 and the mediaeval Misteri play, usually performed in the Santa Maria basilica on Au‐ gust 15.

A POLICE chase in Elche resulted in the ar‐ rest of a 38‐year‐old wanted on drugs charges in Austria.

As his vehicle approached a routine po‐ lice checkpoint, officers from the National Police’s Response Taskforce flagged him down.

Noticing that the driver was visibly un‐ easy, they then asked him to pull over and on checking his identity papers, found that the Austrian authorities had is‐ sued a European warrant for his arrest and extradition. Police sources revealed that the driver reacted “with great vio‐ lence,” escaping from the checkpoint, al‐ though they were able to intercept and arrested him “within minutes.”

He has now been transferred to Madrid, where the National High Court is processing his extradition.

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Answers needed from two town halls E V E R Y time it rains, the Rambla Siete Higueras watercourse floods and fills El Mojon roads with mud.

El Mojon straddles San Pedro del Pinatar in Murcia and Pilar de la Horadada in Alicante and the local population wants solutions from the two town halls as well as both regional governments and the Confederacion Hidrografica del Segura, which is responsible for local waterways.

Earlier this month, affected residents demonstrated peacefully in P inatar and last week they turned to Pilar where 50 people with placards declaring, ‘Stop flooding, end the spills,’ gathered outside the town hall.

A spokeswoman for the El Mojon Residents’ Association read out a manifesto and representatives later spoke to Pilar’s mayor, Jose Maria Perez.

They also complained that mud sometimes 20 centimetres thick - was not the only problem, as the Rambla also carried agricultural pollutants that reached the beaches and sea.

Pilar’s mayor assured the protesters that both town halls were working together on a solution in the shape of a stormwater retention tank to control and channel the water.

The only drawback, Perez admitted, was the cost which would be higher than a 2013 plan that Pinatar originally rejected.

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BETWEEN January and July 2021, the Hu‐ manitarian Action Office of the Spanish Agency for International Development Co‐ operation (AECID), which is responsible for the management and implementation of Spain’s official humanitarian action abroad, managed 11 emergency aid operations worth more than €6 million, most of which went to vulnerable populations in coun‐ tries without sufficient resources to treat extremely ill patients or the means to es‐ tablish basic disease prevention measures.

These Covid‐19 responses took place in Lebanon, Bolivia, Brazil, India, Nepal, Guatemala, Paraguay and Tunisia.

Among the crises caused by non‐natural events, the one resulting from the explo‐ sion of a military arsenal in the city of Bata, Equatorial Guinea, led to the largest opera‐ tion for AECID in 2021.

In March, at Equatorial Guinea’s request, the Agency deployed 14 members of the Spanish Technical Aid Response Team, the Spanish Emergency Medical Team, to Bata.

The team supported local health workers in caring for the injured and contributed to the rehabilitation of the affected health fa‐ cilities.

The bulk of these operations, carried out between January and July 2021, amounted to more than €6 million and were carried out either through direct bilateral relations ‐ country to country; through the activation of emergency agreements with Spanish NGDOs ‐ or by contributing to international humanitarian aid organisations that assess and estimate the costs of the emergency and make international appeals for aid adapted to alleviate the effects of a given crisis on the population.

Not again!

Photo credit: CLARO

Spanish humanitarian emergency operations

NEWS

SEWAGE SPILL: Municipal workers work against time to protect Orihuela Costa beaches.

SEWAGE has once more pol‐ luted streets of Orihuela Cos‐ ta.

“This is becoming a pre‐ dictable, almost annual, event and is getting worse each time,” Bob Houliston, a coun‐ cillor for CLARO, a local politi‐ cal party based in Orihuela Costa.

“The inadequate sewage system and the insufficient sewage treatment plant in Campoamor are incapable of dealing with the summer in‐ flux,” Houliston said.

“A sewage pipe breaks or a pumping station cannot cope with the volume and the re‐ sult is sewage in the streets of

Orihuela Costa.”

The councillor pointed out that this generally happens on an imaginary line between La Zenia Boulevard, which has had an enormous extra load added to its system, and the Campoamor treatment plant.

This time the breakage oc‐ curred on the roundabout of a central location near La Zenia Boulevard, creating a hole that was three metres deep and which sent filthy, smelly sewage coursing down the streets, heading for the beach and creating traffic chaos.

On this last occasion, a barricade of sand prevented the wave of sewage from reaching La

Zenia beach as it did in 2019.

“What are Orihuela City Hall and the responsible authorities doing to prevent this third world situation repeating itself with such regularity?” the councillor asked.

“Nothing!” he declared in answer to his own question.

In 2017 and 2018, a plan and proposed investment of €6 million were approved by the regional government, Houliston explained.

In December 2018, Valencia reminded Orihuela City Hall of its duty to take action but despite the major flooding event of September 2019, it was only at the end of 2020 that Orihuela Town Hall approved the plan.

“Predictably the system has collapsed dramatically again in August 2021,” Houliston said.

He pointed out that the neverending increase in the population of Orihuela Costa puts an impossible strain on basic municipal services.

Approval of new developments was not accompanied by the provision of necessary services to deal with the growing population.

And on top of this, Houliston added, the antiquated sewage system collapses with predictable regularity.

“CLARO and its political partner Cambiemos Orihuela are determined that this shameful incident should trigger a remedy for a situation which is a clear threat to public health,” the councillor pledged.

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Back to nature Hiking routes have been spruced up.

PayPal work cryptocurrency PAYPAL is to allow users in the UK to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency through the payment platform for the first time in the companies history.

The firm said its new service would allow customers to choose from four types of digital cryptocurrency: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash and will be available both via the PayPal app and website.

A new crypto tab will be added to the PayPal platform, showing real-time currency prices as well as offering educational content to help answer common questions and learn more about cryptocurrencies, including the potential risks, PayPal said.

OVER the last few months hiking routes and facilities found in the mountains, coves and hills across Alicante have been spruced up.

This has made the routes better for hikers and provide some stunning views across the city.

This work has been carried out since the first contract for maintenance of the areas was awarded to Eulen which was put in place late last year and covers the maintenance of urban and peri‐urban forest areas.

So far the work has seen improvements to hiking paths including picnic areas, improved signage and wooden fences.

The councillor for the Environment, Manuel Villar, explained that: “the work carried out over the last few months by this new forestry brigade has allowed us to enjoy the trails that run through privileged enclaves of the capital safely and in the best conditions, from which we can contemplate privileged views of the city and its bay, as well as recovering wooded areas in the neighbourhoods that needed to be cleared, cleaned up and enhanced with the incorporation of furniture such as picnic ta‐ bles.”

Villar has encouraged all: “Alicante residents and visitors to enjoy the forest areas, their paths, and the flora and fauna present in these environments, always with responsibility, es‐ pecially during the summer when we have to be especially cautious due to the high temper‐ atures.”

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Need someone to talk to? Struggling with a problem?

HELP of Marina Alta are intro‐ ducing a weekly activity morn‐ ing starting on Thursday September 2. This is aimed at anyone who is in need of com‐ pany. If you feel stuck in the house, either on your own or caring for a loved one, perhaps this would give you the oppor‐ tunity to get out and mix with different people?

There will also be a collec‐ tion of people there who may be able to help or point you in

the right direction on a prob‐ lem you have been wrestling with?

The coffee mornings will be held in the coffee bar in the Sol Park tennis club in Moraira from 11am to 1pm every Tues‐ day. There will be puzzles, a quiz, tea, coffee, water and treats ‐ all for a €5 donation.

The site has step free access and toilets are available. If transport is a problem, please contact the Help Office on 966

427 044 or look up Help of Ma‐ rina Alta on Facebook and they may be able to help.

Help of Marina Alta are a well established charity and provide support to a large number of people who are struggling with health or age related difficulties.

For further information on the charity and their other ac‐ tivities, please contact the presi‐ dent ‐ Candy Wright MBE on 686 320 435 or via email on president@helpmarinaalta.org.

Spain’s rate falls 27% SPAIN’S incidence rate over the last 14 days has registered a new decrease according to reports issued on Monday, August, 23, with figures standing at 317.36 cases per 100,000 inhabi‐ tants.

The communities which registered the high‐ est number of new infections after the week‐ end are Andalucia, which totals 4,930; Catalo‐ nia, which adds 3,498 infections; Madrid (2,661); and the Valencian Community (2,340).

On Friday August 20, the rate stood at 345.18, which is a fall of almost 28 points over

Incidence rates are gradually falling. the weekend and of almost 100 from the previ‐ ous Monday. The contagion rate is based on all communities, but excludes Extremadura and Melilla, areas where it has risen slightly.

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A Place in the Sun returns Jean Johansson is heading to Marbella.

ALL-NEW A Place in the Sun re‐ turns on September 10 with the opening episode taking place in Marbella.

Jean Johansson heads to the stunning town of Marbella in Malaga with house hunters Clement and Tracey‐Anne. The playground of the rich and fa‐ mous, it’s the glitziest town on the Costa Del Sol. Can she find them their dream holiday home?

Clement and Tracey‐Anne are a married couple from Croy‐ don, in South London. The pair have a family of three children and often visit Clement’s broth‐ er in Jerez, Andalucia, where he owns a property. With his brother having lived out there for almost 15 years, Clement has been inspired to purchase his own place.

Clement and Tracey‐Anne dream of a luxury Spanish bolt‐ hole within a short walk to the beach and shops. However, they know that houses become more expensive the closer they get to the beach. They have a budget of £250,000.

Jean said, “I am delighted to be part of the Black to Front pro‐ ject, championing Black talent on and off screen. This is an impor‐ tant day in broadcasting and I’m extremely excited to be hosting this very special episode of A Place in the Sun.” For the rest of the team, Jas‐ mine, Jean, Danni, Laura, Lee, Scarlette and Ben they’ll be heading to the Canary Islands, Spain, Portugal, Greece and Cyprus determined to help their house hunters find their dream properties.

Found at last THE father of the two chil‐ dren who went missing in Tenerife was arrested in western Portugal on Tuesday August 24. The children were discovered too, and are said to be in good health.

The two young children, Kristian and Amantia Toska, went missing from Germany in January along with their fa‐ ther. At the time of the disap‐ pearance their mother was not able to report it as he had threatened to kill them.

It took some time before she reported the shocking dis‐

Kristian and Amantia Toska went missing in January. appearance.

According to Joaquin Amills, the president of SOS Desa‐ parecidos, the father of the

children had called the mother several times and said “if you go to the police, I will kill you, your family and the children.”

Cities could be devoured AC CO R D I N G to the latest report from the United Nations, Spain is set to be hit hard by climate change and this will in‐ clude floods, fires and ex‐ treme droughts too.

It is predicted that Spanish beaches such as

Barceloneta, Matalas‐ cañas and La Manga could see their days numbered.

Sadly though these are not the only beaches and coastal areas expected to be hit by climate change and rising water levels during the next 60 years.

Across Spain it is thought that over 8,000 kilometres of coastline could be at risk as climate change is expected. Ac‐ cording to reports the rises in sea levels will be irre‐ versible and could be seen for centuries to come.

NEWS

Sanchez’s surprise gesture PEDRO SANCHEZ won over more hearts as he made a surprise gesture to a resident in Sotalbo, after fires recently devastated Avila. Paquita, lives in the town and Sanchez was visiting to meet with the local mayors who have seen their towns affect‐ ed by shocking fires recently.

Paquita asked Sanchez to sign her plaster cast as she had injured her leg and end‐ ed up in plaster. Sanchez promised that he would sign the cast after the meeting and he kept his promise.

Paquita watched eagerly as he kept his promise and wrote: “For Francisca, with love. Pedro”, something which touched the resident of Avila deeply.

Paquita later decided that she would do all she could to help the towns hit by fire and said that she would auction off her newly signed plaster cast.

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Defence Minister visits Afghan transit camp in Torrejon DEFENCE Minister Margarita Robles has visited the transit camp for Afghan aid personnel and their families located at the Torrejon Air Base.

“The situation is very dramatic, but we have a duty to those people who collaborated with Spain and we will continue to do so. These people leave

Secondary schools delay SADLY, students have seen the last two academic years hit by the ongoing coron‐ avirus pandemic, but this year too could be hit after the Department of Education announced that schools will be able to stagger the dates on which pupils start.

This is to allow pupils to be tested for the virus.

New guidelines mean that if children test positive for the coronavirus their close contacts will need to be traced. If they then test positive, they will need to self‐isolate. Parents are being warned by the Department of Education that this school year will not be ‘business as usu‐ al’. Many secondary schools will not be able to start lessons properly until the second week of term.

their country, they leave their lives, but this desire to seek freedom compensates them and we are trying to give them the most human, affectionate and emotional support possible,” she said.

Speaking about Kabul, the Minister said, “The situation to access the airport is also dramatic,

chaotic, there are truly emotional human cases, entire families crowding to enter, many surround‐ ed by Taliban. We want them to know that Spain is not going to leave the people who worked with us for 20 years.”

“The whole of Spain, as the minister said, can

Brit family’s death

Tragedy is a mystery.

IT remains a mystery as post‐ mortems fail to find out why British Google engineer Jonathan Gerrish, his wife Ellen Chung and their one‐year‐old daughter Muji were tragically discovered in an out of the way area of the Sierra National Forest on Tuesday evening, August 17.

Police initially suspected that carbon monoxide could be to blame for the deaths due to dis‐

used goldmines in the local area, but according to the Mariposa County Coroner toxicology reports could take three weeks.

According to California police of‐ ficers the deaths are considered as a “very unusual, unique situation,” due to the fact that “there were no signs of trauma, no obvious cause of death… no suicide note and post‐ mortems have failed to show how the family tragically died.

feel very proud of the work they are doing. The best tribute we can make to those who died in this mission is to try to get those who collaborated with us and their families out of the country,” added the head of the Torrejon Air Base, Brigadier General Pablo Guillen Garcia.

Dodgy antigen tests OFFICERS from the National Police have seized a staggering 25,000 antigen tests and a health alert has been opened by the Medicines Agency.

Officers from the National Police working with the Provincial Inspectorate of Health Services of the Andalucian Regional Govern‐ ment in Malaga were able to crack down on a criminal organisation which were distribut‐ ing antigen tests. The antigen tests breached the basic health regulations regarding stor‐ age, sale and distribution.

Officers seized 25,000 tests and they also believe that 10,000 tests have already been distributed. Four men were arrested, three of Pakistani nationality and one Moroccan.

They had been running three companies in Malaga under the umbrella of a fictitious company, and distributing products includ‐ ing antigen tests, amongst other products.

The tests are believed to be a risk to public health according to the health authorities.

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NEWS

Driving age limit debate SPAIN is debating whether the driver age limit should be re‐ vised after a spate of fatal wrong direction accidents involving el‐ derly people have been report‐ ed.

On Thursday, August 19, a hit‐ and‐run driver in Ponferrada, León, killed a 61‐year‐old wom‐ an and injured three other

women. The driver was 85 years old and he was driving in the op‐ posite direction.

Several people believe that at a certain age you should stop driving, although others believe that you have to look at the mental and physical capacity of each person and not the age.

Despite the opposing views,

Whatsapp phone scam NATIONAL POLICE are warning of another telephone scam that is mainly being used through WhatsApp and has been taking place throughout the year.

The scam is related to false advertisements on websites that of‐ fer sexual services from women in exchange for payment.

The scammers upload fake advertisements to various contact pages showing women offering sexual services. They contact the victims via telephone or through messaging apps and inform them that because they did not meet the girls they have contact‐ ed, they have wasted time so therefore accrued a debt with them.

They intimidate the victims by telephone with the aim of gen‐ erating sufficient fear for them to accept to pay the debt they nev‐ er contracted and request financial compensation.

Once the victims make a first payment, there are always subse‐ quent requests for money. The receipt of the money by the scam‐ mers is done immediately upon entry through ATMs. In case of being contacted by telephone in this way, the Nation‐ al Police has urged not to make any payments and to contact the police via www.policia.es/colabora and their social media pages.

there is still no age limit for driv‐ ing in Spain.

Medical Recognition Centres are those that assess whether or not a person is qualified to drive a vehicle, regardless of their age.

This is measured through psy‐ cho‐technical tests and these tests are the same for all ages and are necessary to renew the driver’s licence.

A total of 15.5 per cent of those with a driving licence in Spain are over 65 years old, which is equivalent to 4.1 million people. In 2019, 491 elderly peo‐ ple died in a road accident, ac‐ cording to the General Direc‐ torate of Traffic (DGT) and this figure represents 28 per cent of the total victims.

NO LIMIT: Some people believe you should stop driving.

Millions in funding THE EU will provide €41 mil‐ lion in funding to help low and middle‐income countries fac‐ ing an unprecedented health,

humanitarian and socio‐eco‐ nomic crisis as the Covid‐19 pandemic continues to persist, combined with the imbalance

in the delivery of vaccines.

To help countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East and Asia tack‐ le the consequences of the pandemic, the EU has allocat‐ ed €31 million for, among oth‐ ers, health assistance to vul‐ nerable populations, support for the management of Covid‐ 19 cases, and for building re‐ silience in the local health sys‐ tems in view of future surges.

In addition, €10 million in funding is allocated to support the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) in delivering vaccines to children under the COVAX Humanitari‐ an Buffer.

Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic, said, “The EU has been leading the multilateral response against the coronavirus pan‐ demic, in several ways. Team Europe is a leading contributor to the COVAX, which works to ensure that no country is left behind.”

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Village hits back at townie tourists A SPANISH village has hit back at urban tourists who have little to no clue about rural life.

After a small number of tourists rang Ribadesella’s town hall to complain about the noise of roosters, donkeys, and to let the au‐

thorities know that wan‐ dering cows had left a mess behind them, the town hall decided to put up posters around the village warning tourists that country life is noisy and if they cannot handle it, they should leave and holiday somewhere else.

The poster said, “Here we have church bells that ring out regularly, roost‐ ers that crow early in the morning and herds of livestock that live nearby and at times carry cow‐ bells that also make noise. If you can’t handle all this, you may not be in the right place,” it added.

If, however, tourists can appreciate and un‐ derstand rural life the poster added, “If on the other hand you’re one of the privileged ones who can bear all this, you’ll en‐ joy the wonderful sur‐ roundings and the excel‐ lent products made by our fantastic farmers, ranchers or artisans. En‐ joy Ribadesella!”

NEWS

Understanding new electricity bills A CAMPAIGN to help people understand electricity bills has been launched in Malaga by the council, as both Spaniards and expats alike are feeling the pinch with the new elec‐ tricity pricing system which began at the start of June.

The initiative has been designed to set out to help everybody understand the new sys‐ tem and save money by developing a cam‐ paign to help understand the new electricity bill. The aim of the initiative is to clearly ex‐

ELECTRICITY: New pricing system.

Spain misses its vaccination target SPAIN has missed its August 18 vacci‐ nation target as promised by President Pedro Sanchez.

On May 10, President Pedro Sanchez vowed that Spain would reach herd immunity with a target of 70 per cent of the population vaccinated against Covid‐19. However, 100 days later, just 63 per cent are vaccinated, a shortfall of at least three million peo‐ ple.

According to data from the Ministry of Health, 29,968,303 Spaniards have already received their first Covid vacci‐

nation, that is 62.79 per cent of the population.

Spain’s incident rate stands at 398.94 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

Meanwhile, some autonomous re‐ gions are still waiting for vaccines to be delivered.

The Delta variant currently accounts for 85 per cent of Covid‐19 cases in Spain. Deaths in Spain over the last 14 days are however three times the Eu‐ ropean Union average, according to the European Centre for Disease Pre‐ vention and Control.

plain to people how the changes, which took place to the electricity billing system on June 1, affect them.

According to the town hall: “An information leaflet has been designed and distributed in the 11 districts of the city through the District Councils and the municipal offices for citizen attention (OMAC), as well as the Consumer Office.

“A website https://nuevafacturaluz.com has also been created.”

EU authorises GMO crops THE EU Commission has authorised seven genetically modified crops ‐ three maize, two soybeans, one oilseed rape and one cotton ‐ and renewed the au‐ thorisations for two maize and one oilseed rape crops used for food and animal feed.

All of these GMOs have gone through a compre‐ hensive and stringent authorisation procedure, in‐ cluding a favourable scientific assessment by the Eu‐ ropean Food Safety Authority, the Commission said on August 17.

The authorisation decisions do not cover cultiva‐ tion. Member States did not reach a qualified majori‐ ty either in favour or against at the Standing Commit‐ tee and at the subsequent Appeal Committee.

The authorisations are valid for 10 years, and any product produced from these GMOs will be subject to the EU’s strict labelling and traceability rules.

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NEWS

Insurers face bar claims THE ongoing coronavirus pan‐ demic has affected many busi‐ nesses badly, but many are re‐ covering well now that the summer season is here and tourists are back. Last year the State of Alarm was declared in March after the coronavirus pan‐ demic made itself felt in Spain.

The State of Alarm had many consequences for the Spanish economy as it caused many busi‐ nesses that offered face‐to‐face services to cease activity. This in‐ cluded bars and shops which saw their incomes drop dramatically.

As reported, “Many are asking

their insurers to cover part of the losses by appealing to a business interruption cover that is not clear‐ ly included in their policies, and the companies’ refusal has already reached the courts.”

So far two different judges have ruled in favour of two hoteliers.

According to experts this could create a legal precedent, which could usher in a new wave of claims against insurance compa‐ nies.

Juan Maria Gonzalo Lasheras, partner of Legal Services in the Fi‐ nancial Sector at EY told Invertia: “I think that we are going to have

something similar to what we have here with banks, for exam‐ ple, in cases such as preference shares, floor clauses or mortgage arrangement fees, but perhaps it will not be as voluminous as in these other cases.”

He does however believe that the number of cases will be small‐ er than those seen against banks as the State of Alarm mainly af‐ fected SMEs and self‐employed people. He believes the decision on who is correct will be down to the exact cover offered by the pol‐ icy and how it is written in the con‐ tract.

Ryanair partners with Greece RYANAIR has announced its latest partnership with the Greek National Tourism Organisation (GNTO) in a bid to boost tourism recovery in the Hellenic country.

Ryanair and GNTO will partner in a joint communications campaign with the aim of strengthening Greece’s positioning as a tourist destination in the British, German and Italian markets and attract more tourists from here.

The campaign ‘All you want is Greece’ will promote the Greek Islands as a must destination for a summer getaway through Ryanair’s owned channels as well as external digital platforms.

Famous for their amazing beaches, clearblue waters, incredible sunsets, ancient temples and mouth-watering food. The campaign is sure to attract many holidaymakers eager to

A 36-YEAR-OLD woman gave birth on Saturday August 21, to her second daughter.

The location of the birth was rather unexpected

enjoy a long-awaited sun break.

Ryanair’s Director of Marketing, Dara Brady said, “We are delighted to partner with the Greek National Tourism Organisation and work together to rebuild Greece’s leading tourism industry.

“We have significantly increased connectivity to and from the Greek Islands with new routes and additional frequencies from all across Europe. This partnership will promote the wonders of this beautiful region and highlight each of Ryanair’s routes to the Islands, which have proven to be a clear favourite among our customers. Europeans can now enjoy a well-deserved sun break travelling on the lowest fares to the likes of Mykonos, Santorini, Chania, Kos and Rhodes.”

Welcome to the world though as she gave birth in a street in the Madrid neigh‐

bourhood of Villaverde.

She gave birth at around 4pm on Saturday August 21, in Calle Lillo. The woman had experienced labour pains ear‐ lier in the day and headed to hospital that morning, but she was sent home as it was too early to have the baby. Only a few hours later her waters broke and her contractions began. She had been having contractions every three min‐ utes.

As reported, “When the Samur medics arrived at the scene, the contractions had accelerated and were repeat‐ ed every minute and a half, so doctor Alicia Martin decided to put her in the ambulance to proceed with the delivery.”

Baby Sofia made her en‐ trance into the world without any problems and mother and baby were safely transferred to the Hospital 12 de Octubre.

NEWS

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26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

Traffic deaths down SPAIN registered its lowest num‐ ber of traffic accident deaths ev‐ er in 2020. Covid‐19 restrictions prevented people from driving frequently.

In 2020, 1,370 people lost their lives in traffic accidents.

The number also includes peo‐ ple who died within 30 days af‐ ter the accident occurred.

According to the government, “The decrease in the death toll occurred in a context of a reduc‐

tion in long‐distance trips caused by mobility restrictions imposed due to the Covid‐19 pandemic.”

The death rate stood at 29 deaths per million inhabitants, one of the lowest in the Euro‐ pean Union in 2020, only behind Sweden (18), Malta (21) and Denmark (27). The average rate for the countries of the Euro‐ pean Union was 42. In the Euro‐ pean Union as a whole, the mor‐ tality rate per million inhabitants

Help for Tunisia

TO help Tunisia cope with the impact of the Covid‐19 pan‐ demic and the worrying health situation within the country, the European Union including Spain continue to mobilise emergency aid via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.

Close to 1.3 million vaccine doses, and almost eight million face masks, along with antigen tests, ventilators, oxygen con‐ centrators, nursing beds and other vital medical equipment have been already delivered. More deliveries are expected to arrive throughout the month.

Janez Lenarcic, Commissioner for Crisis Management said, “I thank all the EU member states who promptly responded to Tunisia’s request for assistance and the European Civil Protec‐ tion Mechanism that made this possible thanks to a swift co‐ ordination.”

decreased by 17 per cent be‐ tween 2019 and 2020, while in Spain this reduction was 22 per cent.

$100 million for lie detector IAN HALPERIN, the Canadian bestselling author and docu‐ mentary filmmaker, has made an offer of $100 million to Prince Andrew, to take a lie detector test live on television, to try and prove or disprove, once and for all, the allegations of sexual abuse made against him by Vir‐ ginia Roberts Giuffre.

In her recent civil lawsuit against the Duke of York, Ms Giuffre claims to have been the victim of sexual abuse brought about by billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, who allegedly of‐ fered her to the Duke, who she claims abused her at least three times when she was 17 years old.

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Asylum applications rise EU and Schengen area coun‐ tries, known as the EU+ area, received substantially more asylum applications in June.

A broad range of national‐ ities lodged more applica‐ tions than in May, often ap‐ proaching or exceeding pre‐Covid‐19 levels. In the case of Afghans, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, the in‐ creases continued a rising trend from previous months.

The top origin countries in June 2021 were Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Mo‐ rocco and Iraq. Afghans lodged over 6,000 applica‐ tions in June, almost 1,000 more than in May and the most since February 2020.

While Afghan applications were still not exceptionally high, they increased for the fourth consecutive month.

This rising trend over time contrasted with most other nationalities but was similar

for Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, who might of‐ ten use the same migration routes as Afghans. Increas‐ ing arrivals of Afghans would likely affect a range of EU+ countries given that in June, many received a substantial number of Afghan applications (100 or more).

Increasing applications by Iraqis (1,800) were partly due to the new irregular mi‐ gration route via Belarus.

Spanish aid to Haiti SPAIN will send 10 tons of medical sup‐ plies by the end of the week to Haiti and the government will contribute €250,000 to the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies appeal to assist with the humanitarian crisis.

The Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) will provide a direct response in the field of water and sanitation to support the man‐ agement of water purification equipment

previously provided by the Spanish Coop‐ eration to the Haitian National Water and Sanitation Agency, with which it maintains cooperation projects.

“This action will be aimed at providing the most vulnerable population with ac‐ cess to safe water and sanitation and thus prevent the spread of diseases such as cholera, which could aggravate the situa‐ tion of the population,” the government said.

NEWS

Kate Garraway heads off AN emotional Kate Garraway took the difficult decision, as she revealed on Good Morning Britain, to head off on holiday for a few days without husband Derek Draper, with Susana Reid returning from her own holiday to cover her.

Susanna has been supporting Kate throughout Derek’s illness.

Kate will be heading off with chil‐ dren Darcy and Billy for a much‐ needed rest.

“Derek’s family are descend‐ ing to take care of Derek while I take the kids away,” said Kate.

30 million vaccinated against Covid SPAIN has 30 million people, 63.8 per cent of the population, fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

In the age group over 80 years, 100 per cent of people have been fully vaccinated; in the 70-79 age group, 99.1 per cent have received at least one dose and 98.2 per cent have been double jabbed; in the 60-69 age group, 97.5 per cent have received at least one dose and 93.9 per cent fully vaccinated.

In the 50-59 age group, 92.9 per cent have received one dose and 89.7 per cent have been double jabbed; in the 40-49 age group, 85.1 per cent have received one dose and 81 per cent are fully vaccinated. In the next age group, 30-39 years, 71.8 per cent have received one dose and 58.5 per cent the full course.

Finally, in the 20-29 age group, 68.4 per cent have had one dose and 35.8 per cent have both, and in the 12-19 age group, 49.1 per cent already have one dose and 9.3 per cent both.

“I want to say a massive thank you to Susanna, she has been very kind.

“I had a very tight window where I could get everybody to come and look after Derek.

“Obviously he’ll have nurses as well, but I also needed friends to help us because I think the three of us are quite emotional about going away without him.”

Kate added: “We wondered whether that would be too strange to do.

“It feels like a bit of a moment.

In fact my son Billy is concerned.

It feels strange to do it, but we need to do it, so we can have a few days and come back re‐ freshed.”

KATE: A difficult decision.

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Cruelty beyond belief A DOG in Jaen has died after being tied up by his owner on a house terrace and left screaming for help in a 43‐degree heatwave, without any water or food.

According to a report by Jaen City Council, residents in the Puente Tablas area, in the capital, alerted police at around 4.00pm on August 15, that the dog had hardly any shade, and was left without food and water.

There was no sign of the owner, al‐ though residents could hear the poor an‐ imal’s screams due to the high tempera‐ tures that afternoon.

When the officers arrived at the scene, they verified, from outside the plot, that the animal was tied to a tree, without any shadow to protect it from the sun and without food or drink to help it cool off.

After ringing the bell several times with no response, they found an open door and discovered the poor animal in the garden of the property.

Shocked at the state of the dog, they immediately contacted the veterinary services of the municipal authorities, who took over. The veterinary doctor re‐ ported that nothing could be done to save the dog’s life and sadly, was eu‐ thanised so as not to suffer any more pain from the severe sunburn.

Praise for Pedro THE President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has praised Spain’s effort to rescue European and Afghan citizens from Kabul.

Speaking at a joint press conference with President Pedro Sanchez at the welcome hub for evacuated Afghan EU Delegation staff and their families at Torrejon Air Base, she said, “I first of all also want to thank you from the bottom of my heart, dear Pedro, for inviting us to the reception hub here. And I want to thank you for having taken the initiative and I also want to thank the High Representative, Josep Borrell.

“The two of you having taken the initiative, with the respective Minister for Foreign Affairs and Development, to coordinate the reception of incoming Afghans here, who have worked for the European Union, and to coordinate their arrival here with their families.

PRAISE: For Spain’s rescue efforts.

“And indeed, as you said Pedro, you can feel it today: In the times of need, Spain has shown humanity and Spain has proven a great sense of solidarity. So, Spain is here an example for the European soul at its best and I really want to thank you,” she added on August 21.

Morocco to rebuild with Spain THE King of Morocco, Mohamed VI, called on Friday, August 20, for the need to “inaugurate an un‐ precedented stage” in relations with Spain, in his speech delivered on the occasion of the 68th an‐ niversary of the King and People’s Revolution.

Admitting that relations with Spain “have recently gone through an unprecedented crisis, that has

KING: To rebuild relations. strongly shaken mutual trust, and raised numerous questions about

their fate,” Mohamed VI affirmed that, “we have worked with the Spanish side in a climate of total calm, transparency, and responsi‐ bility. In addition to the traditional constant points, which constitute the plinth of relations, today we ensure that they are consolidated, by jointly understanding the inter‐ ests of the two neighbouring coun‐ tries.”

NEWS

Princess Leonor in Wales IN just over one week’s time, Spain’s Princess Leonor will ar‐ rive in Wales, where for the next few years she will study at the exclusive UWC Atlantic College, a boarding school that is one of the most prestigious institutions in Europe.

It means she will be separated from her family for the first time, which means a big change for all concerned for a family that is so closely knit, with her mother Queen Letizia, her father Felipe VI, the King of Spain, and sister, Infanta Sofia, all resigned to Leonor de Borbon making her way alone.

The Princess of Asturias is due to start her studies in Septem‐ ber, and she is looking forward to meeting, and making, new friends from around 100 coun‐ tries at the facility, where, on October 31, she will turn 16, and with the strict rules enforced by this prestigious school, it is very unlikely that she will be allowed any special guests, and will have to celebrate with her new‐found friends in Wales.

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€1bn funds MINISTRY of Transport has launched the first call to distribute €1 billion in EU funds and the objective of this line of aid from the Re‐ covery Plan is to decar‐ bonise cities, mitigate noise and improve air quality. A second call is scheduled for next year, to complete the €1.5 billion planned for this line.

The call is aimed at mu‐ nicipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants and provincial capitals, includ‐ ing the possibility that mu‐ nicipalities with between 20,000 and 50,000 inhabi‐ tants that have public col‐ lective transport services.

The municipalities can apply for the aid aimed at digitising their transport services, the sustainable re‐ newal of the fleet and the promotion of modal change in urban environ‐ ments, prioritising active mobility and collective public transport.

The municipalities have until September 30 at 2pm to apply for the subsidies.

Child deportation

NEWS

Electric scooter ban A NEW proposal aimed at limiting the use of electric scooters through the south‐ ern region of Cordoba will come into law next year. Specifically, the new law is aimed at the thousands of scooters that permeate daily by both locals and tourists through the historical centre of the town, taking to the pavements, zip‐ ping past pedestrians at high speed. With this global self‐mobility trend growing all the time, new legislation to protect pedestrians and other road users was in‐ evitable. Personal mobility vehicles such as electric scooters are now officially considered vehicles across Spain and their ‘drivers’ are obliged to comply with national traffic laws in the same way drivers of cars or motorbikes do. Vehicles for people with reduced mobility are not included in this group.

Former MP on fraud charge YOUNG MIGRANTS: Often suffer abuse in their homeland.

HUMAN rights groups have denounced Spain’s expulsion of unaccompanied chil‐ dren to Morocco, calling the deportations illegal with ministers urging the Spanish government to call an immediate halt to the process.

Amnesty International spokesman Angel Gonzalo said the deportations of minors began on Friday August 12 and continued on Saturday 13 and Sunday 14. The Interior Ministry and Spanish police did not imme‐ diately respond to requests for comment or confirm the exact number of children af‐ fected. Spain is legally obliged to care for young migrants until their relatives can be located or until they turn 18.

Save The Children, meanwhile, urged Span‐

ish authorities to assess the needs of each child and not deport them en masse, about a quarter of the migrant children it interviewed in Ceuta had suffered abuse in their home‐ land, according to the organisation.

Hundreds of unaccompanied minors were among a massive surge of over 10,000 people who tried to enter Ceuta in May by scaling a border fence or swimming around it. Morocco has since taken back the bulk of the migrants.The mass exodus took place after Spain agreed to provide medical treatment for the Sahrawi leader heading the fight for an independent West‐ ern Sahara, which was annexed by Moroc‐ co in the 1970s. Rabat reacted furiously by recalling its ambassador in Madrid.

FORMER MP Jared O’Mara has been charged with fraud by the Crown Pros‐ ecution Service (CPS) in the UK.

The politician has been charged over alleged fraudulent expenses made in 2019.

Mr O’Mara was elected an MP in 2017 before stepping down in 2019. His former aide, GERMANY announced that it has re‐ Gareth Arnold, also faces accu‐ moved Catalonia, the Canary Islands, sations of fraud. Rosemary Asturias, Castilla‐La Mancha, and Va‐ Ainslie at the CPS, said: “The lencia from its list of high‐risk travel des‐ CPS made the decision that tinations, but that it will keep the rest the three men should be of Spain in this classification for now. charged after reviewing a file The change means travellers over 12 of evidence from South York‐ years old from these autonomous com‐ shire Police. The news comes munities will no longer have to quaran‐ after Prime Minister Boris tine for 10 days when arriving in Ger‐ Johnson was accused of per‐ many, however, a negative PCR test, or suading Tory donors to pay for a vaccination certificate when entering fiancee Carrie Symond’s the country is still mandatory. £200,000 (€233,800) redecora‐ tion costs.

Germany removes regions

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Balancing the Chancellor’s books… could your pensions be affected?

The UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak, like his counterparts in Spain, has a difficult balancing act to find ways of raising revenue while still keeping public support strong for the government. And pensions and property are being brought into sharp focus in the media when it comes to the options he has available.

With the pandemic having caused governments to provide huge financial support to keep their economies afloat, they will now need to raise money to pay what effectively is massive government debt – and taxation is one of the most obvious routes.

But what does that mean for you?

Changes that may be made by the Spanish government could, over time, make tax-efficient investing trickier and capital taxes more encompassing. So careful planning with expert advice becomes even more important now to legitimately avoid paying any

Exports to USA SPANISH olive oil exports to the USA have soared as the trade barriers have now been lifted. Biden made the deci‐ sion to lift the trade barriers which were put in place pre‐ viously by Trump.

So far this year olive oil ex‐ ports have grown by 37.5 per cent. This amounts to over 57,000 tons of olives and comes at a staggering value of over €150 million. When Trump imposed trade barriers it meant that Spanish olive farmers could not afford to sell to the North American market as it became unprofitable. The market has recovered fantasti‐ cally since Biden took over and removed the barriers.

By Fiona Keogh, Private Client Manager, Blevins Franks

more tax than necessary.

And if you have a pension fund or other UK assets (such as property) they could be adversely hit by changes the UK government may bring in over the next years to start repaying its pandemic debts.

Property in the UK Property has already been targeted in terms of second homes in the UK and the council tax applied.

And UK rental income is taxable; selling it can attract capital gains tax as it is not your principal home, and stamp duty is set to return to its pre-reduction level.

You may want to hold onto a UK home for emotional reasons and as somewhere you could move back to. Many people, however, opt to downsize, so that if they retain a UK home it is a smaller one they can easily nip back to at will, rather than need to rent it out to pay the bills.

Pensions lifetime allowance Those with established pension funds (final salary or money purchase) built over their working life may be concerned about speculation that the lifetime allowance – which has been cut several times – may be further reduced.

This would bring many more people into the higher taxation regime. The lifetime allowance is the maximum amount of tax-relieved pension savings an individual can build up over their lifetime.

Black fly invasion AN alert has been an‐ nounced for Aragon, Catalo‐ nia, the Community of Va‐ lencia and Madrid for an increase in black fly.

According to the National Association of Environmental Health Companies (ANECPLA) Aragon, Catalonia, the com‐ munity of Valencia and Madrid will be the most af‐ fected by plagues of black fly.

The flies reproduce on the banks of rivers and due to the current heatwave that has affected Spain, the direc‐ tor of ANECPLA, Jorge Galvan has explained this could pro‐ duce a peak in the volume of the fly population.

Bites lead to infections.

Because the black fly is in‐ digenous, it is not an invasive species, however, over the last several years attacks on humans have increased, and their bites in the shape of a saw can lead to ‘infections and allergic reactions’ that can, in some cases, require ‘hospitalisation’.

Students visa chaos IT is only weeks before British students are set to begin studying in Spain but many are facing visa chaos. Universities have called on the Spanish em‐ bassy to let students in as they have been prepar‐ ing for months and some undergraduates are said to have waited more than a month to get their ap‐ pointment to get the documents they need to en‐ ter the country.

Both the Spanish embassy and the foreign office

BREXIT: Caused the rules to change. have been approached by UK universities in a bid to convince them the students should be allowed to complete their applications once they arrive in Spain.

Currently £1,073,100, tax relief on any pension benefits taken over this amount is recovered by applying a charge to the excess – 25% if taken as pension income or 55% if taken as a lump sum.

The lifetime allowance normally rises in line with inflation, but in March the UK government froze it for the next five years.

And recent press speculation suggests that one option being considered is potentially cutting the lifetime allowance to £800,000 or £900,000.

Do you know how much your pension fund is valued at? It may be worth checking.

The UK’s 25% Overseas Transfer Charge And with the UK’s Overseas Transfer Charge not having been extended yet – enabling suitable pension transfers to be made within the EU without the penal 25% tax being applied as it would for outside the EU – maybe now is a good time to review your position.

Our next article will look at the UK State Pensions ‘triple lock’ and whether it will be maintained for EU expatriates, and Spain’s 2019 ruling that non-EU pension plans do not qualify for the wealth tax exemption. The latter means British expatriates here may find that their pension fund now pushes them into the wealth tax net.

If you haven’t reviewed your financial affairs recently with your adviser, this may be an excellent time to do so.

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; individuals should seek personalised advice.

Keep up to date on the financial issues that may affect you on the Blevins Franks news page at www.blevins franks.com.

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Minister Robles meets Military Emergency Unit THE Minister of Defence, Margarita Robles, has visited the Headquarters of the Military Emergency Unit (UME), at the Torrejon de Ardoz Air Base, Madrid, to review the fight against forest fires that blighted many Span‐ ish provinces this summer.

Robles, who was accompanied by the Secretary of State for Defence, Es‐ peranza Casteleiro, was met by the head of the UME, Lieutenant General Luis Manuel Martinez Meijide, his sec‐ ond in command, Major General of the Air Force Jose Manuel Cuesta, as well as by the head of the Torrejon Air Base, Brigadier General of the Air Force Pablo Guillen.

Robles said, “Wherever the UME arrives, a lot of tranquillity reaches the citizens.”

She also expressed, “my apprecia‐ tion and gratitude and that of all Spaniards for their great work.”

Since the summer campaign began on June 15, teams and battalions of the UME and 43 Group have partici‐ pated in the extinction of nine fires in Spain, the most recent in Avila, Las Palmas and La Rioja, and in two in abroad, in Turkey and Greece.

‘Tesla Bot’ will do your chores E LO N MUSK has said the ‘Tesla Bot’, which is around 5ft 8in tall and weighs 125lbs, may have “profound implications for the eceonomy”.

Musk claimed Tesla is likely to launch a humanoid robot prototype next year that is designed to do “bor‐ ing, repetitious and dangerous” tasks.

Musk said the Bot would also fea‐ ture a screen where a human face would give “useful information”.

He described the Bot as an exten‐ sion of Tesla’s current designs of self‐ driving cars. Musk said the robot would use a computer chip and would be navigated using eight different cameras in a similar way to the Tesla vehicles.

Speaking at Tesla’s AI Day, Musk said the Bot would have “profound implications for the economy” and address the shortage in labour.

He stressed the importance of mak‐ ing sure the robot was not “super ex‐ pensive”.

Some, though, have questioned whether the billionaire, who has fre‐ quently talked of big technology ad‐

ELON MUSK: Launching a robot. vances at showcase events only to end up scaling back the plans, will be able to deliver on what he has promised for the robot.

“Is the ‘Tesla Bot’ the next dream shot to pump up the hype machine?,” Raj Rajkumar, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, said to Reuters.

“I can safely say that it will be much longer than 10 years before a humanoid bot from any company on the planet can go to the store and get groceries for you,” he concluded.

NEWS

Free life-saving checks FREE life‐saving NHS checks are coming to those aged 40 years and over on the high street in the UK and are something that could save many lives.

Pharmacies in England from October will be offering blood pressure tests according to Health chiefs. It is expected that over the next five years around 2,000 lives could be saved and they also believe that over 3,000 strokes and 2,500 heart attacks could be prevented too.

The NHS believe that one third of adults in the UK suffers from high blood pressure, but many of those people do not know it. The programme has been in pilot mode for a while, but it is set to be rolled out ful‐ ly, which according to NHS na‐ tional medical director Profes‐ sor Stephen Powis will provide “more rapid detection of killer conditions and quicker treat‐ ment for patients who need it.”

Four tolls to become free ON August 31, the conces‐ sions of some of the most used highways come to an end and, as of September 1, the barriers will be lifted on three out of four existing tolls. Motorways that cross the region from end to end, such as the AP‐2 between El Vendrell and Zaragoza and the AP‐7 between La Jon‐ quera and Tarragona, will become free, continuing a process of freeing tolls that

in the section from Tarrago‐ na to Castellón has already been in force since January 1, 2020 ‐ both roads are state‐owned.

There are also two roads belonging to the Generalitat which will cease to be toll roads: the C‐32 in the Maresme region (Montgat ‐ Palafolls) and the C‐33 be‐ tween the Catalan capital and the Vallès region (Barcelona ‐ Granollers).

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NEWS

Blood donor appeal Squatter cheek!

THE community of Madrid has called on blood donors as the summer period has yet again hit reserves hard, having fallen to 18 per cent below what is need‐ ed, which means that the situa‐ tion in hospitals could become complicated. The Spanish region only has 4,100 bags of blood at the moment, when they really need to have at least 5,000 bags available to those who need it.

They are looking for around 900 donations to enable them to maintain healthcare activity.

The Regional Minister of Health, Enrique Ruiz Escudero set out to encourage the public to donate blood and on Monday, August

Reserves have fallen.

23, he headed to the Transfu‐ sion Centre and gave blood him‐ self.

It is important to maintain blood reserves and every single donation can benefit up to three

patients in the area. According to the Regional Ministry of Health blood donation is per‐ fectly safe and is not a cause for concern regarding the coron‐ avirus.

Ronaldo’s hair triumph CRISTIANO RONALDO’S hair‐graft business has triumphed in Spain with a staggering €1.8‐million profit, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Insparya, based in Madrid, has made a profit in its second financial year. Ronaldo has a 50 per cent share in the company and it is going from strength to strength. Accounts which were recently filed with the registry show that the Portuguese foot‐

baller’s company made nearly €2 million in profit during 2020, seeing its revenue double to million euros. This is said to be an increase of around 130 per cent.

The Insparya brand is going from strength to strength and recently announced that a second hair graft clinic will be opened in Malaga’s Marbel‐ la.

POLICE officers were called to a property in the city of Zaragoza on Thursday, August 19, by a squatter who was occupying a home, where she informed them that she was actually living there illegally, and that the own‐ er had just put a padlock on the entrance and she wanted them to remove it.

The woman asked the officers to cut the chain so that she could gain access to her ‘home’, ex‐ plaining that the owner had earli‐ er snatched the house keys from her in a violent manner, which meant that all her belongings were locked inside and she had no way to access them, including her insulin, as she was a diabetic.

With the help of firefighters, the police finally managed to ac‐ cess the building through the bal‐ cony, where, once inside, it was found that the owner had put a chain with a padlock to prevent entry to the squat, so the police proceeded to cut it off, and al‐ lowed the squatter back inside.

It is possible that the police could now open proceedings

against the owner for coercion because the law states that squatters become the legal resi‐

dents of a property, and they cannot be evicted without a court order.

Calabrian mafia fraud

GUARDIA CIVIL officers have arrested 11 people in the Valencian Community, believed to be linked to the Calabrian mafia, suspected of being the perpetrators of at least 100 crimes of fraud in the commercialisation of citrus fruits, committed in the provinces of Alicante, Almeria, Barcelona, Castellon, Girona, Madrid, Murcia, Tarragona, and Valencia.

According to a statement, the detainees are seven men of Italian nationality, aged between 50 and 70 years old, two Italian women aged 22 and 65, and two other Spanish women aged 30 and 37, who are all accused of the crimes of belonging to a criminal organisation, money laundering, document falsification, and fraud.

In addition, there are four others under investigation: a 70year-old Italian man, a 47-year-old Spaniard, a woman of Uruguayan nationality, and another Spanish woman, both 30 years old, with the 11 detainees having police records in both Spain and Italy for conducting similar fraud operations, as well as for drug trafficking, and possession and trafficking of weapons.

These arrests as part of ‘Operation Truffato’, uncovering a criminal operation that was being run through 18 shell companies (dormant companies) that were dedicated to the commercialisation of agricultural and grocery products.

FEATURE

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EWN 23

24 EWN

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NEWS

Civil War mortar shell Eating more plants

A FA R M E R in the Toledo municipality of Navaher‐ mosa ‐ a small village with under 4,000 inhabitants, in the autonomous communi‐ ty of Castile‐La Mancha ‐ had a very lucky escape when his dog started dig‐ ging up what turned out to be a live mortar shell, left over from the Spanish Civil War. The man immediately contacted the Guardia Civil to inform them of his find, who deployed a team of ex‐ perts from its Group of Spe‐ cialists in Deactivation of Explosive Devices (Gedex) unit, to deal with the un‐ usual, but potentially ex‐ tremely dangerous situa‐

SHELL: Was still live. tion at the farm.

Upon arrival, and on ex‐ amining the mortar shell, it turned out to be an 81‐mil‐ limetre‐calibre mortar shell and in perfect working or‐ der, with its explosive charge still intact.

The shell could have ex‐ ploded at any moment had the farmer not stopped his dog from digging around it, miraculously without trig‐ gering the explosive de‐ vice.

IN the latest list published on Wednesday, August 18, by the prestigious New York‐based showbiz magazine Variety, the 53‐ year‐old James Bond actor, Daniel Craig, is currently the world’s high‐ est‐paid movie star, earning a whopping total of $100 million (£117.5m or €88.5m), while Julia Roberts, and Jennifer Lawrence tied in first place as the top female

EATING a plant‐centred diet during young adulthood is as‐ sociated with a lower risk of heart disease in middle age, according to a long‐term study with about 30 years of fol‐ low‐up. A separate study with about 15 years of follow‐up found that eating more plant‐based foods that have been shown to lower cholesterol, called the ‘Portfolio Diet’, is associated with lower risk of cardiovascular disease in postmenopausal women.

In two separate studies analysing different measures of healthy plant food consumption, researchers found that both young adults and postmenopausal women had fewer heart attacks and were less likely to develop cardiovascu‐ lar disease when they ate more healthy plant foods.

The American Heart Association Diet and Lifestyle Rec‐ ommendations suggest an overall healthy dietary pattern that emphasises a variety of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low‐fat dairy products, skinless poultry and fish, nuts and legumes and non‐tropical vegetable oils. It also advises limited consumption of saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, red meat, sweets and sugary drinks.

Daniel Craig is highest paid earners, both with a juicy $25 mil‐ lion (£29.3m or €21.3m) each.

Craig beat other A‐list stars like Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Den‐ zel Washington, and Will Smith, who also earned huge eight‐figure salaries, but his earnings were not from his 007 role, instead, they

came mostly as a result of his ap‐ pearance in the Netflix streaming services smash, ‘Knives Out’, in which he starred opposite the late Christopher Plummer, in a who‐ dunnit‐type mystery series, play‐ ing a Southern detective character called Benoit Blanc.

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26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

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NEWS

October London Marathon THE London Marathon 2022 date has been announced for Sunday, October 2, and has been moved from its traditional date in April for the third year running.

Event director Hugh Brasher has announced that the race has been moved to give the “best chances” of an event of full‐ca‐ pacity and crowds.

“The London Marathon is an extraordinary and unique cele‐ bration of the family of hu‐

mankind coming together,” said Brasher.

“We believe that by moving the 2022 event to October we give ourselves the best chances of welcoming the world to the streets of London,” he contin‐ ued.

The 2021 race will take place on October 3 and is due to be the biggest marathon in the world to be staged.

Up to 50,000 runners will compete on the traditional

Blood pressure drug recall THE Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products (Aemps) which reports to Spain’s Ministry of Health, has ordered that a batch of Karvezide 300mg is recalled. The drug is a blood pressure medicine and it has been found to contain impurities that are said to be above the acceptable limits. The impurities have been found in the active ingre‐ dient which is called irbersartan.

The Agency warns that batch FT015 of Karvezide 300mg/12.5mg, with an expiry date of 28 February 2023, is affected. The medicine comes in film‐coated tablet packs of 28 tablets.”

Anyone worried about the medications that they are taking should head to see their doctor or their nearest pharmacist.

course and up to 50,000 partici‐ pants will complete the 26.2 miles on a course of their choos‐ ing, BBC Sport reports.

Ryanair launch new routes IN something sure to delight hol‐ idaymakers, Ryanair has an‐ nounced the launch of new win‐ ter routes which mean that its UK winter 21/22 schedule will see holidaymakers head off to more than 400 stunning destina‐ tions on over 2,000 flights each week.

The new routes include Birm‐ ingham to Bucharest, Milan, Turin and Vilnius. Ryanair will also be adding flights from Bristol to Barcelona and Madrid and Bournemouth to Budapest and Wroclaw. Something that is sure to delight many expats who want to see their relatives, is that the winter route from London’s Gatwick to Malaga has also been added.

NEWS

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Fallen out of the sky IN the last 20 days, in the Cadiz municipality of Ubrique, eight young Grif‐ fon vultures have simply fallen out of the sky, being found by concerned resi‐ dents as they lay in the road, or on terraces and patios ‐ one even discov‐ ered on the stairs of a house, as it searched for shade from the heat.

All of the birds are just five or six months old, and have flown down from the surrounding mountains.

An officer from the Local Police advised that “Due to the lack of water and food, which causes them weakness and disorienta‐ tion, they fall where they can.”

An officer from the Se‐ prona Guardia Civil, famil‐ iar with these occurrences, after rescuing several birds and nursing them back to life by rehydrating them, commented, “Normally they suffer heat strokes.”

Some of these chicks who fall from the sky are saved, thanks to the speedy intervention of the neighbours who find them, and contact the emergency services, but many sadly die, due to the lack of feeders and water that help them overcome the rigours of summer.

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

Italian on the run arrested OFFICERS from the National Police have successfully ar‐ rested an Italian national who was on the run. The arrest was made in Malaga and the man had a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) for crimes of illegal possession of weapons and breach of precautionary judicial measures which had been issued by the Italian au‐ thorities.

The man is considered by the authorities to be an Italian far right supremacist and an ultra‐

right‐wing extremist. He is thought to have been acting on his own. Intelligence services in Italy have been investigating what his targets could be.

He was wanted for events which happened in June in the Piedmontese town of Brescia.

As reported by the Italian authorities, the fugitive had caused an explosion during the making of an explosive device.

He was arrested in Italy but managed to evade the justice system before fleeing to Spain.

EWN 27

Spanish exports rise over the last year SPANISH exports rose 23.3 per cent January‐June 2021 compared to the same period in 2020. Ex‐ ports for the first half of 2021 stood at €152.9 bil‐ lion. Imports also increased by 20.3 per cent to €158.3 billion.

Spain’s trade deficit for the first six months of the year was €5.3 billion, 28.7 per cent lower

than that registered in the same period in 2020.

“In June the recovery of Spanish foreign trade was consolidated. Imports and exports increased notably compared to 2020 and also grew more moderately compared to 2019,” said Secretary of State for Commerce, Xiana Mendez, on August 19.

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FEATURE

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Photo cred it: Paul Stath am

Paul Statham describes himself as a sound artist.

PAUL STATHAM is a musical polymath who plays piano, keyboards, drums and guitar and even teaches song writing courses and production at Solent University.

Although he lives in North London where he has his own home studio, he has been a visitor to Spain for the last 20 years and his dream is to own a home in Salobreña in Axarquia.

He is currently staying near Motril after spend‐ ing a week with former flat mate and best friend Rob Downes, guitarist with the band Then Jerico who also lives in Axarquia.

Often musicians tend to stick with one style of music, but Paul certainly embraces a huge range and his career has seen a number of major changes, mostly to his benefit.

He was (and still is) in a band called B‐Movie from his teen years and they obtained a record‐ ing contract which then saw him form Peach with Lisa Lamb and producer Pascal Gabriel and had a sizeable hit in the USA with On My Own which was part of the soundtrack for the movie Slid‐ ing Doors.

From there, he was signed to the Warner Chappell com‐ pany as a songwriter and got together with Dido, co‐writ‐ ing a number of songs for

Paul Statham Multi-talented UK musician her smash hit album No Angel which sold more than 20 million copies.

He was then approached and asked if he would like to write with Kylie Minogue and they spent two weeks together, producing a number of songs, two of which were on her hit album Fever and Paul says “she was a delight to work with.”

From there he has worked regularly with Jim Kerr and Simple Minds as well as writing with for‐ mer Spice Girls Geri Halliwell and Emma Bunton, Sophie Ellis Bextor, Rachel Stevens, Natalie Im‐ bruglia and Will Young.

At the same time, he has recorded no less than seven albums with former Bauhaus singer Pete Murphy and they had some success in the States where Goth music was popular, playing for up to 7,000 people at a time.

Another side is his record label Loki (pronounced Low Key) that came about as he explained “I’m a huge Marvel Comics fan and years ago I thought that it would be great to have a name connected with one of my heroes, so I was lucky enough to snap up lokirecords.com.”

The name laid dormant for some time, but now he releases tracks from some of the bands he plays with as well as selected material from other musi‐ cians.

When asked who his influences are, Paul said “All time favourite is Another Green World by Brian Eno but I’m also very fond of David Bowie, especial‐ ly Blackstar, his album released just before he died.

“Other favourites are Leonard Cohen who taught me how important lyrics are and Tom Waits as well as Bacharach and David.”

We spoke about Spotify (a site to listen to music at a price) and whilst agreeing the concept was good, he explained that on average for every mil‐ lion plays of a number, the record company re‐ ceives around €4,500 and the composer €500 which is being contested at the moment.

In the meantime, he has just released the second Dark Flowers album Radioland featuring Jim Kerr and singer The Anchoress, as well as other top mu‐ sicians which he describes as electro ambient coun‐ try and would love readers to give it a listen on Spo‐ tify.

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NEWS

Swedish Mafia’s fortune THE National Police, in one of their most successful investiga‐ tions of the year, have uncov‐ ered an illegal drugs operation that involved the transfer of sub‐ stances by removal lorries be‐ tween Spain and Sweden.

The profits generated in the Nordic country reverted to the purchase of super‐luxury real es‐ tate in some of the best areas in Marbella, Estepona or Benahavís, in the province of Malaga.

The Swedish removals compa‐ ny Roslagen, with offices in Stock‐ holm and Gothenburg, pros‐ pered until opening small

branches in Marbella and Torre‐ vieja (Alicante), two destinations where they found most of their clients.

Swedish authorities put the Spanish National Police on alert in 2018 and eventually led the Udyco Central officers to a ware‐ house in the San Pedro Alcántara industrial estate, which while un‐ der observation, was found to be carrying out some ‘very strange’ activities. Under close surveil‐ lance, officers let the suspects continue their operations until the first drugs shipment arrived.

One of the most famous drugs

operations was carried out in Stockholm where 55,000 units of an opiate drug used as a substi‐ tute for heroin were transported to the Swedish capital by one of Roslagen’s lorries.

Simultaneously, in Sweden, the two owners of the company were arrested and investigators seized 12 properties in the provinces of Malaga, Alicante, Ávila and Granada.

During the operation, 64 luxu‐ ry properties and land have been seized and the total assets and property recovered exceed €55 million.

Twelve companies fined THE National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC) has sanctioned 12 companies with fines worth €61.3 million, including subsidiaries of Acciona, ACS, OHL, Ferrovial, FCC, Elecnor and Sacyr.

The companies formed a cartel for bids on road maintenance and operation ser‐ vices convened by the Ministry of Devel‐ opment from 2014 to 2018.

The Competition body revealed that the cartel’s operation was carried out through meetings ‘to have coffee’ where the companies ‘periodically established the criteria for coordinating the econom‐ ic offers to be submitted in the bids of the Ministry of Public Works for the road maintenance services of the State High‐ way Network.’

EUROPEAN PRESS

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EUROPEAN NIBS DENMARK

FRANCE

Fairy Tales

Fake passes

A NEW museum designed to look like the hollow tree in The Tinderbox is now open in the writer’s old home town of Odense and is dedicated to the work of Hans Christian Andersen. Covering some 18,000 square metres, visits are currently restricted due to the pandemic.

FOR those who want to be able to visit bars and restaurants as well as use public transport but don’t want to be vaccinated, there are now a number of online offers of fake passes available for several hundred euros even though vaccination is free.

THE NETHERLANDS

NORWAY

Electric scooters

Tragic accident

IN many Dutch cities it is possible to rent an electric scooter and then drop it off when you are finished with it. Sounds a good idea, but you can’t solve mobility problems by causing mobility problems, as too many people just leave them on pavements blocking pedestrians.

A 78-YEAR-OLD farmer and his 52-year-old son who were moving their free-grazing livestock from one area to another are believed to have been attacked and killed by their own cattle according to information released by the police in Sykkelven investigating the case.

BELGIUM

FINLAND

Free furniture

Fewer police

WHEN the Belgian Government decides that furniture needs to be replaced in its ministries it normally sells it online but rather than do this, it is now donating all of its used furniture to those who lost everything in the July floods.

THE National Police Board of Finland has said that some police departments will be forced to reduce staff if the government does not allocate more funds for law enforcement, as the police budget for 2022 is between €35 and 40 million less than expected.

GERMANY

SWEDEN

Camping not Glamping

Bright idea

IN the centre of Berlin there are some 13 official campsites where owners of vans can park up and enjoy a holiday without all of the normal trimmings of pretty views, grass or even lakes, but there are occasional views of the former Berlin Wall.

IKEA is to sell renewable energy generated from solar and wind parks to Swedish householders who sign up to pay a fixed monthly fee and if they don’t use all of the power that they are contracted for, they will be able to sell it back to the Swedish company.

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

EWN 31

FINANCE BUSINESS EXTRA New boss GLOBAL giant American pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson is appointing a new CEO effective from January 3, 2022, as current vice president, Spaniard, Joaquín Duato will replace the incumbent CEO Alex Gorsky. This appointment will make him one of the most powerful international Spanish executives.

Second bite AS the battle to take over UK supermarket Morrisons continues, the Sunday Times has reported that with plenty of money available, whichever US investment fund loses out, there will almost certainly be a bid for Sainsbury’s which could be as high as £10 billion (€11.5 billion).

Redundancy WITH the loss on August 31 of the concessions to collect funds from three toll roads in Catalonia, operator Abertis has managed to come to an agreement with unions concerning termination of employment of 340 staff who worked in the booths and offices.

Borrowing down UK Government borrowing at £10.4 billion (€12 billion) in July 21 was down £10.1 billion (€11.6 billion) on the amount borrowed in the previous July, thanks mainly to the easing of restrictions which saw a boost to the economy, but is the second-highest amount since records began.

New flights LOW-COST Norwegian passenger airline Flyr is introducing new flights from Oslo to Alicante and Malaga. Founded in August 2020 partly in response to the demise of Norwegian Air, Flyr which has its HQ in Oslo and operational base at Gardermoen/Oslo Airport initially only flew within Norway itself.

Currently, the airline has just two Boeing 737-800 aircraft in its fleet, but is confident that it will be possible to add to both the number of aircraft in service and the staff of 70 and is now expanding to fly to European destinations from Oslo.

Effective from August 21, it will operate a weekly flight to Alicante and twice weekly flights to Malaga and Nice.

32

www.euroweeklynews.com • 26 August - 1 September 2021

is the amount of additional tax that the Spanish Government will STAT OF earn this year from the rise in the price of electricity according to €3.3 billion Partido Popular leader Pablo Casado.

WEEK

Morrisons bidding war THE Morrisons bidding war has taken a twist as a US offer arrived worth £7 bil‐ lion (€8 billion) but from a different investment firm.

On August 19, Clayton, Dubilier & Rice whose ear‐ lier bid for Britain’s fourth largest supermarket was rejected, announced that its newly created division, Market Bidco Limited had offered £7 billion to take over Morrisons and that the supermarket’s board

had accepted the offer.

This is now the third of‐ fer that the Board has ac‐ cepted, the first two being from rival US bidders Fortress, which is not nec‐ essarily out of the running.

Any offer has to be ap‐ proved by the majority of the company’s sharehold‐ ers and this latest offer is approximately 60 per cent up on Morrisons’ share closing price on June 19, 2021.

LEGALLY SPEAKING

This values each share at £2.85 (€3.28), but with‐ in 24 hours of the offer be‐ ing accepted by the Board, the share price in London had climbed to £2.91 (€3.35) which suggests that the market believes there is still considerable room for improvement on the offer.

Fortress in the mean‐ while is advising sharehold‐ ers not to take precipitate action and it seems likely

that a further bid could be imminent, but no decision on any bid will be made until a shareholders’ meet‐ ing due to take place in Oc‐ tober.

British companies are at the moment considered by many to be underval‐ ued and there are a num‐ ber of overseas invest‐ ment companies looking to snap up bargains as the UK recovers from the pan‐ demic.

Digital legacies

Are tree roots included?

A root from a tree has damaged a sewerage pipe under my bathroom. I read thoroughly my insurance policy and was frustrated to see that nowhere in its 48 pages does it mention this eventuali‐ ty. So I telephoned them and was told that my policy did not cover removal of roots which block sewers un‐ der my house. I pointed out that the definition of a house in the home insurance policy included the sew‐ ers but they said no. I ask then, what about the risks to your house not described in an insurance policy as ei‐ ther included or excluded?

N S (Costa del Sol) Your frus‐ tration is understandable but YOU AND THE LAW we find that dam‐ IN SPAIN age from tree roots blocking drains and sewers is basically never covered by any home insurance policy. Many complications arise in assigning blame such as whether you have maintained your pipes in good condition and determining where the roots come from. As to risks not listed as included or ex‐ cluded, of course a detailed description of all the thou‐ sand ways things can go wrong would be impossible.

You can be quite sure the insurance company will decide they are excluded.

DAVID SEARL

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

AS the stadium undergoes com‐ plete refurbishment and the team play at the Alfredo de Ste‐ fanos stadium, the Real Madrid merchandise store at Bernabeu was ramraided.

The attack on the store which saw three vehicles involved took place at 6am on the morning of Thursday August 19 according to eye witness reports.Ironically,

A social media will.

A DIGITAL legacy is anything which a person created or owned in digital format: social me‐ dia profiles, conversations and comments, photos and videos, profiles on online gaming sites and streaming platforms, blogs or websites, downloaded Apps, music, e‐books, documents on the cloud, online banking, etc.

It is becoming more common to make plans for what will hap‐ pen to them after you die.

It is usually handled by giving access to someone you trust, pro‐ viding a list of your accounts with the usernames and passwords, and explaining if you want them closed, cancelled or memorialised.

You should legitimise your digital legacy in a ‘social media will’, ideally kept separate from your existing will so you don’t have to keep updating it every time you create a new account or change your password.

Your digital legacy is something you should consider when pre‐ planning your funeral. With Golden Leaves Funeral Plans, you can arrange your funeral in advance, so that you family will not have to deal with it.

www.goldenleavesinternational.com enquiries@goldenleaves.com Facebook: goldenleavesspain

Real Madrid ramraid earlier that day, members of the first team had been taken by coach to the stadium to inspect the renovation work which was started some time ago, as no crowds were allowed in the sta‐ dium for live matches.

The two‐storey shop remained

fully stocked during the work and it appears that a single vehi‐ cle drove into the glass doors and then the robbers emerged from two accompanying cars and literally swept the shelves clear of very expensive team clothing and other branded souvenirs.

Spanish success THE latest Spanish business success sees installation of railway signals in Cairo under‐ taken by the Talis Group.

On Friday August 20, the Spanish Ambassador to Egypt, Ramon Gil Casares met with Egypt’s Minister of Transport Kamel El‐Wazir to inspect the work currently being under‐ taken to upgrade the railway signals on the Cairo‐Alexan‐ dria railway line.

In a statement released by the Egyptian Transport Min‐ istry, El‐Wazir said the signals project is being carried out by Talis Group of Spain in Sidi Gaber and Alexandria railway stations and the minister ob‐ served that the work is ex‐ pected to be completed by December 2021.

Copper lines THERE are still plenty of peo‐ ple alive who will remember telephone exchanges and manual switchboards, but as‐ sumed that these had com‐ pletely disappeared.

To some extent this is true and younger people may well have been amazed to see how calls in Spain were handled many years ago if they watched the Netflix series Ca‐ ble Girls. Now, Telefónica has announced that it has closed down 1,000 telephone ex‐ changes which used lines made from copper and these have been replaced by more reliable fibre lines.

The company celebrates its centenary in 2034 and plans to have completely replaced all copper lines by then.

By the time that the police ar‐ rived following an alert from a member of the public, the rob‐ bers had disappeared with their haul.

There is a huge market for this time of branded material and as it is genuine (rather than coun‐ terfeit) it will probably sell quickly and at reasonably high prices.

34 EWN

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COMPANY PRICE(P) 3I Group 1.321,00 Abrdn 263,90 Admiral Group 3.670,0 Anglo American 2.908,5 Antofagasta 1.419,50 Ashtead Group 5.490,0 Associated British Foods 2.012,0 AstraZeneca 8.678,0 Auto Trader Group Plc 638,60 Avast 596,60 Aveva 4.097,0 Aviva 418,70 B&M European Value Retail 574,80 BAE Systems 575,60 Bank VTB DRC 1,342 Barclays 180,58 Barratt Developments 710,00 Berkeley 4.811,0 BHP Group 2.208,00 BP 293,55 British American Tobacco 2.727,5 British Land Company 520,52 BT Group 167,80 Bunzl 2.688,0 Burberry Group 1.884,0 Carnival 1.458,8 Centrica 50,64 Coca Cola HBC AG 2.654,0 Compass 1.498,50 CRH 3.765,0 Croda Intl 9.222,0 DCC 6.040,0 Diageo 3.534,0 DS Smith 442,20 EasyJet 811,40 Experian 3.198,0 Ferguson 10.185,0 Flutter Entertainment 13.750,0 Fresnillo 833,80 GlaxoSmithKline 1.508,80 Glencore 317,25 Halma 2.987,0 Hargreaves Lansdown 1.476,26 Hikma Pharma 2.536,00 HSBC 395,25 IAG 162,32 Imperial Brands 1.562,50 Informa 530,20 InterContinental 4.500,0 Intermediate Capital 2.177,00

CHANGE(P) 1.330,50 266,80 3.693,0 2.917,0 1.422,00 5.536,0 2.037,0 8.773,0 643,20 603,60 4.135,0 420,40 576,20 580,20 1,348 183,10 726,60 4.937,0 2.219,50 293,65 2.731,5 528,40 174,45 2.704,0 1.902,5 1.478,4 51,20 2.679,0 1.502,00 3.808,0 9.304,0 6.054,0 3.550,0 447,90 821,80 3.225,0 10.256,3 13.805,0 842,00 1.525,60 317,70 3.042,0 1.489,00 2.592,00 399,10 163,12 1.569,23 537,20 4.548,0 2.212,00

% CHG. 1.318,00 263,90 3.659,0 2.881,5 1.403,00 5.480,0 2.012,0 8.674,0 635,20 595,40 4.095,0 416,70 571,60 575,00 1,324 180,48 710,00 4.811,0 2.191,00 291,10 2.712,0 518,60 167,55 2.685,0 1.847,5 1.441,8 50,50 2.650,0 1.490,50 3.758,0 9.220,0 6.024,0 3.529,5 441,30 806,00 3.195,0 10.175,0 13.700,0 829,60 1.508,80 314,30 2.986,0 1.471,50 2.536,00 394,90 160,60 1.560,00 527,40 4.477,0 2.174,00

NET VOL 44,51K 386,92K 16,10K 440,18K 85,53K 37,36K 216,96K 94,03K 186,56K 89,51K 8,11K 1,29M 105,58K 385,45K 62,56K 3,07M 100,27K 12,33K 935,86K 3,77M 244,71K 52,27K 2,78M 24,87K 158,45K 114,66K 736,34K 18,45K 289,89K 16,77K 8,53K 8,09K 269,96K 248,22K 457,75K 50,68K 0,96K 14,54K 160,38K 376,47K 5,50M 22,48K 35,35K 12,75K 2,19M 4,14M 16,05K 196,45K 46,96K 9,03K

COMPANY

PRICE(P)

Intertek ITV J Sainsbury Johnson Matthey Land Securities Legal & General Lloyds Banking London Stock Exchange Meggitt Melrose Industries Mondi National Grid NatWest Group Next Norilskiy Nikel ADR Ocado Persimmon Phoenix Prudential Reckitt Benckiser Relx Rentokil Rightmove Rio Tinto PLC Rolls-Royce Holdings Rosneft DRC Royal Dutch Shell A Royal Dutch Shell A Royal Dutch Shell B Sage Samsung Electronics DRC Sberbank Schroders Scottish Mortgage Segro Severn Trent Smith & Nephew Smiths Group Spirax-Sarco Engineering SSE St. James’s Place Standard Chartered Taylor Wimpey Tesco Tui Unilever United Utilities Vodafone Group PLC Whitbread WPP

5.256,0 116,25 328,12 2.970,0 709,00 265,50 44,11 8.080,0 839,11 164,10 2.038,00 966,40 212,00 7.960,0 32,00 1.946,80 2.830,0 619,60 1.501,00 5.600,0 2.172,00 583,60 704,60 5.233,0 112,18 7,26 1.410,2 1.410,90 1.404,8 733,00 1.564,50 17,68 3.662,0 1.353,60 1.287,00 2.815,0 1.417,00 1.427,50 15.935,0 1.642,50 1.588,00 448,50 173,73 251,15 313,90 4.105,4 1.064,00 122,52 3.080,0 975,40

CHANGE(P)

% CHG.

NET VOL

5.300,0 117,30 332,00 3.002,0 721,00 266,60 44,72 8.112,0 839,60 167,00 2.059,00 982,00 215,40 8.022,0 32,09 1.949,50 2.890,0 629,00 1.502,00 5.681,0 2.190,00 589,10 712,60 5.277,0 112,80 7,26 1.412,0 1.411,11 1.406,0 738,02 1.565,50 17,73 3.697,0 1.370,00 1.295,00 2.880,0 1.440,50 1.433,50 16.125,0 1.672,00 1.609,50 452,30 177,80 252,15 317,00 4.149,0 1.089,50 123,64 3.105,0 981,40

5.250,0 115,75 302,00 2.968,0 706,00 265,00 44,08 8.040,0 832,20 164,00 2.039,29 965,60 211,80 7.940,0 31,79 1.936,10 2.828,0 617,40 1.486,00 5.594,0 2.167,00 583,00 703,60 5.190,0 111,10 7,19 1.398,0 1.397,75 1.390,4 733,20 1.556,50 17,59 3.655,0 1.351,50 1.283,50 2.810,0 1.415,50 1.425,69 15.920,0 1.635,00 1.587,50 448,00 173,65 247,75 309,60 4.099,5 1.062,00 122,50 3.057,0 973,40

7,98K 343,89K 7,33M 10,80K 91,60K 911,60K 5,03M 34,60K 371,27K 469,42K 3,40K 445,74K 1,34M 5,58K 130,06K 25,03K 52,43K 427,99K 568,94K 78,34K 185,72K 13,16K 75,64K 49,84K 8,01M 54,18K 378,91K 344,59K 832,70K 20,94K 1,64K 271,54K 4,98K 449,94K 87,86K 49,20K 129,22K 8,22K 7,42K 137,21K 48,84K 623,50K 580,13K 3,02M 580,47K 258,80K 114,17K 3,77M 26,39K 137,19K

1.16423

0.85895

Units per €

US dollar (USD) ......................................1.17278 Japan yen (JPY)......................................128.952 Switzerland franc (CHF) .........................1.07285 Denmark kroner (DKK) .............................7.4370 Norway kroner (NOK) .............................10.5085

currenciesdirect.com/la-zenia • Tel: +34 965 994 830 THE ABOVE TABLE USES THE CURRENT INTERBANK EXCHANGE RATES, WHICH AREN’T REPRESENTATIVE OF THE RATE WE OFFER

DOW JONES C LOSING P RICES A UGUST 23

COMPANY 3M Alphabet C Amazon.com Amgen Apple Boeing Caterpillar Chevron Cisco Coca-Cola Facebook Goldman Sachs Home Depot Honeywell IBM Intel J&J JPMorgan McDonald’s Merck&Co Microsoft Nike Procter&Gamble Salesforce.com Tesla UnitedHealth Verizon Visa A Walmart Walt Disney

PRICE 194,16 2.768,7 3.199,95 223,53 148,19 212,67 204,94 94,30 58,22 56,64 359,37 395,87 329,24 227,70 139,11 52,01 179,44 154,72 238,49 78,68 304,36 167,79 145,09 256,13 680,26 429,71 55,52 231,36 151,45 175,12

CHANGE CHANGE% VOLUME(M) 195,13 193,37 2,39M 2.772,3 2.729,3 772,97K 3.207,81 3.175,76 3,32M 226,24 222,01 2,71M 148,50 146,78 59,51M 214,74 210,94 9,16M 207,26 203,59 2,75M 94,88 93,21 9,52M 58,33 56,85 21,83M 57,03 56,58 10,38M 359,99 353,31 8,53M 396,45 391,00 1,57M 329,68 322,47 2,92M 228,73 226,51 2,07M 139,38 137,27 2,63M 52,38 51,42 25,59M 179,92 178,07 5,29M 154,90 153,16 6,76M 239,39 236,32 1,96M 79,20 78,22 5,97M 305,84 298,06 40,66M 168,01 165,42 3,78M 145,98 144,78 5,01M 257,87 252,61 5,47M 692,13 673,70 14,72M 431,36 426,91 2,38M 55,71 55,20 10,61M 232,16 230,30 5,43M 151,72 149,75 6,42M 175,21 172,65 6,12M M - MILLION DOLLARS

NASDAQ C LOSING P RICES A UGUST 23

COMPANY

CHANGE NET / %

VOLUME

Most Advanced Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Cl A NVR Inc. Large Cap Growth Index-Linked ETN due 2028 Cable One Inc. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. Biglari Holdings Inc. Cl A RH UBS AG FI Enhanced Large Cap Growth ETN Credit Suisse FI Large Cap Growth Enhanced HubSpot Inc. ServiceNow Inc.

0.24% 1.74% 9.92% 1.29% 1.11% 2.26% 2.60% 2.31% 2.25% 2.40% 2.32%

849 11.21K 1.14K 32.5K 124.77K 360 329.34K 277 1.99K 377.78K 1M

-1.05% -4.57% -3.67% -0.72% -1.63% -1.70% -2.10% -3.38% -13.15% -1.58% -1.07%

783.49K 13.19M 4.81M 91.06K 391.22K 761.15K 3.5M 1.42K 754.7K 279.65K 216.62K

Most Declined Shopify Inc. Cl A Snowflake Inc. Sea Ltd. ADR Mettler-Toledo International Inc. Boston Beer Co. Cl A Domino's Pizza Inc. Deere & Co. Colfax Corp. Tangible Equity Un Rafael Holdings Inc. Lithia Motors Inc. Fair Isaac Corp.

www.euroweeklynews.com

First UK class action

Credit: Kārlis Dambrāns flickr

FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL

ANTI-COMPETITIVE: Mastercard to contest class action.

HAVING now lost a final appeal against the validity of the claim, Mastercard is being sued for £10 billion in the first UK class action.

In 2007, the European Com‐ mission declared that Master‐ card’s multi‐lateral interchange fees were anti‐competitive.

These are fees paid by busi‐ nesses when transactions are made using a Mastercard, which the Commission decided resulted in higher prices being charged to consumers.

The then UK Chief Financial Ombudsman Walter Merricks considered that there was clear evidence that British cardhold‐ ers had suffered to the tune of some £14 billion (€16 billion) be‐ tween 1992 and 2008.

Since 2015, he has been bat‐ tling to bring what is known in the USA as a class action where‐ by consumers do not have to be named individually and this

right was granted in the 2015 Consumer Act. Understandably Mastercard have attempted to block this case and have been successful in various UK courts, but now the Supreme Court has ruled in favour of bringing this class ac‐ tion to court saying that the Competition Appeal Tribunal had been wrong in rejecting the claim in the first instance.

The action has been changed in as much as it no longer in‐ cludes claims on behalf of the deceased, but is said to be worth around £10 billion (€11.5 billion) and if the action is suc‐ cessful refunds could be expect‐ ed by around 46 million con‐ sumers who probably aren’t even aware of the case itself.

Mastercard will be contesting the claim according to a report

by City AM and observed “This claim isn’t being brought by UK consumers, but is being driven

Raw material prices AS the world’s economies try to rebuild following the financial problems of the pandemic, a World Bank report suggests that raw material prices are spiralling upwards.

According to this report, prices of some materials such as aluminium have tripled since 2019 whilst others have exceeded the prices forecast to be likely in 2035 already.

Add to this, the disappearance of many workers such as HGV drivers in the UK which is causing shortages and it is clear that consumers are going to experience a barrage of price hikes for a whole range of items for some time to come.

by lawyers, backed by organisa‐ tions primarily focused on mak‐ ing money for themselves.”

BUSINESS EXTRA Currying favour IN a bid to curry favour with its vegetarian and vegan employees, the Volkswagen HQ in Wolfsburg has confirmed the wurst news possible for meat eaters as after the summer holidays, currywurst (German sausage favourite) will be removed from the canteen menu.

Sky Showtime A NEWCOMER to Spain’s online TV supply industry, Sky Showtime which is due to start streaming in 2022 has reportedly signed a series of deals which will allow it to screen thousands of hours of movies, documentaries and kid’s programmes. No prices have as yet been revealed.

UK inflation THE latest figures released by the UK Office for National Statistics shows that inflation in July had fallen from 2.5 per cent to 2 per cent, in line with Bank of England expectations with lower prices for clothing and footwear being a major factor.

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

EWN 35

36 EWN

www.euroweeklynews.com

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

USA HAS LOST IT

LEAPY LEE SAYS IT OTHERS THINK IT I TRULY do believe America has lost the plot. Bumbling Joe Biden rather reminds me of a movie I once saw. In the film the general is killed. To keep up army morale, his dead body is propped up on a horse with a pole stuck up its back as he leads his troops into the battle.

I think Biden is actually demised and his carefully coiffured body is being worked with a remote control ‐ probably operated

by Kamala Harris! And it’s not in the least bit funny. Because of his, and a few other naive so‐called American leaders’ decisions, hundreds, probably thousands of people will die, and the terrorist will now govern a stronghold which will ultimately prove more dangerous to the West than all the other Islamist countries put together.

It’s also worth remembering that the Saudis (who have been very quiet!) are predominately Sunni, as are the Taliban.

Bin Laden came out of Saudi Arabia ‐ and the Americans have been selling the Saudis the latest military hardware for years! Should we be worried ‐ well what do you think? Personally I believe we need Trump back; he would have made a more intelligent withdrawal than the Biden

JOE BIDEN: Worked by remote control.

administration that’s for sure. Mind you, any one of us with half a brain could have done better than Jurassic Joe! Just recently this man instigated the presentation of the squared off American flag to the relatives of George Floyd, declaring him to be ‘a

fallen hero’! You really couldn’t make it up.

Let me remind you of Floyds ‘heroic’ record. Six burglaries. Two violent home invasions. Three armed robberies, beating four of his victims senseless. Passing counterfeit money and being arrested 23

times. And Biden considers him an American hero! What an insult to the true heroes of the US, whose tearful relatives accepted the folded flag after burying loved ones who had given their lives for the country.

FEATURE

As a further point of interest, after a year of burning the city and tearing down the statues of patriots and Columbus, New Jersey has erected a 700‐pound bronze statue of George Floyd in his ’honour’ outside of City Hall. His family have received over $50 million (you ‘eard) from compensation and ‘go fund me’! And the man, who runs what is purportedly the most powerful nation in the world, thinks this thug is a national hero.

Heaven help us all.

Just to round off this week’s column of utter disbelief. The society of transgender folk have now come up with a real peach.

‘Neopronouns’. Apparently you should now choose how you want to be referred to. For example you may hear ‐ ‘Hello my name is Petal and my pronouns are they/ them. Subsequently, when talking about Petal, you should use the pronouns they, them, their etc. For example Petal is at ‘their’ desk. Before entering ongoing interaction, you should always ask, ‘what are your pronouns at the moment’? But you should avoid asking somebody about their preferred pronouns ‐ it implies their gender is a choice, rather than simply a part of who they are! Confused?

Faith the keep Love Leapy leapylee2002@gmail.com To read more articles from our columnists and to have your say in the comments go to www.euroweeklynews.com

Leapy Lee’s opinions are his own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

FEATURE

www.euroweeklynews.com

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

EWN 37

Advertising Feature

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THURSDAY 26/08

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WEDNESDAY 01/09

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Pointless BBC News at Six; Weather BBC London News; Weather Rip Off Britain EastEnders Shop Well for Less Ambulance BBC News at Ten Regional News and Weather

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Flog It! Richard Osman's House of Games The Farmers' Country Showdown Diamond League: Lausanne The Watch The Watch Newsnight Weather When Ruby Wax Met...

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Meet the Monkeys: Natural World Flog It! Richard Osman's House of Games The Farmers' Country Showdown Cricket: Today at the Test Gardeners' World The Boleyns: A Scandalous Family I'll Get This

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Summer Holiday Athletics: Diamond League Paris Flog It! Porridge Cricket: Today at the Test Dad's Army Super Powered Eagles Parkinson: Billy Connolly and David Attenborough Parkinson: Hollywood Women

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Witness for the Prosecution The Boleyns: A Scandalous Family Cricket: Today at the Test Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing Chris and Meg's Wild Summer When Ruby Wax Met...

Live at the Apollo Pose

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Flog It! Richard Osman's House of Games The Farmers' Country Showdown River Walks: The Dove, the Soar and the Trent Mastermind Only Connect University Challenge Surviving 9/11 On The Basis Of Sex

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Rick Stein's Seafood Lovers' Guide Flog It! Richard Osman's House of Games The Farmers' Country Showdown Celebrity Antiques Road Trip Saving Lives at Sea Alex Brooker: Disability and Me

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Eggheads Paul Martin's Handmade Revolution Make Me a Dealer Rick Stein's Seafood Lovers' Guide The Animal's Guide to Britain Flog It! Live T20 Cricket Mock the Week Newsnight

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Cricket: Today at the Test BBC Proms 2021 Silence Motherland Motherland Motherland Motherland Motherland Motherland

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ITV News London ITV Evening News Emmerdale NHS: The Longest Wait?

Tonight Emmerdale The Greek Islands with Julia Bradbury Undercover Big Boss ITV News at Ten and Weather ITV News London

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Dickinson's Real Deal Tenable ITV London Weather Tipping Point The Chase Celebrity Special ITV News London ITV Evening News Emmerdale Coronation Street Endeavour ITV News

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ITV London Weather Midsomer Murders Thunderball The Chase Celebrity Special ITV News and Weather ITV News London Rolling in It The Void The Cube for Soccer Aid ITV News and Weather ITV London Weather

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You've Been Framed!

Tipping Point: Lucky Stars Extreme E Live The Chase Celebrity Special ITV News and Weather ITV News London On Yer Bike for Soccer Aid Vera It's Clarkson on TV ITV News and Weather

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Tipping Point The Chase ITV Evening News ITV News London Emmerdale Coronation Street James Martin's Islands to Highlands Coronation Street Stephen ITV News at Ten and Weather

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BBC Proms 2021 TOTP: 1991 TOTP: 1991 When Bob Marley Came to Britain Reggae at the BBC Sounds of the 70s 2: Reggae - Stir It Up Reggae Fever: David Rodigan TOTP: 1991 TOTP: 1991

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Treasures of Ancient Egypt Our Coast Ordeal by Innocence Ordeal by Innocence Ordeal by Innocence Toffs, Queers and Traitors: The Extraordinary Life of Guy Burgess - Storyville Our Coast

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Agatha Christie: Talking Pictures Agatha Christie Marple: The Pale Horse Agatha Christie Marple: The Pale Horse The Mystery of Murder: A Horizon Guide Imagine: This House Is Full of Music Agatha Christie: Talking Pictures

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The Joy of Painting Agatha Christie's Miss Marple Agatha Christie: Unfinished Portrait The Great Detectives Witness for the Prosecution Timeshift: How to Write a Mills & Boon Agatha Christie: Unfinished Portrait

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The Joy of Painting Canals: The Making of a Nation The Good Life Porridge In Search of Sir Walter Scott Ivanhoe Shakespeare in Italy with Francesco da Mosto Canals: The Making of a Nation

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Judge Rinder Tenable ITV London Weather Tipping Point The Chase ITV News London ITV Evening News Emmerdale Love Your Garden Long Lost Family ITV News at Ten and Weather

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The Joy of Painting Canals: The Making of a Nation Nile: Earth's Great Rivers H2O: The Molecule That Made Us Ocean Autopsy: The Secret Story of Our Seas Dive, Dive, Dive!

Canals: The Making of a Nation Nile: Earth's Great Rivers

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The Chase ITV News London ITV Evening News Emmerdale Coronation Street Britain's Busiest Airport Heathrow Coronation Street Lee Mack's Road to Soccer Aid ITV News at Ten and Weather

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A Place in the Sun Paralympics: Today in Tokyo The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News Paralympics: Gold Rush Joe Lycett's Got Your Back Sixteen: Class of 2021 The Last Leg of Tokyo 2020

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FEATURE

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Travel

Spirit of Dali remains in Figueres THE modern town of Figueres, Girona has a population of 45,000 people and from most angles looks very normal for northern Spain. The area can claim an eclectic history however being the birthplace of Narcis Monturiol, the inventor of the first motor powered submarine, and singer Monica Naranjo.

The huge Castell de San Ferran dominates the town but no more than the presence of world famous Catalan surrealist Salvador Dali.

The legacy of Dali can be felt over Figueres, even decades after his death. The Dali Theatre and Museum helps to preserve his heritage and if you have one day in the town this is one of the best places to visit.

It is built on the site of a theatre where Dali’s first exhibitions took place which was destroyed by a fire during the Spanish Civil War. In the 1960s Dali decided to rebuild the monument and dedicate it to his works and inspirations.

A visit to his museum will provide a vivid insight into the eccentric imagination of Dali evidenced by the outside of the building which is designed like a Moorish style palace wall but decorated with giant eggs. Dali wanted his museum ‘to be a single block, a labyrinth, a great surrealist object’ and this he certainly achieved.

The museum does not feature Dali’s most wellknown works like ‘The Persistence of Time’ or ‘The

DALI MUSEUM: Designed like a Moorish palace with eggs on top.

Elephants’ as many of these are displayed in museums across the US as well as in Brussels and Madrid or held by private collectors.

Instead the museum houses many pieces from Dali’s private collection, which are no less impressive, and together constitute the single largest collection of Dali works in the world by far. To truly understand the artist, a trip to this museum is essential.

Included in the pieces on display are paintings, sculptures, collages, mechanical creations and other items which display Dali’s vivid imaginings.

Other artist’s works do feature in the museum. A Frida Kahlo exhibition recently ended and numerous surrealist displays of art by artists in Dali’s private collection are permanent features.

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

EWN 39

40 EWN

www.euroweeklynews.com

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

DAVID WORBOYS ANYBODY living in London under 70 years old doesn’t know what they were missing. They may have many years ahead of them, but what will be the quality of those years?

We face a future of pandemics, nu‐ clear threat, global terrorism, cyber‐ attacks, drug abuse, human traffick‐ ing, mass immigration, over‐ population, gender confusion, declin‐ ing health and artificial intelligence.

And, of course, climate change.

What the under‐70s missed is life in the 1960s. To have been young in this special decade was to have experi‐ enced life with a bright future. Admit‐ tedly, they were years of excesses and hedonism, but there was freedom and humour. Many people enjoyed a new prosperity as the deprivations of the post‐war years were over and there was full employment.

However, the innocence of the ‘50s was lost forever, as the rock age born, of the late ‘50s with free love, heavy drinking and the in‐ creasing use of drugs, began to take over. There was no nanny state; we

THE SWINGING SIXTIES

The Rolling Stones and Cliff Richard - Symbols of the Sixties fended for ourselves.

The ‘60s started with the cha‐cha and the baby‐doll dress and in 1962 the young Rolling Stones emerged.

Jiving to the traditional jazz bands of Humphrey Lyttleton and Chris Barber was a highly stimulating alternative to the fox‐trot. Girls in pubs drank ‘Baby‐ cham’ or port‐and‐lemon, normally escorted by male company; men drank real ale or malt whiskies.

Many towns had a 16th century inn and every village still had a traditional country pub. There was a plethora of enjoyable films, as varied as ‘Dr No’, ‘Dr Strangelove’, and ‘Doctor Doolit‐ tle’. And even better ones such as ‘Doctor Zhivago’.

Carnaby Street represented ‘Swing‐ ing London’. Lifestyle everywhere was influenced by its fashions for the young and the famous. Appreciative

wolf‐whistles were either accepted with a blush or a smile or ignored with no problem. Girls were elegant and feminine and liked to be compliment‐ ed ‐ all in good humour.

In London, Otto Klemperer had ele‐ vated his Philharmonia to one of the world’s three great classical orches‐ tras. Bill Haley had paved the way for the Rolling Stones. There were Jim Reeves, Cliff Richard and Elvis. On the

FEATURE

literary scene we had Grahame Greene, J G Ballard and an interna‐ tionally respected national broad‐ sheet.

Football fans were generally amica‐ ble while cricket boundaries were greeted with restrained applause.

There were Beatniks but few urban terrorists. Alcohol‐fuelled vandalism rather than drug‐crazed street‐mur‐ ders.

It was a relaxed era, because Lon‐ doners had a sense of humour. The term ‘politically correct’ was not used.

Some comedians were outrageous, none more so than Peter Cook and Dudley Moore, but they were hilari‐ ously funny and only the most sensi‐ tive got hurt.

Because we socialised, often in pubs, we had no need of mobile phones, computers or internet. Cars, cameras and televisions did not have many of the features we take for granted today.

They were the swinging ‘60s, the free ‘60s, the naughty ‘60s. London was the epicentre.

To read more articles from our columnists and to have your say in the comments go to www.euroweeklynews.com

David Worboys’s opinions are his own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

FEATURE

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26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

EWN 41

A FEW OF LIFE’S IRRITATIONS 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

GOOD morning, class. No talking at the back, please. I’d like to begin with another few moans.

For me, everyday irritants include: sticky price labels that don’t come off, selfies, photographing food in restaurants, people who use an upward inflection at the end of sentences and automated phone systems that claim “your call is important to us” while putting you on hold for an hour.

Calls like: “We apologise for the delay in an‐ swering your call ‐ we are experiencing a higher call volume than expected” seem to greet you ev‐ ery time you have to phone one UK media group I won’t name and shame. When will they adjust their ‘expectations’ and provide more ‘customer advisers’? They then tell you their website more than likely has the answers you need. I mean, where do they think you’ve spent the last 20 min‐ utes looking for the answer to your query before you had to ring them?

ON HOLD: Automated phone systems are just one everyday irritant.

Other irritants include food packets that re‐ quire a magnifying glass to read the instructions.

Getting a new toothbrush out of its packet. Jar lids that you need the strength of Tarzan to prise open. And as for opening ‘child‐proof’ containers,

I’m going to have to wait until the two‐year‐old next door is four before I have a reliable ‘opener’.

Let alone the packaging on scissors that require scissors to open.

In fact, packaging generally. First world prob‐

lems, I know, but even so...

Finally, where are all the UK GPs? A relative re‐ cently called into her GP surgery which has nu‐ merous doctors and health assistants to find it completely deserted apart from one patient wait‐ ing and a receptionist sitting behind a glass screen so massive she couldn’t hear anything, so any chance of patient confidentiality was scuppered.

But try booking an appointment! This involves a 30‐minute wait on the phone to be informed there are no doctors available because the surgery is (still) enforcing the same Covid‐restrict‐ ed service it was a year ago.

Where have all the doctors gone? Gone to golf courses every one.

Nora Johnson’s psychological crime thrillers ‘The Sentinel’, ‘No Safe Place’, ‘Betrayal’, ‘The Girl in the Woods’, ‘The Girl in the Red Dress’, ‘No Way Back’, ‘Landscape of Lies’, ‘Retribution’, ‘Soul Stealer’, ‘The De Clerambault Code’ (www.nora‐johnson.net) available online as eBook (€0.99; £0.99), Apple Books, paperback and audiobook. All profits to Costa del Sol Cude‐ ca cancer charity.

To read more articles from our columnists and to have your say in the comments go to www.euroweeklynews.com

Nora Johnson’s opinions are her own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

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EW YOUR PAPER - YOUR VOICE - YOUR OPINION Letters should be emailed to yoursay@euroweeklynews.com or make your comments on our website: www.euroweeklynews.com Views expressed and opinions given are not necessarily those of the EWN publishers. No responsibility is accepted for accuracy of information, errors, omissions or statements.

BAD PLANNING

From our Facebook

NEW CLUB: How was planning permission given to build on the beach?

Beach Bars I have been coming to Estepona for many years now, and have been impressed by the constant improvements that the Junta has implemented over the years, beautiful flowers and a feeling of a town on the up. One recent change however does not fit into that category. It had been rumoured that a chiringuito was to be built on the Costa Natura naturist beach, the first beach in Spain to be designated as naturist by royal charter in 1979, but before the lockdown I heard that planning permission had been refused.

You can imagine my surprise on visiting again that what can best be described as a beach club (not a chiringuito) had been built, directly in front of the new high end ‘The Edge’ properties, replacing the previous sea views that some of these properties had with the view of a wall, and a constant heavy beat music track for the whole development and the surrounding area. What is worse is that the club is built directly on the naturist beach, will not allow naturists in, or even allow them to hire a sun lounger on the beach in front of their club, and the ‘waiters’ have been telling Spanish families that they have bought the beach, and they should go elsewhere. The beach is actually public land, and cannot be bought.

This seems to me to be a spectacularly bad case of planning,

What happens next?

AT the time of writing, it has become clear that a number of people are worried about which way the British Government is going to jump with regards to Spain and the traffic light system.

Rumour abounds that we could become a red light country and this has clearly resulted in a number of people, both British residents and visitors either curtailing their holidays or bringing forward a return to the UK. Considering that British children start to return to school at the beginning of September, many parents understandably want to make sure

CORRECTIONS

and I cannot understand how this club, which is completely cross threaded with both the Edge development, the neighbouring Costa natura village, and the naturist beach has been allowed to build here. Or am I just being naïve?

Tony Worswick

REFUGEES: Should they be granted asylum in the EU?

I agree!

David Sánchez

I completely agree with the letter entitled ‘Racist propaganda’.

So very noticeable all of a sudden. I believe this was kicked off by the situation in the US when the policeman held the perpetrator down with his knee on his neck. May be wrong, but am sure it was around that time.

Love Leapy’s articles, usually agree with his look on life too.

Regards, DM

It shouldn’t be any debate. They had to leave their home because of an unacceptable war...t he whole EU and the others countries of the world should help them. No debate.

Love the paper Thanks for all the informative and entertaining news, keeping us abreast of changes both here and abroad.

Regards, S Brown

OUR VIEW

that they and their kids aren’t suddenly required to go into quarantine and those living here who want to see their families seem to believe ‘better safe than sorry’.

Looking at the situation dispassionately, there seems little genuine justification for the British Government in effectively penalising Spain, as the number of new infections is clearly on a downward trend and hopefully this will continue to be the case.

Some believe that the British Government wants to encourage British holidaymakers to remain in the UK and to spend their money there

rather than in European hot spots and if that logic prevails, then Spain may well suffer for economic rather than protective health reasons.

Under normal circumstances, such a conspiracy theory would be treated as nonsense, but the British Government hardly has a record of rational thinking as far as the pandemic and travel matters are concerned.

Let’s hope that the status quo remains and that relatively free movement between Spain and the UK is allowed to continue after Sunday August 29, when any change is likely to be imposed.

Tina Fisher This is a bit late as they already have. But yes of course they should. With Spain already overflowing with economic refugees, how could they refuse real refugees in their hour of real need.

Betty Purves All countries, should be a united nations problem.

Mark Spain Yes I’m sure the EU will take many refugees, but the majority should be taken by the USA and the UK.

Patricia Keery All countries should help and not be left to the usual ones.

Agnes Gillespie All countries should help, the men were trained up to be soldiers, they need to stand their ground. Get the elderly out and women and children, the Taliban have no respect for women !!!!!

Margaret Mc If they are people who have worked for another country in whatever role, then yes.

Dominique Ramsey No and they should take responsibility for themselves.

At the EWN, we pride ourselves that reports are accurate and fair. If we do slip up, we promise to set the record straight in a clear, no-nonsense manner. To ask for an inaccuracy to be corrected. Email: editorial@euroweeklynews.com

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26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

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HEALTH & BEAUTY

The rewards of rooibus IT’S a well‐known fact that rooibos is better for you than normal tea, but just how much better is surpris‐ ing. And once you’ve heard about these ‘extra’ health and beauty ben‐ efits, chances are you’ll be sipping rooibus in favour of your regular cuppa.

An added bonus is that you can get all the beautifying effects with‐ out the herb, which originates from South Africa, even touching your lips.

Acne sufferers will be interested to hear that rooibos is rich in alpha hydroxy and zinc – both vital nutri‐ ents for healthy skin. Alpha hydroxy reduces the signs of ageing and revi‐ talises skin, while zinc heals wounds, protects against UV rays and has an‐ ti‐inflammatory properties, which can help with acne, random monthly pimples and sunburn.

Sip on a cup, or even apply the tea straight to your skin!

Rooibus, also known as bush or redbush tea, is also said to help with hair loss. A cup a day not only keeps your locks healthy and strong, but may also help prevent hair loss. Ap‐

BENEFITS: The positive effects of a cup of rooibos are far reaching.

parently, its active ingredients actu‐ ally help remove dead skin cells that block hair follicles and prevent hair from growing.

It’s also packed with zinc, calcium, copper and potassium (essential for hair growth), and polyphenols (an‐

tioxidants), which promote shiny, soft tresses.

It’s easy to prepare your own tea rinse at home. Steep for 30 minutes in boiled water.

Once cooled, pour over freshly washed or conditioned hair, or sim‐

ply spray it on. Allow to sit for 20 minutes before rinsing.

As mentioned, the antioxidants in rooibos have anti‐inflammatory properties, which assist in prevent‐ ing cardiovascular disease, while its antiviral properties boost your im‐

mune system. It also has a hypogly‐ caemic effect on the body, helping to balance blood sugar and improve insulin resistance, which may help prevent the development of type 2 diabetes.

The tea has also been proven to remedy irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). The antispasmodic agents in rooibos help ease stomach aches and pains, and aid digestion. It is re‐ ported that this is because it smooths out the muscles in the gut.

Sufferers should try drinking a cup about half an hour before a meal to get the most out of this effect.

Apparently, rooibos can also help with asthma. It’s a bronchodilator (a substance that dilates the bronchi and bronchioles in lungs to increase airflow) and many researchers be‐ lieve the tea can alleviate the symp‐ toms of asthma.

And finally, although there are bound to be even more health and beauty benefits, rooibos can help lower your cholesterol. Chrysoeriols, a flavonoid in rooibos, aids in blood circulation and has also been linked to reducing cholesterol.

Well groomed men A GOOD skin care regime is not exclusive to women, men need one too. Only cleansing and moisturising is not enough to keep male skin healthy and clean.

To avoid dry, dull and brit‐ tle skin, it’s important to fol‐ low a skin care plan.

Men tend to have oilier and thicker skin, so it’s advisable to choose a good facial cleanser that works on all kinds of skin.

Cleansing sanitises and eliminates dead skin cells without drying. It also helps to avoid whiteheads, blackheads and acne. Toning balances and tightens.

Moisturising prevents cracks and dry and dull skin, as well as offering protection and healing benefits.

Sunscreen is a must, with a minimum SPF of 30, making sure it’s applied 15 minutes before heading out so that it is well absorbed.

Exfoliation is crucial to elim‐ inate dead skin cells from ac‐ cumulating and causing bacte‐ rial infection. Used once a

SKINCARE: A simple daily routine is vital for men as well as women. week, a gentle but granulated face scrub will smoothen the skin, eradicate dullness and soften hair follicles for a smoother shave with minimal irritation.

The skin around the eyes lacks in sweat and oil glands, making it highly susceptible to under‐eye dehydration. This shows itself as fine lines and wrinkles. Dabbing a little hy‐ drating eye cream each morn‐ ing and before bed can help

prevent this.

A good lip balm with a high SPF is a must to help keep them soft, supple and pro‐ tected from the sun.

Clean beards are more like‐ ly to be soft beards. Beauty experts advise using face wash or shampoo when cleansing facial hair, taking care not to over shampoo as this can strip the hair of natu‐ ral oils. Try applying beard oil with fragrance after washing.

HEALTH & BEAUTY ON average we lose 50 to 100 scalp hairs each day, but this is normal and new hairs grow in their place.

The hair’s programmed life cy‐ cle consists of three phases: the growth phase, the shedding phase and the resting phase.

When this cycle has been dis‐ rupted or when the hair follicle has been destroyed, excessive hair loss or thinning of the scalp can begin to happen, and reced‐ ing hairlines, bald patches and complete baldness can occur.

Hair loss mainly affects men, but women are still susceptible, and there are normally certain triggers.

According to dermatologists, experiencing a highly stressful event such as a physical injury or severe anxiety can cause shock to the hair cycle, pushing more hair into the shedding phase. Also, fewer hair follicles are available to grow new hair during the growing phase. This can trigger telogen ef‐ fluvium, a type of hair loss that sees as many as 70 per cent of the scalp hairs being shed, usually in handfuls. It becomes noticeable about two to six months after the shock occurs.

The body begins to go back to normal once the stress is over, which will then kick start your

www.euroweeklynews.com

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

More than a bad hair day

HAIR LOSS: Diet, hormones and stress are all common causes. hair’s growth cycle.

Hair loss can run in the family.

Androgenetic alopecia, or female‐ pattern hair loss (FPHL), causes thinning on all areas of the scalp.

This leads to increased diffuse hair shedding or a reduction in hair vol‐ ume, or both. It’s the most com‐ mon form of hair loss, affecting 40 per cent of women by age 50. Fac‐ tors tied to hormones also play a major role, so FPHL can also occur after menopause or pregnancy.

Minoxidil is the preferred medi‐ cation to use to treat FPHL, as you can easily apply it to your dry scalp.

Hair thrives on a diet rich in vita‐

mins, minerals and antioxidants. A lack of vitamin C can make your hair dry and brittle. Protein pow‐ ers growth in hair cells, but an ab‐ sence of it results in less new hair growth. Iron helps red blood cells to carry oxygen, once your iron levels are low you become anaemic and your cells struggle to function, causing you to lose your hair.

Zinc is important for tissue growth and repair, plus it keeps oil glands around the hair follicles in good working order. But if your zinc intake is low, you’ll experience slow hair growth and dandruff in addition to the hair loss.

Start eating foods that contain these vital nutrients. Oranges, mangoes, cauliflower and toma‐ toes contain Vitamin C, whilst pro‐ tein can be found in meats, eggs, fish, yoghurt and beans. Whole grain cereals and dark green leafy vegetables are great for providing you with iron, plus you will need zinc‐rich foods like nuts, chickpeas and sweet potatoes.

A sudden or excessive loss of weight can result in the thinning and loss of hair. It can be a shock to the system, which can trigger telogen effluvium. Stress from di‐ eting can cause more hairs than usual to fall out during the shed‐ ding phase. And vitamin or miner‐ al deficiencies are also major fac‐ tors.

As we age, our bodies begin to lose the ability to renew and re‐ generate cells quickly. This results in thinning hair, hair loss and grey‐ ing. Research also points to menopause as a cause. A de‐ crease in hormones like oestrogen and progesterone, which help to grow and retain hair, leads to slow hair growth and thinning. This prompts the increased production

of androgens, a group of male hormones. Androgens shrink hair follicles, resulting in hair loss on the head.

Childbirth is another cause.

During the pregnancy itself, oe‐ strogen levels increase, meaning

EWN 49

hairs remain in the growing phase.

But hair loss can occur approxi‐ mately three months after the de‐ livery when hormones are return‐ ing to their normal levels, causing the hair cycle to resume.

It will recover within six to 12 months as the follicles start to re‐ juvenate themselves. Supplement your diet with fruits and vegeta‐ bles rich in Vitamins B, C and E, and zinc to promote hair growth.

50 EWN

www.euroweeklynews.com

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

SOCIAL SCENE

Butterfly Charity Gala Dinner THE DEBRA Butterfly Chil‐ dren Charity is holding its annual fundraiser event with a gala dinner.

The Butterfly Charity Gala Dinner will be held on Fri‐ day, September 24 at La Ma‐ rina Camping & Resort, La Marina.

Tickets are € 38 per per‐ son which includes a cock‐ tail on arrival, a three‐ course meal with wine and entertainment by Paula Molina.

This event will help to fund two of their specialist nurses and the help of donors is incredibly valu‐ able.

For tickets or further in‐ formation about this event please contact Mary either via phone 616 076 072 or email lamarina@debra.es.

It is the national, regis‐

THE HUB: Donated to the Annual Poppy Appeal.

FUNDRAISING: For Butterfly Children Charity. tered charity for people af‐ fected by Epidermolysis bul‐ losa or EB in Spain. The team is made up of 38 peo‐ ple, all working for children with EB and their families.

Thanks to the efforts of the families, the team and the rising number of volun‐ teers and collaborators, the charity has raised awareness of the disease.

The charity is also the founding member of DEBRA International, which brings together all the different or‐ ganisations from across the world for people with EB. DEBRA Butterfly Children is also a member of the na‐ tional platform of organisa‐ tions for patients and the in‐ ternational programme for EB health care profession‐ als, EB‐ Clinet.

It also works with the Biomedic research centre for rare diseases, CIBERER and with the Carlos III Insti‐ tute for Health.

€500 for Royal British Legion THE Orihuela Costa and District Branch of the Royal British Legion was once again delighted to show its appreciation to those in the local com‐ munity who provide them with their valued support.

Cameron McHardy and Simon Williams, propri‐ etors of The Hub Sports Bar in Villamartin Plaza, have donated over €500 to the Annual Poppy Ap‐ peal in support of local

veterans and their fami‐ lies here in Spain.

Mr Williams, himself a veteran of the RAF Regiment, earmarks the proceeds from the regu‐ lar quiz nights held at The Hub for the Poppy Appeal, and following the recent handover of the cash he was pre‐ sented with a Certifi‐ cate of Appreciation by Poppy Appeal Coordina‐ tor Eddie Coleman and Fundraiser Tatiana Ramsbottom.

The Branch President, Graham Rhodes said: “The Hub, which is one of the foremost sport‐ ing venues in Villa‐ martin, has championed the RBL for several years, raising many hundreds of euros in the process.

“Their efforts have been absolutely invalu‐ able in providing much‐ needed funding that can be spent assisting veter‐ ans and their families who are going through a difficult period.

“We at the RBL are all extremely grateful for the efforts made by Si‐ mon and his loyal pa‐ trons, particularly during these challenging times.”

SOCIAL SCENE

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26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

EWN 51

Stableford golf competition DAY CENTRE: The two vehicles collect people from their homes and then back again.

Age Concern Autumn Fair AGE CONCERN will be holding their autumn fair in Torrevieja on October 2.

The fair, which will include a prize draw with tickets priced €1 available from the centre and from charity shops, will take place from 11 am.

The autumn fair will take place at the charity’s centre on Calle Paganini in Urbanizacion La Siesta in Torrevieja.

The charity is now looking for donations for its prize draw. Age Concern Costa Blanca Sur is a non‐profit making charity regis‐ tered with the Generalitat Va‐ lenciana, since 1998.

The charity covers from south of the city of Alicante down to

the Murcia border and inland to Vega Baja. Age Concern in Spain encourages people from other countries to integrate with the Spanish people and seek to es‐ tablish relationships with Span‐ ish associations that work for the benefit of older people.

Through its volunteer work‐ ers it aims to meet the needs of whoever calls on them, for friendship and information.

Its two vehicles operate out of its day centre to collect benefi‐ ciaries from their homes, to visit the day centre for activities and then take them home.

Both vehicles have been spe‐ cially adapted to allow for ease of embarking and disembarking

of people with reduced mobility and their mobility aids. A huge team of volunteer drivers daily make their way throughout the Costa Blanca South, collecting beneficiaries ensuring their safe‐ ty at all times. The vehicles and drivers also collect clothes and other donations which go to stock their charity shops.

Age Concern has a charity shop in Torrevieja at C / Patricio Zamit, 41, which is open Mon‐ day to Wednesday and Friday from 10am to 2pm and on Thursday from 5pm to 7pm.

It also has a shop in Los Mon‐ tesinos on C / Avda del Mar, 39b, which is open Monday to Friday from 10am to 2pm.

THE Montgo Golf Society has played a Stable‐ ford Competition for the Middleton Trophy.

On Friday, August 20, the society took part in the competition for the trophy, sponsored

by Mr George Braddick.

According to the society, first place and the winner of the Middleton Trophy was Sally Cot‐ trell with 39 points, while second place went to Geoff Willcock with 38 points and third place went to Simon Fox with 36 points.

There were two nearest the pins, on the third which was won by Jeanne White, and the 11th.

There was no winner for the 11th, however, so this went to a card draw won by Keith Cot‐ trell. There was only one two and this was achieved by Sally Cottrell.

The society had one returning member, Shane Fitzsimmons, and one guest, Helmut Pertier.

Next week the Montgo Golf Society will be taking part in a ‘Magic 3’ game sponsored by Keith Cottrell.

The Montgo Golf Society was formed in March 2009 by a group of local golfers who had previously been members of other golf societies on the Costa Blanca.

The society had five original Founders and

Sally Cottrell won trophy with 39 points. an initial membership of 30, however this has grown over the years and it now limits the membership to 85.

It meets every Friday throughout the year and plays a variety of competitions including regular medals and team tournaments.

52 EWN

www.euroweeklynews.com

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

FEATURE

GO LOCAL BUY LOCAL: By shopping locally, independent businesses can help support the local community.

THE EUROWEEKLY NEWS urged its readers to support local businesses in the com‐ munity by going local now that the lockdown has ended and for your all your shop‐ ping this year, instead of feeding online giants and su‐ perstores.

We challenge you to redis‐ cover your local high streets, markets, butchers, greengro‐ cers and all of the wonderfully quirky independent business‐ es in your area.

Now that the Covid‐19 pan‐ demic appears to be under control, it is a good idea to try and support many local busi‐ nesses by ordering online and making use of any click and collect services they can oper‐ ate, especially if you are un‐ able to get out due to health reasons or any other restric‐ tions. The joy of shopping lo‐ cal means that independent businesses can help support the local community.

Although it may be a euro or two cheaper elsewhere or online, consider where your money is actually going.

By shopping at an indepen‐ dent store you’re putting food on a local family’s table, and there is no better time than now to give back to your com‐ munity by making a small ges‐

ture and shopping in this way.

Many local stores support local charities, support and sponsor local sports teams and in many cases the small independent stores are actu‐ ally much more than just a small high street shop, they’re a family’s legacy, often passed down through numerous gen‐ erations and support not just the current owner but the generation before.

For those stores which are new, that extra couple of eu‐ ros spent there are support‐ ing someone’s dream and am‐ bition, and also the courage it took them to step out alone, which is no easy task. It takes quite a large chunk of money to set up an independent store and compete with the multinational and chains.

So be sure to pre‐order your meat from a local butch‐ er and get your spuds from a local greengrocer, let us re‐ vive that community spirit and get to know our neigh‐ bours again.

You could also consider purchasing gift vouchers from local businesses to help them over the coming weeks, think‐ ing outside the box can often lead to some fantastic ideas.

Why not buy a meal for two, an hour’s tattoo time at a lo‐

cal studio, a hair cut at a local salon or an online study course for someone looking to change their career path.

As people are struggling with finances thinking about what friends and family may actually need is important too. Whilst it’s nice to give a glamourous gift perhaps pre‐ paying a family member’s phone bill for the month would actually be a better gift. Helping people alleviate stress and worry, give the gift of peace of mind through these difficult times.

Choosing to spend your money locally will really make a difference in the recovery of the local economy. When we buy local, our money stays lo‐ cal, and it strengthens the lo‐ cal economy in two ways.

First, buying local keeps mon‐ ey circulating within the local economy.

Studies have shown that lo‐ cal businesses recirculate a greater share of every euro as they create locally owned supply chains and invest in their employees.

Data shows that local retail‐ ers return 52 per cent of their revenue back into the local economy, compared to just 14 per cent for national chain retailers.

Money circulating through the local economy benefits everyone who is a part of each transaction. For exam‐ ple, let’s look at a local farmer growing produce.

First, they sell to a local restaurant, which in turn pre‐ pares the fresh produce and sells it to local customers. The farmer pays its local employ‐ ees and the restaurant uses revenue from sales to buy supplies from a neighbour‐ hood hardware store. This ex‐ ample illustrates how the re‐ circulation of money in the local economy leads to a stronger financial foundation for our neighbours and com‐ munities. Buying local also fu‐ els new employment and job opportunities for people with‐ in our community.

Studies show, locally owned businesses employ more people per unit of sales and retain more employees over time. A fantastic exam‐ ple of how to support your lo‐ cal community is with a Chari‐ ty Gift certificate, why not donate to your loved one’s favourite cause.

Just remember to still fol‐ low the latest government ad‐ vice and any guidance busi‐ nesses have to keep everyone safe in the future.

26 August - 1 September 2021 • www.euroweeklynews.com

SPONSORED BY

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You join as a pet and homeowner member, for this there is a small annual fee. You get ID checked for safety and then build your advert saying when you are going on holiday. House‐sit‐ ters are mailed your advert, they respond and then you choose whom you would like to care for your pets.

What makes HouseSitMatch unique?

The careful checking of all our members makes us unique. Unlike other house‐sitting and pet‐sitting networks, at Housesitmatch.com we ID check all our members. We also offer house‐ sitters a police and background check on regis‐ tration. We do this because it makes our net‐

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Do you need a housesitter? Get in touch. House-sitting can be a win-win for both parties, free house and petsitting, and the experienced and checked sitters get free accommodation! Register as either housesitter or homeowner with a 25% discount using coupon code 25NEWS – an exclusive offer for readers. To find a house pet-sitter go to www.HousesitMatch.com OWNING a pet can help to im‐ prove our emotional and phys‐ ical well‐being and could im‐ prove your health long term.

According to the British Med‐ ical Journal, the emotional bond between animal and owner can be as intense as any human relationship.

Most pet owners are well aware that owning a pet comes with a lot of responsibilities, but these help to give the day pur‐ pose and structure. Many peo‐ ple also feel a sense of achieve‐ ment when their animal is happy and healthy.

It has also been suggested that owning a pet reduces the risk of heart disease and other cardiovascular illnesses, possi‐ bly due to the extra exercise pet owners usually undertake or the fact that having an ani‐

The pursuit of happiness mal companion helps to relieve stress.

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53

PETS

Advertising Feature

OCELOT OPERATED FOR A SERIOUS FRACTURE IN ALFAZ DEL PI

Surgeon José Rial preparing the ocelot to be operated on.

AN ocelot suffering from a serious elbow fracture was operated on at the Marina Baixa Veterinary Hospital. Before the surgical interven‐ tion, because of the suspicion of a possible heart problem due to the distended abdomen and symptoms of fatigue and the age of the ocelot, several tests were performed, including blood tests and ab‐ dominal ultrasound and echocardiography in order to assess various organs. The ultrasound was performed by the veterinarian David Ni‐ eto del Centro Veterinario de Diagnostico por Imagen de Levante, who confirmed that there were no heart problems. The need to at‐ tend the injury of his limb is due to the impact that it can generate in his daily routines over time. The Terra Natura Park veterinarians per‐ formed anaesthesia on the ocelot and the CT scan and complicated elbow surgery was performed by the veterinarian José Rial, an AVEPA accredited specialist in traumatology and orthopaedics.

In Costa Blanca Sur: www.resonanciaveterinaria.es Centro Veterinario de Diagnóstico por Imagen de Levante C/Los Arcos 23 Ciudad Quesada, Rojales. Tel: 609 779 109

54 EWN

www.euroweeklynews.com

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

LETTER FROM

CANARIES

DEAR Reader, I imagine you’ve read ex‐Genesis drummer Chris Stewart’s pleasant book ‘Driving Over Lemons’ about life up there in the Alpujarras?

It occurs to me that I should be writing you a Driving Over Mangos treatise now we’re in August, but the ‘living‐with‐pic‐ turesque‐foreigners’ genre’s best left to those who like it and anyway, to be strictly accurate, we’re walking rather than driving over our fruit here.

The Canarian mango story’s a classic because, like so many other tales of considerable human endeavour, it’s gone wrong. Fruit’s meant to be eaten, not used as ground cover, but here on the island of La Gomera rotting mangos carpet plantations and paths.

As I write, a pleasant mango essence wafts around me, but mangos soon rot in this heat, attracting millions of flies and it’ll soon be time to collect other people’s rotten fruit to avoid them. No‐ body much bothers to pick the fruit.

There’s no small grower collective or cooperative to organise exportation and there’s a limit to just how many mangos a community can eat, freeze,

FEATURE

Walking over mangos Intensive Care units are under pressure. juice or chutney.

Native to SE Asia, mangos came here from the Philippines at the end of the 18th century, with other strains from Cuba and Venezuela arriving a century later.

There were none in mainland Spain until the 20th century.

There are 429 hectares planted with mangos in the Canaries, producing 18,000kg per hectare. Go figure! If any enterprising entrepreneurs read this, do please get in touch.

Moving away from mangos, a selec‐ tion of other Canarian news follows:

Our intensive care units are so over‐ loaded with new Covid cases that they’re on the verge of collapse. Many of the afflicted are 25‐50‐year‐olds and this, together with news that entrance to public places will be limited to those who’ve been vaccinated, has resulted in thousands of young people queuing for vaccinations.

Central government has announced that the Canaries will receive 55 per cent of EU funding available to pur‐ chase three and a half million more dos‐ es of vaccine.

Morocco’s friendship with the USA

Lazaro’s wing has now healed and he can fly free. continues to fuel our nearest neigh‐ bour’s ‘defence’ capacity and its aquisi‐ tion of Bayraktar TB2 drones capable of carrying and firing missiles is causing concern.

In Los Realejos, Tenerife, six mem‐ bers of the same family have finally been arrested for crimes of robbery with violence and intimidation, causing injury, and threatening behaviour.

Neighbour ‘José, who understandably asked not to be identified, told EWN: “It’s incredible that this family’s had such a long run of criminal behaviour without attracting any police attention

whatsoever! Several of us have com‐ plained to the police, but our refusal to denounce them and give our names has meant they’ve done nothing.”

On a lighter note, Lázaro, a young Black Kite who suffered a broken wing, treated at Gran Canaria’s Recuperation Centre for Wild Fauna, can now rise above rotting mangos, failing intensive care units, Moroccan armaments and police complacency, after his release in Valsequillo, Gran Canaria.

Long may he fly free!

Barbara Belt. barbarabelt@gmail.com

Barbara Belt’s opinions are her own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

FEATURE

www.euroweeklynews.com

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

Time to declutter

ROBERT SHALLIS MANY of us at one time or another reach that stage where we decide it is time to finally let go of that overcrowded wardrobe bursting with old clothes we no longer wear, most of which you’ve even forgotten you had. For years the same thoughts go through our minds, “I’ll keep those jeans as they were rather expensive at the time’ or “I’ll lose a little weight and get back into that dress one day”. The excuses can be endless, although certainly justifiable in your mind at the time allowing them to hang there for yet another year before you go through the same thought pattern again resulting in the same outcome.

Every now and then we finally have the urge to clear out that excess baggage that just isn’t serving us at all. That cathartic feeling of taking it to the charity shop and letting go gives a sense of relief and achievement.

Decluttering your wardrobe is one thing but in order to really lighten the heavy load that life can bestow upon

SPRING CLEANING: It’s time to clean your mind and reduce chaos.

us is to understand how to declutter ‘yourself’, spring clean your mind and reduce unwanted chaos that can lead to that old enemy knocking on the door ‐ stress.

So much of what we do in our everyday lives is automatic, we don’t think about it, we just get on and do it, however, we become overloaded as more and more is demanded of us.

This is when it is time to take a step back and look at that cluttered up life that you are living and decide what you can throw out in order to be able to breathe and spend some downtime with the most important person in your life, you.

The problem we sometimes encounter is that many of us find it difficult to say no, we are often busy helping others by fulfilling their needs, for martyrdom or not the result will be detrimental to our own well‐being and the situation will inevitably implode. It is one thing being efficient and helping others in need but it is never effective if you are overloading yourself. It is vital to know and understand that when we care for ourselves, we are more able to take care of those around us.

Life can be all too consuming if we allow it to be, so how do you take that step back, declutter and release the shackles holding us back from living an easier more relaxed but productive life?

Firstly, rather than taking on every

EWN 55

burden, never be afraid to ask others for help, you will find most people are more than willing to do so especially as they will be aiding a person that aides others in return. Learning to delegate and let go of the obligations you feel are only yours to undertake will create more time for yourself.

Take a walk, switch off your electronic device and really stop, look and feel. Feel what is actually around you, feel the sun on your skin, hear the ocean, breathe in your environment, actually feel the earth beneath your feet so you are truly grounded. All this will allow you to not only think differently but also feel differently. Calm will ensue by altering your way of being.

If you can find just a little ‘me time’ each day you will slowly begin to declutter creating a steady gradual change for the better. So, make the choice to take time for your precious wonderful you and improve the quality of your life.

Rob Shallis www.robshallis.com To read more articles from our columnists and to have your say in the comments go to www.euroweeklynews.com

Robert Shallis’ opinions are his own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

EMMA WALLSWORTH THERE are many different causes and sources of foot pain: Sprains, arthritis and joint pain, bunions, plantar fasciitis, blisters, calluses, and corns swelling.

What essential oils we use and why...

Peppermint oil: Peppermint essential oil can serve as both a pain reliever (anal‐ gesic) and a mild anaesthetic. It’s also an‐ ti‐inflammatory, antiseptic, and is anti‐ spasmodic (prevents or lessens cramps and spasms).

Eucalyptus oil: Eucalyptus essential oil could help as a pain reliever and anti‐in‐ flammatory. It’s also antibacterial, anti‐ septic, and antispasmodic.

Ingredients: 1) ½ cup organic olive oil 2) ¼ cup infused nettle oil 3) ¼ cup coconut oil 4) 17g beeswax 5) 5 drops of vitamin E oil 6) 15 drops of peppermint oil 7) 15 drops of eucalyptus oil 8) Wooden skewer 9) 4 x 60ml glass jars with lid Method: 1) Prepare a bain‐marie, you can use a pan, add water ¼ way, add two wooden skewers to the bottom, place in glass heat proof jug (also known as a water bath or double boiler)

How to make a soothing foot balm at home...

Or contact The Simply Natural Group to purchase directly from our Facebook eco shop.

Join Our New ‘Simply Flora & Fauna’ page on Facebook. We aim to build a map to track local nature in different areas throughout Spain. We will share findings, share information and photos.

Please contact us at email: thesimplynaturalgroupltd@gmail.com.

Facebook ‐ The Simply Natural Group Facebook community page ‐ Simply Flo‐ ra & Fauna You Tube Simply Back 2 Basics The Simply Natural Group products may contain oils and butters from natural nuts, seeds and fruits.

If you have any allergies please read the product label carefully. We recom‐ mend that people with sensitive skin per‐ form a patch test first to ensure there is no reaction.

ESSENTIAL OILS: You can make your own Eucalyptus oil to help as a pain reliever.

2) Add beeswax to the glass jug and be‐ gin to melt 3) Add nettle oil, coconut oil and olive oil to the jug, use a wooden skewer to stir (melting point of beeswax is 65ºC)

4) Once melted remove from the heat, add vitamin E and other essential oils 5) Lay jars on to paper towel to catch spills. Add balm to the jars.

Leave to cool.

Emma Wallsworth’s opinions are her own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

56 EWN

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26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

AIR CONDITIONING

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PAINTERS/DECORATORS

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MOBILITY

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EWN 57

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PAINTERS/DECORATORS

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REMOVALS & STORAGE

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EWN 59

WINDOW TINTING

CLASSIFIEDS ARCHITECTS

BUILDING SERVICES J & J PAINTERS. Inside outside - clean - fast low cost. Torrevieja - Orihuela Costa and surrounding areas. Tel: 650 363 159 (290728)

CARE WORK UNIQUE SENIOR CARE NOW RECRUITING LIVE IN CARERS TO WORK IN UK. MINIMUM PAY £700 PER WEEK. FLEXIBLE ROTAS, DEDICATED MANAGER, FULL TRAINING AND INDUCTION GIVEN. IF OVER 18 AND HAVE A PASSION FOR CARE, WE HAVE POSITIONS THAT WILL INTEREST. CALL SUE 641 698 363 OR EMAIL sue.edwards@unique care.co.uk

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CHARITY

CAMPELLO CONTRA CANCER in conjunction with AECC Association Español Contra Cancer. Please support your local Cancer charity and if you wish to obtain literature or simply talk to someone. Please contact Mina or Trisha. Tel 650 071 278 or 610 921 413 e-mail aecc_campello@hotmail.com (95475)

CHURCH SERVICE IN ENGLISH Tel: 950 617 549 www.givinglight.com.

(10006)

PRIVATE collector will buy your Gold, Rolex & Patek Philippe Watches Tel – 678 716 693 (288662)

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Valencia City to Murcia. Anyone wishing to attend a meeting or discuss a possible drinking problem contact Costa Blanca North: 648 169 045 or Costa Blanca South: 625 912 078 or Costa Calida 679 385 105 All calls are treated in the strictest confidence. AA in German: 645 456 075; Spanish: 679 212 535; Flemish: 635 047 053; and Scandinavian: 659 779 222. www.aacostablanca.org (93323)

CANCER SUPPORT GROUP (MABS) MURCIA / MAR MENOR Help and support is just a phone call away, Avda Rio Nalón, Tel: 693 275 779 (95462)

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60

CHARITY ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS IS ALCOHOL COSTING YOU MORE THAN MONEY? Drinking to excess not only affects your health it can spill over into every other aspect of your life – damaging everything that is important to you. English-speaking AA meetings are held throughout the Costa Blanca from

FREEMASONRY. Are you aware that Freemasonry is thriving on the Costa Blanca?

There are various Lodges meetings up throughout the Valencia region. If you already are a Mason or simply wish to know more about Freemasonry in Spain please contact sec@glpvalencia .com Tel 600 841 064 (95477) HELP VEGA BAJA. We are a non-profit making organisation that helps and supports anyone, without prejudice, in times of need or crisis within the Vega Baja area. Our offices are based in San Miguel at Calle Lope de Vega 46 (Tel 966 723 733), Torrevieja at Rambla Juan Mateo Garcia 4 (Tel 965 704 282). We are online at www.helpvegaba ja.com and also on Facebook. You can email the San Miguel Centre at office@ helpvegabaja.com. We also have a 24-hour Emergency helpline which is available to both members and non-members on 966 723 733 (95456) INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN ASSEMBLY, TORREVIEJA Calle Urbano Arregui, 23, Torrevieja 03185, Alicante Evangelical non-denominational church. Sunday morning Services at 11:00am. All nationalities welcome - Contact 966 752 543 / 966 799 273. For other church matters phone: 966 799 273 / /617 215 463 www.icatorre vieja.org (95476)

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021 • www.euroweeklynews.com SPONSORED BY

LA SIESTA EVANGELICAL CHURCH on Urbanisation La Siesta, Torrevieja is a friendly, English speaking church.

For more information, including details of our services, see our website www.lasies t a e va n g e l i c a l c h u r c h . o r g (10005) PHILIP SCOTT LODGE No 10671 of the RAOB. Please call the secretary, Colin Bird on 693 287 614 for further information. (95459) PILAR CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY CHURCH. All welcome from any church background or none. For further information, www.pilarchurch.org Reg No: 2009-SG/A (95463) ROYAL AIR FORCES ASSOCIATION COSTA BLANCA BRANCH 1359. The association supports the welfare needs of ex-members of the RAF and their dependents.

We also provide a social hub for members by organising monthly events. To fund Welfare we raise money through the Wings Appeal.

New members are very welcome. To find out more contact Chairman Tony at tony.elaine.cuenta@gmail.co m. For Welfare contact Bill or Pauline on 0034 634 389 983 or email rafacb president2@gmail.com. For general information on RAFA visit www.rafa.org.uk..

(238593) ROYAL BRITISH LEGION Why not make this year the year you volunteer? See how you can help either as a caseworker (with full training) or as a Telephone Buddy. We also visit beneficiaries who are housebound or in hospital. If you feel you could support us here in Spain, and you have a Spanish phone number then why not email us for more info tbuddyhhvisits@gmail.com.

If you or your partner served or are serving, and you feel you need help or support then contact us using the details on the card, we are here for the small things as well as the big, sometimes talking to someone is the first step to feeling more in control. It can be a personal need or some help with your home or information on what or who to speak to on a medical issue, we help with signposting if we cannot help directly, just call and have a chat with Pam who will try to guide you to where you need to be.

If you would like to go to a branch meeting then find your nearest one at, http://branches.britishle gion.org.uk/branches/ori huela-costa - covering from Punta Prima to San Javier.

More info can be found on branch website www.ori huelacostarbl.co.uk. (95457)

ROYAL BRITISH LEGION Gran Alacant & La Marina Branch. For info, contact the branch Secretary at granala cant.secretary@rbl.commu nity ROYAL MARINES ASSOCIATION (Costa Blanca) The aim of the Association is to bring together not just ex Royal Marines, but ex Service personnel with an affinity to the Royal Marines. For further details Hon Sec 692 938 664.

(10004) ROYAL NAVAL ASSOCIATION For information please contact Chairman Paul Edwards on 618 644 934, Vice Chairman Danny Kay on 966 716 274 or Secretary Margaret Forshaw on 966 921 996. (95455) STROKE ASSOCIATION Spain (formally known as Torrevieja stroke support) Our aim is to help and support stroke survivors and their carers. With rehabilitation, speech therapy, OC therapy and a very active social group. For info please contact 654 801 260 or email strokesupportgroup@hot mail.com, website: torrevie jastrokesupport.org. We are always looking for volunteers who have the skills and knowledge to support.

(95473) THE AIRCREW ASSOCIATION COSTA BLANCA BRANCH. Former & serving aircrews of the UK or Allied Armed Forces are welcome to join this convivial & friendly organisation, now in its 21st year. www.acacosta blanca.org or call the Secretary on: 966 495 042 (95465) THE ANGLICAN CHURCH, La Fustera. For more info: contact Frank Bentley on 966 495 188. (95461) THE BAKER Foundation Spiritual Centre Playa Flamenca. Calle Luis Gordillo, 1 Playa Flamenca Alicante 03189. You can join us on Facebook, The Baker Foundation spiritual centre. Or contact Linda Schug Tel. 606 990 665 for more details (95458) www.euroweeklynews.com

THE PATIENCE LODGE No 2177 of the R.A.O.B Please call Secretary Dave Tonge on 688 704 091 for further information. (253807) THE SPIRITUALIST CENTRE, Benijofar will be closed for the immediate future due to COVID-19. Identification Fiscal G54713789 (95454)

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(288988)

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MISCELLANEOUS GOLD & SILVER Bought & Sold, Rolex & Patek Philippe Watches Tel – 678 716 693 (288662)

MOTORING

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INSURANCE

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26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021 POOL MAINTENANCE

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SPAS & JACUZZI

P.E.P.A. VOLUNTEERS & FOSTER HOMES URGENTLY NEEDED. By fostering an abandoned dog or spending a few hours each week on our telephone helpline, you could help save the lives of many animals. Please call: 650 304 746. For more information browse our website: www.pepaspain.com (95708) SPAMA GANDIA SHELTER. Dog and cat rescue registered charity, La Safor area.

500 animals awaiting rehoming. Phone Gail 962 896 118. Visit our website for directions. www.spama.org and view our new blog at w w w . s p a m a - s a f o r. blog.com.es PLEASE HELP US TO HELP THEM (95707)

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EWN 61

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TESTIMONIALS

62 EWN

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

www.euroweeklynews.com

MOTORING

VW Group on the electrical throne ACCORDING to data from Ja‐ to Dynamics, 26 per cent of all electric cars sold in Eu‐ rope during the first half of 2021 were from the Volk‐ swagen Group, which is an increase of 4 per cent more than in the corresponding period last year.

The Renault‐Nissan‐Mit‐ VW: Responsible for 1 in 4 electric cars sold in Europe. subishi Alliance was the market leader in sales of electric cars in ket share reduced from 23 per cent in Europe before, but, in the first half of 2020 to 13 per cent, who would seem to 2021, the Alliance ceased to be the largest have lost out while waiting for the launch European seller of electric cars, overtaken of their Nissan Ariya, or Renault’s electric by the Volkswagen Group, thanks mainly futures, while the Leaf and the Zoe have to its large supply of electric vehicles in not been able to compete against heavy‐ several of its brands. weights such as the Volkswagen’s Model This result not only put the German con‐ 3, or the ID family, as well as the electric sortium on the electrical throne, but also models from Stellantis. meant increasing its advantage over Tesla, Despite the success of the Volkswagen which maintained third place in the Euro‐ Group and Stellantis, who both surpassed pean market, with a share of 14 per cent, Tesla in total sales, the Model 3 of the Cal‐ 3 per cent down on last year, while Stel‐ ifornian brand was by far the best‐selling lantis, the consortium resulting from the electric vehicle in Europe, while Volkswa‐ merger between the FCA Group and the gen had their ID 3, the ID 4, and the e‐Up!, PSA Group, was the second European sell‐ along with Audi’s popular e‐tron, the er of electric cars with a 16 per cent mar‐ Porsche Taycan, and the Seat Mii electric. ket share, up by 4 per cent on last year.

Elon Musk’s Model 3 saloon car topped The big loser, according to data from Ja‐ the individual electric car sales in the first to Dynamics, was the Renault‐Nissan‐Mit‐ six months of this year, with 66,010 regis‐ subishi Alliance, leader until 2020, but tered units, with the others as shown now languishing in fourth, seeing its mar‐ above.

MOTORING

www.euroweeklynews.com

ROAD TEST

by Mark Slack I’M frequently told that all cars look alike nowadays, the only differentiator being the badge on the bonnet. Well there’s no mistaking Hyundai’s latest SUV, the Tucson. It has a very imposing front which reminds me a little of the 1960’s Dodge Charger RT. The lights are shielded at the outer edge of the dominant front grille and provide an excellent level of light in terms of both spread and distance. It’s a neat styling touch that certainly makes drivers do a double take in their rear view mirror.

The range starts with the SE Connect powered by a 150 hp, 1.6‐litre petrol engine, across the range, and priced at €33,746/£28,710. There are petrol and mild hy‐ brid models along with hybrid and plug‐in hybrid ver‐ sions. More tech options include manual or auto‐ matic gears and there’s all‐wheel‐ drive options too.

Standard equip‐

26 Aug - 1 Sept 2021

EWN 63

Hyundai Tucson - bold styling! ment across the board includes heated and height adjustable front seats, climate, automatic lights and wipers, high beam assist, LED headlights with cornering, cruise, heated and powered folding door mirrors, automatic dimming rear view mirror, parking sensors with rear cam‐ era, keyless entry and start, navigation, Bluetooth and wire‐ less charging. It’s an impressive list.

The test model was an Ulti‐ mate trim with mild hybrid power mated to a seven‐speed automatic gearbox. Priced at

€41,596/£35,390, the Tucson carries off this higher price be‐ cause it not only looks quality, but feels it in the way it drives and the interior has an upmar‐ ket aura.

Thankfully in an age of digital mania Hyundai have sensibly retained traditional dials in the driver display and separate controls for things such as the climate control, rather than burying them in the digital menu of the large 10‐inch touchscreen.

Seating is very comfortable with multiple adjustment, in‐ cluding on the premium model

The latest Tuscon has a very imposing front.

luxuries like heated rear seats, ventilated and heated front seats along with power adjust‐ ment and heated steering wheel. Driver and passengers will not complain about space as there is plenty of room for all

along with their luggage.

On the road the Tucson has plenty of power from its 1.6‐ litre engine and is both smooth and refined, but it’s never going to set your driving pulses alight.

Then it isn’t meant to be a driv‐

er’s car, this is a family and work machine capable of ev‐ erything from the school run to chauffeuring for a black tie din‐ ner.

It’s a very big tick in the box for the Tucson!

SPORT

64

26 August - 1 September 2021

to read more visit www.euroweeklynews.com

Champions Man City back to winning ways A relentless City team were ahead 64th minute for the floodgates to within six minutes when Gabriel Jesus open, as the big defender, Aymeric La‐ crossed, only for Grant Hanley’s at‐ porte, notched his first goal at the Eti‐ tempted clearance to cannon off goal‐ had, putting away Ilkay Gundogan’s keeper Tim Krul and into the Norwich corner, for 3‐0, sealing the points for net for an own goal, and then, a mo‐ the Blues, but it was not over, as Ra‐ ment all home fans had been heem Sterling entered the action waiting for, Jack Grealish as a substitute, seeing Gabriel got on the scoresheet on Jesus notch up a hat trick of as‐ his home debut, sending a sists as he set Sterling up for message to the critics who goal number four after 70 questioned his £100 million minutes. move from Aston Villa, al‐ In the 78th minute, Norwich though it can be said he City finally had their first, and probably didn’t really last, attempt on goal, know much as Milot Rashica about his fired a shot in goal on 22 vain, and it was minutes, as left to another he turned sub, Riyad home a Mahrez, to cross from claim the fifth Gabriel Je‐ as he slotted sus.It took home in the GREALISH: Scored on 22 minutes. until the 84th minute.

Photo credit: mancity.com

PREMIER League champions, Man City came into the match at the Etihad Stadium against Nor‐ wich City on Saturday, August 21, off the back of a defeat to Tottenham on the opening day of the season, and straight away the doubters were gossiping on social media, but, on this show‐ ing, there are no problems in the blue half of Manchester, as Pep Guardiola’s men slammed five goals past a freshly‐promoted, hapless Norwich team, in front of an official crowd of 51,437.

Barcelona rescued

by Memphis Depay BARCELONA topped LaLiga on Saturday, August 21, but only after scraping to a hard‐earned draw at Athletic Bilbao’s Nuevo San Mames stadium, when new signing Memphis Depay’s thunderbolt pulled the scores even for the Catalans.

Inigo Martinez opened the scoring after 50 minutes for the Basque Country side, heading home a fine goal, supplied by Muniain, after Athletic had totally dominated the first 45 minutes of the match, starting the second half with the same intensity.

Inaki Williams was in teriffic form, as was his strike partner Ohian Sancet, who hit the crossbar with one attempt, after a skilful move involving a swivel and shot, with both men running the Barcelona defence ragged at times, a de‐ fence which contained another new signing, former Man City centre half, Eric Garcia, who suffered the indignation of being red carded for hauling down Nico Williams in the 93rd minute, when he was clean through on the Barca goal.

Barcelona were not without their opportunities, as Ronald Koeman and his team try to adjust to life without Lionel Messi, but based on Saturday’s form, although it is early to say, there might just be a new hero developing in the form of Dutch international Depay, who had some moments of sheer bril‐ liance, and he could have notched a winner right at the death, if he hadn’t dragged his shot wide of the Bilbao goal.

Koeman lost Gerard Pique in the first half, as he limped off, to be replaced by Ronald Araujo, who would have had his name on the scoresheet had Brazil’s Martin Braithwaite not been judged to have committed a foul in the lead‐up to a spectacular effort that found the back of the net, only to be ruled out.

There is a burden on the shoulders of Frenkie de Jong in the centre of the park now that Messi has departed, and he came close to an equaliser when he attempted to chip the keeper, only minutes before Depay’s goal.