Euro Weekly News - Costa Blanca North 20 - 26 January 2022 Issue 1907

THE BEST FINANCE NEWS ON PAGES 36 - 39 Issue No. 1907 20 - 26 January 2022

A techno landmark BENIDORM’S Tecnohito land‐ mark tower on Avenida del Mediterraneo has reached its estimated height of 18 metres.

The 25‐ton structure will support LED lighting and wraparound multimedia screens to provide residents and visitors with information featuring cultural events, fies‐ tas and celebrations.

When Benidorm Town Hall announced radical modernisa‐ tion for Avenida del Mediterra‐ neo, mayor Toni Perez re‐ vealed that this would include “several avant‐garde ele‐ ments” with technology play‐ ing a significant part.

The €9 million remodelling plan, later increased to €11 million, began in November 2018. It was to have been fin‐ ished within 11 months but is nearing completion only now.

The entire project must be completed by February 28 when the building contractors’ deadline ends, following two previous extensions.

COSTA BLANCA NORTH • WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM

FITUR IN BUSINESS!

Photo credit: GVA.es

Turn to page 2 »

FITUR 2022: Tourism chief Francesc Colomer giving details of the Valencian Community’s stand.

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Reservoir plunge A FIRE extinction helicopter crashed down into Villajoyosa’s Amadorio reservoir during a practice flight at 2.30pm on Thursday January 13.

The helicopter, which belongs to a private company and is used for fire extinction operations, plummeted down when the pilot lost control of the aircraft while reducing alti‐ tude to scoop up water, Provincial Firefighting Consortium sources told the local media.

Both pilot and co‐pilot were transferred in a Consortium helicopter to the base at Muchamiel’s aerodrome. Neither was hurt in the crash, the same sources revealed, although both were x‐rayed afterwards to rule out internal injuries.

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20 - 26 January 2022

Groups discuss their plans MARTINE MERTENS, Alfaz’s Oth‐ er Nationalities councillor, held her first 2022 meeting with members of the municipality’s non‐Spanish groups and associa‐ tions.

“We hold these meetings each month to announce town hall ac‐ tivities and learn about the groups’ immediate plans and projects,” Mertens explained.

She is also in charge of the Pangea office, whose work is di‐ rected to assisting the integration of non‐Spanish residents and promoting contact between the different associations.

“During this first meeting of 2022, each association revealed its projects for the beginning of this year, many of which were linked to charity with a view to assisting those most in need of help,” the councillor said.

The Covid‐19 vaccination was also discussed at the meeting held in the Casa de Cultura, Mertens revealed, along with dif‐ ferent town hall activities planned for January, including the classical music concerts planned for January 21 and 23.

Photo credit: Villajoyosa town hall

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from Front page »

Rich in different sentiments

VILLAJOYOSA: Government grant will help to balance the town hall books.

A breath of fresh air

VILLAJOYOSA Town Hall will receive €8.5 billion from Spain’s central government via the State Tax Participa‐ tion (PIE) fund this year.

“This is good news,” de‐ clared Villajoyosa’s mayor Andreu Verdu. “The 13 per cent increase from the state will help La Vila Town Hall to offset the loss of income from Capital Gains Tax.” This year the central gov‐ ernment has allocated “no strings” allocations to mu‐ nicipalities that amounts to €22 billion of state funds, 13 per cent more than in 2021.

“In general terms this is

the greatest volume ever received from the Spanish government via PIE and it is going to benefit many town halls like ours,” Verdu con‐ tinued.

Villajoyosa’s Economic Services councillor Jose Ra‐ mon Ucles compared this year’s increase, amounting to an extra €1 million, to “a breath of fresh air.”

It would put more means at the town hall’s disposal for carrying out the 2022 municipal Budget, Ucles added, permitting in‐ creased Social Services’ allo‐ cations.

THE Valencian Community’s stand at Madrid’s Fitur tourism trade fair pro‐ motes the region as a ‘model for other models.’

Speaking before the official inaugura‐ tion of Fitur, which opened on January 19 and continues until January 23, Francesc Colomer revealed that Valencia Tourism ‐ the Generalitat department which he heads ‐ had spent €1.1 billion on the region’s stand.

“The design evokes light and the colours of that light,” he said. “It por‐ trays blue sea, yellow sun, green for landscapes and sustainability and red for our melting pot of cultures and civilisa‐ tions.”

The Valencian Community area show‐ cases 186 companies this year, more than in 2019, he pointed out, demon‐ strating the region’s will to compete

worldwide again.

“This year’s edition intends to support the Valencian Community’s businesses and tourist destinations in complicated circumstances,” Colomer stressed.

“For us, being useful is what matters most,” he added, explaining that the area set aside for businesses was the most important zone in the Valencian Community’s stand. “It is the responsibil‐ ity of Valencia Tourism to unify all of the region’s brands, destinations and prod‐ ucts,” he said.

“We want to get across the message that the Valencian Community is a mod‐ el for other models,” Colomer declared.

“We are a destination that is rich in different sentiments,” he explained.

“Our contrasting experiences and emo‐ tions are all part of our tourist charis‐ ma.”

Thanks for firefighters FIREFIGHTERS and volun‐ teers were thanked for ex‐ tinguishing the fire that de‐ stroyed eight hectares of land in Javea’s Barranc del Migdia.

Members of the Vecinos del Montgo residents’ asso‐ ciation later paid tribute to their rapid response on the ground and in the air on January 10, preventing the

fire from spreading further during high winds that day.

On January 11 the associ‐ ation invited the Consorcio de Alicante firefighters and those from the Forest Fire Brigade to lunch at the La Ermita supermarket on the Javea‐Jesus Pobre road.

The following day there was an invitation to coffee for Javier Fayos, Denia’s fire chief, and Jose Antonio Monfort, chief superinten‐ dent of Javea’s Local Police force, the Balcon al Mar volunteer fire brigade, Pro‐ teccion Civil members and officers from Javea’s Guardia Civil post. Also present was Javea’s Resi‐ dents’ councillor Doris Courcelles.

Vecinos del Montgo in‐ tend to make a collection which will be donated to the volunteers to help them improve their fire‐ fighting and fire prevention equipment.

Initial investigations sug‐ gested that the fire began after hot ashes from a fire‐ place or wood‐burning stove were left beside the road in a wooded zone near La Ermita del Popul, revealed Public Safety councillor Juan Ortola.

Fortunately, the wind fanned the flames away from houses in the area and towards Montgo, he said.

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NIBS EXTRA All lit up ALFAZ’S Urban Develop‐ ment, Transport and Public Safety departments have worked together to install the town’s first smart pedes‐ trian crossings at the new Al‐ bir roundabout. The three crossings, which have cost €290,712, function at night with LED technology that lights up when detecting per‐ sons on foot or a bicycle.

Big contract NINE companies have put in tenders for the €60 million contract to build the exten‐ sions to the Marina Baja hos‐ pital in Villajoyosa. Bids were submitted in sealed en‐ velopes and the regional government is confident that the contract will be awarded within the next few weeks, informed sources re‐ vealed.

Pearl threat FAST‐REPRODUCING pearl oysters from the Caribbean could threaten the Cabo de San Antonio marine reserve which belongs to the Mont‐ go national park. The first oyster was discovered last September by a tourist at Les Rotes in Denia, who immedi‐ ately reported the find to the park’s board of governors.

Looking ahead BENISSA Town Hall spent €46,000 on solar panels for the municipal swimming pool but will save an annual €12,000 on energy bills. “This is the time for long‐term planning, and we must look ahead, thinking of future generations and not the next elections,” declared Benissa mayor Arturo Poquet.

Pedal power CALPE welcomed elite inter‐ national cycling teams in‐ cluding Quick Step, Astana and Cofidis from Belgium, Kazakhstan and France re‐ spectively. As in previous years they chose the Marina Alta to prepare for their 2022 races, owing to its benign cli‐ mate and terrain offering both mountain climbs and flat roads.

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Making Sierra Helada fireproof THE regional government’s Environment department approved modifications to the 1,114‐hectare Sierra Helada national park’s fire prevention plan.

These changes corre‐ spond to analyses and diag‐ noses carried out between 2008 and 2017, centring on eight action plans for pre‐ vention and seven more re‐ garding infrastructure.

“Prevention is funda‐ mental for protecting our national parks,” Diego Mar‐ tin, Forest Fire Prevention director general, said.

“Thanks to the plan we are aware of the Sierra Helada’s specific situation and fire‐prevention infras‐

Photo credit: GVA.es

SIERRA HELADA: Revised plans for protecting the national park from forest and wildfire.

tructure and can create a unanimous plan, incorpo‐ rating contributions from park officials,” Martin ex‐ plained.

Plans for the Sierra Hela‐ da, which lies inside the Al‐

tea and Benidorm bound‐ aries, will be in force for the next 10 years, spending €563,179 on adapting fire prevention inside the park to its population, terrain, vegetation and the most

Fiestas scaled down FOR several months, Javea Town Hall and local fiestas committees had been preparing for the fies‐ tas held in January each year.

Instead, the present health sit‐ uation affected the San Sebas‐ tian fiestas committee’s plans as well as those of the Penya La Burrera association and the Tiraset equestrian centre who habitually organise the San An‐ tonio celebrations.

Both committees scaled down their programmes to minimise the Covid risk, beginning with the elimination of all Sant Antoni activities requiring the removal of face masks.

That meant there was no hot chocolate for children in Calle San Antonio on Saturday Jan‐ uary 15 and although the San Antonio bonfire was lit that evening, no mistela wine and

sweet treats were given out.

The parade of horses and carts was held the next day, followed by the blessing of the animals but again, without mistela or sweets.

The San Antonio fair with chil‐ dren’s fairground attractions nevertheless opened as usual in Avenida Palmelal, where it re‐ mains until February 6.

Celebrations in honour of Javea’s patron saint, San Sebas‐ tian have been been reduced to Mass at the San Bartolome parish church today, January 20, preceded by a procession, with all bull‐running events cancelled.

If the weather permits, there will be open‐air storytelling for children in Plaza de la Constitu‐ cion on January 22 with a San Sebastian cycle race on January 30.

First post-holiday match FOR their first Winter League match after Christmas, the Teula‐ da‐Moraira Fishing Club visited the Sec‐ tion B1 of the River Jucar.

“We had a chilly start of only six de‐ grees and the air tem‐ perature never rose above 13 degrees,” said club secretary Jeff Richards.

“There were no dry nets and some good sized fish were caught,” he added.

“Overall it was a good, but unusual, day’s fishing. I put it down to too much Christmas pud!”

Best fish of the day, weighing 5.025 kilos,

Rehab for La Vila bridge VILLAJOYOSA Town Hall has drawn up plans to restructure and rehabilitate the former N‐ 332 bridge over the River Amadorio.

The draft must now be presented to the regional government’s Culture department and the Confederacion Hidrografica del Jucar, which is responsible for waterways in the Ju‐ car basin.

Despite needing approval from so many different administrations, La Vila’s Public

common causes of fire there.

The revised plan includes information and advice for the residents of nearby ur‐ banisations, encourage‐ ment to carry out Local Fire Prevention Plans and a re‐ view of municipalities’ indi‐ vidual schedules for bon‐ fires.

The plan stresses the im‐ portance of improving ac‐ cess, listing the locations where water is available, while highlighting the im‐ portance of recovering and maintaining the national park’s plots of agricultural land and producing an Evacuation Plan for emer‐ gencies.

Works and Technical Services councillor Kiko Carreres revealed that he was confident work would start this year, although it was early to say whether this would happen be‐ fore or after the summer.

The project, which has a €1.25 million bud‐ get allocation, will include demolishing and reconstructing several of the most damaged zones of the bridge, which was built between 1863 and 1872.

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went to Peter Shep‐ herd. Graham Sewell with 15.225 kilos had the best total weight of the day, followed

by Jack Janssen’s 13.325 kilos.

The eight club members fishing that day caught 22 fish to‐ talling 48 kilos be‐ tween them, with several carp weighing more than four kilos each.

“We are a very friendly club and al‐ ways happy to wel‐ come new members,” Jeff said.

For further infor‐ mation contact Frank Povey on 966 490 338 or by email at frankpovey1@gmail.c om.

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New status DENIA is now a Valencian Community Tourist Munic‐ ipality.

Francesc Colomer, who heads the region’s Tourist Board, recently presented Denia’s mayor Vicent Gri‐ malt with the plaque recognising the town’s new status.

Denia now joins Benidorm, Calpe, Campel‐ lo, Cullera, Valencia City, Benicassim and Peñiscola, all of which have received recognition via Generali‐ tat’s Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality Law that now incorporates the new Tourist Municipalities statute. Colomer acknowl‐ edged the efforts that De‐ nia has made to meet the demands required to achieve this status, praising the town’s “exemplary work” and the efforts of Denia’s tourist sector.

“Redefining the concept of a tourist municipality has meant a change in stan‐ dards together with a real and clear commitment to the values and principles that define our tourist des‐ tinations,” Colomer said.

“Rewards go to destina‐ tions that are conscious, dynamic and dedicated, complying with standards of quality rather than quantity and where the sig‐ nificance of tourism is evi‐ dent in society and their economy,” he explained.

“We shall balance this support from the Generali‐ tat with our commitment to sustainability, quality and participation from the local population,” Grimalt declared in return.

and finally...

BENIDORM’S Local Police presented food supplies and personal hygiene and cleaning products to Caritas.

Public Safety councillor Lorenzo Martinez applauded the gen‐ erosity of Benidorm residents’ donations and commended the Local Police for their “selfless awareness, year after year” of oth‐ ers’ needs.

Rafael Urbano, president of the Local Police’s Asociacion So‐ ciocultural, explained that officers also bought more items with cash they raised through selling the Christmas Lottery.

Urbano also thanked officer’s daughter Lola Saval for donat‐ ing a trolley of toys worth €659 which she had won in a compe‐ tition. It was hard to estimate the total value of the Caritas do‐ nation, Urbano said, “but it’s safe to say that this year it easily topped €2,000.”

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Teulada-Moraira wants your photos TEULADA‐MORAIRA Town Hall is asking residents and vis‐ itors to add to the municipali‐ ty’s photographic archive.

“They will help us to turn these images of Teulada‐ Moraira into part of our her‐ itage,” said Citizens’ Participa‐ tion councillor Luis Caballero as he called for the public’s coop‐ eration.

All those who would like to contribute to the initiative are asked to send copies of their photos, both new and from the past, to the participacionci udadana@teuladamoraira.org email address.

Communications’ councillor Rosana Caselles, stressed the importance of sharing old pho‐ tographs: “This is one a way of retelling the story of our town and our residents,” she said.

A great rugby weekend RUGBY supporters were treat‐ ed to some free‐flowing rugby over the weekend at Denia Sports Ground, home of the Marina Alta Barbarians Rugby Club.

First up was the under 16s who played a hard‐fought thrilling match on Saturday against Tatami of Valencia.

Although the Barbarians lost 32‐29, all the players put in 100 per cent in trying to secure their first win of 2022.

A marked improvement from the start of the season, the Barbarians lineout, scrum and defence was immense.

Again, six young ladies played for the Ba Bas against some very big players from Tatami.

However no one shirked their responsibilities and it was an all‐round great team effort.

UNDER 16s: Played a hard-fought match.

On Sunday, the Seniors en‐ tertained Teruel on what seemed a glorious summer’s day. Both teams traded points during the first half, but the Bar‐ barians’ stamina and attacking flair paid dividends in the sec‐ ond half running out winners 55‐18.

The Barbarians now look for‐ ward to a top of the table clash in Valencia on Sunday January 23 at 11.30am against the sec‐

ond in the table San Roque, in what promises to be a close and hard bruising encounter.

The Barbarians run Academy teams from under 14s to 16s to 18s and through to seniors and welcomes everyone to come and train and join the club. Free qualified coaching is available at all levels. Please call Santi (Span‐ ish) on 676 612 357 or Mac (En‐ glish) on 609 646 349 for more information.

NEWS

Age in Spain’s Friendline MALLORCA‐based Age in Spain’s Friendline covers all of Spain, connecting the elderly with a cheerful and friendly voice.

One of life’s great pleasures is making a new friend ‐ find‐ ing someone who shares your interests, your priorities or maybe just your sense of humour.

Friendline is a telephone friendship service that connects people who want to rekindle the joy of chatting to a friend with volunteers willing to give a little bit of their time on a regular basis. Reaching out and volunteering for Friendline can give an older person something new to look forward to in their week and help them avoid the negative effects of loneliness and isolation.

If you live in Spain and are interested in joining Friendline either as a volunteer or as someone who likes to be contact‐ ed then get in touch via https://www.ageinspain.org/friend line.

One great example of the positive use of the service has been, concerns Brian Wyrill who lives in Alfas del Pi in Costa Blanca North who regularly receives calls from volunteer Sara and enjoys chatting about his days as a driving instruc‐ tor, although he now lives in the quiet lane.

To help him enjoy his 90th birthday, another volunteer Fiona went to visit him to chat in person.

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TEULADA-MORAIRA LIONS were once again de‐ lighted to judge the annual Claude Kelly Memorial Handwriting Competition at St Mary Magdalene school in Benitachell. In today’s computer‐based world, it can still be important to be able to pro‐ duce neat and tidy handwriting.

Every child in each of the 13 classes took part in the competition. The entries were then judged by a panel of Lions. This process is time consuming and requires focus, but the Lions involved are re‐

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TM Lions warded by the delight on the faces of the children when the prizes are awarded.

TM Lions provided prizes for the 13 winners.

The winners were announced at an eagerly antici‐ pated ceremony which also celebrated the arrival of the New Year.

Sanchez hails Spain PEDRO SANCHEZ, the President of Spain, paid a visit to the Rovi pharmaceutical compa‐ ny’s facilities in Granada on January 15. During his tour of the facility ‐ where the Moderna vaccine is manufactured ‐ Mr Sanchez praised Spain for being one of the leading countries in the world in producing the vaccine.

Accompanied by Carolina Darias, the Minis‐ ter of Health, he highlighted his Executive’s commitment to science and innovation. This is evidenced by the 19 per cent budget in‐ crease for 2022 in this sector, compared to 2021.

Pointing out that it is almost double the fig‐ ure for 2020, the President referred to Spain’s vaccination strategy as a “great collective suc‐ cess.” He also highlighted the fact that Moder‐ na has chosen Spain to consolidate its pres‐

TO avoid paying commissions to banks, the HelpMyCash comparison website has drawn up a list of Spanish banking entities that have commission‐free current ac‐ counts.

HelpMyCash states: “The ranking of the best accounts without commissions is led

by BBVA, Openbank and Abanca, although the offer is very wide and other entities

FACILITY TOUR: Sanchez paid a visit.

ence in Europe, as one of the main producers of the Covid‐19 vaccine worldwide.

As reported by the government, the Mod‐ erna vaccine production line, in collaboration with Rovi in Granada, once approved by the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products (AEMPS), will be the first to produce a messenger RNA vaccine in Spain.

Commission-free banks such as Imagin, Santander, Liberbank or N26, among others, also offer free ac‐ counts without a payroll re‐ quirement.”

The BBVA Online Account has no commissions and the card, and the transfers are free. You just must be a new customer and set up your ac‐ count online.

Openbank Open Current Account also has no commis‐ sions and a free card and transfers. It must also be set up online.

Also offering zero commis‐ sions, free cards and transfer is the Clara de Abanca ac‐ count. This account must be contracted and operated on‐ line.

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This is slightly different to the usual activities TM Lions get up to ‐ supporting local charities, but it is a good opportunity to get out into the local community. If you would like to know more about what TM Lions do, visit their website on www.tm lions.com or pop into the Lions Den Charity shop a couple of doors away from Letters R Us beneath the Pepe La Sal supermarket on the Centro Com‐ ercial, Moraira, just past the fountain roundabout on Ctra Moraira‐Teulada.

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NEWS

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

OUTLANDER STAR, SCOTT KYLE

WHEN internationally known actor Scott Kyle’s now‐wife first suggested he try drama school as a 21‐year‐old supermarket worker, he didn’t know his career would take in working with director Ken Loach, and a role in one of the world’s most successful TV shows, Outlander.

From humble beginnings in a single parent family in Glasgow, Kyle, 38, told the Euro Weekly News it was watching the work ethic of his mother ‐ who had four jobs ‐ that gave him the drive to succeed in one of the world’s most competitive industries.

Within his first year of drama school, while still working night shifts to continue to sup‐ port his mother ‐ and after learning fast that a regular income was far from a given in the acting world ‐ Kyle had set up his own theatre company, NLP, which still tours today.

He said: “I went to college as a mature stu‐ dent and saw how difficult it was to get jobs, even for really talented actors.

“I wanted to know how I could make a ca‐ reer out of acting and I found out what a the‐ atre company was and set one up as a first‐ year student.”

Now, alongside his career working with some of the world’s biggest names, Kyle’s passion is to help others in the way others

Kyle talks acting, community and his new book.

have helped him throughout his life.

His company NLP, which runs a children’s theatre workshops programme, is gearing up for its tour of North America later this year, while Scott regularly offers acting classes and workshops to vulnerable chil‐ dren across the world.

He is also working with a journalist on his first book titled ‘It’s Not Where you Start’.

Taking in his childhood and some of his biggest roles, the book explores how his ca‐ reer began and includes interviews with his mother, a former neighbour who used to look after him, and the father who left the family when Kyle was three.

Speaking to EWN about his career, Kyle explained that his time play‐ ing Ross the smith in the internationally ac‐ claimed Outlander helped him to publicise some of the works close to his heart.

He said: “Growing up, I didn’t have a dad but there was a lot of people in the commu‐

nity who helped out.

“My mum used to work multiple jobs but there were lots of kind people who used to look after me and a local company even sponsored our football kit. I now sponsor that team.”

He explained this community support is what inspired him to help others, adding, “I think you should try to be the hero that you would like to turn up at your door.”

Kyle went on: “Outlander changed every‐ thing, it opened lots of opportunities. I’m now trying to pass that on to give opportuni‐ ties to others.”

As part of his work in the community, Kyle runs an annual Highlander Fling event which raises funds to support NLP and his children’s theatre work. This year, the Fling has events planned in several countries, including in Florida in April, Canada in June, and Glasgow in September.

Kyle told the EWN this five‐hour showcase of Scottish talent, with gallic singers and danc‐ ing, is “essentially a party,” and features act‐ ing workshops for both children and adults.

To get involved with the Highlander Fling, or for more about Scott Kyle’s career, visit https://www.scottkyle.co.uk/shows‐tours.

NEWS

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Moderna double vaccine MODERNA hopes to de‐ velop a vaccine that can combat both Covid and the common flu, but it won’t be ready until 2030.

In his speech at the Davos Forum on January 17, Stephane Bancel, CEO of the American pharma‐ ceutical company said: “It would be an annual boost‐ er dose, so that people avoid having to be inocu‐ lated two or three times in winter.” He highlighted his belief that it is necessary to reduce the current high frequency of booster dos‐ es to prevent people from rejecting the vaccination.

Bancel is the head of one of only two firms to have developed Covid‐19 vaccines with the new messenger RNA technolo‐ gy (the other is Pfizer‐ BioNTech). He stressed that since November, his company has been work‐ ing on a dose aimed espe‐ cially at combating the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, which is al‐ ready dominant in the world.

“The laboratories will finish this work in the coming weeks and will share the results with the regulatory authorities,” the CEO said.

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Searching for life

THE UK is set to search for life on Mars with the Ros‐ alind Franklin Mars rover.

The rover from the Euro‐ pean Space Agency (ESA) features some of the best technology that the UK’s space sector has to offer.

Months of successful test‐ ing are now behind the team of experts involved in the project. In January, some mi‐ nor tuning will still be carried out, but the rover is set to

A search for life on Mars.

head to Mars with a planned launch date in September.

Sue Horne, Head of Space

Exploration at the UK Space Agency, said: “The Rosalind Franklin rover showcases some of the best of the UK’s space sector and its search for signs of life on Mars will inspire future generations of scientists and engineers.

“It’s very exciting to see this flagship mission pass the latest tests and see the fruition of many years’ hard work as we look forward to the launch later this year.”

NHS 24 expanded

IN a bid to help alleviate pres‐ sures on the NHS and social care a new NHS 24 call centre

has been opened in Dundee.

The service should be used by people with non life‐threaten‐

TV licence frozen CULTURE Secretary Nadine Dorries has finalised a freeze on the BBC licence fee that will result in an estimated £2 billion loss over the next years it is in place. The move sees the TV licence fee frozen at £159 per year as the Tories continue to accuse the state‐run broadcaster of bias.

The tense negotiations between the party and Dorries fin‐ ished on January 15 and officials calculate that ‐ due to inflation currently running at 5.1 per cent ‐ the Corporation will have to find savings of more than £2 billion over the next six years. If the Conservatives are still in power in 2027 when this run of de‐ cisions concludes, the licence fee is likely to be replaced by a new funding model which reflects the growing power behind streaming platforms such as Netflix and Amazon Prime.

ing injuries before they head to Accident and Emergency or a Minor Injuries Unit.

NHS 24 Chief Executive Jim Miller explained: “NHS 24 has played a crucial role in Scot‐ land’s response to the pan‐ demic and our expansion in Dundee will ensure we are able to continue to provide high quality, safe and effective care to public in the months and years ahead.”

“Call handlers, nurses, psy‐ chological mental health prac‐ titioners and mental health nurses are already working in this key contact centre deliver‐ ing care. I expect it to be at full capacity by the end of March.”

resolution

• Create a household budget.

• Diagnostic imaging and ultrasound Rx • Clinical tests and serological tests, internal medicine, parasitology • Soft Tissue Surgery and Traumatology • Ethology, behavioural disorders and animal behaviour • Physiotherapy, acupuncture, custom recovery and Healing touch • Ophthalmology • Dentistry and dental surgery & more • Import - Export

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NEWS

Kosovo bans crypto mining CRYPTOCURRENCY mining has been banned in Kosovo to try and ease the country’s crippling energy crisis.

Although the ban is tem‐ porary, it comes in with im‐

mediate effect and this is enough to cause many bit‐ coin enthusiasts to try to sell off their equipment so they can move their operations elsewhere.

Looking further afield

TESLA: Will now source its graphite from Mozambique.

THE American electric car company Tesla is to look beyond China for supplies of key ingredients for its lithium‐ion bat‐ teries.

Elon Musk’s company will source its graphite from Aus‐ tralia’s Syrah Resources, who operate the world’s largest graphite mine in Mozambique. The value of the agreement has not been disclosed.

The material will be bought from the company’s process‐ ing plant in Vidalia, Louisiana, which sources graphite from its mine in Balaka, Mozambique. Tesla plans to buy up to 80 per cent of the graphite produced by the plant, which has a capacity of 8,000 tons per annum. Part of the agreement re‐ quires Syrah to meet the company’s exacting standards.

From Facebook to Tele‐ gram, new posts in the re‐ gion’s online crypto groups became dominated by dis‐ mayed Kosovans attempting to sell off their mining equip‐ ment ‐ often at knockdown prices.

The ban on cryptocurrency mining by the Kosovo gov‐ ernment is due to the way these currencies are created.

Bitcoin and other cryptocur‐ rencies are created or ‘mined’ by high‐powered computers that compete to solve complex mathematical puzzles in what is a highly en‐ ergy‐intensive process.

Kosovo has the cheapest energy prices in Europe with fuel bills subsidised by the government. However, at the end of last year, the country was in darkness as domestic and international factors came together to cause energy shortages and blackouts happened across the state. Kosovo’s minister of economy, Dr Artane Riz‐ vanolli, said the ban had been a “no‐brainer.”

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NEWS

Repsol and Uber energy deal A J O I N T statement re‐ leased by Repsol and Uber says that the companies have signed a strategic agreement that will see them work together on electric mobility.

The agreement, which

seeks to advance the use of electric vehicles, will see Repsol become the preferred energy supplier for Uber drivers using 100 per cent electric and plug‐ in hybrid vehicles.

Included in the agree‐ ment is the requirement on Repsol to provide all the electricity from re‐

newable sources.

Currently Repsol has more than 2,000 recharg‐ ing points in operation across Spain, with more than 350 public access points and over 100 fast‐ charging points. The ma‐ jority are located at Rep‐ sol service stations.

In signing the agree‐

ment, the two companies have said they will work to accelerate the shift of Uber drivers to electric ve‐ hicles, with Uber commit‐ ting to have 50 per cent of the average kilometres driven covered by electric vehicles in the seven Euro‐ pean capitals, including Madrid, by 2025.

Network Driving licence busted exchanges

T H E Guardia Civil have announced the arrest of 10 men in a raid that has brought down the copper gang, the network re‐ sponsible for much of the copper theft across Spain.

The 10 were arrested for robbery, aggravated robbery and for belonging to a criminal organisa‐ tion. They operated in Badajoz, Cáceres, Castel‐ lón, Ciudad Real, Cuenca, Salamanca, Segovia, Tole‐ do, Valencia, Valladolid and Zamora.

The group, aged be‐ tween 18 and 40, were mainly residents of Madrid where Local Po‐ lice assisted the Guardia Civil with the arrests. The criminal network man‐ aged to steal more than 28,800 kilos of copper ca‐ ble costing more than half a million euros.

F O L LO W I N G the UK’s exit from the European Union, one issue that has been affecting ex‐ pats is the driving li‐ cence exchange process.

Now, the DGT and the British Embassy have both released updates.

The DGT have stated: “As of March 1, 2022, the system for driving li‐ cences issued by the British authorities will be that established for licences issued in non‐ EU third nations. Driving licences issued by the British authorities will be valid for driving in Spain for a period of six months, from the hold‐ er’s date of entry or from the date of obtain‐ ing their legal residence in the country.”

This means that those who did not request an exchange before Decem‐ ber 31, 2020 as per the guidelines, will have to obtain a new Spanish driving licence. For now, that would mean taking a Spanish driving test.

However, the British Embassy UK driving li‐ cence update states: “We remain fully com‐ mitted to reaching a long‐term agreement with Spain, so that resi‐ dents can exchange their UK driving licences with‐ out taking a test, as Spanish licence holders can in the UK and as UK licence holders can in the vast majority of oth‐ er EU member states.”

Discussions are ongo‐ ing.

NEWS

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20 - 26 January 2022

EWN 11

Teen flies solo round world Most Wanted campaign

A 19-YEAR-OLD teen has become the youngest woman to circumnavigate the globe solo beating the previous record set by 30‐ year‐old American Shaes‐ ta Waiz.

Zara Rutherford set out from Kortrijk, Belgium, 150 days ago. During her trip she encountered al‐ most every hurdle imagin‐ able including squeezing between North Korean airspace and dodging a massive cloud threatening to cut off passage for her ultralight plane.

Crossing northern Cali‐ fornia, she headed into the huge wildfires blight‐ ing the area. She had to climb to 10,000 feet to avoid the smoke. Coron‐ avirus also got in the way with her plans to fly over China to South Korea hav‐ ing to be changed after China refused permission citing Covid‐19 restric‐ tions.

Zara started flying at the age of 14 and had about 130 hours of solo flights

Hopes to enthuse others.

under the belt before her record attempt. She hopes her record will enthuse young women and girls worldwide with the spirit of aviation.

Currently only 5 per cent of commercial pilots and 15 per cent of com‐ puter scientists are wom‐ en. Rutherford said: “The gender gap is huge.”

Google’s UK investment THE tech giant Google has reaffirmed its commitment to the UK with an investment of £762 million to pur‐ chase the office building they currently rent. The building is next door to the site where they are build‐ ing their new offices in London.

Google, who currently employs 6,400 staff in the country, says the purchase will enable them to em‐ ploy an additional 10,000 people. The facility will cre‐ ate flexible workspaces that foster innovation, cre‐ ativity, and inclusivity according to the company.

The office will undergo a multi‐million‐pound refur‐ bishment, with attention given to hybrid working spaces, meeting rooms and outdoor covered areas for people to work in the fresh air.

Google has said that it expects around a fifth of its staff to work remotely because of changes to the world of work following the pandemic.

A NEW appeal has been launched to track down 12 of the UK’s most wanted fugi‐ tives believed to be hiding in Spain.

The offenders are wanted for crimes including murder, large‐scale drugs trafficking and supplying firearms and ammunition.

The NCA’s Most Wanted campaign is run in conjunc‐ tion with independent chari‐ ty CrimeStoppers, Spanish law enforcement, UK policing and comes on the back of the extremely successful Opera‐ tion Captura fugitives’ cam‐ paign, which resulted in 86 arrests.

Steve Rodhouse, the NCA’s Director General of Opera‐ tions was joined by the Secu‐ rity Minister Rafael Pérez Ruiz of Spain’s Interior Min‐ istry, British Ambassador to Spain Hugh Elliott and Mark Hallas, CEO of CrimeStop‐ pers, at the launch in Madrid.

Steve said: “Spain is not a safe haven.

“We have a brilliant rela‐ tionship with the country’s

CAMPAIGN: The 12 fugitives are believed to be hiding in Spain.

various law enforcement agencies and work together daily to protect the public.

“With 86 offenders arrest‐ ed in our last campaign, crim‐ inals know we will never give up and we’re never far be‐ hind them.

“Our Spanish partners were crucial to many of those arrests, and in 2021 ar‐ rested and returned more than 25 wanted UK fugitives.

“Fugitives usually continue offending while on the run and these men will be known in criminal circles wherever they are.

“The last thing the fugi‐ tives’ associates will want is the combined determination

and capabilities of the UK and Spanish law enforce‐ ment focusing on them.

“Many of these fugitives will be trying to blend into the large British communities who have made their homes in Spain, and if you are resi‐ dent, you may know one of them from your town or vil‐ lage.

“Loyalties change over time, and we urge anyone with information about these men to help us find them.”

All the men featured in the campaign are believed to have links to mainland Spain and the Canary Islands.

Visit our website for full details.

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Unvaccinated NHS staff ruling

UNVACCINATED NHS staff who are set to lose their jobs on April 1 will be sacked with no exit payment, an official document has shown. Front‐ line workers must be fully vac‐ cinated with two doses against Covid‐19 by the April 1 deadline or they will lose their

jobs. This means they will have to take their first shot by February 3.

Healthcare employers have said that after the initial dead‐ line for the first jab, workers should be called into meet‐ ings to discuss their status.

The document states that

they should be made aware that the potential outcome could be dismissal. It also says that the meetings can be held in person or virtually.

There have been multiple protests regarding the mandatory jab for unvaccinat‐ ed NHS workers. A Depart‐ ment of Health and Social Care spokesperson said work‐ ers in the sector are “responsi‐ ble for looking after some of the most vulnerable people in society, many of whom are more likely to suffer serious health consequences if ex‐ posed to the virus.”

NEWS

Malware warning

MILLIONS of people are run‐ ning their computers on out‐ dated software and running the risk of leaving their de‐ vices open to malicious mal‐ ware attacks that could see them lose all their personal details to hackers. This comes from a German study by the security company Es‐ et, which was published on Saturday January 15.

Most of the unsafe systems are running on Windows 7.

This piece of software, along with outdated versions of

Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows 8, are not cov‐ ered by the current security features of Microsoft and leave ‘backdoors’ into peo‐ ple’s personal devices. Win‐ dows version 8.1 also expires in a year.

“The use of outdated soft‐ ware is grossly negligent,” said Thorsten Urbanski, secu‐ rity expert at Eset when

speaking to Berliner Zeitung.

For private users and especial‐ ly companies, the use of out‐ dated system software can be expensive in the event of damage. “One vulnerability, for example in an operating system that is no longer sup‐ ported, is enough for attack‐ ers to have a foot in the door and permanent access to the victim’s computer.”

Tulips for Amsterdam

GROWERS have celebrated the slackening of coron‐ avirus restrictions across the Netherlands with free flowers for passers‐by. The mood of the city was lightened by the generosity of the growers who trav‐ elled the canals handing out bright bunches of tulips.

Normally around this time of year, National Tulip Day takes place with an improvised flower garden in front of the Royal Palace on the capital’s central Dam Square. However, coronavirus restrictions continue to ban large gatherings, prompting the growers to take the event to the people.

OUTDATED SOFTWARE: Leaves devices open to attack.

STATS

2.7

The average woman will consume over 2.7kg of lipstick in their lifetime.

NEWS

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20 - 26 January 2022

Swimmers set historic record

A TEAM of six swimmers from Ireland have braved the Irish Sea to set a historic record, completing the North Chan‐ nel swim from Ireland to Scot‐ land, without wet suits, and in the middle of winter. The swim was undertaken to raise money for the Gavin Glynn Foundation which supports families fighting childhood cancer.

The epic journey took the Walrus Swim Team (Niamh McCarthy, Declan Bradshaw, Vincent Donegan, Ger Kennedy, Colm Morris and Dave Berry) just under 13 hours. The team completed the journey on hour‐long ro‐ tations.

The swim is considered one of the toughest of the seven ocean sea swims, more tough than the English Channel and the Cook Strait between North and South Islands in New Zealand. It is usually un‐ dertaken during the summer months.

To make sure swimmers were safe, the Irish Long Dis‐ tance Swimming Association placed strict medical condi‐

Swimming for charity.

tions on all swimmers whose core body temperatures dropped to dangerous levels.

Mr Berry said: “It was great, but it was tough. Core body temperatures dropped as low as 28ºC, but we had our rou‐ tine and full medical support.

That all worked with military precision.”

Hostage taker was British THE British Foreign Office has confirmed that the Texas synagogue hostage taker was British, after live stream recordings picked up his British accent.

The man had entered the Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas, taking a rabbi and three others hostage.

The recordings from the synagogue’s live stream captured the suspect entering the facility and picked up his threats to the hostages.

The hostage situation ended around 9pm USA time on Sunday January 16 after a 10‐hour standoff, with the FBI freeing the hostages and shooting the suspect who was named as 44‐year‐old British citi‐ zen Malik Faisal Akram.

STATS

600

There are over 600 muscles in the body.

EWN 13

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FEATURE

Obtaining Spanish nationality. Marriage to a Spanish national. Residence in Spain. Legal procedure.

IN this week’s article, we are go‐ ing to answer a question from a client, in relation to obtaining Spanish nationality: Question Dear lawyer, I live in Spain, and I am married to a Spanish woman. I am British. For various reasons, including Brexit, I would like to apply for Spanish citizen‐ ship or nationality. Is it possible?

Answer: Although the specific case must be studied in detail, in prin‐ ciple, YES it is possible.

At White Baos Abogados we can help you in the application and processing of your nationali‐ ty.

In these cases, you can apply for NATIONALITY BY RESIDENCE. Being married to a Spanish na‐ tional, the required period of residence is very short.

Thus, for the granting of na‐ tionality by residence, the resi‐ dence time of one year will suf‐ fice; for those who at the time of the application are married to a Spaniard for one year. In any case, the residence must be le‐

gal, continuous and immediately prior to the application.

Documentation In general, it should be taken into account, regarding the doc‐ umentation to be provided, that: ‐ All documentation submit‐ ted must be current and updat‐ ed at the time of submission. ‐ All documentation that is not in the Spanish language and comes from another country; must be legally translated ‐ sworn translation ‐ and apos‐ tilled.

Process Duration The first thing they should know about this procedure is that, in nationality procedures, the longer or shorter duration of the procedure will depend, in part, on the ability to obtain all the information and documents.

Documentation that must be provided Among other documents, the following must be provided: Standard application form.

Foreigner Identity Card: Fami‐

ly Card of a citizen of the Euro‐ pean Union.

Copy of complete and valid passport of the country of origin.

Certification of birth of the in‐ terested party, duly translated and legalised.

Criminal record certificate from your country of origin.

Regarding marriage: Birth certificate for the spouse issued in Spanish registry.

Updated civil registration marriage certificate.

Cohabitation certificate ‐ justi‐ fication of the time of marital co‐ existence.

Copy of municipal register in which both cohabiting spouses appear (Padron).

Birth certificate of the com‐ mon offspring.

Criminal record certificate from the Central Registry of Con‐ victs.

The Spanish language knowl‐ edge test (DELE). Minimum one LEVEL A2.

Sufficiency of financial means: any valid form of justification in law is admitted. ETC.

Swear of nationality The nationality swearing is the last phase of the process. The person who obtains nationality swears or promises to respect the Spanish constitution, the king and the legal system.

It is formal and obligatory, and once that is done, a favourable resolution has been obtained as the nationality by residence has been approved. Nationality must be sworn or promised within 180 days from the day the nationality is received.

Please bear in mind that when a citizen applies for Span‐ ish nationality by residence, he or she will normally have to re‐ nounce his/her nationality of ori‐ gin. In case of not doing so, they will not be able to obtain Span‐ ish nationality.

Conclusion: If you want to get legal advice on obtaining Spanish nationality, please contact us.

The information provided in this article is not intended to be legal advice, but merely conveys info relating to legal matters.

Carlos Baos (Lawyer) - White&Baos Tel: +34 966 426 185 • info@white-baos.com White & Baos 2021 - All Rights Reserved.

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Prince Harry bodyguard demand No security provided.

PRINCE HARRY has de‐ manded his bodyguards be returned when he is in the UK and has started legal ac‐ tion against Her Majesty’s government.

Harry’s lawyers have sent a ‘pre‐action protocol’ let‐

ter to the Home Office. The letter states that a judicial review will be sought if Prince Harry and his family are not given security when visiting the UK. If security is not returned to the Duke of Sussex, then a High Court

battle will ensue.

A source said: “Harry’s ar‐ gument in a nutshell is ‘You got the law wrong.’ He feels the decision to remove his security was wrong. Pre‐ac‐ tion protocol was sent by Harry’s lawyers to the Home Office a couple of months ago. This is essen‐ tially a precursor to a judi‐ cial review.”

They added: “When Harry came back last April for Prince Philip’s funeral, he was given security. But when he came back in the summer, he wasn’t.”

NEWS

Spotted in Mallorca

FOLLOWING the suspension of filming for the Netflix movie The Mother, award‐winning British actor Joseph Fiennes has flown home to Mallorca to be with his family.

The filming (in Gran Canaria) was halted a few days ago due to an outbreak of Covid among members of the crew. Fiennes flew straight back to Mallorca to be with his family, where they have lived for the past few years, and where he is busy with the construction of his new home.

The home is an impressive structure located in a lux‐ urious development on the island, in which Fiennes and his wife María Dolores Diéguez are deeply in‐ volved.

Fiennes is regarded as the ‘go‐to actor for English cultural history,’ and is well‐known for his versatility and period pieces. His numerous accolades include a Screen Actors Guild Award and nomination for a British Academy Film Award.

New autonomo rates

IN what will be welcome news for many, the Spanish government wants to re‐ form the social security payment system and bring in new rates for ‘au‐ tonomos’ (the self‐em‐ ployed). The current sys‐ tem has the same rate irrespective of income and has been criticised for be‐ ing unfair.

The proposal would see rates for those who earn be‐ tween €184 and €1,267 per month fall to a more mean‐ ingful and affordable amount. A source said: “A

real income contribution system has been proposed for self‐employed workers.

“We start from an unfair system where, for example, a self‐employed person with income of €400 pays the same as another with €6,000. This model corrects that inequality and is fairer.”

A ‘flexible system’ of 13 sections has been proposed, covering income ranging from less than €600 per month to more than €4,050, with the possibility of moving between brack‐ ets during the year.

• Eat more vegetables.

The changes could ac‐ cording to the source, see the lowest paid saving up to €1,300 per year and those between €600 and €900 per month almost €600 a year.

The latter is known to cover a very large number of workers.

It is understood that the system would be phased in over a nine‐year period, with a re‐evaluation every three years. The change it is hoped will make contribu‐ tions fairer, but also make it easier for people to start up their self‐employment.

resolution

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NEWS

Prince stripped of honours BUCKINGHAM PALACE is‐ sued the bombshell an‐ nouncement on January 13, that the Queen has stripped Prince Andrew of all his mili‐ tary honours. This action comes after Andrew was told he will now face a court hearing over the sexual as‐ sault charges brought against him by Virginia Guiffre.

All his royal patronages, and military titles, have forthwith been returned to the Queen. He has been in‐ formed that he can no longer be referred to in any capacity as HRH and must now face

PRINCE ANDREW: Will be treated as a private citizen.

the lawsuit in New York as a private citizen.

This action by the Queen must be seen as the royal

THE Home Office has told two more asy‐ lum seekers from some of the world’s most dangerous conflict areas that it is safe to return home, contradicting their own advice.

The refugees are a 36‐year‐old from Yemen and a 21‐year‐old from Afghanistan who have both had their asylum claims rejected by government officials. The new cases follow the revela‐ tion that a 25‐year‐old man from Syria was also told it was safe to go home. Ac‐

family trying to distance itself from the humiliating media attention that the court case is bound to bring upon them.

Andrew, who as a mem‐ ber of the armed forces, served as a helicopter pilot, an instructor, and as the cap‐ tain of a warship, in the Falk‐ lands War, is ninth in line to the British throne.

A statement from the Palace read, “With the Queen’s approval and agree‐ ment, the Duke of York’s mil‐ itary affiliations and Royal patronages have been re‐ turned to the Queen. The Duke of York will continue not to undertake any public duties and is defending this case as a private citizen.”

Safe to return home

cording to the government’s own guid‐ ance, there are huge dangers involved in returning refugees to countries such as Syria, Afghanistan and Yemen.

The Syrian man fled to avoid forced conscription into Bashar al‐Assad’s army.

He said if he is returned, they would seek him out as a draft evader and kill him. The Home Office said: “It is not accepted that

you will face a risk of persecution or real risk of serious harm.” However, they lat‐ er retracted their decision.

They told the man from Yemen they “do not accept that there are problems in Yemen.” While a letter to the 21‐year‐old Afghan stated: “It is not considered they [the Taliban] would have an adverse in‐ terest in a low‐level person such as you.”

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Bomb detonation

A SPANISH Civil War bomb was detonated after a man said he remembered it be‐ ing dropped on his town, but not exploding, more than 80 years ago. The bomb was dropped by Ital‐ ian fascist bombers when the man was a child.

Men were working on a building in Maella, near Zaragoza in northeastern Spain, when the local man told them of his memory.

He said he was six years old when the location was bombed, but the device failed to explode.

“A local resident alerted the owner of the premises that he had to be careful when carrying out works because during the Civil War, when this person was six, the town was bombard‐ ed and one of the bombs did not explode. Later con‐ crete was poured on the ground and the artefact was hidden from view,” the Guardia Civil said in a state‐ ment.

Metal detectors were used to find the 50kg bomb which was dropped by the Italian air force, which sided with the Nationalist forces of General Francisco Franco

during the 1936‐1939 war.

Bomb disposal officers blew up the device on Jan‐ uary 10, but the operation was made public on Sunday January 16.

Jet2 changes

JET2.COM and Jet2holidays have launched a series of op‐ erational changes in another step to being carbon neu‐ tral. The company is cutting its carbon footprint and aims to beat the net zero target of 2050 set by the govern‐ ment.

Jet2 chief executive Steve Heapy explained: “The launch of our carbon offsetting scheme marks the first major step in our journey to net zero. It is our responsibil‐ ity to pay for every tonne of carbon we emit and today’s announcement makes this a reality, meaning that our customers can be assured that Jet2.com and Jet2holidays have their carbon covered.”

He went on to add: “This, however, is just one mile‐ stone in our journey to reach our sustainability targets.

The year 2022 also marks the realisation of our carbon neutral ground operations, and we are also powering our offices with 100 per cent renewable energy.”

As part of the changes, the company will be purchasing around 75 new A321 NEO aircraft. This will help reduce the emissions produced for each passenger that travels with the company.

NEWS

Scottish help for EU citizens

THE Scottish government has relaunched the Stay in Scot‐ land campaign which aims to help EU citizens living in Scot‐ land easily prove their immi‐ gration status online.

The Scottish government are continuing to push the gov‐ ernment in the UK to provide EU citizens with physical proof of immigration status.

According to the Scottish government it is “concerned that many people are strug‐ gling to use this system to

Helping EU citizens.

prove their immigration status, putting them at risk of losing work, accommodation and ac‐ cess to benefits.”

Europe Minister Jenny Gilruth said: “We value the

contribution EU citizens make to our country and we are con‐ cerned that many people are experiencing difficulties with the UK government’s ‘view and prove’ service. Vulnerable citizens are finding it challeng‐ ing to prove their status to ser‐ vice providers and employers.”

“We’ve now updated our resources to help EU citizens navigate the UK government’s digital‐only system and ensure they have access to work, ac‐ commodation and benefits.”

Energy firm gaffe

ENERGY firm E.On has said it is “incredibly sor‐ ry” for sending socks to customers in a bid to encourage them to turn their heating down.

They were the second major energy supplier in recent times to apologise to customers for a marketing gaffe while people are facing rising costs of living driven by energy price increases.

Customers of energy supplier OVO were furi‐

STATS

97,000

ous when the company advised them to “do a few star jumps” and cuddle their pets to keep warm. OVO’s founder apologised for the com‐ ments, saying he was “really embarrassed.”

Energy prices are set to soar in the UK in 2022, with a new price cap due to add around £600 a year to household gas and electric bills with typi‐ cal energy usage.

There are over 97,000 kms of blood vessels in the average person.

NEWS

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Released into the wild TWO green turtles and four loggerhead turtles were re‐ leased back into the wild af‐ ter being rescued from a fish‐ ing net in San Clemente del Tuyu in Argentina.

Staff at a local marine foundation found 10 differ‐ ent types of plastic in the poor marine creatures’ bod‐ ies. Karina Alvarez, a biologist at the Grupo Marino Founda‐ tion, said: “The danger of plastic is that it is silent.” The turtles’ rehabilitation lasted more than a month, where they underwent blood tests and x‐rays to ensure that they did not have any plastic objects in their digestive tracts.

In a video message, Al‐ varez said: “During the check‐ up and evaluation, we found

TURTLES: Ingest plastic.

a large amount of this mate‐ rial inside, so it is important that they can eliminate them before the condition worsens and ends up causing the death of the specimens.”

Loggerhead turtles can be found in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans as well as the Mediterranean Sea. Green turtles are one of the biggest sea turtles and can grow to more than 90 kg in weight.

Baby found in egg box ACCORDING to Russian offi‐ cials, a new‐born baby who was found abandoned in an egg box in temperatures as low as ‐20C is doing well.

The baby was found by five teenagers on a remote road near the village of Sos‐ novka outside Novosibirsk in Siberia on Friday, January 7.

The baby girl was rushed to hospital by one of the teenagers’ parents and she was declared fit and healthy.

The parents are hoping to adopt the baby girl but must wait and see whether her relatives can be located.

The father of one of the teens, Dmitry Litvinov, said the five friends had gone for a walk on Orthodox Christ‐ mas Day when they made the shocking discovery.

“It was already dark, they were shining their phones, looking at what was in the box,” said Mr Litvinov.

The friends discovered a baby girl inside the box with a rag‐like blanket and a bot‐ tle. The father and his wife were called to the scene by their son, Renat and took the baby to the city hospital by car.

20 - 26 January 2022

Europol ordered to delete data THE EU’s police agency, Europol, will be forced to delete the majority of a huge store of personal in‐ formation that it has been found to have gathered unlawfully by the bloc’s data protection watch‐ dog. The data collected unlawfully includes in‐ formation from crime reports, hacked from encrypted phone ser‐ vices and sampled from asylum seekers that have never been in‐ volved in any crime.

According to internal documents, Europol’s cache contains at least four petabytes ‐ equiva‐ lent to 3m CD‐Roms and billions of points of data.

Data protection advo‐ cates say the volume of information held on Eu‐ ropol’s systems amounts to mass surveillance and is a step on its road to be‐ coming a European counterpart to the US National Security Agen‐ cy (NSA), the organisa‐ tion whose clandestine online spying was re‐ vealed by whistleblower Edward Snowden.

Among the stacks of unlawfully collected da‐ ta is the sensitive per‐ sonal data of at least a

quarter of a million current or former terror and seri‐ ous crime suspects, plus people they have come in contact with.

PERSONAL INFO: Has been gathered unlawfully.

EWN 21

s ’ e n i t n e l a V A spectacular from the Benidorm Palace

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FEATURE

LOVE is in the air at the Benidorm Palace with the world-famous venue gearing up for a spectacular weekend of entertainment this Valentine’s.

ELO AGAIN: The hits keep on coming.

The highest quality performers.

HOSTING both their new show Terra and the world’s best ELO tribute band, ELO Again, on the same weekend, Benidorm Palace is offering its guests a romantic weekend of electrifying entertainment and world‐class food.

Offering all the glitz, glamour and enter‐ tainment Benidorm Palace is famous for, their latest show Terra, on Saturday, Febru‐ ary 12, is an amazing event for all ages.

A new production uniting artists from all over the world together on one stage, Terra pays tribute to planet Earth and Mother Na‐ ture.

Choreographed by David Moore under the direction of Joanna Climent, Terra takes the spectator on a journey to some of the most emblematic places across five continents.

A dinner show with live music, visual at‐ tractions, comedy, and magic, Terra is the perfect night to mark Valentine’s.

Meanwhile, band ELO Again, who are per‐ forming on Sunday, February 13, will be rock‐ ing the house with classic hits from one of the world’s best‐loved bands.

Back with their stunning ‘Re‐Discovery Tour,’ ELO Again are celebrating the truly uni‐ versal music of Jeff Lynne and the Electric Light Orchestra.

Giving you a dramatic taste of what a leg‐ endary ELO concert would have been like back in their heyday, the whole experience is professionally re‐enacted with a great sound reproduction, light show and visual effects.

As the UK’s number one tribute show, ELO Again provides the spectacular live effect of

Spectacular costumes, great music.

ELO’s famous orchestrations, soaring strings and vocals. They certainly know how to en‐ tertain too, as the hits just keep on coming, while their version of Mr Blue Sky is stunning.

A night at the Benidorm Palace not only of‐ fers the highest quality performers, spectacu‐ lar costumery and great music, it also serves up beautiful food.

On the menu for Terra is marinated chick‐ en salad with bacon, crunchy croutons and Gran Palace sauce, pumpkin cream soup, Iberian pork steak with five pepper sauce, potato gratin and sautéed vegetables, as well as the Chef’s special dessert and wine.

Or for Menu Gran Palace Plus ticket hold‐ ers, a main course of grilled fillet steak with port sauce, potato gratin and sautéed veg‐ etables is on the menu Meanwhile, for ELO Again a meal of chick‐ en or fish and chips is available.

The Euro Weekly News caught up with ELO

Enjoy the perfect night’s entertainment.

Again’s lead singer Colin Smith, who per‐ forms as the legendary band’s frontman Jeff Lynne, ahead of the show.

He told the EWN: “I love Spain and I’ve been there many times.

“We’re excited to be coming over and looking forward to a big crowd and getting ready to rock and roll.”

Colin added: “We normally do a lot of UK theatres and outdoor festivals and do about 70 shows a year. It’s a great team along with our sound and lighting technicians and we have fun performing together.”

Speaking about coming to Spain, he said: “We’ve performed across Europe in Ger‐ many and Poland and I’d heard about the Benidorm Palace from other great acts who had performed there before, who said what an amazing place it is.”

He added: “People said it’s an exciting place to play and the people are fantastic and

always have a good time.”

Explaining more about the band, he said: “We’re in our 10th year now and have trav‐ elled everywhere.

“It’s a seven‐piece line‐up with drums, bass guitar, two keyboards and a cellist.

“We put on a big production with lighting and screens. It’s an exciting and energetic show.”

Colin added: “We have a good range of players in ELO Again and we always put out our A Team.

“Everybody comes to hear Mr Blue Sky, but people love all their hits. A lot of people get up and dance because it’s a great rock and roll show.”

Colin added: “We’re really looking forward to coming out and performing to an amazing audience and a great venue and having a great night.”

ELO Again are performing on Sunday, February 13 at 8.30pm.

Tickets are available from the Benidorm Palace Box Office for €30 with an option available for chicken or fish and chips for €8.

Terra takes place on Saturday, February 12 at 8pm. Tickets are €34 for the show, €54 for the show and dinner, and €64 for the show and the menu Gran Palace Plus.

Benidorm Palace is also offering a special Valentine’s promotion of tickets to both Terra and ELO Again for just €55 for show-only tickets, while meals are available with a ticket upgrade.

For more information, visit www.benidormpalace.com or contact 965 851 660.

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NEWS

Sinead O’Connor hospitalised

THE tragic death of her son has seen Sinead O’Connor hospitalised, as the star “blames only herself” for the teen taking his life. The Noth‐ ing Compares 2U singer has been sharing with fans on so‐ cial media the struggles she has had in the aftermath of

Shane’s death. She has told them what a special and in‐ comparable bond they had together.

Sinead, 56, posted on Twit‐ ter on January 13 that she felt “Shane’s death was no one’s fault but my own” and re‐ vealed to her followers she

Struggling after son’s death.

Brexit red tape mayhem HGV drivers are waiting for up to two days to get through customs checks in Calais due to Brexit red tape. The delays are affecting deliveries.

Experts are blaming government systems after new rules came into force this month. Imports from the EU have to be processed by HMRC; however, lorry drivers are reporting problems getting reference codes accepted.

Challenges have also been caused by new customs decla‐ rations, requiring rules‐of‐origin documents on goods im‐ ported from the European Union to be completed.

One customs consultancy firm director said that a client with 20 lorries full of food products for the UK was stuck for almost two days last week.

Drivers have taken to Twitter to air their anger, with one driver tweeting: that he had been forced to wait for over eight hours “for a f*** bar code,” describing the situation at the port as “mental.”

was in hospital after consider‐ ing also ending her life.

Her tweet last night read: “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I am with cops now on way to hospital. I’m sorry I up‐ set everyone. I am lost without my kid and I hate myself. Hos‐ pital will help me a while. But I’m going to find Shane. This is just a delay.”

Shane was found dead on January 7 after going missing from hospital. Sinead O’Connor had attacked the mental health authorities who had been in charge of looking after her son, before apologising and taking back her comments.

resolution

• Go for a health checkup with your doctor.

NEWS

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20 - 26 January 2022

Fugitive caught after Covid hits A US fugitive who faked his own death to escape sexual assault charges has been found and arrested at a Scottish hospital where he was being treated for Covid‐ 19.

Nicholas Rossi, who also goes by the aliases of

Nicholas Alahverdian and Nicholas Alahverdian Rossi, is wanted in connection with an alleged sex assault in Utah in 2008 and an at‐ tack in Ohio in 2018, the Utah County Attorney’s Of‐ fice said.

The 34‐year‐old man was Rossi faked own death.

Outdoor masks suspended in Paris MANDATORY masks outdoors were suspended by the Paris administrative court on Thursday January 13 after a similar decision was passed through the courts of Versaille the day before. The need to wear protec‐ tive face coverings while in the open air had been in place since December 31.

The decision came after the ruling in the Adminis‐ trative Court of Versaille agreed with the case brought forward declaring the measure to be “exces‐ sive, disproportionate and an inappropriate interfer‐ ence on individual freedom.” The case in the region close to Paris was the first of its kind brought forward on French soil.

The decision concerning this prefecture order, ini‐ tially instigated to deal with the emergence of the Omicron variant, was published on January 14. When asked for comment on the ruling, the police head‐ quarters reserved its right to comment.

caught while using another alias, Arthur Knight, at a Glas‐ gow hospital and is being watched by local police, offi‐ cials in Utah have explained.

The severity of Rossi’s illness meant he had to be intubat‐ ed while under the care of Queen Elizabeth University hospital.

Utah County Attorney David O Leavitt admitted that if the UD fugitive had not contracted coronavirus and required medical care, he would probably still be liv‐ ing “off the grid.”

Rossi has been charged with one count of alleged rape, in the attack on a 21‐ year‐old woman on Septem‐ ber 13, 2008, according to a prosecution statement.

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NEWS

Pink mask fury

ANNIVERSARY: Keeping people safe for 200 years.

Coastguard’s 200th birthday TWO HUNDRED years of saving lives along the UK coast and at sea, as well as coordinating rescues for those in distress in international waters, is being marked this year as HM Coastguard celebrates its milestone anniversary.

It was on January 15, 1822, that HM Coastguard was formally brought into existence and they have been working to keep people safe on the coast and sea ever since.

On Saturday January 15, coastguards across all four UK home nations cast throwlines as a symbol of the service’s dedication ‐ past and present.

For 200 years, the Coastguard has moved with the times and looks to the future to help save people in the waters around the UK. In 2022, they currently have 310 Coastguard Rescue Teams made up of 3,500 volunteers, with 10 search and rescue helicopter bases.

In the last few years, the service has branched out, pro‐ viding mutual aid and support during events and inci‐ dents to other emergency partners. During the pandem‐ ic, coastguards supported the NHS, attended the G7 and COP26 in 2021 and are called in to support during nation‐ al emergencies, including flooding or supplying water to stranded drivers.

ITALIAN police officers have lashed out after be‐ ing sent pink Covid masks to wear while on duty.

Police units in six cities were sent the FFP2 masks from the office of Italy’s Covid‐19 emergency com‐ missioner, Francesco Paolo Figiuolo, but after opening the boxes, many of the offi‐ cers refused to wear the items.

This prompted the chief of a police union, Stefano Paolini, to write a letter to the head of police at the in‐ terior ministry, Lamberto Giannini. Paolini wrote that the decision to approve the purchase of pink masks for

the police force was puz‐ zling. He claimed the colour was “eccentric” in respect to police uniforms and risked jeopardising the im‐ age of the institution.

“We ask you to take im‐ mediate action to ensure that the police carry out their duty wearing masks of a colour (white, blue or black) which is consistent with the uniform of the state police,” he wrote.

In a subsequent state‐ ment, Paolini said the prob‐ lem did not arise because of prejudice against the colour pink, “but from the fact that the uniform is reg‐ ulated.”

How law affects rentals THE new Spanish law 17/2021 which came into force on January 5 means animals are no longer con‐ sidered ‘real estate or things’ and are recognised as ‘sen‐ tient beings’ or living beings endowed with sensitivity.

The regulations modify the Civil Code to adapt it to the true nature of animals and the relationships of co‐ existence that are estab‐ lished between them and human beings. Some Twitter users have wondered if the new rights relate to the clauses that some owners of rental flats put in place that prohibits renters from hav‐ ing pets in the property.

The General Directorate of Animal Rights say the new law does not contemplate anything related to these clauses so, for now, the own‐ ers of rental apartments will be able to continue not al‐ lowing animals.

Some users have de‐ scribed it as ‘abusive’ to im‐ pose these types of restric‐ tions when accessing rental housing now that animals are considered ‘sentient be‐ ings’ by law.

Others, however, argue that a dog can ‘destroy a house’ and that it is ‘normal’ that the owners do not want to have them in their apart‐ ments.

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Stalker teen keys her ex’s car A STALKER teen followed her ex‐lover to Benidorm and keyed profanities into his car after they broke up.

Chloe Armes, 19, met David McDermott, 42, at a pub just weeks after her 18th birthday in 2020 and they struck up a relation‐ ship from there.

Armes and McDermott knew each other from Ec‐ cles College, where he had been her student support officer. They then bumped into each other while at a

pub and Armes told him she had “fantasised” about him. McDermott then took Armes to a local hotel to have sex with her.

The following day, he transferred money to her bank account for drugs she supplied him.

Armes later followed Mr McDermott to Benidorm.

He called her to tell her to cease contact, but she did not, and they met again and had unprotected sex.

Armes then placed materi‐

al on Facebook saying she was pregnant.

McDermott told her once more to stop contact‐ ing him, but Armes carried on. She also told his em‐ ployer about their rela‐ tionship and he was sacked for gross miscon‐ duct.

The affair came to a head when the teen went to his ex‐partner’s house, smashed the windows and keyed the word ‘nonce’ in‐ to his car bonnet.

Hero rat dies in Cambodia AN African giant pouched rat named Maga‐ wa, who became a hero during his five‐year career sniffing out landmines in Cambodia, has died at the age of eight.

Magawa had been trained by the Belgian non‐governmental charity organisation, APOPO, to detect landmines, as well as other types of explosives. Aged three, he was sent to Siem Reap, in the Asian country of Cambo‐ dia, where the rodent was set to work.

He subsequently helped to clear an area equivalent to 31 football pitches ‐ more than 225,000m². The charity explained how, in five

years, the brave rodent uncovered 71 land‐ mines, along with 38 other types of unex‐ ploded ordnance.

As a reward for his services, Magawa was awarded the animal equivalent of a George Cross, the PDSA Gold Medal, in 2020. It is a medal that recognises acts of heroism by British military personnel, and citizens.

He eventually retired, and was replaced by Ronin, another trained rodent. A charity spokesperson said Magawa had recently be‐ come noticeably more lethargic, spending more time asleep and stopped eating.

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Attractive face covering?

A SURPRISING new way to look more attractive has surfaced during the pan‐ demic according to a new study conducted by re‐ searchers at Cardiff Univer‐ sity. The data collected by the Welsh academics has shown that people look more attractive when they are wearing protective masks.

The scientists were shocked to discover that both men and women were judged to look better with a face‐covering obscur‐ ing the lower half of their faces. The most beautiful mask of all came out as a surprise also; the blue dis‐ posable‐type surgical mask topped the readings.

Dr Michael Lewis, a read‐ er from Cardiff University’s school of psychology and an expert in faces, said re‐ search carried out before

SURGICAL MASK: Topped the readings.

the pandemic had found that medical face masks re‐ duced attractiveness be‐ cause they were associated with disease or illness, re‐ ported the British press.

“We wanted to test whether this had changed since face coverings be‐ came ubiquitous and un‐ derstand whether the type of mask had any effect,” he said.

“Our study suggests faces

are considered most attrac‐ tive when covered by medi‐ cal face masks. This may be because we’re used to healthcare workers wearing blue masks and now we as‐ sociate these with people in caring or medical profes‐ sions. At a time when we feel vulnerable, we may find the wearing of medical masks reassuring and so feel more positive towards the wearer.”

resolution

• Take the stairs instead of the lift or escalator.

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Now that’s fast food!

A P O P U L A R Mexican restaurant has taken fast food to a whole new lev‐ el, serving dishes to the table in a record 13.5 seconds. Karne Garibaldi is an award‐winning group based in Guadala‐

jara, Mexico.

The restaurant chain has held onto the Guin‐ ness World Record since 1996 despite competitors’ attempts to beat it. The restaurants serve tradi‐ tional Mexican dishes that

take hours to cook. All the dishes are prepared in time for when diners ar‐ rive and then it is simply a matter of taking their or‐ der and getting it to the table as fast as possible.

Karne Garibaldi’s Daniel Flores said: “It began as a game between the wait‐ ers to see who could bring the food to each table the fastest. That competition led to us attempting the Guinness Record.”

Not everyone is served in such a record time, but most people are served within around one minute of their orders being tak‐ en.

NEWS

New virus warning issued AN international team of experts led by Kings College London have issued a warn‐ ing that scientists are creat‐ ing risky self‐spreading viruses that pose a threat to life on planet earth. The warning comes when the world is still unclear as to the origins of Covid‐19 with many believing that it origi‐ nated in a Chinese laborato‐ ry.

The warning appeared in a paper released by the Col‐ lege wherein it warns of “ir‐ reversible consequences” for the planet, with specific reference made to virus modification research in the EU and USA.

Simply too unstable.

Virus modification at‐ tempts to create single use viruses to rid the world of specific pests and diseases.

The belief is that you can create a virus that will only affect a specific pest or dis‐ ease and that it will simply disappear once that job is done and there is no further

target to attack.

These scientists also be‐ lieve that they could be used like a vaccine to spread im‐ munity from one host to an‐ other. Similar efforts have been made in countries like Spain and Australia with dev‐ astating effect, resulting in these attempts being aban‐ doned.

According to the authors of the report, led by Dr Filip‐ pa Lentzos, of the Depart‐ ment of War Studies and the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at King’s College London, self‐spreading viruses are simply too unstable to be safe.

Treasure-hunting badger find IN what is being called an exceptional discovery more than 200 Roman‐era coins were discovered in Spain thanks to a treasure‐hunting badger.

The badger is thought to have been foraging for food when it unearthed the coins and discarded them in front of its

den. In January 2021, Spain was hit hard by storm Filomena. It is believed that the storm and the cold weather made the badger dig deep, which led to the discovery.

The Roman coins were discovered in La Cuesta cave in Grado, Asturias. Scien‐

tists from Madrid’s Autonomous Univer‐ sity have revealed their findings in the Journal of Prehistory and Archaeology.

The find is exceptional as the coins are dated from between the third and fifth centuries AD and were originally made in Constantinople

NEWS

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Pig heart transplant A M A N in the US has become the first person in the world to get a heart transplant from a genetically modified pig.

David Bennett, 57, is said to be recovering well after the experi‐ mental seven‐hour pro‐ cedure in Baltimore.

The transplant was considered the last hope of saving his life; however, it is not yet clear what his chances of survival are long‐ term.

“It was either die or do this transplant,” Mr Bennett explained the day before the surgery.

I know it’s a shot in the dark, but it’s my last choice,” he said.

The US medical regu‐ lator granted a special dispensation to doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Cen‐ tre to carry out the transplant, on the basis

that Mr Bennett would have died otherwise.

He was not deemed

eligible for a human transplant due to poor health.

Rutland sea dragon

DURING landscaping work being undertaken at the Rutland Nature Reserve near Leicester, workers have found a huge fossilised ‘sea dragon’. The worker who first saw the fossil said: “I saw something unusual poking out of the mud.”

Joe Davis said: “I rang up the county council and I said I think I’ve found a dinosaur.” It turned out it wasn’t a di‐ nosaur, but the fossilised remains of a 10‐metre long sea predator called an ichthyosaur. The fossil is the largest of its type ever discovered in the UK. “I looked down at what seemed like stones or ridges in the mud and I said this looks a bit organic, a bit different,” Mr Davis said. “Then we saw something that looked almost like a jawbone.”

A team of palaeontologists were sent to investigate after the Rutland County Council told Davis: “We don’t have a di‐ nosaur department at present, so we’re going to have to get someone to call you back.”

They concluded it was an ichthyosaur, warm‐blooded, air‐ breathing sea predators not unlike dolphins, that could grow up to 25 metres long. They lived between 250 million and 90 million years ago.

STATS

400

An office desk has 400 times more bacteria than a toilet.

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Johnson and Sánchez chat THE head of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, and the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke at length by telephone as the two countries try to navigate the ongoing issues caused by Brexit.

The ‘lengthy’ call saw Johnson and Sánchez cover many issues that relate to their respective countries and how they can move for‐ ward together with solu‐ tions.

One of the topics covered

was the next NATO summit due to be held in Madrid and the “importance of the transatlantic link for the de‐ fence of Europe” before the event arrives.

Sánchez took to Twitter to confirm his talks with John‐ son, saying that they spoke at length about the strength‐ ening of bilateral relations and the economic ties be‐ tween the two countries, who share many of each other’s citizens.

Also, according to both governments, they have ex‐ pressed their willingness to continue working towards the completion as soon as possible of the agreement between the EU and the UK on Gibraltar. At this point, Johnson has also insisted on the importance of having a solution to the Protocol on Northern Ireland.

The latter has stalled on many occasions, with the lat‐ est statements by the UK Foreign Secretary, Liz Truss, not being received well by the EU.

NEWS

Will you live to 100?

G O V E R N M E N T analysts have put together a new calculator to show you the odds you have of reaching 100 years old, and your average life expectancy if you don’t quite meet the requirements of getting a card from the Queen.

The life expectancy calculator has been created by the Office of Na‐ tional Statistics (ONS) using data collected over the course of many years.

According to their research, one in five girls born in Britain are now expected to reach the age of 100,

while for boys it is one in eight, fol‐ lowing the usual trend of women living longer than men.

On average, boys who were born in 2020 can be expected to reach the age of 87 and girls are likely to pass 90 years old.

Despite the high numbers, experts have warned that improvement in life expectancy has stalled.

This began before Covid‐19 took hold in the UK, leading to much de‐ bate about the causes, with some attributing it to health cuts and aus‐ terity.

Baldwin film prop supplier sued THE armourer in charge of weapons on the set of Alec Baldwin’s Rust has sued the prop supplier for allegedly distributing ‘a mix of dummy and live ammunition.’

Cinematographer Haly‐ na Hutchins died last year after Alec Baldwin shot her during a gun rehearsal

on set after being told that the firearm was not load‐ ed.

Armourer Hannah Gutierrez‐Reed is now seeking unspecified dam‐ ages from Seth Kenney and PDQ Arm and Prop LLC. However, last month, Kenney said: “It’s not pos‐

sible that they [the live rounds] came from PDQ or me personally.”

Gutierrez‐Reed has filed her legal claim in New Mexico state court, the same state where the fatal shooting in October took place. Joel Souza, the film’s director, was also in‐ jured in the incident.

NEWS

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Two fake nurses jailed A COUPLE of former paramedics who posed as nurses to steal morphine and painkillers from terminally ill patients have been jailed for five years.

Ruth Lambert and Jessica Silvester from Margate in the UK, who were engaged, pretended to be nurses, and preyed on terminally ill patients across Kent during lockdown to gain access to their homes and steal their medication.

Lambert, 33, and Silvester, 29, were able to access patient records on the NHS com‐

puter systems because of their jobs as paramedics with the Southeast Coast Am‐ bulance Service.

Investigations found that they had car‐ ried out 29 burglaries, with Silvester find‐ ing the possible targets on the NHS database and Lambert carrying out the raids. The couple pleaded guilty to conspir‐ ing to burgle and commit theft ‐ having al‐ so stolen a £14,000 ultrasound machine from the NHS. They were each sentenced to five years in prison.

Record-high fuel prices AS record‐high fuel prices con‐ tinue to rise and the cost of liv‐ ing worsens, the boss of the UK’s biggest energy supplier has said the issue could last for up to two years. Chris O’Shea, chief executive of British Gas owner Centrica, said “the mar‐ ket suggests” high gas prices will continue “for the next 18 months to two years.”

Mr O’Shea has pointed to‐ wards the green policies of moving away from coal and oil as one of the reasons for

High prices will continue.

the hike. “As we move to‐ wards net zero, gas is a big transition fuel,” Mr O’Shea

said. “As you turn off coal‐fired power stations in other coun‐ tries, there isn’t an abundance of gas that you can just turn on quickly.”

The record‐high fuel prices come amid an energy crisis that has seen many smaller suppliers go bust, as the price for wholesale gas rises steeply.

The rises have been blamed on many reasons, including a reduction of supplies from Russia and high demand for liquified natural gas from Asia.

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NEWS

Armed conflict risk Covid nasal spray

FOLLOWING talks with Rus‐ sian officials, the secretary‐ general of Nato has warned there is a “real risk” of new armed conflict in Europe over the amassing of Rus‐ sian troops on the Ukrainian

border. Jens Stoltenberg was speaking after the meeting in Brussels be‐ tween the alliance and rep‐ resentatives of Russia, as fears grow that the latter could be preparing to invade

Ukraine. Over the last few months, Russia has moved around 100,000 troops near the border with the former Soviet republic, although it denies any plans to cross over into the country.

Moscow has issued a set of demands it wants to be met before it will move back from the country lines, however. These include a ban on Ukraine joining the alliance, a ban on further expansion of NATO, and an end to the alliance’s activity in the central and eastern European countries that joined it after 1997, report‐ ed Sky News.

The demands have previ‐ ously been called ridiculous and were not welcomed by NATO after four hours of talks by the NATO‐Russia Council on January 12.

Mr Stoltenberg said there is a “real risk for a new armed conflict in Europe” but that the alliance “will do what we can to prevent any such scenario.”

IN the 22 months since the coronavirus pandemic hit Spain, we have learned to adapt our lives to suit the constant change in restric‐ tion and health measures. In a similar way, pharmaceuti‐ cal companies have been constantly searching for the next big breakthrough that could help alleviate infec‐ tions from the virus.

One such treatment has been developed by scientists

NEW TESTS: Have shown the spray to be successful.

at the University of Helsinki, in Finland, and is a basic nasal spray. Although it has only been tested on rodents so

3rd jab for over 18s SPAIN’S Ministry of Health has agreed to adminis‐ ter the third dose of the Covid vaccine to everyone over 18 years of age.

The announcement was made by the Ministry of Health on Thursday January 13. The vaccines are al‐ ready authorised for those over 40.

According to regional sources, the general direc‐ tors of Public Health of the Ministry and the Com‐ munities have agreed to open this new age group, meaning that all adults can now receive the booster dose.

The vaccines will be Pfizer or Moderna ‐ regard‐ less of the one received in primary vaccination.

far, it is claimed that this nasal spray can protect against Covid‐19 for up to eight hours.

Tests have allegedly shown it to be successful in blocking the symptoms of all known variants of the virus, including Omicron.

Experts clarify of course that vaccination is still the most effective way to com‐ bat the virus. This spray would act as a good comple‐ ment to the jabs, especially in patients undergoing can‐ cer treatment, transplanted people, or those with HIV. In addition, we must remain cautious and aware of the situations in which Covid is most likely to be contracted.

NEWS

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20 - 26 January 2022

Old red boxes adapted

OLD telephone boxes in the UK are being giv‐ en a new lease of life and being transformed by telecommunications firm BT into life‐sav‐ ing services for just £1.

The BT Adopt a Kiosk website states the scheme “has been successful in transforming unused payphone kiosks and preserves the heritage of the red kiosk, particularly in rural lo‐ cations. We allow red kiosks to be adopted, subject to certain criteria such as low use and those not required for our own future plans.”

Councillor Dickon Fetherstonhaugh said of a transformed phone box located in Abergele, North Wales: “The box had been disused for many years and now it is a life‐saving device for the village, which is brilliant.

“Thankfully it has never been used but should we ever need to it could be vitally im‐

New species found

A NEW species has been discovered by Spanish scien‐ tists in Scottish waters. The scientists have been collabo‐ rating with the Scottish gov‐ ernment.

Together they have dis‐ covered a new species of deep‐water soft coral in the seas to the west of Scotland.

Firearms seized

TELEPHONE BOXES: Being transformed.

portant.” The Adopt a Kiosk scheme is open to the following bodies: Recognised local authority (eg District/Bor‐ ough Council) Parish/Community/Town Council or equiva‐ lent Registered charity Private landowner (anyone who has one of the telephone boxes on their land)

According to the experts, the discovery shows that there is still plenty to learn about the oceans.

According to the govern‐ ment the: “Specimens were recovered from the conti‐ nental slopes and plains of the Rockall Trough at depths of up to 2,000 me‐

tres over a period of almost a decade up to 2019.”

Scientists including the renowned Dr Pablo Lopez‐ Gonzalez from the Universi‐ ty of Sevilla have been analysing the samples which led to the discovery. The new species has been called Pseudumbellula scotiae.

EWN 33

A weapon of choice.

A TOTAL of 1,534 firearms have been seized in an inter‐ national law enforcement op‐ eration targeting the illegal trade of converted alarm and signal weapons.

These blank firing pistols have become a weapon of choice for criminals as they

Isolation period now cut THE health secretary, Sajid Javid, announced on Thursday January 13 that the self‐isolation period for fully vaccinated people in England who have Covid will be reduced from seven days to five.

Citing data from the UK Health Security Agency, he said: “Two‐thirds of positive cases are no longer infectious by the end of day five.”

Currently, fully vaccinated people who test posi‐ tive for Covid can end their isolation period if they test negative on a lateral flow test on days six and seven. The test must be taken 24 hours apart. If they still test positive, they must stay in isolation for 10 days.

This change was made just before Christmas, however, there have been calls for the government to cut the isolation period further because of con‐ tinuing pressure on businesses and the NHS amid staff shortages due to the spread of the Omicron variant.

can easily be converted to discharge live ammunition. A weapon like one of the firearms by Europol is be‐ lieved to have been used to kill the Dutch crime reporter shot in Amsterdam in July of last year.

This operation, known as Conversus, was led by the Ro‐ manian National Police (Poliția Română) in the framework of the European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EM‐ PACT). It focused around an action week coordinated by Europol between December 13 to 17, 2021 and involved law enforcement from 24 countries, alongside Eurojust and the European Commis‐ sion.

During the operation, there were more than 260 house searches conducted with 1,534 firearms seized by Eu‐ ropol. More than 17,000 pieces of ammunition and 6,500kg of pyrotechnics were also recovered during the work.

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EUROPEAN PRESS

EUROPEAN PRESS DENMARK

50th Anniversary

Vegan beef

THREE coins were released on January 13 to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of Queen Margrethe’s accession to the throne, one is to enter circulation and the other two being collector’s pieces but the public celebrations have been postponed until September due to the pandemic.

ALTHOUGH full details of the reason have not been revealed, the co-founder of the Vegan political party Veganpartiet, (which will contest the next general election) Henrik Vindfeldt has been expelled for abusive behaviour which was not apparently of a sexual nature.

THE NETHERLANDS Gold Carriage

Signal App

CONSIDERED by some to be a racist salute to Holland’s colonial past, King WillemAlexander has said that he will not use the Gold Carriage until the country is ready explaining that it will remain in the Amsterdam Museum until discrimination is a thing of the past.

HAVING seen messages from the past reappear to embarrass politicians and celebrities, BNR radio reports that more and more Dutch politicians as well as Council officials are using messaging App Signal, which automatically deletes messages after a period set by the user.

BELGIUM Skippy hops it

Ghost Town

IMAGINATIVELY named wallaby Skippy who made a hop for freedom from a children’s zoo in Antwerp Province known as Noah’s Ark was on the run for around 36 hours before being spotted near to his home which he was clearly missing and gave himself up.

THE centre of Brussels is like a ghost town as office staff are required to work from home four days a week and few tourists are arriving so many normally busy bars, hotels and restaurants are empty which means that they are closing their doors.

GERMANY Supporting diversity

Standing alone

FOR the first time in the country's history, Germany has appointed a commissioner for the acceptance of sexual and gender diversity.

Green Party lawmaker Sven Lehmann will oversee a LGBTQ+ national action plan and says that it is his duty to fight ‘queerphobia’.

A FARMER makes last ditch stand against forcible eviction from home that has been his families for the past four generations as RWE power company buys out everyone in village of Lützerath to create open cast coal mine and he has now attracted support from ‘tree huggers’.

FRANCE Seaweed attack

Baguette wars

SOME of the 6,000 inhabitants of little-known French possession Saint-Pierre-and-Miquelon, an island off the coast of Canada’s Newfoundland, were so incensed by the recent introduction of the French covid passport that they pelted their French MP Stephane Claireaux with seaweed and ripped off his mask.

FRENCH supermarket Leclerc is offering to sell their baguettes at the low price of 29c undercutting all other supermarkets but independent bakers are up in arms saying that the daily tradition of buying your baguette from your local boulangerie is under threat..

NORWAY Aiming high

Controversial plan

HAVING decided that he’s too young to retire, former Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg who is due to step down as Secretary General of NATO has set his cap on taking over as Governor of the country’s Central Bank but opponents say he is too political.

ENVIRONMENTALISTS will be unhappy that Parliament is considering repealing some regulations concerning the use of protected rivers and waterfalls in order to expand the amount of hydro-electricity available in order to meet rising demand and to keep ever increasing consumer cost down.

EUROPEAN PRESS

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EUROPEAN PRESS FINLAND

Lightning strikes

Nasal spray

ACCORDING to research undertaken by scientists at Finnish environmental company Vasala, global warming could be responsible for the fact that there were 7,278 lighting strikes in the North Pole during 2021 which was nearly double the previous nine years combined.

IN an attempt to provide additional protection against coronavirus, a team at the University of Helsinki is in the early stages of testing a nasal spray on mice exposed to the virus. Mice who received the spray were protected for up to eight hours.

IRELAND Birth right

Truffle harvest

IRISH law allowed those who were adopted to apply to the authorities for details of their birth parents, but the parents had a right of veto. Now, the Irish Government has changed the law meaning that anyone aged over 16 has the automatic right to see their birth certificate.

FIVE Irish farmers have been taking part in an experiment to grow truffles (one of the world’s most expensive foods) for the past 10 years, having planted oak trees with truffles growing on the root system and this year the first truffles have been harvested.

ITALY Funeral shock

Referendum decision

PRIESTS who officiated at the funeral of a member of the neo-fascist Forza Nuova group were shocked to later discover images of the coffin being draped with a Nazi swastika flag and an honour guard giving the right arm salute once they had left the church.

ON February 15, Italy's constitutional court is set to rule whether eight proposed referendums should be allowed. Six are concerned with matters of justice reform whilst the other two are more contentious with one focusing on legalising cannabis and the other euthanasia.

PORTUGAL Covid fines

IKEA sick pay

THE Portuguese Government has announced that between December 1 and January 10 more than 2,200 passengers were fined, for trying to enter Portugal through air borders without submitting a negative Covid test or recovery certificate as were 41 airlines for allowing them to travel.

ALTHOUGH IKEA in the UK has announced that workers who are unvaccinated and have to take time off to self-isolate will receive only much reduced statutory sick pay, this is not the case in Portugal as there is no legal precedence for this to occur.

RUSSIA Floating research

Frostbitten tiger

AS the amount of ice in the Arctic continues to decline, the Russian Government has decided that it can no longer introduce new research stations onto ice floes so has created a new North Pole floating research platform which should start a two-year expedition in 2023.

THERE are still an estimated 600 wild tigers in Russia and fishermen who rescued an emaciated female tiger cub aged around five months which was suffering from severe frostbite and injuries in the Primorye region alerted the Amur Tiger Centre where it is now recovering.

SWEDEN Golden number

Illegal employee

A NEW promotion by McDonald’s in Sweden started with hints about a gold number and then ratcheted things up by inviting customers to enter the McDonald’s jingle on the keypad of their phones to win a golden card loaded with money to be used at their restaurants.

FOLLOWING an alarm sounding in the house of Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, police attended and discovered that there was a Nicaraguan cleaner working there who should have been deported in 2020. Although employed by a cleaning company, this is proving embarrassing for Ms Andersson.

20 - 26 January 2022

EWN 35

FINANCE BUSINESS EXTRA Aerospace Madrid AIRBUS CEO Guillaume Faury has told a Spanish newspaper that the company is committed to strengthening its Madrid factory’s strategic contribution to priority European defence programmes and European Next Generation funds will support the entire Spanish aerospace sector as it increases relationships with the European Space Agency.

Young business LONDON is more popular with young entrepreneurs than anywhere else in the world according to a recently published Forbes list which records that there are more new businesses created by young people than even New York, and the UK as a whole came second in the list.

Netflix Spain MANY were surprised when Netflix signed a distribution deal with Movistar (which is owned by telecom giant Telefonica) in 2018, but so successful has the arrangement been that a new agreement has been signed extending the relationship for a further five years.

Huge sale THE Arora brothers who helped to make variety store B&M a hugely successful brand in the UK (with some 635 outlets which employ 32,000 people) have taken advantage of a boom in its share price and sold some 4 per cent of their shareholding for £234 million.

Meta sued A BRITISH lawyer, Dr Liza Lovdahl Gormsen, has tweeted she is suing Meta (parent company of Facebook) in a class action valued at £2.3 billion claiming it wrongly abused its market dominance to impose unfair terms and conditions on users, gaining valuable personal information. One person tweeted in support “privacy is a right. If you don’t pay for a service then YOU are the product and property being sold”. The action will argue that consumer rights were abused by the ‘take it or leave’ rules to join Facebook.

36

www.euroweeklynews.com • 20 - 26 January 2021

is the estimated amount that North Korean hackers stole STAT OF from cryptocurrency platforms in 2021 according to WEEK €300 million Blockchain analysis company Chainalysis.

Australia’s largest ever takeover THE Bank of Spain has facilitated Australia’s largest ever takeover by approving a bid for Afterpay by digi‐ tal payments company Block.

Whilst it may seem strange that a €25 billion business transaction on the other side of the world should hang on a decision made in Spain, the actual reason is relatively straightforward.

Afterpay was set up in Australia as a ‘buy now pay later’ business which allows in‐store and online customers to purchase a product immediately and pay with four equal interest free fortnightly re‐

payments.

All risk passes from the supplier to Afterpay but they charge a commis‐ sion to the supplier for the service and if customers don’t make the re‐ payments on time, then they re‐ ceive a penalty charge.

Having seen the model work in Australia, the business quickly ex‐ panded to take in the UK and parts of Europe with a new business called Clearpay being set up in Spain following the takeover of Spanish fintech Pagantis in 2020.

Having received a licence to oper‐ ate from the Spanish authorities,

LEGALLY SPEAKING

Can he stop smoke?

Please advise me what can be done with the problem of a neighbour burning wood or trash in the evening that comes into my house and breathing it affects my chest and eyes. I don’t know what they are burning but it is fumes rather than smoke, so proving this would be difficult. I can’t live peacefully in my home and I don’t know who to report it to, let alone someone coming in the night to investi‐ gate.

D G (by email)

Let’s keep this as sim‐ DAVID SEARL ple a possible.

YOU AND THE LAW Your town certainly IN SPAIN has Local Police for the municipality.

Next time you see a police car, take note of the num‐ ber. Don’t be shy; call a cop. Next time your neigh‐ bour is making fumes or smoke, call the police. Say: hay humo. The H is silent in both words. The police will come and smell the fumes. Your town has rules about when it is permitted to make a fire to burn brush. If your neighbour is infringing these rules, he can be fined or at least, warned, by the Local Police.

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

TOURISM is one of the mainstays of the Spanish economy and industry association Exceltur believes it will bounce back over the next two years.

This non‐profit association, counts 33 of the most important Spanish companies involved in all aspects of travel as well as accommodation, travel agencies and tour operators who between themselves operate in 40 countries and have a turnover of

this allowed the company to expand into other parts of the European Union on the back of that licence.

At the same time Block (who were previously known as Square), had snapped up the Spanish pay‐ ments application company Verse, so again the Spanish authorities had a further interest in the deal.

In order for the acquisition of the entire operation to go ahead, it was imperative that the Bank of Spain give its approval and this was re‐ quested last December with a final positive decision being announced on Tuesday January 11.

Your funeral plan with Golden Leaves WHILE many people buy a new home or car when they move to Spain, a lot do not think about what happens when it comes to their funeral, which is why a Find the right plan. pre‐paid funeral plan from Golden Leaves is essential.

Having a pre‐paid funeral plan from Golden Leaves ensures that when the time comes your wishes are carried out in full and your loved ones are not left to organise a funeral in a different country and another language.

Golden Leaves offers three types of funeral plan, including the Opal Plan, Pearl Plan and Golden Plan.

The Opal Plan is designed for those who just want a simple cremation service and provides a funeral service that covers the essential items, including the removal and disposal of the deceased.

Meanwhile, the Pearl Plan is designed for those who would like a traditional funeral service for cremation or burial and the Golden Plan is for those who would like their funeral in the UK. To find the right funeral plan for you, contact Golden Leaves today.

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

Tourism forecast positive more than €30 billion.

In their end of year report which in‐ cludes a review of the potential mar‐ ket for 2022, they are very bullish about a recovery, subject of course to the recent surge in Covid infections as well as current travel restrictions.

Despite all of this, they forecast

that starting in April of this year, there should be a boom in travel to the coast and country areas, fuelled in part by many Spaniards taking holi‐ days in different parts of Spain rather than travelling abroad.

Major tourist cities such as Barcelona and Madrid are less likely

Revolut bank Spain REVOLUT, the global financial super‐app with more than 18 million customers worldwide, has obtained European spe‐ cialised banking licences in 10 European markets.

Customers in those Euro‐ pean countries including Spain who upgrade to Revo‐ lut Bank for additional ser‐ vices will now have their de‐ posits protected under the deposit guarantee scheme.

Deposit protection up to €100,000 is guaranteed by the Lithuanian State company De‐ posit and Investment Insur‐ ance.

According to a survey car‐ ried out by Revolut at the end of 2020, on average, almost 50 per cent of respondents in‐ dicated that they would de‐ posit their salary on Revolut and 54 per cent would spend more via the app if they had their deposits insured.

Indian free trade deal FORMAL talks are being un‐ dertaken in person in New Delhi between the govern‐ ments of India and the UK to discuss a potential free trade agreement between the two countries.

Indian trade minister Piyush Goyal and his UK coun‐ terpart Anne‐Marie Trevelyan said there could be a limited agreement in the next few months according to a BBC re‐ port.

The Indian economy has been on the rise for some years so is an ideal target for post‐Brexit Britain, but there will no doubt need to be a number of concessions made by the UK in order to double its current level of exports. to welcome hoards of foreign visitors this year although as restrictions in‐ evitably relax, so there should be an influx of tourists in 2023.

In hard cash terms, the Exceltur re‐ port expects to see 2022 income for the hospitality industry to reach around 88 per cent of that achieved before the outbreak of the pandemic and by 2023 the figures should ex‐ ceed those of 2019.

38 EWN

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20 - 26 January 2022

FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR MONEY WITH US

LONDON - FTSE 100

See our advert on previous page

C LOSING P RICES J ANUARY 17

COMPANY PRICE(P) CHANGE(P) 3I Group 1.432,00 1.437,50 Abrdn 243,90 246,30 Admiral Group 3.241,0 3.257,0 Anglo American 3.371,5 3.371,5 Antofagasta 1.436,50 1.445,50 Ashtead Group 5.740,0 5.768,0 Associated British Foods 2.123,0 2.152,0 AstraZeneca 8.770,0 8.781,0 Auto Trader Group Plc 692,00 699,20 Avast 602,00 603,80 Aveva 2.951,0 2.996,0 Aviva 439,60 440,30 B&M European Value Retail SA563,80 567,60 BAE Systems 590,40 593,20 Bank VTB DRC 1,174 1,186 Barclays 214,80 218,95 Barratt Developments 679,00 685,00 Berkeley 4.467,0 4.483,0 BHP Group 2.412,50 2.412,50 BP 393,75 395,10 British American Tobacco 3.144,0 3.144,0 British Land Company 555,40 555,80 BT Group 181,05 183,30 Bunzl 2.730,0 2.730,0 Burberry Group 1.753,0 1.759,5 Carnival 1.523,6 1.538,8 Centrica 74,10 75,24 Coca Cola HBC AG 2.663,0 2.691,0 Compass 1.737,00 1.765,00 CRH 3.942,0 3.952,0 Croda Intl 8.534,0 8.608,0 DCC 6.274,0 6.282,0 Diageo 3.733,5 3.745,5 DS Smith 395,50 395,50 EasyJet 639,80 646,20 Experian 3.094,0 3.113,0 Ferguson 12.530,0 12.590,0 Flutter Entertainment 11.125,0 11.370,0 Fresnillo 804,20 813,00 GlaxoSmithKline 1.707,80 1.737,00 Glencore 411,30 411,80 Halma 2.670,0 2.729,0 Hargreaves Lansdown 1.356,50 1.363,50 Hikma Pharma 2.069,00 2.092,00 HSBC 519,00 519,20 IAG 166,92 169,00 Imperial Brands 1.732,00 1.736,00 Informa 576,60 580,20 InterContinental 4.902,0 4.946,0

% CHG. 1.414,00 242,40 3.123,0 3.331,0 1.406,00 5.668,0 2.109,0 8.557,0 685,20 599,00 2.940,0 436,30 560,00 580,20 1,136 214,15 673,20 4.439,0 2.381,00 389,40 3.043,0 542,00 179,85 2.683,0 1.718,5 1.508,8 73,70 2.637,0 1.726,00 3.892,0 8.318,0 6.230,0 3.705,0 392,80 636,60 3.063,0 12.380,0 11.115,0 801,00 1.692,00 404,45 2.641,0 1.340,50 2.066,00 516,30 165,36 1.712,50 560,00 4.882,0

NET VOL 629,74K 2,11M 335,69K 2,16M 749,39K 413,00K 1,14M 2,51M 1,87M 2,67M 222,45K 5,56M 1,51M 4,19M 1,11M 23,94M 1,45M 167,80K 5,93M 54,53M 3,85M 953,36K 13,51M 523,16K 725,76K 440,93K 31,62M 336,57K 2,12M 444,42K 376,25K 513,97K 2,24M 1,44M 3,92M 760,40K 434,68K 320,84K 694,35K 13,52M 49,32M 841,72K 398,13K 168,04K 26,45M 19,21M 1,07M 5,90M 257,01K

COMPANY

PRICE(P)

Intermediate Capital 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 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

1.935,50 5.408,0 120,40 292,60 1.950,0 813,00 300,00 55,13 7.432,0 742,20 169,40 1.883,50 1.080,60 253,40 7.626,0 28,64 1.458,50 2.578,0 686,00 1.312,50 6.397,0 2.249,00 521,80 690,20 5.393,0 125,90 7,76 1.842,8 1.845,4 810,20 1.625,50 13,56 3.461,0 1.149,50 1.296,00 2.893,0 1.257,50 1.629,00 13.510,0 1.583,00 1.652,00 527,00 160,40 289,45 257,40 3.662,0 1.064,50 118,88 3.151,0 1.217,50

CHANGE(P)

% CHG.

NET VOL

1.950,50 5.490,0 121,50 294,00 1.978,5 818,20 300,30 55,96 7.540,0 745,60 171,90 1.893,00 1.080,80 253,70 7.634,0 29,75 1.479,00 2.588,0 689,20 1.324,50 6.443,0 2.253,00 526,00 703,60 5.444,0 126,98 7,99 1.844,0 1.845,6 812,40 1.627,50 13,68 3.484,0 1.153,50 1.302,50 2.917,0 1.287,50 1.642,00 13.780,0 1.593,00 1.659,00 535,40 161,00 290,90 259,40 3.788,5 1.069,00 119,98 3.188,0 1.221,50

1.928,50 5.358,0 118,80 290,00 1.944,0 788,40 298,20 54,93 7.402,0 740,00 169,20 1.881,00 1.066,20 249,80 7.460,0 28,30 1.421,50 2.540,0 679,40 1.307,50 6.258,0 2.195,00 517,20 686,80 5.374,0 125,44 7,55 1.813,2 1.815,4 797,00 1.620,50 12,85 3.443,0 1.139,50 1.276,00 2.875,0 1.256,00 1.608,50 13.315,0 1.578,50 1.642,00 526,20 155,75 286,80 254,20 3.602,0 1.058,50 118,48 3.108,0 1.192,00

275,09K 155,78K 9,04M 2,30M 1,28M 2,33M 13,01M 224,90M 823,33K 2,16M 3,77M 416,24K 2,50M 15,84M 229,77K 1,43M 913,72K 966,38K 1,38M 3,16M 1,55M 2,42M 1,44M 1,82M 2,85M 12,65M 2,20M 9,93M 12,22M 1,22M 5,13K 19,28M 123,50K 4,39M 1,09M 530,55K 1,12M 518,84K 142,71K 3,38M 360,50K 5,77M 29,52M 14,60M 2,79M 13,10M 497,59K 83,46M 852,62K 1,80M

1.19634

0.83585

Units per €

US dollar (USD) ........................................1.1411 Japan yen (JPY)........................................130.79 Switzerland franc (CHF) ...........................1.0430 Denmark kroner (DKK) .............................7.4422 Norway kroner (NOK) ...............................9.9468

currenciesdirect.com/moraira • Tel: +34 966 265 072 THE ABOVE TABLE USES THE CURRENT INTERBANK EXCHANGE RATES, WHICH AREN’T REPRESENTATIVE OF THE RATE WE OFFER

DOW JONES C LOSING P RICES J ANUARY 17

COMPANY 3M American Express Amgen Apple Boeing Caterpillar Chevron Cisco Coca-Cola Dow Goldman Sachs Home Depot Honeywell IBM Intel J&J JPMorgan McDonald’s Merck&Co Microsoft Nike Procter&Gamble Salesforce.com The Travelers UnitedHealth Verizon Visa A Walgreens Boots Walmart Walt Disney

PRICE 178,74 168,40 235,36 173,07 225,96 228,94 128,96 61,36 61,39 60,74 380,94 372,00 217,65 134,21 55,70 167,84 157,89 257,71 81,38 310,20 148,18 159,81 231,23 163,21 468,69 53,28 214,67 54,30 145,06 151,94

CHANGE 180,86 168,71 235,80 173,78 226,20 229,64 129,20 61,50 61,45 60,83 384,39 382,01 217,97 135,14 55,77 168,65 161,03 261,24 81,85 310,82 148,84 160,49 233,29 163,51 473,17 53,70 218,24 54,39 146,63 152,62

CHANGE% VOLUME(M) 177,67 2,26M 164,71 6,46M 229,99 2,99M 171,09 78,73M 220,25 7,60M 223,58 3,85M 126,76 13,19M 60,94 18,70M 60,36 18,84M 59,29 6,79M 375,00 4,64M 371,50 6,19M 215,36 3,33M 133,30 5,24M 54,53 29,95M 167,15 5,83M 156,90 39,75M 257,16 3,16M 80,76 8,45M 303,75 39,64M 146,85 5,97M 157,56 9,67M 227,61 5,79M 161,19 1,26M 465,08 3,28M 53,08 18,69M 213,71 8,80M 53,45 4,47M 144,22 8,82M 148,41 16,75M M - MILLION DOLLARS

NASDAQ C LOSING P RICES J ANUARY 17

COMPANY

CHANGE NET / %

VOLUME

Most Advanced Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Cl A Shopify Inc. Cl A NVR Inc. MicroSectors U.S. Big Oil Index 3X Leveraged Nabors Industries Ltd. Onto Innovation Inc. ServiceNow Inc. Graham Holdings Co. VanEck Oil Services ETF Mettler-Toledo International Inc. Pioneer Natural Resources Co.

0.31% 3.62% 0.46% 7.86% 12.41% 11.35% 1.87% 1.55% 4.39% 0.60% 4.05%

2.01K 2.22M 22.2K 333.91K 237.76K 662.33K 3.24M 26.86K 1.26M 145.59K 2.82M

Danaher Corp. 5% Mand. Pfd. Series B -4.99% Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc. Cl B -6.68% Danaher Corp. 4.75% Mandatory Conv. Pfd. -1.97% Boston Beer Co. Cl A -8.11% BlackRock Inc. -2.19% Texas Pacific Land Corp.

-1.43% Wells Fargo & Co. 7.5% Non-Cum. Perp. Conv.-1.07% Home Depot Inc. -3.87% AutoZone Inc. -0.73% HubSpot Inc. -2.79% Estee Lauder Cos. Cl A -3.69%

1.13K 3.69K 2.05K 1.18M 1.24M 51.76K 3.11K 6.34M 123.18K 1.5M 2.55M

Most Declined

FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL

www.euroweeklynews.com

Ovo Energy founder Fitzpatrick apologises

Credit: Ovo Energy Media Centre

SINCERE APOLOGY: Stephen Fitzpatrick, the founder of Ovo Energy.

FOR once a company that clearly made a major mistake had the sense to put their hands up and say sorry!

Too often, large companies prefer to make a bland state‐ ment of defence which only goes to irritate customers even more rather than simply apologise and move on.

For several days, social me‐ dia as well as press, radio and TV laughed at an email and website post from energy company Ovo which advised customers how to stay warm and save money.

The list included stopping draughts, encouraging chil‐ dren to have hula hoop com‐ petitions, cleaning the house, wearing more clothes and cuddling a pet brought a com‐ bination of derision and anger from consumers facing ever increasing bills.

Very quickly, the company issued a tweet stating “You might have seen OVO and SSE in the news today. We recent‐

ly sent an email to customers with energy saving tips that linked to a blog post.

“This blog should never have been written or sent to customers ‐ it was embarrass‐ ingly unhelpful and poorly judged. We are sincerely sor‐ ry.”

Following this, the compa‐ ny’s founder Stephen Fitz‐ patrick (said to be worth £675 million according to the Sun‐ day Times Rich List) appeared on radio and TV to personally apologise for the blunder and to admit that he was embar‐ rassed by the whole thing.

Speaking to the BBC he said “We’re a large company and somebody had a bad day” but admitted that someone in his organisation should have spotted this before it was ever issued.

Those who commented on his appearances said that he appeared to be both sincere and was generally contrite over what had happened.

Money laundering ACCUSED in the past of being an unregulated tax haven, the Gibraltar Government has made sure that its regula‐ tions generally align with those in place throughout the UK and European Union.

Its latest action was to organise through the Office of Fair Trading on Tuesday January 11, a virtual training pre‐ sentation aimed at estate agents and high value goods dealers on recognising possible money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism.

The presentation covered various topics including ben‐ eficial ownership, politically exposed persons, record keeping, targeted financial sanction (TFS) and checks on both Terrorist Financing (TF) and Proliferation Financing (PF).

BUSINESS EXTRA Rain in Spain ONE of the, until now, overlooked problems of climate change according to the journal Nature is the fact that heavier than usual rainfall is hurting the economies of coun‐ tries like Spain, because the infrastructure is un‐ able to cope with pro‐ longed heavy torrents which cause disruption.

Gold plated REPORTS from his in‐ vestment office suggest that Spanish billionaire Amancio Ortega has agreed to buy the Royal Bank Plaza in Toronto which has gold plated windows for around €1 billion, which could be the largest commercial property sale in Canada since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Wind power DESPITE the fact that the electricity price in Spain continues to rock‐ et, the country’s wind association AEE has re‐ vealed that wind power was the largest source of electricity generated in 2021, producing some 23 per cent of the nation’s electricity needs.

20 - 26 January 2022

EWN 39

40 EWN

20 - 26 January 2022

LEAPY LEE SAYS IT OTHERS THINK IT DELIGHTED with Australia’s decision to deport Djokovic. In my opinion this man has always exuded a certain arrogance and was undoubtedly under the impression that because he could get away with just about anything in his own country, he would be able to manipulate the Australian authorities in the same way.

He reminds me of Oscar Pistorius; another sportsman who also thought his prowess in the arena placed him above the law. Well both of these men have now had their egos firmly brought down to terra firma. I just couldn’t imagine Nadal or Federer trying to get away with this flagrant disrespect of another country’s regulations ‐ two true gentlemen of a sport this man has sullied with his egotistical disregard for the authorities that govern law and order.

All this of course comes after ‘others’ were also under the impression the laws of the land didn’t apply to them. To be honest a bit of illegal boozing at Number 10 didn’t bother me unduly, but unfortunately Boris has been caught lying to the House; consequently, as Profumo and others have discovered in the past

www.euroweeklynews.com

Delighted

(and Blair didn’t!) this is unacceptable and in my opinion his position is now untenable. Who should take his place?

Don’t ask me ‐ I certainly have my opinions of who shouldn’t!

Second delight of the week is the decision by culture secretary Nadine Dorries to freeze the BBC licence fee for the next two years. This almost unbelievably biased operation simply must be curbed. To think they expect a British public should pay even more for their diatribes of left‐wing propaganda simply defies the imagination. Their saturated coverage of the ‘garden party’ affair has been a positive disgrace. Their edited extracts, carefully selected to show the prime minister in the worst light and the incredible amount of airtime given to his political enemies, (apparently a ratio of five to one of their featured speakers have been in favour of his resignation) reveals an attitude more arrogant than Djokovic and Pistorius put together.

This prejudice of course is only matched by the reports they decide to suppress.

How many of us were aware that their current hero Kier Starmer was actually

caught on camera drinking beer with his colleagues in a Durham constituency office during lockdown last May? I personally hadn’t seen this event chronicled in any BBC reports at all.

Starmer’s actions were in blatant disregard of the lockdown laws and should have received at least some retributory publicity. Some chance. Pots, kettles and throwing stones in glass houses come to mind.

This of course goes even further to reinforcing my opinion that the whole unethical biased organisation is not fit for purpose and should have their licence revoked all together. I think the lot of them are a disgrace. Pity the poor old Queen. Not much to celebrate for this precious lady in what is supposed to be her celebratory Jubilee year. Stick ‘em in the tower ma’am, where they all belong.

Keep the faith.

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

TV & Film Review by Laura Kemp

Boiling Point

FANCY FACADE: But will it come crashing down?

STEPHEN GRAHAM plays a commanding head chef at a most sought‐after restaurant in London in the gripping dra‐ ma Boiling Point, currently streaming on Amazon Prime.

Amid professional and per‐ sonal crises, Graham’s charac‐ ter Andy tries to keep it togeth‐ er as everything seems to be going wrong in the run‐up to Christmas. A disastrous health and safety visit, double book‐ ings, a celebrity guest and drug and alcohol abuse threaten to destroy his reputation.

From the beginning, there is an ominous feeling that the night will not go well for Andy who is pushed and pulled from all angles. As staff prepare for

one of their busiest nights, the audience can feel the energy.

Close‐up, over‐the‐shoulder camera shots transport the au‐ dience into the stressful kitchen environment.

This film keeps you gripped from the start, capturing the sweat and tears that goes into running a kitchen and the dy‐ namics between the front of house staff and the chefs run‐ ning the show behind the scenes. Things come to a head when one of the chefs makes a mistake with a food order that results in an emergency call‐ out. As staff begin to turn on each other, the question is ‐ will the restaurant’s fancy fa‐ cade come crashing down?

42 EWN

www.euroweeklynews.com

20 - 26 January 2022

FEATURE

Make sure all they want to steal is your heart meet you, but something will happen to them. They’ll get robbed, roughed up (you get the message) and, natural‐ ly, you’ll be their only contact to beg for financial help.

Scams so obvious they could have been made up by members of the pre‐ sent UK government ‐ themselves world leaders in rewriting the textbook on incompetence and being economi‐ cal with the truth.

Oh, and if ‘Trudie’ happens to be reading this and wants some ‘addition‐ al feedback’, here’s two additional words, mate, and one of them is ‘off’.

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‐john son.net) available online as eBook (€0.99; £0.99), Apple Books, paper‐ back and audiobook. All profits to Costa del Sol Cudeca cancer charity.

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

OVER the New Year break an email popped into my website inbox from someone called ‘Trudie’.

Nothing unusual in that ‐ I frequently get great comments (very flattering, many thanks!) from purchasers of my novels and audiobooks as well as read‐ ers of this column. But this email was a bit different. Attached was a photo of an extremely pretty, smiling teenager with the message she hoped she could become my ‘girlfriend’.

I know I’m in trousers in the photos on my website but do I really look, err, male? (Check this out for yourself; the website’s listed below!). And anyway, would I honestly be interested in be‐ friending online someone a fraction of my age?

The sad truth is that many have been duped into sending money to internet conmen posing as would‐be girl‐ Nora Johnson’s opinions

ROMANTIC SCAMS: Fake photos are uploaded.

friends/boyfriends. Romance scams Nigerian scam has many variations, robbed 9,000 Britons nearly £100m but its dating or romance scam, in ad‐ last year. Thanks to online dating and dition to requesting money for college the pandemic, these crimes are more fees, sick relations etc, is a bit differ‐ sophisticated and prevalent than ever. ent. The fraudsters upload fake glam‐ All part of what’s usually known as orous photos, mostly of Europeans ‘Nigerian scam’, because Nigeria’s claiming to be foreign specialists work‐ where it usually originates. And it ing in Nigeria or Ghana. After they initi‐ To read more articles from our columnists works. One Nigerian conman received ate some correspondence and perhaps and to have your say in the comments go a 12‐year jail sentence after scamming even send some cheap gifts, they’ll in‐ to www.euroweeklynews.com $1.3 million from victims. evitably be almost on their way to are her own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

What have you learnt?

ROBERT SHALLIS WITH 2021 now behind us, we would have all experienced different challenges and or struggles, of course we have had some wonderful things happen too. Each of us has our own story to tell which is all relative. It is pretty clear that we cannot change the past but we can most certainly use it to help mould our future and make 2022 a better year. How do we do this?

Firstly, I always like to ask two poignant questions about the past; what have I learnt and what will I do differently next time?

Albert Einstein once said: ‘The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.’

So, the key is to use our past mistakes, errors of judgement, whatever it may be, as lessons in order and make changes for the better by simply doing things differently.

In order for things in your life to

Take control of your life and watch the miracles unfold.

change, you have to change things currently in your life.

You may have already tried different ways and methods to achieve something you desire and feel despondent to the point of giving up, however, that is the most important time to shake off those shackles of fear and doubt and push on through.

If you fail at something it doesn’t

make ‘you’ a failure, it simply means the thing you’ve tried has failed. If you keep trying you’ll eventually fail your way to success.

Learning by your failings and mistakes will pave your way to your goal.

Thomas Edison was often ridiculed as he made thousands of attempts before creating the light bulb. When asked how he felt

about his many failings during that time, his reply was “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”

He used his failures as lessons in how not to do something which we can all do in whatever we are trying to achieve in our lives.

So, what have you learnt in 2021 that will help you to progress to success in 2022? What lessons can you take to help yourself and others in order to elevate to new heights?

Life is as exciting as you choose it to be. If you’re not happy, content, fulfilled then think about making a change. These are bi‐products of pursuing something with real purpose and creating a lifestyle you want for the benefit of you and those around you. Ask yourself what is important to you and decide whether it’s important enough to be committed or just interested.

Commitment is key and will show itself if its importance is enough to add real value in your life.

Follow your bliss and do not concern yourself with other

people’s negative opinions as its just their opinion and often has more do about them than you. The only opinion that really matters is that which you have of yourself.

You will find you are truly happiest when you’re in the process of achieving your goal. The journey is always the fun part when you look back so enjoy the progressive realisation of whatever dreams you have for 2022.

Look back on 2021 as a year of learning and use its teachings to launch you into 2022 with fresh eyes, renewed vigour and excitement.

Now is the time for you to allow things to start happening for you instead of to you, so take control and watch the miracles unfold.

Good luck!

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.

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FEATURE

www.euroweeklynews.com

A S calls for Boris Johnson to resign get louder and the pile of wrong doings gets larger, I do find myself wondering how we ever got here in the first place. Johnson has never been a shining light of decorum and common sense, for those who never read his offensive columns or awful literature, a buffoon would have probably been the closest descriptor most people would have come up with.

B ut a buffoon should not a prime minister make.

So much more is at play than what is sitting on the surface. T he insidious media campaigns filled with misinformation obviously did their job in the same way they did for Brexit, and the proven way that people swing to the right when faced with personal hardship is how the C onservatives usually gain power. But Johnson? Really?

A large part of how many people who are completely unqualified for their jobs end up

CLAIRE GORDON FINDING BALANCE IN AN UNEVEN WORLD way above their head is implicit bias. Unsupported assumptions we make about people or groups, with implicit, or unconscious bias being ones we hold without even knowing we do.

They can be based on many factors such as age, race, gender, socioeconomic status, or class.

While these biases aren’t always negative, they’re shaped by either a survival instinct that causes people to associate with people they perceive to be like them, or they are caused by the information we consume telling us some things are ‘better’.

In the case of Johnson, he is moneyed with a good education, a posh voice and he is a man.

All things people have been programmed to see as competent and commanding, even if the individual evidence

20 - 26 January 2022

Complicit bias deems otherwise. The accent is incredibly interesting as a social scientist on TikTok showed with a very enlightening experiment.

She audio described a speech by J ohnson, repeating every word, pause, umm and ah, but in a woman’s Geordie accent.

Suddenly, the rambling address the prime minister had given, which some people had said was a stand-up piece of oration, became a mass of run-on sentences that most people would struggle to wait for the end of.

The same implicit bias showed its face when TV broadcasters started to speak in regional accents.

Although the mix better reflected the people watching the shows, there was uproar from those very same people saying folk on the T V should always speak ‘The Queen’s English’

To read more articles from our columnists and to have your say in the comments go to www.euroweeklynews.com Claire Gordon’s opinions are her own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

because it is ‘better’.

While accent bias seems to be a smaller issue, as we can see from the clown that is running the U K, all these biases

can add up to catastrophe.

It also is a smaller part of the bigger issue I spoke about last week, which is systematic op-

EWN 45

pression. If someone has made their mind up about how competent you are before you’ve even started, then that bias has put you on the back foot, and that only perpetuates the prejudice through lack of representation. People need to be aware of this.

46 EWN

www.euroweeklynews.com

20 - 26 January 2022

DEO VOLENTE

TONI C. EASTWOOD OBE, MBA

#TheWomanBeyond I’M continuing the theme from last week as we weave our way through January and the beginning of 2022.

It brings to mind one of my favourite Latin phrases, Deo volente.

It’s Latin for ‘God willing.’

The ancient Stoics told us that it’s important to have clear goals, but they suggested that we also need to qualify those goals with something along the lines of ‘if fate will have it.’

‘I will travel by ship to Athens. If fate will have it.’

‘I will do x, y, or z. If fate will have it.’

They called it the ‘reserve clause.’

I love that, a reserve clause. It’s one thing to be super clear on what we’re after and super committed to making it happen.

But (very important but!), we need to remember the fact that, ultimate‐ ly, the results of our actions are al‐

ways out of our hands.

What are your goals for this year, or do you have what I like to call a BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) ‐ do share them with me, I’d love to hear.

We’d be wise to remember that the patron god of philosophy was Apollo.

If you remember your Gods, Apollo was an archer. The archer does his very best to shoot the arrow straight toward its target but, once the ar‐ row is released, he knows that the outcome is out of his control.

Same with us.

We need to focus on the process (pick a wise goal, shoot the arrow straight!) and let the outcome be what it is.

It’s similar to reaching for the stars and if we get to the moon, well that’s great.

So, Deo volente in the beginning when we share our goals with our‐

selves and co‐creators.

And then (for me, anyway), ‘Thy will be done.’

We don’t hit the target. OK. It is what it is. Thy will be done.

It’s time to love what is.

The Stoics called this the ‘art of ac‐ quiescence.’

W h a t e v e r i s , I S . A s B y r o n Ka t i e says, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to argue with reality. We’ll lose. On‐ ly EVERY TIME. Accept what is. (Love it!) Get clear on the next target. Shoot straight.

Enjoy the process.

The best way to get on top and en‐ sure you are going to make 2022 your best year yet, is to ensure you put self‐care at the top of your prior‐ ity list!!! I’ve made this super easy for you with my 10 Day Self‐Care Challenge, my FREE E‐Book, so why not join me and my team and loads of our clients for our New Year Self‐ Care Challenge.

FEATURE

I challenge you to show yourself some love to set you on track for a great time of growth and develop‐ ment!

I challenge you to try a new self‐ care activity for 10 days straight. I’ll provide you with easy self‐care strategies to try from day one through 10 that are suitable for a busy lifestyle ‐ like yours. ‐ for more info and to receive your FREE copy straight to your in box, head on over to https://quantumvantage.co.uk/10 dayselfcarechallenge Don’t hold back another moment.

You could be just one step away…

Prepare yourself to receive the good things you are after. Here’s to a successful 2022.

Stay Focused, Keep Positive and Choose to +1 in Every Moment.

Toni x Toni Eastwood OBE, MBA #TheWomanBeyond To read more articles from our columnists and to have your say in the comments go to www.euroweeklynews.com

Please do get in touch if you have any questions. Follow me, chat and share your thoughts and network with other fabulous women in my Visionary Women Facebook Group.

@tonieastwood

@SixSecretsToSuccess @VisionaryWomen

tonieastwoodobe

sixsecretstosuccess

Visit La Palma and spend time and money LETTER FROM

CANARIES

DEAR readers, A very Happy New Year to you all. I hope this finds you well, solvent and happy, your liver as undam‐ aged as possible after the prolonged festivities, with any New Year reso‐ lutions you made still going strong.

I managed to stop smoking for eight hours on January 1 but was asleep so, although a promising start, it doesn’t count. No problem.

While the year’s by no means over, the festive season finally is, so I can stop again. Ever the optimist.

Trouble is, it’s convenient to smoke, especially now restaurants and bars are no‐smoking zones and people’s houses too, very sensibly.

Whenever tedium with your compa‐ ny strikes, caused by Covid vaccine and other conspiracy theories; daily minutae; boasting (hate it); hate‐ mongering or any form of idiocy or ignorance, a desire to pop outside for

ISLANDERS: Are slowly being allowed to go back home, if they can.

a smoke overwhelms me.

Freedom’s easily won with a...

“Will you excuse me, just nipping out to smoke.” Off you go with a wry smile and helpless shrug of the shoul‐ ders.

In the Canaries, blessed with good weather, you can comfortably pro‐ long your absence. Further north, prudent provision of warm clothing close to hand is vital. Shivering out‐ side’s not nearly as bad as dubious social discourse, but it is unpleasant.

For those who use smoking to es‐

cape, there’s a possible solution which I’ll be testing tonight: give up secretly. Tell nobody and who’s to know what you’re doing when you escape? Sit on the sea wall, bench, wherever and be seen to fiddle around with something, remember‐ ing to bend towards, then spark up, your lighter.

So much better for your health.

This solution’s also good for smokers who equate work breaks with smok‐ ing. Coat on and down you go to shiver in doorways with the naughty

crew, the smokers, without smoking.

People also smoke when stressed, presumably because nicotine can stimulate vigilance, information pro‐ cessing, memory and dopamine pro‐ duction.

Living with a volcano, for example, is extraordinarily stressful. I noticed lots of smokers on La Palma, a bit like watching an old film. Investigation re‐ vealed the volcano to often be the cause. Both new and ex‐smokers, mostly men, confirmed this.

The end of La Palma’s volcano was the best ever Christmas and Reyes present the islanders could have had.

At Christmas,10 days after the vol‐ cano went quiet, the 85‐day‐old

eruption was officially declared over, although a state of emergency still exists there.

You can bet giving up smoking’s way down the list of priorities for the 7,000 + islanders evacuated from their homes, who are slowly being al‐ lowed back if the houses still exist.

Many families have lost absolutely everything. Lava removal’s under‐ way, incredibly, to clear roads. Ash clearing’s a mammoth task. There’s SO much to do to repair the damage and restore normality to the affected area.

It’s a beautiful island, mostly un‐ touched by the volcano on the west coast, which is anyway fascinating to visit. Go there please, and spend some time and money. You won’t be disappointed.

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

Barbara Belt barbarabelt@gmail.com EWN January 2022.

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TECHNICALLY CORRECT? From our Facebook

COMMON LANGUAGE: Where has the use of English come from today_

I agree with your observations (David Worboys – Issue 1906 ), but would add why is it now common practice to punctuate statements (usually every sentence) with YOU KNOW, or addressing a group of women as GUYS. Where has this nonsense come from (possibly USA) but IS it now mandatory?

Confused,

credibility and to head off the numpties who might think you are an empty vessel who likes the sound of his own voice/seeing his words in print.

Carry on telling it like it is - it makes my week, I only wish I could access your e-mail inbox, it would give me hours of enjoyment!!

Kind regards, Mark

Barry

History Notes Agree with Leapy Sir, Without blowing smoke where the sun doesn’t shine, I would like to say how much I enjoyed your last article ( Issue 1906 ). Sometimes one has to reinforce their views with a small back story to add

Dear Editor, As a regular weekly reader of your well produced informative paper, it is regrettable you discontinued publishing the factual historical items.

Will you reconsider??

Thanks.

Kind regards, Joe

FACE MASKS: Which kind do you prefer to wear?

Julie Abedin Maybe it’s time to ditch them, say no to this crap and breath fresh air.

Halldor Laxdal Are people really that stupid to think you can protect yourself from virus with face mask. If dust you can see enters your nose with it the virus will.

Kevin Williams Most people will know that but the sheep won’t, it’s the new normal for them unfortunately.

Michael Crabtree The mask is just to show compliance.

TIME FOR CHANGE? THE ongoing saga of the wealthy and privileged flouting pandemic protocols seems never ending.

Boris Johnson and No 10 are back in the headlines for partying again, with the Metropolitan Police saying that they are waiting for evidence to emerge from the Sue Gray inquiry, although a former Chief Constable told the BBC that it was the role of police to find evidence, not wait for someone else to do it for them!

Sue Gray as a Civil Servant in the Cabinet Office has a record of investigating political scandals and has a reputation of not holding back when in-

CORRECTIONS

OUR VIEW

volved with Damian Green, Liam Fox, Andrew Mitchell and Hazel Blears.

The problem however is that the Prime Minister seems to have the equivalent of ‘Sovereign Immunity’ meaning that if she does declare that he has breached the rules, then he is allowed to decide whether he should be referred to Lord Geidt, the current independent adviser on ministerial interests.

It seems that those of us who are not politically influential have no option other than follow all of the requirements laid down by the powers that be with regards to face masks, social distancing

and vaccination, whilst others can do what they like and generally get away with it.

It is now nearly two years since the first lockdown and despite all of the precautions dictated, the incidence of infection in Britain, Spain and most of the world seems to be increasing rather than diminishing, although the severity of infection seems to be lessening.

Perhaps now is the time to be allowed to treat coronavirus on the same level as other illnesses and be able to enjoy a meal with friends without having to show a passport to enter a bar or restaurant.

Ruma Jordan Ie which gimp mask is your favourite in this game of subservience and control !!!

William Kay They took their time to tell us that. However I use a multi layered style of mask, so I offer the view it has to be better than a single layer one.

Annie Burton Who gives a fly? Ditch the mask and get on with life.

Diana Picken Lol I have said that all long and I’m no expert.

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

HEALTH & BEAUTY

www.euroweeklynews.com

By Clinica Britannia

Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

TREATMENT: Patients can go home the same day.

THE prostate is a walnut‐ sized organ found in men and is located under the bladder, extending around the urethra, where urine travels out of the body. Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia, also known as BPH, is a condition common in men between 50 and 60 years of age, this is where the prostate becomes enlarged caus‐ ing pressure on the ure‐ thra and obstructing the

flow of urine.

Symptoms include a strong urge to urinate, ir‐ regular flow, frequent uri‐ nation, straining during urination or having to uri‐ nate various times at night during the hours of sleep.

If BPH is left untreated it can cause more serious is‐ sues with the bladder, kid‐ neys and urinary tract.

There is now available a minimally invasive tech‐ nique called Rezum, which

has few side effects, with the patient typically being able to go home the same day of the surgery.

Rezum is performed by injecting a small amount of water vapour (steam) in the prostate, this causes tissue necrosis in the over‐ grown part of the prostate to shrivel and die. The body eliminates the dead tissue naturally, thereby solving prostrate growth in the patient.

Contact your GP who with a simple blood test and ultrasound can assess if you are suffering with Benign Prostate Hyperplasia and organise for a relevant treatment plan to be put into place.

20 - 26 January 2022

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20 - 26 January 2022

Hydration station THE change of seasons can affect each of us differently; whether it is hay fever, a vul‐ nerability to coughs and colds, or even dry skin.

If you find this part of the year leaves your skin con‐ fused and dehydrated, it might be worth stepping up your moisturising routine and taking care to avoid aggres‐ sive or overly‐chemical for‐ mulas.

In the morning and evening, after using a gentle cleanser and toner, apply a moisturiser to still‐damp skin.

This tip helps any lotion you apply absorb more deeply, as well as locking the moisturising effects in for longer.

Another trick is to make sure you are using the right product for your skin type. All skin types need both water and oils in the right balance and the trick is finding prod‐ ucts with the correct balance for your particular skin.

For normal to dry skin, try a moisturiser containing antiox‐ WE all know we should keep a frequent eye on our health, whether it is to monitor ex‐ isting conditions or ward against potential problems.

Among the most frequent‐ ly‐heard health advice we may have come across the phrase, ‘know your numbers.’

This motto is often used to refer to cholesterol or blood sugar figures, but there are in

PROTECTION: Use the right product for your skin.

idants and Omega 3s, as well as natural UVB protection.

If your concern is oiliness, try a hydrating gel, containing hyaluronic acid to bind mois‐ ture to the skin.

For problem skins suffering from both blemishes and dry‐

ness, try a lightweight oil specifically designed to rebal‐ ance and calm.

And finally, for ageing skin in need of nourishing, try an oil containing vitamin E and Omegas 6 and 9 to protect skin.

HEALTH & BEAUTY

By Clinica Britannia

Express Denture Repair Service MY father repeatedly drops his dentures, the last repair took over 24 hours to return from the laboratory which left him without any teeth, so he could not eat. Is there a quicker alternative if this hap‐ pens again?

Like natural teeth, dentures are an integral part of our everyday life, they aid us in chew‐ ing our food, affect the way we look and talk, and can also help give us back our self confi‐ dence which we may have lost after past den‐ tal problems that may have caused us to lose our teeth.

When an accident happens and our den‐

DENTURES: Are needed as natural teeth to help carry on life as normal.

tures break or fracture and we can no longer use them, it can make us feel extremely over‐ whelmed.

We need them, just as natural teeth after all, to carry on life as nor‐ mal. For most denture wearers, broken den‐ tures are cause for an emergency and need to be treated by your Den‐

Appointments Landline: 965 837 553 / 965 837 851 • 24H/365D Emergency Number: (+34) 607 255 755 • Opening Times: Mon - Fri: 9:00am / 5:00pm

Clinica Britannia Calpe Av. Ejercitos Españoles 16 BIS, 1st Floor, Calpe

Better health at your pharmacy fact a series of numbers it is helpful to keep a check on.

Many Spanish pharmacies of‐ fer quick and cheap tests, of‐ ten with results while you wait. So which are some of the most common tests and what can they tell us?

First up is cholesterol, which can lead to heart at‐ tack or stroke if too much of the ‘bad’ type accrues in the body. There are two types of this waxy substance; low‐ density lipoproteins (LDL) and high‐density lipopro‐

tist as just that, ‘An Emergency’.

I would advise you to fully research and find a Dental practice in your area that can offer an Express Denture Repair Service, often they can fix dentures within the hour or while you wait without compromising on the quality of the work done.

teins (HDL).

LDLs are considered bad as they can collect in the arter‐ ies, eventually causing block‐ ages, whereas HDL can actu‐ ally carry cholesterol away from the body to be pro‐ cessed in the liver.

The British Heart Founda‐ tion recommends a com‐ bined total of four millimoles per litre of blood or less for those at high risk of some dis‐ eases.

Next is glycated haemoglobin, which indicates average blood sugar level for the last two or three months and can help indicate predia‐ betes, as well as types I and II diabetes.

Also important in indicating risk of fatty liver disease and pancreatitis is knowing your triglyceride levels. These

chemicals are a type of fat found in the blood and can raise risk of coronary heart disease, particularly in wom‐ en.

For men, a PSA test can in‐ dicate healthy prostate func‐ tion. PSA is a protein pro‐ duced by both cancerous and non‐cancerous tissue in the prostate and testing its levels can help with early detection of any issues such as an en‐ larged or inflamed prostate and prostate cancer.

For men and women, mon‐ itor your kidneys with uric acid and creatinine tests, both of which can help give an in‐ sight into how well they are functioning.

QUICK TESTS: Are now on offer at many pharmacies.

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SOCIAL SCENE

Cartuja de Vall de Cristo GUIDED tours are being offered by the Valencia Tourism Board to Cartuja de Vall de Cristo, which was founded at the end of the 14th century at the express wish of the In‐ fante Martín, on land be‐ longing to the municipali‐ ty of Altura.

Pope Clement VII grant‐ ed permission to found it in April 1383, and the first monks took office in June 1385. In 1399, Martin was crowned King of Aragon, and construction began on the main church in 1405.

Declared a ‘Historical Artistic Monument’ by Resolution of February 10, 1984 of the Consell de la Generalitat Valenciana,

HISTORIC MONUMENT: Guided tours are available.

recovery of the church of San Martín began. Exca‐ vations and archaeologi‐ cal studies took place be‐ tween 1986 and 1987, resulting in the partially recovered remains of the monastery being trans‐ ferred to public owner‐ ship. The site is consid‐ ered a key part of the Valencian cultural her‐ itage and is definitely

Willka charity concert THE concert, which will take place on February 4 at 7pm, is in aid of the WILLKA: development, cooperation and education project in Soavinarivo, Madagascar. The funds raised from the concert will be used to build a school in the area.

The concert will be preceded by a presentation and the showing of the documentary NORTE directed by Cesc Nogueras.

Ainoa Cabanes, whose stage name is Sierra Leona, uses music to express her life experiences, dealing with pain and life in gener‐ al. The difficulties that poor people experience in coping with life are dear to her heart, which is why she has chosen to perform and to donate the proceeds.

She sings with great passion and power, composing and arrang‐ ing her own music.

The evening promises to be stacked with emotion and excellent musis and its all for a good cause.

Tickets for the event at La Casa de la Mar, Av Vicente Blasco Ibáñez, Alboraya are €8 from www.valmusic.com ,by phone 662 614 689, or info@val music.com or from www.ticketere.com.

worth a visit.

For more information visit www.altura.es/con tent/cartuja‐de‐vallde crist, with booking avail‐ able through the local tourist office on 964 147 075 or by email at altu ra@touristinfo.net.

The guided visits will be offered from now and all through summer.

Discover Street Art & Graffiti W A N T to do some‐ thing very different and in the process get to know a little about the urban art sub‐cul‐ ture, then this walk and talk in Valencia is worth joining.

The route allows the guide to delve into this unique artistic style and allow you to learn about its particu‐ larities, its evolution and its history, both in general and particular‐ ly in the Valencian panorama.

You will get to see and understand the different artistic mani‐ festations which are found along the streets, and especially in the Ciutat Vella area. Graffiti, murals, stickers, stencils, and a whole series of Street Art interventions.

Groups are small with a minimum of five people and cost from €5. Pre‐booking is essential from www.entradium.com with the next two talks on January 29 and 30.

SOCIAL SCENE

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The history of the trees P R E S E N T E D by the Va‐ lencia Natural Parks de‐ partment these ‘walking talks’ are held in both Spanish and English, with parks staff and experts on hand to guide you and to answer all your ques‐ tions. As a result they are very popular with people of all languages.

This talk will introduce you to some of the most unique and oldest trees in the Montgó agricultural area. We will understand a little better the incalcu‐ lable value of these gi‐ ants, and we will learn to appreciate them for all that they bring to us and for what they represent.

If you want to enjoy a simple route with family and friends through the agricultural area of Jesús Pobre, Gata and Xàbia, visiting the oldest and oldest trees in the area, do not hesitate to sign up for this activity.

There is no cost to join the talk which takes ap‐

proximately four hours on Sunday January 30 from 9am. The walk starts at Al Riu‐Rau de Jesus Po‐ bre and is considered of low difficulty.

Place are limited so you need to reserve your spot which you can do by call‐ ing 679 196 461 or email‐ ing parque_montgo @gva.es.

East meets West THE Marina Alta Floral Club is holding its first demonstra‐ tion for 2022 on Thursday January 27, contrasting the dif‐ ferent styles and flowers from the opposite sides of the world. There will be three demonstrations with Tina Wallis and Christine Brazier, representing the West and Jenny Tol‐ lan representing the East with Ikebana. The afternoon promises to be entertaining with an introduction to floral art in a variety of forms. The demonstrations will be taking place at the Salon de Actos, La Senieta, Moraira (adjacent to the large free car park) with doors opening at 2pm.

Entrance for visitors is €8 and for members €5. Member‐ ships for 2022 become due on the day and cost €15.

Further information can be found on their website www.marinaaltafloralclub.com or by contacting Tina 671 115 372 or Pat 622 921 812.

Three floral art demonstrations will take place.

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SOCIAL SCENE

A Tribute to Extremoduro ‘Those wonderful years’

A TRIBUTE to one of the most influen‐ tial and important bands in Spanish rock history, the group Extremoduro achieved fame without the support of a major label.

Considered a cult band outside Spain, with a large following in Latin America, the band managed many hits, a number

of which recorded platinum sales.

The evening is a tribute, Roberto Inies‐ ta and his band and will take place at the Rockstar in Benidorm on February 18 at 11:30pm.

Tickets cost €12.25 and are available at the door or online at www.entradi um.com.

IN the heart of the Costa Blanca there is a corner where the past comes to life, the Calp Collecting Museum.

On display for the next three months is a collection

by Maria Ferrer that brings to‐ gether the 60s and the 70s ‐ toys, books, music, gadgets and even multimedia.

The display promises to be a blast from the past, taking you back in time to an era of surprise, wonder and enjoy‐ ment.

This museum is located in‐ side the emblematic Torreó de la Peça , in the heart of the old town. This tower is part of the remains of the wall that existed in the town, which dates from the late 14th or early 15th century. So the venue is in itself worth a visit.

And where does the name ‘la peça’ come from? It was in the 18th century when an ar‐ tillery piece with the same name was built and used to reinforce the defence of the inhabitants of the city.

CALPE MUSEUM: Showing a blast from the past.

For more information con‐ tact the museum on 985 839 123 or by email at museo@ajcalp.es.

The Museum of Collecting, Plaza de la Villa, Carrer del Santissm Crist near the main church in the old town.

SOCIAL SCENE

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EWN 59

‘Art in the Doing the Ska Marina Alta’ EXHIBITION: Valencian art in its purest form.

JAZZ PLAYERS: Have played with some of the world’s best.

Enric Peidro quartet feat Chris Hopkins THE renowned jazz artists will be appearing at the Casa de Cultura on Pl. Jaume I, in Denia on January 31. Tickets are only €15 and can be bought at the venue or on‐ line at www.notikumi.com.

This is an evening not to miss if you are a jazz lover, these are two renowned and very experienced musicians hav‐ ing played with some of the best in the world.

Enric Peidro is a tenor sax‐ ophonist frequently de‐ scribed as a ‘rara avis’, an ‘outsider’ or a ‘stylist swim‐ ming against the current’.

This moniker comes from his style of playing which is strongly influenced by the great saxophonists of the swing era.

Chris Hopkins is a renowned jazz pianist, alto saxophonist, composer, ar‐

ranger, bandleader, work‐ shop and university lecturer.

Born in Princeton (New Jersey) he is equally adept at piano and alto saxophone, making him one of the most sought after and busiest artists on the international jazz scene. With unbridled passion he has been present‐ ing lively, melodic jazz that has gained him international recognition for his innovative approach to jazz tradition.

LOOKING for a day out combining culture and good food, then this exhi‐ bition at Els Magazinos will be right up your alley.

On until January 30, the exhibition brings together the art of 24 contempo‐ rary artists who have paid tribute to the varied artis‐ tic impressions of the re‐ gion. This is Valencian art in its purest form.

Entry to the exhibition, which is open all day, is free.

When you are finished looking at the art, Els Mag‐ azinos offers a street food culture that is difficult to

find elsewhere. Built in an old warehouse on the De‐ nia seafront, you will find more than 20 food stalls offering almost every type of food imaginable from Mexican to Japanese to Italian to vegetarian, you name it you will find it.

All but one of the restaurants is small and intimate, some with small indoor dining facilities and others open to ‘the street’.

This is a popular desti‐ nation offering a great at‐ mosphere which can be enjoyed as couples, with friends or family.

WHO remembers ska with its fusion of Jamaican rhythms and melodies? Originating in the 60s the music quickly spread across Eu‐ rope with many sub‐genres breaking out that led to many number one hits in the 80s with bands like The Specials and Madness achieving international acclaim.

Ska is alive and well in Valencia with the first party of the year taking place at the La Sala, Campoamor 52 ‐ www.lasalavalencia.com ‐ on Saturday, January 29. Doors open at 9pm and the concert starts at 10pm. Tickets start at €12 for advance booking and €15 at the door.

Tickets can be bought from www.tomaticket.es.

First band up is Papado and the Newentun Allstars with their tribute to Jamaican ska and rcoksteady music. The main act is Valencian band ‘La Fricativa Sonora’ who will debuting their new album, Yawina Bobongo, live. For lovers of ska this promises to be a fun‐filled evening full of great sounds.

Tribute pop ladies live ON Saturday January 22 the House of the Sea will be host‐ ing the Pop Tribute Ladies from 12.30. Entrance costs €8 and tickets can be bought at the door or online at https://ticketere.com/even to/tributo‐pop‐ladies‐en‐direc to.

First to appear is Sandra Polop, created in 2015 this unique tribute pays respect and admiration to the best na‐

tional and international fe‐ male voices such as Amaral, El‐ la Baila Sola, Mecano, La Oreja de Van Gogh, Rozalén, Sia, La‐ dy Gaga, Loreen, Irene Face, etc.

She will be accompanied by Sandra Acosta.

The venue is situated on the beach of Patacona, Alboraya, and houses surfing, art, music, and gastronomy for young and old to enjoy.

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DAVID WORBOYS IF a politician, celebrity or academic decides a word or expression is po‐ litically incorrect, it becomes taboo.

The words ‘fireman’ and ‘actress’ slot neatly into this category, as they remind us that there were two distinct sexes. We are all firefighters and actors now.

In the past, most offensive words were either swear words, or were blasphemous. Swear words are mostly vulgar and tend to suggest a lack of education on the part of the user. Some, such as ‘bugger’, can be quite amusing if used humorously.

Then we have the c‐word and the f‐word. For me the former is ob‐ scene. I have used the latter when I was younger and angry but, now that it is much more commonly used, I find it repellent.

If said for effect rather than hissed or shouted in anger, its use is unjusti‐ fied ‐ even for those with a severely limited vocabulary. And there are enough other ****‐words to ac‐ count for most of the alphabet these days. The t‐word (‘transgender’), the

DODGY WORDS

Ambrose and Agatha both used the n-word in the 1930s.

p‐word (‘Pakistani’), the b‐word (‘bloody’) etc.

Today the most sensitive dodgy word is known as the n‐word. In 1932, Ambrose and his Orchestra recorded a perennial favourite ‘The Sun has got his Hat on’, which con‐ tains the line ‘He’s been tanning nig‐ gers (out in Timbuctoo)’. The word

was then considered socially accept‐ able, but in 2014 this version was played inadvertently on a local radio station. The presenter was forced to resign! In later interpretations the of‐ fensive line has been amended to ‘He’s been roasting peanuts’.

Then there was Agatha Christie’s ‘Ten Little Niggers’ published in

1939. The title had to be amended in 1964 to ‘Ten Little Indians’. By 1986 there were further objections and it now sells under the title ‘And then there were none’.

The n‐word is simply a derivation of the Spanish word ‘negro’. What is wrong with having a black skin?

Why should it cause offence? The

FEATURE

answer is that, after the war, racist white Americans began to use the word ‘nigger’ as a term of abuse.

They also addressed their black brothers as ‘boy’. Black Americans responded by addressing each other as ‘man’, an expression now widely adopted by whites. It’s also used as an interjection.

Alex Hales, the cricketer, painted himself brown (not black) at a party in 2009. He has recently been con‐ demned as a racist!

The colour white is associated with the purity of snow. Black has sinister connotations, probably relat‐ ing to the darkness of night. This has nothing to do with the colour of a person’s skin. And yet the word ‘black’ has to be used with extreme care. To give somebody a black look or a black mark is out of the ques‐ tion. What are we supposed to call a blackbird or a blackberry in future?

By the way, the black colleagues and acquaintances that I know find this overreaction as ridiculous as I do.

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.

It’s a purely political decision MIKE SENKER IN MY OPINION Views of a Grumpy Old Man SO Novak Djokovic got deported from Australia and, in my opinion, it was an absolute dog’s dinner. If they had any health concerns they should have just declared that if he was not vaccinated he could not enter the country for any reason whatsoever (which is a nonsense too). But someone somewhere decided to let him in. Unfortunately for Novak, and tennis fans round the world, it got political and after much toing and froing Australian Immigration Minister Alex Hawke cancelled the visa, just three days before the tourney was set to begin.

Now if Hawke had said Novak lied about not quarantining or posing for photographs in Spain, whilst allegedly breaking Covid rules maybe, but he didn’t. Novak was deported because “it serves the public interest”, Hawke said. And this is what really worries me. Djokovic’s presence in Australia may be a risk to the health and ‘good order’ of the Australian people. How? He hasn’t got Covid. Scott Morrison, the Australian PM

welcomed the court’s decision, saying, “it will help keep our borders strong and keep Australians safe.” For me, it all sounds wrong and is a purely political decision and in line with the whole Australian panic rules over the last two years.

Finally got my new iPhone from my service provider so I could pay for it monthly as it’s just under half of what I paid for my first house! I bought a flip over case which allows you to keep a couple of credit cards and also acts as a stand. Got it home, put the case on and after a bit noticed the ‘phone stopped vibrating on silent mode. I took it to Apple - he took it out, fiddled about for a few minutes, fixed it and put it back in the case. But when I got home I noticed it wasn’t working again.

Mrs S got involved and started doing some searching online and found out it was a common problem and was caused by the magnets in the case interfering with the magnet in the ‘phone. Out of the case the ‘phone worked fine so I took that case back and got my €20 back. I set off back to the Apple store to get a new case and, of course, that’s where you get conned as it cost me another €90 for a case plus screen protection.

I think Apple do all these things so you have to buy their products only.

Email: mikesenker@gmail.com

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

FEATURE

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20 - 26 January 2022

EWN 61

Advertising Feature

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PETS IF you are planning a trip later this year you still need to plan early for pet and house‐sit‐ ters. Perhaps you are already making plans for a staycation get away. Even if you are planning just a short trip, you’ll know that you simply can’t travel with some pets.

Young pets in particular may

62

www.euroweeklynews.com • 20 - 26 January 2022

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Who’s going to play with your pup? benefit from staying behind so they can follow their rou‐ tines at home. So, plan ahead.

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you find suitable sitters. Join our network for a small annual fee. You get ID checked for safety and then build your ad‐ vert saying when you are go‐ ing on holiday. House‐sitters see your advert, they respond

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To find a house or pet-sitter go to www.HouseSitMatch.com.

FEATURE

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Advertising Feature

Pine processionary caterpillars BETWEEN the months of February and April the pro‐ cessionaries (pine caterpil‐ lars) migrate from their nests (bags) in the pines to their burial area to form the chrysalis that will rise to the butterflies at the end of sum‐ mer. Sometimes it can hap‐ pen earlier, so from January you have to be careful.

The fact they go in proces‐ sion on the ground attracts dogs, not so much cats. The hairs released by caterpillars contain a capsule with a tox‐ in called ‘taumatopein.’ Hair in contact with the skin or mucosa of dogs releases the toxin causing severe swelling, generally on the face, lips, mouth and tongue, in these cases causing the dog to scratch its face and salivation. If the contact with the toxin has been intense, it can cause severe necrosis and infection of the tissues with loss, for example, of

Wash your dog’s mouth.

part of the tongue. It can sometimes cause severe la‐ ryngeal edema that can even lead to death. Eye injuries can also occur. This can occur not only by getting close to the caterpillars but also by the release of hairs into the environment from the bags of the pines by the wind.

If you live near pine trees or after a walk in a pine for‐ est, observe these symp‐ toms in your dog, if possible wash your dog’s mouth thoroughly with water. Use gloves since there may be hairs without releasing the toxin which can cause irrita‐ tion to your hands and arms.

Go to the vet for treatment.

In Costablanca Norte: Anicura Marina Baixa Hospital Veterinario www.veterinariamarinabaixa.com

20 - 26 January 2022

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Active days out with your dog DOGS give so much love to their owners and most are regarded as a family mem‐ ber, adopting the same lifestyle.

Most owners take their dogs out on their usual walking routine, but once in a while it would be interest‐ ing for them to try other outdoor activities.

Dogs do have memories and giving them a different experience outdoors would keep them physically and mentally stimulated.

There are a few interest‐ ing and challenging options,

which include hiking trails or dog‐friendly parks.

Swimming is another good form of exercise for dogs and the chlorine in pools is not a problem for them either.

The sea is possibly more challenging, as it’s unpre‐ dictable and the dog might not be as safe. Playing fetch on the beach with all that fresh air is invigorating for dog and owner.

If you’re a fitness junkie that goes jogging every day, you could take the dog with you, so get a hands‐free

OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES: Check out local hiking trails.

Beauty of a Bengal cat THE Bengal cat has an exotic look enjoying other pursuits like a bit of about them. They are smaller than bird watching. wild cats and fortunately, not as There is a sensitive and playful side dangerous. The Bengal cat came to this cat and when they have about through the crossing of Asian gained trust in their owner, they can leopard cats with domestic cats. become the most affectionate of They have spotted and pets, never leaving your side. If they marbled coats of many are left alone for a period of time, colours, large bones when the owner goes on holiday; and short hair. there could be a few gifts dot‐ They are also ted around the house, on re‐ very intelligent turning. It’s their way of and require a great telling you they’re upset, but deal of attention, this applies to most cats. which may be Cats do understand much more due to their in‐ than we imagine, so it’s worth ex‐ quisitive na‐ plaining things for them, as the ture and high meaning translates through energy. your body language.

They are Once you’re home, the constantly on Bengal cat settles the move and down very quickly love to climb to and as they are not the highest of as vocal as other places. cats, it’s easy Bengal cats also to get plenty love the great out‐ of sleep. doors, where their ancestral genes kick in to action and then they become a predator, while BENGAL CAT: Is very intelligent and inquisitive.

running leash to have round your waist.

Including the dog on fam‐ ily camping trips can be fun, especially if the dog gets their own tent to sleep in.

The important thing to remember is to take a basic

first‐aid kit and a plentiful supply of water, when out and about in the great out‐ doors. It’s also important to be aware of your dog’s lev‐ el of fitness and not to give them too much of a chal‐ lenge.

64 EWN

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20 - 26 January 2022

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REMOVALS & STORAGE

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FLOORING

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REMOVALS / STORAGE

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CAMPING

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20 - 26 January 2022 • www.euroweeklynews.com SPONSORED BY

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MOTORING

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20 - 26 January 2022

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20 - 26 January 2022

ROAD TEST

by Mark Slack AT one time you could look at the badge on the back of a car and immedi‐ ately know the model. It’s no longer the case. Take Audi for example, my re‐ cent test car was the A4 Avant 40 TDi quattro S line S tronic. Nothing so simple as telling you what trim level is or its engine size.

The Avant signifies, in old fashioned par‐ lance, estate, the 40 relates to the en‐ gine’s power (al‐ though how 40 relates to 201 hp is somewhat of a mystery), the TDi Tur‐ bo Diesel injection, quat‐ tro equals four‐wheel‐ drive, S line the trim and s tronic alludes to the car’s automatic gearbox.

What isn’t a mystery is why the A4 Avant would be a welcome addition to any driveway. The range starts from €43,106/£36,030 and my 40 TDi quattro weighs in at €50,329/£42,070, and with

MOTORING

Audi A4 Avant 40 TDi quattro the ideal family wagon or sporting holdall

Ideal family wagon.

options including a panoramic sunroof totalled €57,704/ £48,240.

Standard fare includes sports suspension, LED lighting, high beam assist, leather front sports seats, brushed aluminium trim, powered heated folding door mirrors, auto dim‐ ming rear view mirror, three‐zone climate control,

Facts at a Glance Model: Audi A4 Avant 40 TDi quattro S line S tronic Engine: 2.0 Turbocharged diesel developing 204PS Gears: 7-Speed DSG Automatic Performance: 0-100 km/h (62 mph) 7.6 seconds/Maximum Speed 210 km/h (130 mph) Economy: 5.4l/100km (52.3 mpg) Combined driving (WLTP) Emissions: 141 g/km (WLTP) Model tested was UK-specification and equipment levels and prices may vary in other markets.

keyless entry and start, power tailgate, cruise con‐ trol, navigation and front and rear floor mats and the list goes on.

For a German car, where options usually include everything, the A4 has an excellent stan‐ dard specifi‐ cation.

Diesel is not the fuel of favour, even less so than petrol, but economy is good and low down torque impressive.

The sports suspension certainly helps the A4 go around corners with alacrity. Despite the S line’s reputation for a ride that’s on the firm side of firm the Avant soaks up the bumps well. The seats are some‐

what of a different matter in that they stick to the suspension’s reputation of being on the firm side of firm. Or perhaps I’m just getting old!

The instrumentation is a paragon of clarity and there’s not too much in the way of digitisation, al‐ though a full return to but‐ tons by all manufacturers would be a welcome, if un‐ likely, step. You see, I am getting old!

With the high quality build you would expect from Audi, the A4 is not only a nice place to be but it’s practical too. You don’t have to have an SUV, es‐ tate cars may not be in vogue as they once were, but get the right one eg the A4 Avant and it’s darned close to being the ideal family wagon or sporting holdall.

MOTORING

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20 - 26 January 2022

Renault all-electric by 2030 RENAULT is not the first brand, neither will it be the last, to announce that it will stop selling combustion‐only cars in Europe in 2030. The need to adapt to the race for electrification will see the di‐ amond brand dedicate itself to selling purely electric or hybrid vehicles within eight years.

This was announced on Fri‐ day, January 14, by Luca de Meo, the CEO of the French company. He spoke of “the obligation to participate in de‐ carbonisation,” to adapt to the demanding European reg‐ ulations.

De Meo acknowledged that Dacia ‐ which offers more affordable vehicles ‐ will have greater flexibility in the group to respond to market de‐ mand. Until 2030, it will con‐

Dedicated to electrification.

tinue to manufacture and sell vehicles with combustion en‐ gines.

To deal with electrification, there are still pending issues, such as the lack of infrastruc‐ ture in many European coun‐ tries, especially in the east and south. De Meo considered

that “it is a problem” for the development of electric vehi‐ cles. The price is also an issue, which is higher in electric than in combustion models.

The company has decided on using the north of France for the production of 100 per cent electric cars. The idea is

New DGT drones AS the General Direc‐ torate of Traffic (DGT) in‐ creases its purge on road safety, they have revealed a new tool that will be used to monitor the roads of Spain in 2022. The enti‐ ty has reported that 2021 was a good year in which the number of fatalities between January 1 and December 31, dropped by 9 per cent in comparison to 2019.

That statistic apparently means that 2021 was the year with the second‐low‐ est death toll on the roads since records began. A to‐ tal of 921 fatalities is still a concerning figure though.

As a result, a new road legislation has been drawn up that aims to go one step further, adapting the law to current times.

The DGT has many in‐ struments to prosecute offences and dangerous driving, and its intention is to eventually eliminate speeding and the use of alcohol or drugs by drivers. Smart radars have already been intro‐ duced, combined with a loss of more points from driving licences for vari‐

ous offences.

A new device that the DGT will be handing to Guardia Civil traffic offi‐ cers is a camera that will be fitted to the existing drones. This camera can apparently snap pictures of vehicles ‐ and more im‐ portantly, their number plates ‐ from distances up to 500 metres.

In addition to the heli‐ copter that the DGT uses to monitor the road sys‐ tems, these drones will be able to fly over the areas where concentrations of vehicles, accidents, or the maximum speed of move‐ ment can be easily ex‐ ceeded, while taking clear snapshots of the offending drivers.

to start manufacturing nine models in the 2022‐2024 peri‐ od, with the intention of pro‐ ducing more than 400,000 by 2025. According to Jose Vi‐ cente de los Mozos, Renault’s industrial manager, the Span‐ ish plants will focus on pro‐ ducing hybrid cars. “This is where we have seen that there is a value chain. The technology of hybrid en‐ gines is transitional,” he said.

In the longer term, the Span‐ ish plants will be reconvert‐ ed to produce electric cars.

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