Euro Weekly News - Costa Blanca North 17 - 23 February 2022 Issue 1911

THE BEST FINANCE NEWS ON PAGES 32 - 35 Issue No. 1911 17 - 23 February 2022

THE four lawcourts dealing with cases in the Villajoyosa le‐ gal district will soon be housed in the same building.

Currently located in differ‐ ent parts of the town, they are due to relocate to La Vila’s for‐ mer health centre which has received a Generalitat‐funded €2.23 million makeover.

Regional president, Ximo Puig, accompanied by Gabriela Bravo who heads the Generali‐ tat’s Justice department, re‐ cently inspected the rehabili‐ tated building.

Villajoyosa’s legal district, with a total population of 69,000, is Alicante Province’s largest and, as well as La Vila it‐ self, handles cases in 13 other Marina Baja municipalities apart from Benidorm, Fines‐ trat, Altea and Alfaz.

Speaking to the media in Vil‐ lajoyosa, Bravo admitted court employees had been working in lamentable conditions: “Now they can carry out their jobs and attend to the public in suitable surroundings.”

SUPERSTARS OF JAVEA

Photo credit: Royal British Legion, Javea branch

All under one roof

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Turn to page 2 » AWARD WINNERS: Pam Dawes, Tony Edmunds and an RBL volunteer.

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Emblematic race ALTEA’S 200 Millas a Dos yacht race returns for its 36th edition between March 4 and 6.

Boats competing in the race organised by Altea’s Club Nautico cover the 200 nautical miles (approxi‐ mately 370 kilometres) of the Altea‐Ibiza‐Altea route with a crew of two. Twenty‐three yachts have al‐ ready signed up for the race with more expected to register before the February 27 closing date. Regard‐ ed as the Mediterranean’s most emblematic winter regatta, it is also its toughest owing to the weather conditions There is a first prize of two one‐kilo silver bars for the best time, two half‐kilos bars for the second in and two quarter‐kilo bars for third place.

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17 - 23 February 2022

THE regional Health department has awarded the million euro con‐ tract to double in size the Marina Alta hospital in Villajoyosa.

Construction will be carried out by a temporary joint venture com‐ pany created by multinational’s FCC construction division and Grupo Bertolin, based in Paterna (Valencia) which put in a €47 million tender for the €59.9 million contract.

Photo credit: Villajoyosa town hall

March start for hospital extension

HOSPITAL EXTENSION: Computer-generated view of the new building.

A mixed reception MANY masks were still in evidence on Thursday February 10, although they were no longer required on Spain’s streets.

In Alicante City, the Spanish‐language media calculated that up to 70 per cent of the public were still using masks on that first morning. Many were elderly, like Paqui Samper, who was sitting alone on a park bench.

“The virus hasn’t gone yet and I’m elderly,” she told the local Spanish press. “I feel much safer wearing a mask even though it gets me down a bit.”

Elsewhere, Valle Martin revealed that she would continue wearing a mask in the street. “I don’t trust this government and I think it’s all to do with economic and political motives, so I’ll go on wearing a mask because I think it’s necessary. The pandemia has not ended,” Valle maintained.

Nevertheless, there were those who were happy to dispense with the masks that have been mandatory outdoors for the past two months.

They included Rafael Lillo who said he was relieved that restrictions were being eased: “I really wanted to see an end to the masks. Wearing one, es‐ pecially outside, is absurd,” he declared.

Work should begin in March, a month earlier than expected, and will take an estimated 30 months to complete although regional presi‐ dent,. Ximo Puig announced during a recent visit to La Vila that efforts would be made to finish ahead of schedule.

The hospital in Villajoyosa has to attend to all of the Marina Baja, in‐ land and on the coast, including Benidorm with its enormous float‐ ing population.

Built in 1986 the existing building was extended on a minor scale but without adding to the number of beds, which will now rise from 270 to 322. The number of Intensive Care beds increases from 12 to 18.

The capacity of all services will in‐ crease and in departments ‐ includ‐ ing A and E ‐ are to be doubled.

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Javea doubled 2021 Poppy Appeal donations PAM DAWES and Tony Ed‐ munds, members of the Royal British Legion’s Javea branch, re‐ cently received Chairman’s awards.

Pam has volunteered for over 20 years at both district and branch level and has been the branch Membership secretary and treasurer for many years.

Tony’s award recognised his work as the previous branch chairman and also as Poppy Ap‐ peal co‐ordinator.

The Javea branch also re‐ ceived The Fallen Hero Award, presented to the branch which makes a significant year‐on‐year increase in the Poppy Appeal.

Thanks to the generosity of Poppy Box donations, plus the amazing sum raised by Pam Small’s Fitsteps Group in November and the proceeds from the Four Amigos in the Denia‐Cenotaph cycle ride, the Javea branch almost dou‐ bled its contribution to the

2021 Poppy Appeal.

“Javea’s Royal British Legion also has a fabulous programme of planned social events for March, April, May and June, with a beach barbecue at the end of the summer,” branch secretary Louise Hunt an‐ nounced.

“The autumn sees the formal launch of the 2022 Poppy Ap‐ peal in Benidorm and also Acts of Remembrance in November.”

To join the Royal British Le‐ gion and meet new friends, vol‐ unteer in the local area or sim‐ ply support the Royal British Legion in Spain, it is not neces‐ sary to have served in the armed forces, Louise explained.

“Come to one of our meetings on the second and fourth Tues‐ day of every month at Paris 24, Javea. Or take a look at our Facebook Page (Royal British Le‐ gion ‐ Javea Branch) or our www.royalbritishlegion.org.uk/ branches/javea website.”

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NIBS EXTRA All-electric THE Diputacion donated an electric vehicle to Finestrat Town Hall, one of 171 it is pro‐ viding free to municipalities with populations below 50,000. Local mayor Juanfran Perez Llorca thanked the Diputacion not only for its commitment to the environ‐ ment and sustainability, but also its consideration towards smaller municipalities.

Wi-Fi for all JAVEA Town Hall is installing free Wi‐Fi in the Old Town, the Promenade and Primer Mon‐ tañar. The internet connection has been financed by the EU’s WiFi4EU initiative which en‐ sures that the public has free access in parks, plazas, official building, public libraries, health centres and museums throughout Europe.

More air FISH are dying at the mouth of the Algar in Altea owing to lack of oxygen in the water, explained Environment coun‐ cillor Jose Orozco. His depart‐ ment has brought in diggers to make an opening in the piled‐up shingle that has pre‐ vented seawater from enter‐ ing the river’s stagnant lower section.

New home ONDARA Town Hall signed a collaboration agreement with the Red Cross to develop vari‐ ous projects and assistance programmes inside the mu‐ nicipality. Ondara mayor Jose Ramiro also announced that the town hall will also provide premises in the now unused Sombreria as a permanent base for the organisation’s ac‐ tivities.

Pitch perfect ALBIR’S new football pitch sur‐ faced with artificial turf was in‐ augurated with two ‘friendlies’ between women’s sides from Alfaz and Benidorm. The €295,983 cost of the pitch in Calle San Miguel was met with ‘important help’ from Diputacion provincial council and the regional gov‐ ernment, explained Sports councillor Jose Plaza.

THE Gigante de Sal (Salt Giant) statue is to be installed on the coast at Moraira.

Coderch and Malavia, win‐ ners of the 2017 Queen Sofia Painting and Sculpture Prize, intended the Gigante to look out over the sea and the stat‐ ue has spent the last year in the Valencia City marina.

The date of the Moraira in‐ auguration, March 6, was de‐ liberately chosen to coincide with the start of the pandemic two years ago, the Valencia‐ based sculptors explained.

“The statue is an ode to hu‐ man strength in a difficult situ‐ ation like the Covid‐19 crisis,” Coderch and Malavia said, drawing attention to the Gi‐ gante’s message that cele‐ brates society’s ability to recov‐ er from collective

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Show of strength Photo credit: Teulada-Moraira town hall

NEWS

SALT GIANT: Huge bronze celebrates society’s ability to recover from collective catastrophes.

catastrophes.

The artists thanked Teulada‐ Moraira Town Hall for provid‐ ing them with such a privileged site for the outsized bronze

Terrace tax returns CALPE Town Hall has reintroduced the tax that the hospitality in‐ dustry pays to occupy pavements and publicly‐owned roads or property. This was waived entirely during 2021 and for part of 2020, owing to the Covid‐19 situation. The tax, which is due in April, will be calculated on the market price of each café, bar or restaurant during the low season instead of taking an average of the low and high season price. There will therefore be a 40 per cent saving, as the terrace table tax will be charged for only six months of the year, as agreed after consulting local business‐ owners, Calpe’s mayor Ana Sala said. Sala also emphasised that should the pandemic situation deteriorate, bringing with it a re‐ turn to restrictions, the town hall would again suspend the tax.

Municipal workers unhappy BENISSA Town Hall employees are protesting against the deci‐ sion to increase their working week from 35 hours to 37.5.

The Comisiones Obreras, UGT and STAS unions have issued a joint communique, accusing Human Resources councillor Jorge Ivars of lacking “willingness to negotiate and reach consensus” and of applying “illegally and unilaterally” decisions that affected the social and employment conditions of the town hall collec‐ tive. In response, Ivars stated that the reduction had been a tem‐ porary measure and that 37.5 hours was in any case established in the Basic Statute of Public Employees as the working week.

He also pointed out that returning to longer hours would pro‐ vide a better service to the public.

sculpture: “We regard it as an honour that the Gigante should start a new chapter of its life in Teula‐ da‐Moraira, which so repre‐

sents the beauty of the Valen‐ cian Community,” they said.

In turn, Teulada‐Moraira’s mayor Raul Llobell declared he was proud that Coderch and Malavia, who have done so much to bring art to the street, should have chosen the mu‐ nicipality after displaying the Gigante in Munich, Toulouse and Capri.

“We are very pleased to have a statue in Teulada‐ Moraira which represents our capacity for overcoming adver‐ sity and demonstrating that we are stronger together,” Llo‐ bell added.

There to help BENIDORM mayor Toni Perez recently chaired a monitoring meeting of the town’s Foreign Tourist Assistance Ser‐ vice (SATE).

Perez, together with Benidorm’s Public Safety councillor, National Po‐ lice and Local Police commissioners and members of the SATE staff, reviewed current operations and future plans.

The SATE office first opened in Plaza del Tor‐ rejo at the end of the Levante beach in 2016 but later moved to the more accessible Rincon de Loix, especially as the majority ‐ but by no means all ‐ of those us‐ ing the service are British tourists staying in

Ministry’s bypass hints THE Ministry of Public Works allegedly turned down Altea’s request for another AP‐7 access but could again be considering a bypass. Although there has been less through traffic since the AP‐7 tolls were lifted, driving in the centre of Altea still involves holdups and tailbacks in rush hours and the summer. According to the Spanish media, the question was raised last January when Ministry officials visited Altea during the inauguration of two new N‐332 roundabouts.

Infrastructures councillor Diego Zaragoza admitted that the conversation had taken place but gave little away. “Owing to the reactions this issue always produces, due to the repercus‐ sions on so many people, we want to be cautious when making statements,” Zaragoza said.

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this district.

At the SATE office, which is a Ministry of the Exterior initiative, tourists who need the assistance of the police, are attended in their own language by Na‐ tional Police officers and specialised personnel.

There are currently 23 SATE offices in Spain in tourist zones and cities throughout the country.

Services include assis‐ tance in reporting a crime, cancelling credit cards or other official documents, contacting embassies or consulates and notifying of locating family members.

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Paintings raise funds for Food Bank ARTIST Liselotte Lenschow is showing her work at the Albir Gallery until February 23 between 6pm and 8pm.

Proceeds from sales will be donated to Al‐ faz’s Voluntariado So‐ cial which runs the lo‐ cal Food Bank and provides essential sup‐ plies for more than 300 families.

The gallery near the Al‐ bir beach in Calle Joaquin Rodrigo reflects Alfaz’s cosmopolitan communi‐ ty as it is owned by Nelly de Arbo from Bulgaria and Inge Buland who is Norwegian.

Commited to art and culture, they were also happy to help Liselotte Lenschow in raising funds for Voluntariado Social.

Martine Mertens, Rocio Guijarro and Manuel Casado, re‐ spective councillors for Other Nationalities, Equality and Culture, visited the gallery for the February 11 inau‐ guration, where they thanked the gallery‐ owners and the artist for the charity initia‐ tive.

and finally...

BENITACHELL’S parks and green spaces initiatives are now tak‐ ing shape.

Work has started on a rest area and lookout at the start of the Ruta de los Acantilados (Cliff Route) overlooking the Moraig cove.

The €129,502 project on land provided by Benitachell Town Hall should be finished within four months and has been fi‐ nanced by the regional government.

Included in the Mediterranean Coast Action Plan (PACMAR), the lookout and leisure area with its spectacular views will also help to restore a zone that is practically bare of vegetation and affected by erosion.

Benitachell’s Beaches and Environment councillor Jorge Pas‐ cual stressed that work on the project will not affect visitors and hikers using the Cliff Route but asked them to comply with any recommendations from the workmen and to be careful with their footing.

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17 - 23 February 2022

Barbarians Rugby Marina Alta MIXED fortunes for the Bar‐ barians over the weekend with surprising results.

First the S16s played against University Catolica of Valencia on Saturday in De‐ nia in what turned out to be an evenly fought thrilling en‐ counter. With the lead swap‐ ping several times, the spec‐ tators were treated to a feast of junior rugby where every‐ one put in 100 per cent.

The Barbarians, again fielding five young ladies never took a backward step against a bigger pack. Win‐ ning superb line out ball, they continually ran at the away team putting them un‐ der pressure, even after falling behind in the early ex‐ changes. The Barbarians eventually ran out 33‐22 winners.

A feast of junior rugby.

Again a first class perfor‐ mance by all the players but a special mention has to go to Maya Hull,who continues to improve in her new scrum half position, Sadie Petch who is turning out to be such an influential player all around the pitch and Winder McConell Mulet, who put in a truly inspiring captain’s per‐ formance.

On Sunday the seniors travelled to Valencia to play CAU and it was surely a game they would like to for‐ get. With everyone having

an off day at the same time, they went down 23‐15 in a game they should have won quite easily. Maybe it was a wake up call for those that think you can win without training. The match was a clear reversal of the S16s’ game and now the squad has to knuckle down and work hard for the remainder of the matches if they are to achieve promotion this sea‐ son.

The Barbarians run Acade‐ my teams from under 14s to 16s to 18s and through to se‐ niors and welcomes every‐ one to come and train and join the club. Free qualified coaching is available at all levels. Please call Santi (Spanish) on 676 612 357 or Mac (English) on 609 646 349 for more information.

NEWS

CHUMS are great friends to have CHUMS of Charity provided €600 of provisions for Al‐ faz’s Voluntariado Social, which is responsible for the local Food Bank.

The CHUMS supermarket pallet was piled high, not on‐ ly with non‐perishable food supplies, but also household cleaning products and per‐ sonal hygiene items.

The 100 or so members of CHUMS, which was creat‐ ed in 2015, are British resi‐ dents now living in the Mari‐ na Baja area although the charity itself is based in Alfaz.

CHUMS’ Marilyn and Pe‐ ter Rogers presented the donation to Voluntariado Social president Antonio Vi‐ so and volunteer Pilar Boiz, accompanied by Alfaz coun‐ Photo credit: Jeff Richards

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DAY’S BIGGEST: Ray Turvey’s 7.4-kilo carp was the best of the day.

Photo credit: Alfaz town hall

CHUMS DONATION: Food and vital supplies for Alfaz’s Food Bank.

cillors Martine Mertens and Isabel Muñoz.

“We are a small friendly group of people who like to get together a few times each month for either lunch or coffee,” said CHUMS president, Marilyn.

“We are fully registered and support the four Food Banks in Alfaz, Benidorm, La

Nucia and Finestrat,” she ex‐ plained.

“We raise money with raffles at our various events and are always very happy to receive donations, no matter how small.”

For more information about CHUMS of Charity, ring Marilyn on 965 864 394.

No dry nets IT was Section B2 of the River Jucar for Teulada‐ Moraira Fishing Club’s latest Winter League match in neighbouring Valencia Province.

“The air temperature

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never rose above 13 de‐ grees, but B2 was a good section to fish with ev‐ eryone catching, so there were no dry nets,” club secretary Jeff Richards said.

“We had only eight contestants as Jack was away and one of our ladies was still in hospi‐ tal,” he added.

Best total weight of the day the 13.85 kilos caught on Peg Four by Ray Turvey whose 7.4‐ki‐ lo carp was also the biggest of the day.

“It was a good day with a total weight of 42 kilos and 34 fish caught between the eight an‐ glers.

“We are a very friendly club and always happy to welcome new mem‐ bers,” Jeff added.

For further information about the Teulada‐ Moraira Fishing Club contact Frank Povey on 966 490 338 or frankpovey1@gmail.com.

NEWS

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T H E AA has said that the average petrol prices in the UK have sur‐ passed 148p/litre for the first time, rising above the previous record high of 147.72p/litre on November 21 last year.

The new high piles further pressure on already stretched motorists who have faced a string of price rises over

17 - 23 February 2022

UK petrol at record high the last few months, both in the UK and elsewhere.

Spanish petrol prices reached a record high of €1.538/litre on Febru‐ ary 3.

Expectations are that prices will

Police abolish height rules

SPAIN’S Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande‐Marlaska, has announced that the Spanish National Police will abolish the mini‐ mum height requirement for those who wish to enter the force in a move which could in‐ crease the number of Spain’s female officers.

The measure could be implemented in the next round of selection tests, which are sched‐ uled for 2023. Grande‐Marlaska stressed that the measure will help to break “one of the glass ceilings” that has prevented many women from joining the force. “The current regulation is more restrictive for women. The limit is only two centimetres below the average height of women, while for men the margin is up to nine centimetres,” said the minister. With this change, the National Police is now on a par with other civilian police forces in European

CHANGE: Will encourage women to apply.

countries, such as France, Italy, the Nether‐ lands, Finland, Slovakia, Sweden, Norway, Aus‐ tria, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Romania, Denmark and Germany, as these police forces do not have a height requirement for access to their selection tests. Minimum height require‐ ments will only be maintained for certain spe‐ cial units ‐ IPU, RPU and GEO ‐ where height af‐ fects the specific police work they carry out.

Crash at Heathrow Airport

A FIRE engine crashed at Heathrow Airport on Mon‐ day, February 14, leaving its driver rushed to hospital. The incident at 9.40am involved a private airport fire engine.

Social media users shared footage of the crash where the engine was seen lying on its side. Emergency vehicles could be seen surrounding the vehicle. Despite the crash,

Heathrow Airport was able to carry on as normal. Officers from the Metropolitan Police attended the accident and confirmed that the driver had been taken to hospital.

A Metropolitan police spokesperson commented: “At around 9:40am on Febru‐ ary 14 a fire engine over‐ turned on the airfield at Heathrow Airport.

“The driver was taken to the hospital as a precaution.

No reports of any other in‐ juries. No arrests were made.” A spokesperson for Heathrow Airport explained: “Our teams responded to a traffic incident involving one of our airside fire engines. No passengers have been injured and the airport continues to operate normally.”

continue to rise in the short term as the world returns to normal and de‐ mand rises. That coupled with the ongoing tensions in the Ukraine will continue to drive prices up as in‐ vestors look to take profits and coun‐

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tries concerned about supply look to stock up.

Efforts earlier this year by the USA and others to encourage OPEC to in‐ crease output has done little to slow down the rise in prices, that despite countries like the USA releasing some of its stores to try and deal with some of the demand.

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17 - 23 February 2022

A COUPLE claim Ryanair flew them 1,200 km from their intended destina‐ tion. The couple from the UK had a massive sur‐ prise on their romantic getaway when they land‐ ed in the wrong country.

Simon Forster and Em‐ ma Schofield from the UK had been heading to Copenhagen from Manch‐ ester Airport and have demanded an apology from Ryanair after land‐ ing in Paris.

The couple claim that when they reached

Ryanair mishap FLIGHT: Landed in Paris rather than Copenhagen.

Manchester Airport they were hit with terrible queues but say that their

passports and boarding passes were checked at the departure gate by

EU parcel problems EXPATS across Europe have been com‐ plaining of issues receiving their parcels following Brexit.

One expat in Spain told one publication: “For Christmas my mum sent me a couple of books and some cards with a declared value of about £35, on top of which I then had to pay the post office €20.”

They added: “The breakdown on the re‐ ceipt said half of it was from customs fees with VAT added and the other half was just listed as additional.”

Another person shared a similar story

from Italy and said: “I live in Italy and I have been charged every time something from the UK arrives.

“If you don’t have the cash there and then to give the delivery driver you are then given a form to head to the post of‐ fice, which, as you can imagine, is never a joy.

“A birthday card sent on October 11, 2021 from the UK arrived this week ... I have stopped buying things from the UK and have asked friends and family to stop sending parcels.”

Ryanair crew and they were allowed to board.

The UK couple told one publication how they boarded “the only waiting plane on the runway.”

Simon explained that on boarding cabin crew told them “Oh don’t wor‐ ry about it” when they tried to show their board‐ ing passes.

The pair were rather surprised when they touched down and at passport control were greeted with “bonjour.”

The couple’s romantic getaway to Copenhagen ended up with them land‐ ing in Beauvais in France.

Ryanair commented: “It is each passenger’s re‐ sponsibility to ensure they board the correct aircraft.

“There are several touchpoints throughout the passenger journey which inform passengers of the aircraft’s destina‐ tion.”

NEWS

£109,915,000 EuroMillions win AN eye‐watering £109,915,000 EuroMillions jackpot was paid out to a UK winner on Valentine’s Day. One lucky person in the UK walked away with the 10th biggest National Lottery win in history. According to Camelot, the person would have to decide to go public for their identity to be released. At the moment the person has decided to stay anonymous. The National Lottery’s Senior Winners’ Advisor Andy Carter revealed: “We’re absolutely delighted that the winner of this amazing EuroMillions jackpot prize has come forward and we hope that they will enjoy their win.

He went on to add: “What an incredible moment for this lucky ticket‐holder and it’s safe to say that it’s likely to have been the best Valentine’s Day ever for them!”

The highest ever EuroMillions jackpot came in at £170 mil‐ lion. The draw was held on October 18, 2019, and the winner then also wished to remain anonymous.

and finally...

GARETH HUGHES was due payment for Storm Arwen‐re‐ lated damages, but never expected it would be for a mon‐ strous £2,324,252,080,110.

The accountant from Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire took to Twitter to jokingly thank the provider for his cheque. He posted an image of the cheque made out in his name, showing the obviously ridiculous numerical error.

As soon as the clerical error was identified, the cheque was stopped so it could not be cashed.

NEWS

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17 - 23 February 2022

Electronic nose

SCIENTISTS in Spain have created pioneering new technology that allows respi‐ ratory infections to be de‐ tected via breath analysis.

Infections are usually diag‐ nosed by a lengthy proce‐ dure in which sputum is col‐ lected and analysed in a laboratory to identify which microorganism is causing the problem suffered by the pa‐ tient.

This may have changed thanks to researchers at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) and Hos‐ pital Clinic de Barcelona, who have managed to cre‐ ate a type of technology that can analyse patients’ breath and give a very quick and ef‐ fective diagnosis of lung in‐ fections caused by Pseu‐ domonas aeruginosa, a type

NEW TECHNOLOGY: Infections detected via breath analysis.

of bacteria that is resistant to many drugs.

The scientists involved have created an automatic ‘electronic nose’ (e‐nose) with sensors that can quickly and non‐invasively diagnose bacterial lung infections. The e‐nose analyse volatile or‐

ganic compounds (VOCs) in the patient’s exhaled breath.

Breath sampling had pre‐ viously been used to detect asthma, sucrose intolerance and abnormal bacterial growth in the small intes‐ tine, but has never been able to detect lung diseases.

easyJet ‘mask row’

A FLIGHT from Glasgow to London’s Stanst‐ ed on Sunday, February 13 was disturbed af‐ ter passengers behaved ‘disruptively on board’. easyJet said that the passengers were behaving in a way which they ‘do not toler‐ ate’. When the plane set down at Stansted airport the police were ready to escort the passengers away after they had reportedly been disruptive over a row to do with wear‐ ing masks on board. The Essex police force confirmed that a ‘mask wearing’ incident had resulted in them being called out.

Speaking to Glasgow Live, a spokesperson for easyJet explained the passengers were

“behaving disruptively on board.” The spokesperson went on to add that the airline does: “not tolerate abusive behaviour on board.” The easyJet spokesperson explained: “easyJet can confirm that flight EZY216 from Glasgow to Stansted yesterday evening was met by police on arrival in Stansted due to two passengers behaving disruptively on board.

“While such incidents are rare, we take them very seriously and do not tolerate abu‐ sive behaviour on board. The safety and well‐ being of our passengers and crew is our high‐ est priority.”

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Cave paintings vandalised SEPRONA, the Nature Protection Ser‐ vice of the Guardia Civil, is investigat‐ ing who may have vandalised a set of 6,000‐year‐old cave paintings in Spain.

The paintings, considered to be of historical importance, are located on the Peñón del Muerto, in Solana del Pino, between Ciudad Real and Jaen.

According to Seprona, vandals paint‐ ed a large Spanish flag over the paint‐ ings that are visible from the passing road that connects the area with An‐

THE city council of Madrid has revealed that nearly 10,000 residents will lose their parking spaces in mu‐ nicipal car parks due to fraud‐ ulent use.

The council revealed the ini‐ tial conclusions from its large‐ scale inspection plan that is being carried out with the ob‐ jective of detecting irregular and possibly unauthorised us‐ es of designated parking spaces.

The inspections began in 2020 in response to the long list of residents waiting for designated parking spaces.

Over the last two years, 55,187 spaces have been in‐ spected, of which 40,738 were found to have unre‐ solved irregularities.

Although 60 per cent of those with irregularities could be solved, 41 per cent (9,763) were completely fraudulent because they had been re‐let out to someone else or the person no longer had the cor‐ rect documentation. These people will lose their places,

dujar (Jaen).

The mayor of Solana del Pino said that this is not the first time the paint‐ ings have been targeted, “15 years ago some interested party already took a piece of stone with some very unique paintings.”

Continuing, the mayor explained that she hopes the investigation can find who undertook this “unfortunate cul‐ tural attack” that has been carried out with “premeditation and cruelty.”

Parking fraud

which will be made available to the 10,966 Madrid resi‐ dents who are on the waiting list. There may be even more

such cases, as the city council still has to inspect another 41,826 parking spaces in 297 municipal car parks.

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17 - 23 February 2022 THE Spanish Government has revealed plans to trans‐ late the Official State Gazette (BOE) into multiple lan‐ guages using Artificial Intelli‐ gence.

The government is cur‐ rently working on a pilot pro‐ ject to automatically trans‐ late certain texts into Spain’s various official languages fol‐ lowing a row over the use of regional languages.

Viçenc Vidal, a member of the political coalition Mes per Mallorca, complained that the government had stopped translating legisla‐ tive texts into Catalan in May 2021.

The Balearic senator stat‐ ed that the BOE, the official statements over law made

NEWS

Multilingual plan

BOE: Will be translated into multiple languages.

by the government, had been translated into Catalan from 1998 until October

2020, when the agreement between the State and the Catalan Generalitat was ter‐

minated, and then continued with funding from only the Catalan regional government until May 2021.

“This interruption has been caused by administra‐ tive obstacles that it should be possible to resolve, as they are not too costly by any means and are a flagrant breach of the European Char‐ ter for Regional and Minority Languages. Does the state in‐ tend to resolve this issue, which undermines the lin‐ guistic rights of the Catalan‐ speaking community?” asked Vidal.

Barrister removed from BA flight in row

POLICE have confirmed that a leading barrister and his family were removed from a BA flight after a row broke out when crew refused to let their nanny sit with them in business class.

Charles Banner QC, 41, paid for busi‐ ness class but their nanny’s seat had been downgraded because BA had oversold the seats, sparking an argument. Mr Ban‐

ner told one publication he was “upset” when the row broke out, which eventual‐ ly led to the pilot turning the plan round on the tarmac and refusing to fly unless the family were removed. He said: “If BA had told me that the nanny could not sit with us in business then we would not have travelled and could have got a later flight. But they only told us that when we

got to the boarding gate.”

He added: “The police escorted our family back through immigration. They made clear that this was just standard protocol and that no offence had been al‐ leged or committed.” A spokesman for BA said: “We do not tolerate disruptive behaviour and the safety of our cus‐ tomers and crew is our top priority.”

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17 - 23 February 2022

Royal pay rise THE salaries of King Felipe, Queen Letizia and Queen Sofia will rise by 2 per cent this year, according to the General State Budget.

This means that Felipe VI will receive around €259,000 and Queen Letizia just over €142,000.

Queen Sofia will receive €116,525 in 2022, some €2,000 more than last year.

The Royal Household’s budget for 2022 is published on their official website.

The General State Budget for 2022 includes a current transfer to the King ‘for the support of his family and the Royal Household’ amounting to €8,431,150, the allocation of which is decided by King Fe‐ lipe.

Unlike last year, when the Royal Household decided not to apply the 0.9 per cent salary increase to civil ser‐ vants, they have applied the 2 per cent increase to all salaries provided for by the General State Budget.

Media Markt slashes prices

E L E C T R O N I C S retail company Media Markt accidentally cut the prices of all its comput‐ er games to under €1 in a computer glitch on February 10.

It is not known why the website had the problem, but Media Markt may end up can‐ celling the orders.

Despite this, some users took advantage of the glitch to buy video games at a price of one cent, including all shipping and han‐ dling.

The brand will proba‐ bly cancel the items purchased during the few minutes that the incident lasted.

However, there have been similar cases with other companies where sellers have had to deliver their dis‐ counted products due to similar problems.

An example of this was the case of the

COMPUTER GLITCH: Some users took advantage to buy cheap video games.

French chain Fnac in October 2019, which listed a Huawei P30 at

€139.90 when its retail price was €699.90. Dur‐ ing the time that the

CONCERNS have been raised by two US Senators who believe the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is spying on Americans, carrying out unwarranted surveillance on unwitting people.

The accusation was made by Senators Ron Wyden and Martin Heinrich in a letter to intelligence officials and the two Democrats called for declassifying details of the clandestine programme. Government data collection has been the subject of much controversy in the US, although domestic spying is prohibited by the CIA’s 1947 char‐

accidental offer lasted, 13,000 orders were made for the product.

CIA spy claims ter. Officially the organisation and National Security Agency (NSA) have a foreign surveil‐ lance mission. But in 2013, a programme of data collection using extensive internet and phone surveillance by American intelligence was disclosed to the public by Edward Snow‐ den, a CIA contractor‐turned whistle‐blower.

An analysis of the leak found some 90 per cent of those being monitored were ordi‐ nary Americans.

NEWS

1st Beijing Games medal SPANISH athlete Queralt Castellet is thrilled to have brought home the first medal for Spain at the Bei‐ jing 2022 Winter Olympics.

Castellet from Barcelona walked away with the silver medal in the snowboard halfpipe test.

Castellet was “excited” and “very happy” to finish in second place. She was beat‐ en by the favourite to win, the American Chloe Kim. Via the Royal Spanish Win‐ ter Sports Federation (RFEDI) Castellet told one publica‐ tion: “I am excited, I am very happy; it has been an incred‐ ible day, I have won the medal! It has been incredi‐ ble, I started a little bit bad and then all the nerves came, but I was able to get the round I wanted, in the second round; a round I have been working towards for a long, long time. Many years. I’m very happy.” This is the fifth games for the 32‐ year‐old from Sabadell.

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20M Jubilee flowers THE Tower of London is going to be complete‐ ly covered with around 20 million flowers to commemorate the Queen’s platinum jubilee, as she becomes the first royal to achieve 70 years of service.

To show their and the public’s appreciation, the moat will be planted with flowers that will bloom from late spring through to the end of summer, fading in the autumn only to return the following year.

Urban horticulture experts at Sheffield Uni‐ versity have picked 29 different species that will bloom at different times providing a kalei‐ doscope of colours in a project called Su‐ perbloom.

Tom O’Leary, HRP’s director of public en‐ gagement, told one publication “We’re aiming

DISPLAY: This one will keep changing.

to plant by the end of March and then boom! It all comes into flower in time for the Jubilee weekend in June.

“But unlike most displays, this one will keep changing over the summer months. It’s push‐ ing the boundaries.”

EE glitch charges woman £25,000 EE customers have been warned to check their bills after a glitch charged a woman £25,000. Multiple customers have been af‐ fected by the overcharging glitch after travel‐ ling in America, Mexico, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The issue began when data passes pur‐ chased for roaming when abroad were not activated. One EE customer took to social me‐ dia to complain about the staggering charges.

They said: “I have incorrectly had over £1,000

of roaming data added to my bill and my ac‐ count suspended. I keep trying to contact EE via phone and it keeps getting cut off.”

Another customer told one publication how they had spent a month in the US and been hit with an eye watering charge of £25,000. EE are aware of the issue and will be contacting customers. The company com‐ mented: “We are contacting affected cus‐ tomers to reassure them that they won’t have to pay for these incorrect charges.”

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NEWS

South terminal reopens Free UK holidays

A F T E R being closed for almost two years, Gatwick Airport’s South Terminal is to reopen in March as travel restric‐ tions due to Covid are lifted.

The announcement was made on Friday, February 11, the day on which travel restrictions for those arriving in the UK have been relaxed significantly, as fully vac‐

cinated passengers no longer need to provide negative Covid tests.

Gatwick Airport said: “Flights have been oper‐ ating solely from the air‐ port’s North Terminal since June 15, 2020 to save on costs, but activi‐ ty will return to the South Terminal from Sunday, March 27, as Gatwick enters what it expects to be a busy summer season.”

British Airways has al‐ ready announced it will reopen its short‐haul ser‐ vices from Gatwick from March 29, with 35 new European routes added.

BA’s low‐cost sister air‐ line, Vueling, will also be expanding its operations, adding five new short‐ haul routes and basing three aircraft at Gatwick. easyJet, Gatwick’s biggest airline, has also taken up more slots and plan to fly their busiest flying schedule ever from the airport.

MORE than 800 UK families having difficulties with money, illness, loneliness or bereave‐ ment will be offered holidays and trips over the next few months thanks to the govern‐ ment’s new ‘England for Everyone’ fund of £600,000.

The government said: “The fund will support parents, carers, and young people experiencing difficult times to get away, relax and enjoy themselves on a weekend break in England.

“Families who may never have had a holiday can be referred to the charity for a weekend trip and will have a choice of where they will vis‐ it. From campsites to chalets and caravans to lodges across the country, children could dis‐ cover new creatures in rock pools, fly kites for the first time or build sandcastles on the beach.

A STUDY has revealed that side effects from the Pfizer vaccine occur in almost twice as many females as males.

The School of Public Health in the University of Haifa, in Israel, found the proportion of women who reported side effects after re‐ ceiving their first, second, or third dose of the Pfizer vac‐ cine, is almost double (1.9 times) that of men.

FAMILIES: Will be offered holidays.

“Referees could include people such as social workers and teachers, and holiday vouchers would be provided to help cover transport, ac‐ commodation and food. VisitEngland is also working closely with holiday parks to include free onsite activities.”

Men less affected by jab “We don’t know what mechanism is involved, but it may be related to differ‐ ences between the sexes in the immune system, or in the perception of side ef‐ fects,” said Professor Man‐ fred Green, principal investi‐ gator of the study.

The professor explained that one possibility is that

women’s immune systems “respond more strongly than men’s to foreign antigens.”

Vaccination is sometimes accompanied by side effects, manifested, for example, in pain at the site of vaccina‐ tion, or in the entire arm, fever, weakness, fatigue, and paresthesias in various parts of the body.

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Misleading adverts

MULTINATIONAL Shell has once again run into trouble with the authorities in the Netherlands, this time being censured for misleading ads that claim green credentials for its hydrogen sold at petrol stations.

This is the second time the company has been warned by the Dutch advertising stan‐ dards authority RCC, for its misleading advertising claims in six months.

The Shell advert claimed that “we make millions of kilo‐ metres cleaner” by providing green hydrogen to power bus‐ es, lorries and cars.

The RCC however have a number of issues with the claim, firstly the term “green hydrogen” as it is a by‐product from the production of chlo‐ rine and although it is certified green, most would not consid‐ er the manufacturing process to be.

Secondly the claim of mil‐ lions is misleading as Shell have no figures to back it up, the commission saying their fig‐ ures “suggests a significant

contribution… but this is cur‐ rently modest when com‐ pared with the total number of kilometres travelled.”

Shell said it would study the

verdict before responding, adding that “we are changing into one of the biggest drivers of the energy transition in the Netherlands.”

Illegal ‘party bus’ AN illegal party bus complete with a discotheque has been busted in Barcelona. The driver had been taking drugs.

Officers from the Guardia Urbana in Barcelona in‐ tercepted the vehicle in the Ciutat Vella district with an illegal discotheque and 71 passengers on board.

The bus operator had not been discreet, and the sides of the bus were covered in signs saying ‘party bus.’

The Guardia Urbana took to Twitter and shared a photo of the vehicle. The driver had tested positive for both THC and cocaine. The bus had also failed its ITV. According to reports, the bus had been operat‐ ing without any of the required authorisations.

The officers filed complaints about various infrac‐ tions against the vehicle under Law 11/2009 of Reg‐ ulation of Public Entertainment and Recreational Activities.

STATS

25%

25% of bones in human adults are located on their feet

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WHEN we talk about di‐ vorce between foreigners in Spain, there are many ques‐ tions that our clients usual‐ ly ask us about. We have al‐ ready informed in previous articles about where we could file for divorce when there are nationals from different countries. Or, put another way, we tried to explain in front of which

Divorce between foreigners in Spain. Applicable law to the divorce. Comments to the European Regulation. Legal advice

courts, of the different countries, we must file our claim for a divorce matter.

In today’s article we are going to speak about the law that should be applied to the divorce of foreigners in Spain.

What does applicable law mean?

When we speak of the ap‐ plicable law to a divorce, we are referring to the laws that will govern the problem in question. When there is no foreign element, that is, when the person’s ties are only with one country, the law of that country applies, that is clear.

Sometimes, however, cer‐ tain matters are connected with more than one country.

For example, there may be a connection with vari‐ ous countries because a person wants to make a Will in a country of which he is not a national. Or because two people are married and are nationals of different countries, etc. In these situ‐ ations, as happens in di‐ vorces that are started in Spain between foreigners, we will have to know if the law of one country or an‐ other, applies.

In many cases it is not an

easy task to determine and requires a detailed study.

European regulation Regarding divorce be‐ tween foreigners, what law should be applied?

And it is that, although Spanish judges may have the competence to resolve divorces between nationals of different countries; Span‐ ish law will not automatical‐ ly apply as the law that should govern the divorce.

To find out which law must govern our divorce, we will have to go to Regulation (EU) No 1259/2010, for im‐ plementing enhanced coop‐ eration in the area of the law applicable to divorce and legal separation.

Applicable law in divorce between nationals of differ‐ ent countries

It must be emphasised that, in relation to the law to apply to divorce, the free‐ dom of the parties governs.

This means that the spouses are given the possibility to choose which law is going to apply to their divorce, as long as it is one of the fol‐ lowing laws: ‐ The law of the coun‐ try in which the spouses have their habitual resi‐ dence at the time of the conclusion of the agree‐ ment. ‐ The law of the coun‐ try in which the spouses had their last place of habitual residence, etc.

In the event of lack of choice by the parties of the applicable law, Article 8 of the Regulation applies. Thus, it will apply the law of the state or country: a) where the spouses are habitually resident at the time the court is seized; or, failing that, b) where the spouses

FEATURE

were last habitually resi‐ dent, provided that the peri‐ od of residence did not end more than one year before the court was seized, in so far as one of the spouses still resides in that state at the time the court is seized; or, failing that c) of which both spouses are nationals at the time the court is seized; or, failing that, d) where the court is seized.

Conclusion If you want to get a di‐ vorce in Spain, and you or your spouse are a foreigner (non Spanish nationals), you need to know what law will apply to your divorce. It is necessary to be able to ne‐ gotiate a possible agree‐ ment. Or file for divorce.

If you want legal advice in Spain regarding divorce be‐ tween foreigners, contact us and we will help you.

The information provided in this article is not intended to be legal advice, but mere‐ ly conveys information relat‐ ing to legal matters.

Carlos Baos (Lawyer) - White&Baos Tel: +34 966 426 185 • info@white-baos.com White & Baos 2022 - All Rights Reserved.

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NEWS

Confidential docs flushed EX-PRESIDENT Donald Trump has been accused of compromising national se‐ curity by flushing official documents down the toilet and unlawfully taking 15 boxes of White House files

to his Palm Beach residence at the end of his term in of‐ fice.

According to one publica‐ tion, the documents that the former president has had to return include several files that were classified as ‘top secret’ and duly identified with a corresponding seal.

Only a few authorised in‐ dividuals have access to such files. By taking these docu‐ ments to his Mar‐a‐Lago res‐ idence, Trump would have exposed them to prying eyes. Therefore, he violated the Presidential Records Act. The matter has been transferred from the Depart‐

TRUMP: Violated the Presidential Records Act.

ment of Justice to the FBI for investigation.

According to the journalist Maggie Haberman in her book Confidence Man, White House officials fre‐

quently had to unclog the pipes of the presidential resi‐ dence, as they were clogged with leftover documents which the president had flushed down the toilet.

Travel rules changed

Jockey killed

THE Spanish government has dropped the travel requirement for children over the age of 12 from Monday, February 14, following complaints from the tourism and hospitality sectors.

The announcement follows reports that many Brits have cancelled their holidays to Spain or looked elsewhere as a result of the requirement for children from non‐EU countries over the age of 12 to be fully vaccinated.

The change, at the start of the half‐term, will see children older than 12 from non‐EU countries requiring a recent negative Covid test rather than a vaccination certificate to enter the country.

The vaccination requirement was widely criti‐ cised by the media and the tourism sector in Spain and in particular the Canary Islands.

The struggling sector is keen to make up for the lost trade over the last two years and had seen the half‐term as the start of a return to nor‐ mality.

UP-AND-COMING French jockey Marina Morel, who lived in Australia, has been killed, aged 30, after suffering a fall in a tragic riding accident. The apprentice jock‐ ey was fatally injured in a fall that occurred as she was out riding. New South Wales Jockeys confirmed her death. Marina had posted on Facebook just hours before the tragic incident on Tuesday, February 8. Up‐ on falling off her horse, Marina was airlift‐ ed to Westmead Hospital in Sydney. Her mother travelled from France to be with her and made the tragic decision to have her life support turned off on February 12.

On their Twitter account, the NSW Jock‐ eys said: “It is with great sadness, that we share that this morning apprentice jockey Marina Morel has passed following a tragic accident on Tuesday. May she rest in peace. Our love and thoughts are with her parents and loved ones.”

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NEWS

Drought affects electric bills THE current drought in Spain resulting from the prolonged lack of rainfall is affecting electricity bills.

Reservoirs are at around 45 per cent of their capacity and the drought which is empty‐ ing reservoirs, causing the desertification of soil and spoiling crops, is also in‐ creasing bills.

The less hydropower there is, the more it costs to produce electricity.

This combined with the cold winter temperatures, more time spent working from home and the few hours of daylight, indicate that electricity bills are likely to continue to be particularly high in 2022.

The Spanish govern‐ ment, led by the Minister for the Ecological Transi‐ tion, Teresa Ribera, has long been committed to renewable energy. De‐ spite this, renewable en‐ ergy sources, for the mo‐ ment, cannot tackle the

problem.

“Using hydraulic re‐ serves with the reservoirs in this situation is sui‐ cide,” argued Ignacio Durán Escribano, profes‐ sor of Atomic and Nuclear Physics at the University

of Santiago.

“We will never know how much rain will fall in spring, now that we have just come from an anticy‐ clonic spell and the reser‐ voirs have been emp‐ tied,” he added.

Covid support grants

THE UK government has reminded businesses that a sig‐ nificant amount of funding, £850 million, is still available to help them recover from the effects of the pandemic.

Business Minister Paul Scully encouraged business owners to apply for the remaining Covid support grants via their local councils. The councils have been asked to provide the eligible businesses with the grants as quickly as possible.

Mr Scully said: “We’re working to get our economy running on all cylinders again so we can focus on making the UK the best place in the world to work and do busi‐ ness, creating jobs along the way.

“Eligible businesses should apply as soon as possible for the grants available to help them put the pandemic behind them and get on a sounder footing to achieve success.”

STATS

366

There are 366 dimples on a regulation golf ball.

NEWS

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Jab less effective A STUDY performed in the United States has revealed that the Pfizer and Moderna booster jabs against Covid become less effective after four months.

The Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that the effec‐ tiveness of the antigens pro‐ vided by the booster in pre‐ venting hospital admission is 91 per cent for the first two months after it has been giv‐ en. However, it drops to 78 per cent after four months.

According to the study, it is predicted that the level of protection will drop to 33 per cent by the fifth month, although it is still too early to know the exact percentage, as not all the results have been obtained.The CDC rec‐ ommends, for now, that ev‐ eryone over the age of 12 re‐ ceive a booster dose five months after receiving the second dose of the vaccine.

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An eye on the money

ROYAL COUPLE: Are more welcome in the USA.

MEGHAN and Harry have their ‘eye on the money like pal James Corden’, accord‐ ing to a royal expert.

Since moving to America, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have grabbed lucra‐ tive deals with Netflix and Spotify, with one epxert say‐ ing that the pair are “very driven by money.”

Journalist Richard Min‐ eards writes for The Mon‐ tecito Journal, which is Harry

and Meghan’s local paper.

The former royal corre‐ spondent told one publica‐ tion: “They’ve obviously got their eye on the money like their good friend James Cor‐ den, who now earns some‐ thing like $12 million per sea‐ son of The Late Late Show.

“I think they’d like to get on that sort of level where hopefully they can earn lots of money and get their views across, but also do

good things with The Archewell foundation as well.”

The expert believes that Meghan and Harry will stay in the US long‐term. He commented: “I don’t think they’ll move back to the UK at all. “The British people see [Meghan] as the Wallis Simpson stealing the golden prince. They are much more welcome on this side of the Atlantic.”

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‘New way to be in love’ GOOD MORNING BRITAIN host Kate Garraway has re‐ vealed she’s found a ‘new way to be in love’ with hus‐ band Derek who spent more than a year in hospital after he was hit with Covid.

Kate said that a “new path is emerging” for the pair.

She explained: “I’m not sure that we’ve ever fallen out of love, but I think a new path is emerging, a new way to be in love. He puts huge trust in me.

“He just says, ‘Whatever you think’, which is wonder‐ ful, but I do get quite tearful about it. I think, ‘God, I hope

A new path is emerging.

I’m worthy of that trust’.”

Kate shared details about the pair’s relationship and said: “I’ve got his back. That is a relationship in itself, isn’t it?

How many times do couples have doubts about each oth‐ er? That’s a positive thing to come out of this, to have that certainty of each other. He and I are very close.”

and finally...

A TOURIST playing a slot machine in Las Vegas has been tracked down after he hit the jackpot of $230,000 (€203,000) but a malfunction meant he wasn’t notified that he was a winner.

After a long search the Nevada Gaming Control Board have tracked down the winner, Robert Taylor from Ari‐ zona. Taylor is understood to be delighted with the news of his winnings, and was amazed to find that the gaming board had tracked him down to tell of the machine’s mal‐ functions.

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NEWS

Compulsory black box for cars

ALL new cars in Spain will have to include a black box from July 6. The boxes will record relevant infor‐ mation if an accident oc‐ curs.

The black box also known as EDR (Endpoint Detection and Response) could potentially impact in‐ surance prices, according to insurance comparator Acierto.com. This will de‐ pend on what data insur‐ ance companies have ac‐ cess to though.

In the event of an acci‐ dent, the black box will store the data which was recorded within the 30 sec‐ onds before the accident took place. The box will al‐ so store five seconds worth of data from after the acci‐ dent. The data will then be available for relevant au‐ thorities to help determine the cause of an accident.

Reportedly all this infor‐ mation will only be made available anonymously. No personal data such as gen‐ der, age or name of the driver is expected to be

Information on accidents.

recorded.

Details such as vehicle

speed, engine revolutions and whether the brakes were applied will be recorded. Other informa‐ tion such as the position of the accelerator, frontal and side‐impact forces and any steering movements will be recorded too.

Allergy sufferers multiplying WHEN thinking about al‐ lergy season, many peo‐ ple associate it with spring and flowers. How‐ ever, itching and inflam‐ mation is becoming in‐ creasingly common in winter thanks to climate change and droughts.

Dr Ana Perez Montero, head of the Allergology Service of the Quiron‐ salud Madrid University Hospital said: “Most peo‐ ple know spring plants, but in winter there are others such as Cupres‐

saceae (Arizona and Cy‐ presses belong to them) that pollinate in winter.”

According to research published in 2021, pollen seasons now start 20 days earlier, are 10 days longer and have 21 per cent more pollen than in 1990, meaning more days of trouble for aller‐ gy sufferers with itching, sneezing and a runny nose, according to the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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SCIENTISTS have discovered a previously‐unknown side ef‐ fect of common painkillers such as paracetamol, ibupro‐ fen and aspirin.

Although over‐the‐counter medicines are almost always safe and are subject to very strict controls, there is always a small risk of side effects. Scien‐ tists have recently discovered a new adverse effect that could

17 - 23 February 2022

Painkiller side effect

affect those who regularly use a common type of OTC drug.

The medicines in question are acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin), paracetamol and non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen. The potential side effect that they may cause is tinnitus, which causes irritating

noises in the ear. The noises may be constant or intermit‐ tent.

Tinnitus may cause ringing, buzzing, high‐pitched or low‐ pitched noises, tingling or throbbing, and may be tempo‐ rary or chronic. Its exact cause is somewhat uncertain and possi‐

€4 billion in grants

A STUDY has revealed that despite not paying taxes in most countries in‐ cluding Spain, Amazon has received more than €4 billion in public subsi‐

dies since 2012.

The e‐commerce giant, which achieved record sales in Europe in 2020 of €44 billion, has been iden‐ tified as having received

Pensioner ‘thrown in air’ A PENSIONER who was thrown in the air during Ryanair flight ‘turbulence’ has settled a court action.

Australian pensioner Lynette Peucker, 72, from Gisborne, South Victoria had been heading from Italy to Belgium on a flight in September 2015 when the Ryanair flight was hit by turbulence, she fell and fractured her ankle.

The pensioner alleged that the airline failed to warn her of the impending turbulence. She claimed that passengers had been walking freely in the plane and that the seatbelt sign was turned off.

Due to the incident, Lynette has said that she suffered from an extreme and immediate psychological reaction. She is now afraid of flying.

Ryanair had disputed the claims and said that if the accident took place it was not due to an act of negligence on behalf of the airline. Ryanair also said the passenger had flown many times and should have been aware of the possibility of en‐ countering turbulence.

grants and allowances from 13 countries to build warehouses, data centres and even in one case au‐ dio visual production units.

Large companies like Amazon are well known for their tendency to seek the most advantageous tax situations, often at the expense of traditional businesses like Zara’s par‐ ent company Iniditex that paid five times as much tax as Amazon did in 2020.

Many are already un‐ happy that the likes of Amazon were favoured during the pandemic, but this news will do little to appease them.

Amongst those is the in‐ ternational trade union UNI Global Union and the American pro‐transparen‐ cy organisation Good Jobs First, who conducted the investigation. They were able to detect 407 Amazon facilities in 13 countries that have been subsidised with public money.

bly varied (some think it may be caused by muscle contractions, others by signals generated by nerve cells in the ear). At pre‐ sent, there is no really effective way to treat it and it may be de‐ bilitating.

Now, research published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine has concluded that frequent use of these drugs can cause chronic tinnitus.

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OTC DRUGS: Are subject to very strict controls.

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Suicide prevention hotline THE Ministry of Health is set to launch a new suicide prevention hotline (024) in Spain within the next few months.

The toll‐free hotline 024 will provide help and sup‐ port to anyone at risk of suicide.

The line will operate na‐ tionwide and is anony‐ mous, accessible and confi‐ dential. It was set up on December 20 last year and will become available in May. In 2020, around 3,941 people decided to end their lives, making it the year with the highest number of suicides in Spain since 1906.

The launch of the new suicide prevention hotline is part of the Ministry of Health’s 2021‐2024 Action Plan for Mental Health and Covid, which aims to cen‐ tralise support for people who are at risk of suicide and to provide them with information so that they can access specialised help.

The 024 hotline will be

free of charge, available to all citizens and implement‐ ed on a permanent basis.

The needs of users with

hearing or speech disabili‐ ties will also be considered so that they can also re‐ ceive the service they need.

Weapons gang unearthed A SPANISH parcel that contained deactivated weapons discovered at Birmingham airport has led to an organised crime gang being imprisoned for more than 30 years.

The suspicious parcel was intercepted by UK border Force agents in November 2019.

Sent by a Spanish retailer, the parcel sparked a police in‐ vestigation with police discovering an organised crime group who had been buying, converting and selling firearms in the UK. Greater Manchester police tracked down the gang who have now pleaded guilty to firearm of‐ fences. Martin Joyce, Joseph Hodskinson, Mark Crolla and Dannell Jammeh have now been imprisoned for more than 30 years in total. Greater Manchester Police’s Detec‐ tive Sergeant Damian Reed commented: “This group posed a significant threat to the public being in possession of such weapons and it’s a relief that they are now going to spend the foreseeable future behind bars.

“The firearms trade funds serious criminality, which can lead to people losing their lives as well as destroying local communities.”

STATS

56

The most leaves ever found on a clover is 56.

NEWS

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Koala endangered species

THE once thriving marsupi‐ al, the koala, has been list‐ ed as an endangered species as numbers drop drastically all along the country’s eastern seaboard. The decline is ac‐ cording to authorities a re‐ sult of land clearing, bush‐ fires, drought, disease and a number of other threats.

The listing by the federal government covers Queensland, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), with many believing that the authority is doing too little to protect the species from diminishing habitats and the effects of climate change.

Proof of that claim comes as the species has gone from being listed as ‘vulnerable’ to endangered within 10 years According to Environ‐ ment Minister Susan Ley: “This listing adds priority when it comes to the con‐ servation of the koala,” however she has been ac‐ cused of dithering when it

The koala once thrived.

comes to protecting the animal.

She said officials were designing a recovery plan, and land development ap‐ plications would now be assessed for impacts on the species.

Reduced reliance THE European Union (EU) has announced a €42 billion plan to reduce the bloc’s reliance on China for microchips used in motorcars and other electronic devices.

Known as the ‘Chips Act’, the plan is to build Europe in‐ to a major semiconductor producer and in the process remove its reliance on the Far East.

Semiconductor chips are used in almost everything from powering cars to hospital ventilators to phones to game consoles. Chips have however been in short supply since the start of the pandemic, holding back the eco‐ nomic recovery in many areas and of many companies.

The current issues around supply as well as the natural gas shortages, have highlighted the EU’s reliance on the Far East and Russia. With the political risks rising the union has acted to boost its economic independence in the critical semiconductor sector.

STATS

3

Only 3 mammals experience the menopause.

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AN online petition against the use of beagles in experimentation by the Vivotecnia laboratories commis‐ sioned by the University of Barcelona (UB) has collected around 1,300,000 signatures.

This initiative began a month ago as the idea of Ruben Garcia, and Cristina Espinach, who together, on Thursday, February 10, symbolically ‘delivered’ the results of their change.org cam‐ paign to the facilities at Barcelona Sci‐

Beagle testing ence Park. It was a ‘symbolic’ act in that no one from the laboratories, or the UB wanted to receive them.

Next March, the project will be car‐ ried out at the Vivotecnia headquar‐ ters in Madrid, and in the first part of the study, the drug will be adminis‐

tered to six dogs, which the UB has agreed to put up for adoption when the study ends.

However, in the second part of the study ‘it will be imperative to carry out a study of the tissues of 32 dogs, by means of post‐mortem’.

“Currently there is no known alter‐ native method to the use of these ani‐ mals that can replace the methodolo‐ gy of this type of research,” pointed out scientists from both the Park and the university.

They highlighted that the Confeder‐ ation of Scientific Societies of Spain recognises that the use of animals is ‘a necessary practice to advance the study of treatments, surgical tech‐ niques or vaccines.’

NEWS

BEAGLES:Used for research.

French cave housed Neanderthal

Sweden’s pandemic over

A PAPER published in the journal Science Advances says that fos‐ silised remains found in a French cave showed that Neanderthals and early humans were in the area long before they were thought to have been.

The researchers described finding fossilised homo sapiens remains and tools sandwiched between those of Neanderthals in the Mandrin Grotto, named after an 18th‐century French folk hero.

The hillside dwelling overlooks the picturesque Rhone Valley in southern France, which re‐ searchers say: “The findings pro‐ vide archaeological evidence that these hominine cousins may have coexisted in the same re‐ gion of Europe during the same time period.”

With new techniques available to date remains, the researchers put those found at around 54,000 years ago, almost 10,000 years earlier than previous finds in Europe, with one exception in Greece.

SWEDEN has scrapped almost all of its pan‐ demic restrictions and has stopped most testing for Covid‐19 with the health minister claiming that the pandemic is over.

The statement from Minister of Health Lena Hallengren comes despite pressure on the healthcare systems remaining high and some scientists begged for more patience in fighting the disease.

Sweden’s government, which has opted against lockdowns in favour of a voluntary approach throughout the pandemic, an‐ nounced it will scrap the remaining restric‐ tions as vaccines and the less severe Omi‐ cron variant have cushioned severe cases and deaths.

“As we know this pandemic, I would say it’s over,” Minister of Health Lena Hallen‐ gren told Dagens Nyheter. “It’s not over, but as we know it in terms of quick changes and restrictions it is,” she said, adding that Covid‐ 19 would no longer be classified as a danger to society.

As of Wednesday February 9, bars and restaurants will be allowed to stay open af‐ ter 11pm again, and with no limits on the number of guests. Attendance limits for larg‐ er indoor venues were also lifted, as was the use of vaccine passes.

FEATURE

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EWN 25

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Nuclear experiments

How to stop future pandemics BILL GATES, Microsoft co‐ founder, says in his new book that he knows how to stop future pandemics.

The billionaire, who fore‐ cast the next pandemic some years back, has been the subject of many conspiracy theories as a result of his views and knowledge on the subject.

His new book ‘How to Prevent the Next Pan‐ demic,’ claims that by in‐ vesting in healthcare, vac‐ cines, and ‘global pathogen surveillance,’ another pandemic like Covid‐19 can be prevent‐ ed.

Due for release in May, Gates announced in a blog post that the book will outline “the specific steps we can take to not only stop future pan‐ demics but, in the pro‐ cess, provide better health care for everyone around the world.”

NEWS

TRAPPED: The crocodile was seen regularly.

Rescuers free croc from tyre

A 4.5-METRE saltwater fe‐ male crocodile had become an icon in Palu, Indonesia where the croc was regular‐ ly seen with a tyre around its neck for six years. Resi‐ dents were becoming in‐ creasingly concerned for the reptile with the tyre getting tighter and running the risk of choking her.

In early January, 35‐year‐ old bird catcher and trader Tili was determined to res‐ cue the reptile after he saw her frequently sunbathing at a nearby estuary.

“I have experiences and skills in catching animals, not

only birds, but farm animals that are released from the cage,” he said, “I believe I can rescue the crocodile with my skills.”

Tili devised a trap using ropes of various sizes tied to a tree near the river. He laid chickens down as bait and after three weeks of waiting and several failed attempts he finally trapped the croc.

With the help of two of his friends, Tili pulled the trapped crocodile ashore and sawed through the tyre, which was 50 centimetres in diameter.

THE Joint European Torus (JET) experimental fu‐ sion machine based near Abingdon in Oxford‐ shire has enabled scientists to generate energy that releases heat 10 times hotter than the sun.

A new record for generating energy from nucle‐ ar fusion, the same process that powers our Sun is seen as a potential future source of near limitless power. The experiment generated around 59 megajoules, or 11 Megawatts of energy in a five second burst, enough to power around 10,000

A PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE report has said that the only detectable impact of Brexit so far, has been that it de‐ livers an increased burden on business with added paper‐ work, costs and delays and that it fails to deliver opportunities.

The committee stated that much more work was needed by government to ease the ad‐ ministrative and cost burden of business, warning of lengthy border delays and lorry queues once passenger numbers re‐ turn to normal.

The committee also called for an end to “overpromising” from the UK Government, dis‐ missing the Government’s aim to create the “most effective

homes. Still in its infancy the amount of energy needed to conduct the experiment was more than what was produced, however it represents a major step forward in fusion reaction.

“These landmark results have taken us a huge step closer to conquering one of the biggest sci‐ entific and engineering challenges of them all,” said Professor Ian Chapman, Chief Executive of the UK Atomic Energy Agency that co‐funds and operates JET.

Brexit failed

border in the world” by 2025 as being “optimistic, given where things stand today.”

Dame Meg Hillier, Chair of the Public Accounts Commit‐ tee, said: “One of the great promises of Brexit was freeing

British businesses to give them the headroom to maximise their productivity and contribu‐ tion to the economy, even more desperately needed now on the long road to recovery from the pandemic.

and finally...

THE body of 70‐year‐old Marinella Beretta was discovered by police in the district of Prestino in north‐western Italy. She had been sitting at her kitchen table for over two years. Mummifi‐ cation only happens in rare circumstances, so it is not yet clear how the body came to be in this state.

Therapy attacks tumours.

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FEATURE

Electric Palace

WHEN you walk into Costa Blanca’s hottest venue, Benidorm Palace, there is an instant ‘WOW factor’; from the entrance down to the décor, from the tabletop lighting to the amazing LED screens, the place looks wonderful. And on Sunday, February 13 at 8.30pm the place wasn’t just wonderful, it was electric!

E LO A g a i n ‐ a n E l e c t r i c Light Orchestra tribute act from the UK who are in their 10th year ‐ graced the stage at the Palace in front of a sold‐out crowd. In fact, tick‐ ets sold at record‐breaking speed and for good reason.

I t w a s E LO A g a i n ’ s f i r s t time at the Palace and the venue had a brilliant buzz about it on the night before Valentine’s Day. Ahead of the event, lead singer Colin Smith, who per‐ forms as the legendary band’s frontman Jeff Lynne, t o l d Eu r o W e e k l y N e w s : “We’ve performed across Eu‐ rope in Germany and Poland and I’d heard about the Benidorm Palace from other great acts who had per‐ formed there before, who said what an amazing place it is.” He was not wrong!

Alongside Colin, the band ‐ dressed in white ‐ was formed of violinist Ruth, cel‐ list Izzy and pianist Pete, with Andy on strings, Steve on bass and joining them for the first time, 24‐year‐old Joe on drums. The band ded‐ icated their performance to Lou Clark from the original ELO. It was a year ago to the day that Clark sadly passed away. As Andy told EWN be‐ fore the show, Lou Clark was so special to the band be‐ cause he wrote all of the string parts, giving ELO that unique sound fans still love to this day.

BENIDORM PALACE: The venue had a brilliant buzz about it on the night before Valentine’s Day.

ELO AGAIN: The band received a standing ovation at the end of their spectacular show.

As the band rocked the Palace, the crowd sang all the songs and danced along as the band made their way through their hits including Don’t Bring Me Down, Tele‐ phone Line and Last Train to London. All to the backdrop of the breathtaking visuals displayed on the spectacular

LED panels.

In fact, the LED panels be‐ hind drummer Joe and to ei‐ ther side of the stage were m a d e f o r a n E LO t r i b u t e show. As Colin told EWN: “We put on a big production with lighting and screens. It’s a very exciting and energetic show.” And he was right,

their stellar performance was definitely enhanced by the Palace’s high‐tech pan‐ elling system.

Andy even said that the E LO A g a i n l o g o h a d n e v e r looked so good!

But it wasn’t just the video panels that stood out. One star of the group shone

brightly.

Ruth, the talented violinist, was extremely impressive with her performance. She oozed confidence as she commanded the stage and when she sang, the packed Palace lit up.

After a quick break, the band re‐emerged wearing darker colours, which was in stark contrast to their light upbeat songs. And as the hits kept rolling in, the crowd started rocking out.

Fans danced in the aisles and clapped their hands to the songs, and when Colin called upon them to sing, the Palace crowd duly obliged.

A beautiful tribute to Ian Forrest from Benidorm Dog Homing charity, who sadly passed away on January 15, led to a huge round of ap‐ plause. Benidorm Palace has hosted many Save My Life fundraiser events for the charity, which help abused, abandoned and sick dogs, and Ian was due to be in at‐ tendance among a table of 1 0 f o r t h e E LO A g a i n c o n ‐ cert.

Benidorm Palace owner Christine Climent spoke high‐ ly of Ian and the band heart‐ warmingly dedicated their hit song, Mr Blue Sky, to the much‐loved man.

As Mr Blue Sky played, Christine grinned from ear to ear as she surveyed the hap‐ py crowd. A wonderful sight to see.

The band received a stand‐ ing ovation as they closed out a spectacular show in the seaside resort.

Those in attendance praised the show, calling it “fantastic”, “brilliant” and “superb”.

Overall, it was an electric night of music and entertain‐ ment. ELO Again rocked and the brilliant Benidorm Palace bounced once again.

www.benidormpalace.com

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EUROPEAN PRESS DENMARK

Rocky start

Top 10

JUST a month after the first spade moved earth to mark construction of the artificial island in Copenhagen harbour, it has been revealed that the first phase alone is going to overshoot the budget by some 66 per cent, an additional cost equivalent to €27 million.

THE Danes seem to relish international polls which show them to be in the top 10 and this time it’s the 2021 Democracy Index published by the Economist Intelligence Unit where Denmark ranks six, although it was beaten by neighbours Norway, Finland, Sweden and Iceland.

THE NETHERLANDS Janssen vaccine

Blind eye

AFRICAN countries are worried that a decision

by Johnson & Johnson to temporarily stop production of the Janssen vaccine and switch to production of a more lucrative vaccine in Holland will mean that they will not receive the number of doses ordered, but Janssen say they have large stocks.

FOUR Dutch police unions who are campaigning for a new pay and conditions agreement have urged their members not to issue fines to clubs and cafes which opened late on Saturday February 12 in defiance of the coronavirus rules.

BELGIUM Top dogs

Beer money

THE most popular names for dogs registered in the Belgian province of Flanders were Max for males and Luna for females, although with a total of 113,000 canines added to the 2021 database Dog ID, the number of different names was enormous.

BELGIUM is famous for the number of beers it produces, but there is bad news for lovers of the hop as prices are rising steeply due to a surge in the wholesale cost of aluminium which has rebounded to 2008 levels, so canned beer is rising also.

GERMANY Child abuse

Charging points

WHILST not accepting personal blame, frail former Pope Benedict has admitted in a letter issued by lawyers that errors occurred in handling sexual abuse cases when he was archbishop of Munich, adding that he felt profound shame, deep sorrow and sought forgiveness.

ACCORDING to the German Automotive Industry Association (VDA) the country is likely to be way behind its target of installing one million charging points for electric cars by 2030, as it needs to fit 2,000 each week, but currently manages just 250.

FRANCE Freedom convoy

Les Hijabeuses

APPARENTLY inspired by the Canadian freedom convoy, some 200 vehicles are setting off from Nice en route to Paris and then Brussels in order to protest about the imposition of the need to show Covid passports to enter premises, whilst more set out from Perpignan.

A GROUP of 100 women planned to play a game of football outside the National Assembly building in Paris wearing hijabs, to show their disagreement with a proposed law which would ban wearing the covering whilst playing sport, but the protest was itself banned.

NORWAY Bank row

Unmasked

IT was assumed that NATO would ask current chief Jens Stoltenberg to extend his role due to the Ukraine crisis, thus diverting controversy over being appointed Head of the Norwegian Central Bank, this was not to be and questions about his new job are being asked.

THE Norwegian Cruise Line has announced that as all members of crew and passengers on its vessels have to be double vaccinated, it will, from next month no-longer require passengers to wear face masks on board, although they may do so if they wish.

17 - 23 February 2022

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NEWS

Sting sells music rights IN the latest such move by a top musi‐ cian, Sting has reportedly sold his entire music catalogue to Universal Music Pub‐ lishing Group (UMPG). Sting’s whole mu‐ sical back‐catalogue includes his solo work, plus everything written and record‐ ed with his hugely successful band The Police. The deal is believed to include both Sting’s music publishing and record‐ ed music catalogues, although no finan‐ cial details were divulged.

In a statement, Sting said, “It is absolute‐ ly essential to me that my career’s body of work has a home where it is valued and re‐ spected. Not only to connect with long‐ time fans in new ways, but also to intro‐ duce my songs to new audiences, musicians and generations.”

MUSIC CATALOGUE: Includes his solo work as well as from the band.

“Throughout my career, I have enjoyed a long and successful relationship with UMG as my label partner, so it felt natural

Spain donates over 300,000 vaccines OLGA CABARGA, the Spanish ambassador to Senegal, deliv‐ ered 302,400 doses of coronavirus vaccine from Spain to the government of the African country on Thursday, February 10.

They were received in a delivery ceremony in the capital, Dakar, by Abdoulaye Diouf Sarr, the Senegalese Minister of Health.

“Spain has opted for a multilateral approach to overcome the Covid‐19 pandemic, as evidenced by the donation of 302,400 vaccines made today to Senegal as well as our sup‐ port for the COVAX initiative,” said Cabarga.

“We have donated more than 50 million vaccines through COVAX, of which at least 20 million vaccines will go to the African continent. Senegal is a priority country and a strategic partner for the government of Spain,” the Spanish ambas‐ sador added. Mr Cabarga stressed that this delivery “reflects Spain’s international solidarity with its partners, and the strong conviction that the vaccine is a global public good.”

COVAX is a mechanism promoted by the World Health Or‐ ganisation (WHO), among others, so that low‐income coun‐ tries can access coronavirus vaccines.

to unite everything in one trusted home, as I return to the studio, ready for the next chapter.”

Mount Etna erupts again MOUNT ETNA volcano, on the Italian island of Sicily, erupted again early on the morning of February 10. Ac‐ cording to the Italian Nation‐ al Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), the eruption occurred inside the southeast crater area, caus‐ ing a slight and discontinu‐ ous ash shower.

The recorded tremors came from a depth of around 3,000 metres above sea level, reaching average values. A forecast model pre‐ dicted the volcanic plume would travel in a south‐west‐ erly direction.

Vincenzo Bellini airport in Catania remained fully oper‐ ational.

Since 1980, the northeast

VOLCANO: On Sicily.

crater of Etna, at 3,324 me‐ tres, was considered the highest of the Sicilian vol‐ cano. Before its edges gradu‐ ally eroded, the crater actu‐ ally reached a maximum height of 3,350 metres in 1981.

Over a six‐month period in 2021, it erupted so much vol‐ canic material that its height increased by approximately 100 feet, making the south‐ eastern crater now the tallest part of the volcano.

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EUROPEAN PRESS FINLAND

Retirement age

Dark supermarket

PENSIONERS in the UK will be jealous of the fact that the average age of retirement in 2021 was 62.4 years and that is an increase of six months over 2020, because for some reason, significantly fewer people took disability retirement.

CONSUMERS who were required to stay at home during the pandemic lockdown have become used to ordering groceries online which has been good for the main Finnish supermarkets but now, Norwegian delivery company Oda has entered the market delivering from a central warehouse direct to homes.

IRELAND Let’s go Lego

Child care

DUBLIN will be the site of the first Irish Lego store which is due to open this summer.

According to the company it will feature the ‘Retailtainment’ concept which blends physical and digital experiences that allow shoppers to enjoy the bricks and create personalised products.

AN unexpected problem in the child care sector has been caused by the ongoing return to work of parents who have been working from home and caring for youngsters, as there is now a critical shortage of spaces in creches and nurseries.

ITALY Curling triumph

Michelangelo first

MUCH to the surprise of many who follow international curling and perhaps even to the Italian mixed doubles pair of Stefania Constantini and Amos Mosaner, the couple won Italy’s first ever Winter Olympics Gold medal in Beijing, whilst the GB team could only finish fourth.

FOR the first time, three Pietà sculptures by Michelangelo will be displayed together in an exhibition at the Museo Opera del Duomo in Florence, from February 24 until August 1, 2022. Included will be the Bandini Pietà, from Florence's cathedral museum, with casts from two in the Vatican.

PORTUGAL Housing shortage

Record cod

DUE to an acute shortage of residential property for rent, the Portuguese Government announced that it would, under certain defined circumstances, purchase private houses in selected areas of the Algarve, Lisbon and Porto which it will then rent out at affordable prices.

AN unusual ceremony took place in Lisbon when a representative of Guinness World Records presented Norwegian cod producer Jangaard with a certificate confirming it had produced the largest ever Bacalhau (salted cod) ever. Portugal is one of the largest producers and consumers of this delicacy in the world.

RUSSIA Minecraft terrorists

Monkey business

THREE Siberian teenagers who were 14 at the time they were arrested have been sentenced to prison by a Russian court for terrorist activity, which included a plot to blow up a virtual Federal Security Services building in the popular online game Minecraft.

WHAT started out as a vote to choose a new mascot for Novosibirsk Zoo deteriorated into a farce, as a supporter of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny chose Batu the orangutang as the candidate most suited, but after alleged rigged voting for a snow leopard the competition was scrapped.

SWEDEN Google scrap

Sick list

SWEDISH price comparison firm PriceRunner is suing Google for an estimated €2.1 billion claiming it is promoting its own shopping comparisons in search results contrary to a 2017 EU ruling. Google will contest arguing that as the company doesn’t advertise with them it will drop down the list.

IT has been revealed by Swedish Radio News that with a quarter of the team running the Rix payment system at the Bank of Sweden absent due to sickness or quarantine, the system which covers all non-cash transactions between banks was at risk of being hacked.

17 - 23 February 2022

EWN 31

FINANCE BUSINESS EXTRA Foreign relations LATEST foreign dignitary to be wel‐ comed to Spain by President Sanchez was Chairman of the Pres‐ idency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Zeljko Komsic on February 9 to dis‐ cuss their economic relationship as well as potential membership of the European Union in the future.

UK economy DESPITE gloomy predictions, the UK economy bounced back in 2021 with growth of 7.5 per cent even though December saw a slight reduction caused by Omi‐ cron. This is the best growth rate since 1941, although it still hasn’t got back to 2019 figures.

Easy export A UKRAINIAN based company No‐ va Poshta Global, is encouraging residents there to visit its website to order goods from Spain which it will then deliver. It appears that there is a better choice of goods at cheaper prices than can be ob‐ tained in Ukrainian shops.

Vodafone bid AS Vodafone UK, one of the coun‐ try’s major suppliers of mobile phone technology, looks to merge with other European suppliers, it has just rejected an €11.4 billion takeover bid from an Italian con‐ sortium as not being in sharehold‐ ers’ best financial interests.

Organic takeover ALVINESA NATURAL INGREDI‐ ENTS, an industry leader in its pro‐ duction process based on circular economy principles, has an‐ nounced the acquisition of Cades Penedes.

Based in Penedes, one of the most renowned wine‐producing regions in Spain it is the leading Catalan manufacturer of sustain‐ able ingredients.

Alvinesa markets a wide range of natural ingredients made from grape pomace (skin and pips) for use in the food, beverage, nutri‐ tion, animal feed and oenology in‐ dustries, so the acquisition of Cades Penedes provides Alvinesa with access to a source of raw ma‐ terials from high‐quality organically produced grapes.

32

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STAT OF WEEK

€40 billion

is the current value of energy supplier Naturgy, which plans to recreate itself as two separate companies on the Spanish stock exchange.

I’m old not stupid petition ‘I’M old not stupid’ is the headline of a petition by Spanish pensioner Car‐ los San Juan, a 78‐year‐old man who is asking for more humane treatment in bank branches.

The retired Valencian doctor sim‐ ply explained on change.org “I am al‐ most 80 years old and it makes me very sad to see that banks have for‐ gotten older people like me.

“Now almost everything is online... and not all of us understand ma‐ chines. We do not deserve this exclu‐ sion. That is why I am calling for more humane treatment at bank branch‐ es.”

He went on to complain that more and more bank branches were being closed and it was becoming increas‐ ingly necessary to use difficult to un‐ derstand cash machines to do more than simply withdraw cash.

Perhaps unexpectedly, he was in‐ vited to visit the Ministry of Finance in Madrid to discuss the matter and he arrived to much excitement from the press on Tuesday February 8 ac‐ companied by 610,000 signatures.

Following this he was surprised and delighted that Minister Nadia Calviño came to talk to him and she promised that something would be

LEGALLY SPEAKING

done and even gave an undertaking that this would happen by the end of February.

Next on the agenda was a walk past a number of Spanish banks fol‐ lowed by the press, a call to the Bank of Spain and then a meeting with the three banking associations who also promised to take action to review the situation.

This seems to have had some im‐ mediate success as already San‐ tander has announced that it would extend personal appointments from 10am to 1pm, so for once, people power seems to be working.

Where there’s a will…

Can he stop drain?

We live in a rented ground floor apartment and we have a neighbour who lives above us who al‐ so rents their apartment.

When they water the plants on their balcony the dirty water pours onto our patio from the drain hole. I have spoken with them on several occasions but they just ig‐ nore this. I have contacted the rental agent and the Man‐ agement company of the apartment block. They have written to the owner of the apartment above but the situ‐ ation still exists. What should I do to stop the dirty water from falling on to our patio? I attach emails from the Man‐ agement company. This will be the third time they said they would contact the owner.

G H (Costa Blanca) You seem DAVID SEARL to be un‐ aware that you live YOU AND THE LAW in a registered Com‐ IN SPAIN munity of Property Owners. This community is regulated by Spain’s Law of Horizontal Property. Its chief officer is the president elected by vote at the Annual General Meeting. Your owner is a member. Your way forward is to contact your owner and explain the problem. Perhaps the president can help. The drain is supposed to connect directly to the main downpipe, not flood onto the terrace below.

The owner of the flat above may be held responsible.

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

IT is expected that on February 22 the Spanish cabinet will approve an in‐ crease in the minimum wage back‐ dated to January 1.

Newspaper reports concerning the actual amount involved have been confusing with some stating the amount will be €1,000 per month and others €1,167, but surprisingly both figures are correct depending on how many months there are in a year.

Contact Golden Leaves today.

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Golden Leaves have made it their mission to relieve those abroad of the burden and distress of trying to organ‐ ise a funeral in another country in a different language ‐ making them the perfect place for expats to get advice and set up their pre‐paid funeral plan.

Their friendly team will help you every step of the way in planning your funeral ‐ from expert advice, transparent pre‐paid plans, knowledge on the different types of funer‐ als and even song choices ‐ giving you and those closest to you peace of mind.

To find the right pre‐paid funeral plan for you and to help your family when the time comes, contact Golden Leaves today.

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Minimum wage explained The actual annual amount is to be €14,000 which if divided by 12 con‐ verts to the higher figure, but many companies and organisations in Spain work on a 14 month year as they give bonuses in summer and at Christmas.

Taking the latter calculation, the in‐ crease is €35 per month when com‐

pared to the 2021 figure and is actual‐ ly €4 a month more than originally anticipated in order for the govern‐ ment to meet the unions’ demands of €1,000.

When the government came into power in 2018, it stated its intention to increase the minimum wage to be 60 per cent of the average annual

Poundland grows ALTHOUGH at one time ap‐ pearing to be suffering finan‐ cially, Poundland (which now sells some goods at more than one pound) has bounced back and has just opened a new flagship store in Nottingham.

It’s three times bigger than the average Poundland store at 18,000 square feet and will employ some 75 new mem‐ bers of staff whilst stocking the shop with a large range of frozen food as well as a num‐ ber of new ranges only avail‐ able there.

If successful the plan is to open more larger outlets across the country and as in this case, taking over proper‐ ties previously run by now defunct companies such as Arcadia.

Mental health AROUND one in four workers in Spain (27 per cent) are con‐ sidering leaving their job this year, mainly due to mental health reasons or economic conditions.

This percentage is higher than the 23 per cent recorded in 2021, according to an Info‐ Jobs survey.

For workers thinking of quitting, the main reasons for leaving their jobs are mental health (32 per cent), econom‐ ic conditions (27 per cent), the desire to do something different (26 per cent) and work‐life balance (24 per cent).

Mental and physical health become the main reasons for leaving the workplace among older employees. wage in the country and although it has upped the minimum annually from an original starting base of €735 it still has a long way to go.

Not unsurprisingly, the employers’ associations opposed the increase ar‐ guing that the economy would not be able to support this additional cost which will benefit nearly two million workers, but will have to comply with the decision.

34 EWN

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C LOSING P RICES F EBRUARY 14

COMPANY PRICE(P) CHANGE(P) 3I Group 1.309,50 1.356,00 Abrdn 236,90 241,40 Admiral Group 3.027,5 3.033,0 Anglo American 3.500,0 3.560,5 Antofagasta 1.342,00 1.369,50 Ashtead Group 4.832,0 4.891,0 Associated British Foods 1.862,5 1.882,0 AstraZeneca 8.335,0 8.467,0 Auto Trader Group Plc 634,20 641,60 Avast 624,80 625,20 Aveva 2.640,0 2.693,0 Aviva 433,35 437,80 B&M European Value Retail SA575,60 576,40 BAE Systems 601,00 606,20 Bank VTB DRC 1,026 1,072 Barclays 196,92 199,60 Barratt Developments 610,80 617,80 Berkeley 4.063,0 4.070,0 BHP Group 2.520,00 2.537,50 BP 405,10 417,15 British American Tobacco 3.420,0 3.430,0 British Land Company 537,60 538,60 BT Group 194,05 197,20 Bunzl 2.649,0 2.685,0 Burberry Group 1.942,5 1.968,0 Carnival 1.472,2 1.492,2 Centrica 77,78 78,56 Coca Cola HBC AG 2.405,0 2.469,0 Compass 1.771,50 1.784,00 CRH 3.652,0 3.703,0 Croda Intl 7.262,0 7.300,0 DCC 6.336,0 6.388,0 Diageo 3.644,8 3.681,2 DS Smith 368,10 374,40 EasyJet 682,23 685,40 Experian 2.829,0 2.879,0 Ferguson 10.835,0 10.975,0 Flutter Entertainment 11.020,0 11.160,0 Fresnillo 644,28 648,00 GlaxoSmithKline 1.611,60 1.620,20 Glencore 411,55 417,15 Halma 2.333,0 2.350,0 Hargreaves Lansdown 1.317,50 1.329,00 Hikma Pharma 1.950,50 1.966,00 HSBC 556,50 559,90 IAG 163,63 164,60 Imperial Brands 1.799,29 1.819,00 Informa 604,00 605,00 InterContinental 4.999,0 5.024,0

% CHG. 1.305,50 235,20 3.003,5 3.484,5 1.332,50 4.790,0 1.849,5 8.287,0 628,20 616,60 2.614,0 430,50 566,80 595,20 1,012 194,50 605,80 4.021,0 2.509,00 403,65 3.370,0 532,00 192,15 2.644,0 1.921,5 1.450,8 77,40 2.390,0 1.747,00 3.631,0 7.186,0 6.304,0 3.623,2 365,80 663,40 2.818,0 10.770,0 10.860,0 616,00 1.602,80 408,45 2.313,0 1.308,50 1.935,50 552,40 159,44 1.778,00 592,60 4.950,0

NET VOL 131,31K 763,80K 6,10K 51,63K 126,13K 114,93K 298,55K 495,02K 260,44K 812,35K 73,50K 1,53M 377,48K 1,32M 404,82K 11,61M 451,91K 30,75K 899,78K 3,35M 1,11M 153,20K 3,33M 41,90K 138,50K 559,39K 5,33M 144,10K 343,92K 169,35K 23,75K 14,08K 46,97K 291,14K 1,53M 293,83K 103,23K 55,87K 415,03K 1,18M 4,29M 100,95K 233,15K 52,85K 5,28M 10,97M 469,82K 507,47K 54,59K

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 Sage Samsung Electronics DRC Sberbank Schroders Scottish Mortgage Segro Severn Trent Shell 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

1.776,50 5.110,0 121,00 277,90 1.721,5 784,60 275,80 52,12 6.836,0 746,40 153,85 1.856,00 1.084,60 243,00 7.134,0 28,44 1.257,00 2.411,6 656,46 1.176,50 5.890,0 2.239,00 493,30 624,40 5.681,0 116,20 7,36 671,20 1.525,00 13,19 3.251,0 1.035,50 1.219,00 2.838,0 2.012,0 1.205,50 1.522,00 11.980,0 1.521,50 1.497,00 536,40 151,00 296,60 268,90 3.853,5 1.051,50 135,84 3.140,6 1.189,50

CHANGE(P)

% CHG.

NET VOL

1.794,00 5.166,0 122,35 281,10 1.762,0 786,20 278,30 52,92 6.962,0 747,18 155,70 1.902,50 1.096,20 248,20 7.154,0 28,44 1.290,50 2.426,3 663,60 1.202,00 5.906,0 2.269,00 501,60 632,60 5.749,0 117,70 7,55 679,60 1.536,00 13,51 3.291,0 1.062,50 1.233,00 2.859,0 2.045,0 1.206,00 1.524,50 12.085,0 1.535,00 1.519,50 544,60 151,10 297,60 278,10 3.897,5 1.062,50 137,72 3.176,0 1.194,00

1.757,49 5.090,0 120,30 276,60 1.702,0 776,00 271,70 51,41 6.830,0 737,62 151,50 1.842,50 1.083,40 240,40 7.074,0 27,97 1.249,50 2.388,4 652,60 1.156,50 5.836,0 2.236,00 490,50 620,40 5.641,0 113,64 7,20 669,40 1.514,50 13,08 3.226,0 1.028,30 1.218,00 2.835,0 1.999,0 1.191,00 1.506,00 11.900,0 1.517,50 1.489,00 532,00 148,65 295,20 263,20 3.834,0 1.051,50 135,40 3.112,9 1.181,00

8,34K 17,38K 1,75M 330,57K 103,98K 249,96K 4,04M 60,19M 37,43K 4,17K 862,74K 216,61K 488,70K 5,24M 37,34K 374,82K 187,00K 75,38K 275,60K 914,79K 173,88K 564,25K 781,00K 187,71K 506,32K 11,91M 423,44K 252,82K 5,38K 2,28M 37,24K 736,38K 236,62K 29,25K 2,79M 258,02K 78,91K 10,30K 305,51K 4,27K 1,33M 1,21M 1,64M 3,54M 790,43K 168,88K 13,47M 13,59K 383,75K

1.19395

0.83751

Units per €

US dollar (USD) ........................................1.1315 Japan yen (JPY)........................................130.36 Switzerland franc (CHF) ...........................1.0461 Denmark kroner (DKK) .............................7.4401 Norway kroner (NOK) ...............................10.075

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 F EBRUARY 14

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 159,54 191,81 228,20 168,64 212,30 201,24 138,81 53,90 60,29 61,09 363,06 350,29 186,99 132,69 47,63 167,71 153,92 255,16 76,64 295,04 140,18 156,29 207,90 171,76 478,13 53,32 224,69 48,70 135,33 149,47

CHANGE 161,60 197,20 231,47 173,08 221,42 204,65 139,44 55,09 61,98 61,91 374,90 357,34 192,89 134,71 49,11 170,15 158,19 258,76 77,90 304,29 145,05 158,58 219,93 173,95 490,43 53,46 229,10 49,98 137,18 154,69

CHANGE% VOLUME(M) 158,80 3,59M 190,45 4,59M 228,15 3,54M 168,04 93,13M 210,27 11,37M 200,13 3,80M 136,28 12,69M 53,77 19,83M 60,15 19,42M 60,35 6,02M 360,77 3,06M 348,56 3,24M 186,55 5,30M 132,38 4,08M 47,50 36,97M 167,54 13,10M 152,97 15,47M 254,73 3,58M 76,17 9,06M 294,22 38,87M 139,56 6,42M 155,58 8,47M 206,11 8,03M 170,89 1,45M 476,44 2,48M 52,70 18,82M 223,54 7,52M 48,41 7,90M 134,16 7,88M 148,56 17,68M M - MILLION DOLLARS

NASDAQ C LOSING P RICES F EBRUARY 14

COMPANY

CHANGE NET / %

VOLUME

+62.06% +25.95% +23.26% +23.08% +21.84% +21.24% +21.08% +20.06% +19.23% +18.85% +18.70%

2.55M 12.29M 2.24M 131.65M 270.02K 329.74K 3.67M 77.67K 4.17M 1.92M 16.69K

-75.35% -50.12% -49.03% -45.57% -45.45% -41.36% -34.24% -33.70% -27.54% -27.44% -27.27%

35.54M 2.90M 18.70M 34.53M 2.85M 1.25M 1.14M 105.39M 1.32M 56.47M 1.36M

Most Advanced Burgundy Technology Acquisition Y mAbs Therapeutics China Online ADR Kaival Brands Innovations Group Intercure Reservoir Media LiveOne Income Opportunity Realty Mr. Cooper Agrify Aziyo

Most Declined ProQR Therapeutics NV TC BioPharm Holdings Enveric Biosciences Surgalign Holdings Direct Digital Holdings CITIC Capital Acquisition Betterware De Mexico Senseonics Holdings Inc Mesabi Trust Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co Universal Insurance

FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL

www.euroweeklynews.com

Watching over you

Credit: Mike Mackenzie flickr

TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT: Al will be used to track assets.

BIG BROTHER will be watch‐ ing you through the Spanish Tax Agency as the Ministry of Finance unveiled its Annual Tax and Customs Control Plan.

Basically, having been slapped on the wrist by the European Court of Justice over disproportionate fines for not declaring overseas as‐ sets and with the likelihood of having to amend the legis‐ lation, the left‐leaning gov‐ ernment has come up with a new plan.

Still determined to crack down on the hiding of assets abroad, the government in‐ tends to invest in expanding the technological strength of the Tax Agency in order to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to try to detect attempts to either defraud or avoid pay‐ ing tax.

In theory, this is aimed at wealthy Spanish individuals and companies who use tax havens and other financial loopholes to either avoid tax

or to hide their overseas as‐ sets, many of which are be‐ lieved to currently be based in Andorra or Portugal which are more generous as far as taxation is concerned.

It won’t just be traditional assets that will be on the Tax Agency radar as it expects and intends to track holdings of cryptocurrency which is why new technology has to be introduced (as are laws concerning companies trad‐ ing in these ‘currencies’ in Spain) as many holders are protected by the complexity surrounding their undeclared assets.

It looks as if expatriates who formed a significant number of people penalised

by Modelo 720 fines will not in the first instance be under the Tax Agency microscope unless they have significant holdings overseas, but once the AI is working efficiently (and this could take some time) then who knows what could follow.

Amazon grocery arm AS the grocery arm of Amazon in the UK continues to grow, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) there has decided that the company as well as any subsidiaries must now comply with the Gro‐ ceries Supply Code of Practice.

This requirement which applies to all grocery re‐ tailers with an annual turnover in excess of £1 bil‐ lion must be fair to their suppliers and must not try to change contracts at unreasonably short no‐ tice.

In addition, they are required to explain the rea‐ son for dropping any supplier and give them suffi‐ cient advance notice of their intention to terminate thus allowing the supplier to find other outlets.

BUSINESS EXTRA Greater control SPAIN, in the form of Economy Minister Nadia Calviño, wants more con‐ trol over setting its own fiscal targets rather than having the eurozone dic‐ tate goals on borrowing in order to protect the value of the euro, espe‐ cially now with so much post pandemic debt.

Russian imports DESPITE the tension be‐ tween Russia and Spain caused by the Ukraine sit‐ uation, there is still a huge amount of business between the two coun‐ tries especially to the benefit of the Spanish economy according to Ambassador Marcos Gomez Martinez with ris‐ ing exports of wine, olive oil and industrial equip‐ ment.

Looking good DUTCH Bank ING sees strong signs of growth for the Spanish economy in the second quarter of 2022 despite the fact that Omicron stifled tourism in the first quarter but with more visitors mean‐ ing more jobs and greater public investment, the only foreseeable down‐ side is rising inflation.

17 - 23 February 2022

EWN 35

36 EWN

17 - 23 February 2022

LEAPY LEE SAYS IT OTHERS THINK IT OF one thing we can all be assured ‐ none of us will emerge unscathed from the life altering events of the last couple of years!

It truly is akin to slowly emerging from some kind of surreal nightmare. How easily we came to accept stipulations and rulings that a few short months earlier would have been confined to the fictional script of a Stephen King horror movie.

Can you recall that first lockdown in Wuhan; with masked inhabitants and the Chinese police enforcing the curfew and manning barriers to prevent anyone from entering or leaving the town?

I remember turning to a friend and derisively observing that it would be interesting to see the reaction if they dared to try anything like that over here!

Just how wrong can you be? Within weeks, following horror stories of Chinese bodies piling up in the streets and rumours of an unknown killer virus on the rampage, we almost incredulously began to witness similar scenarios evolving in the West.

One particular series of occurrences was the most traumatising of all ‐ people had actually begun to die! Hospitals

www.euroweeklynews.com

Lest we forget! quickly began to overflow. Images of ambulance medics and hospital staff clad in suits only previously observed after nuclear radiation leaks began to appear in the media.

Fear, particularly of the unknown, motivated a rapidly growing terrified public to passively comply with a whole host of rules and regulations. Dissenters who insisted that their human rights were being violated were quickly brought into line by new emergency rules and threats of serious punishment for non‐ compliance. Confusion reigned. Toilet rolls were at a premium!

Even world leaders were at odds with each other’s opinions as to the seriousness of the situation. Conspiracy theorists abounded. We then became a part of the most extraordinary surreal event of all ‐ a scenario only previously envisaged in the writings of science fiction ‐ total lockdown. And it truly did appear to be the end of society as we knew it.

The most vulnerable cowered behind closed doors, while young volunteers and members of their families ventured out for supplies, many of which were then

carefully bleached before being stored away. For families living in confined home facilities, particularly those with children, it became a living nightmare. Personally I was one of the ‘privileged,’ able to walk a short distance with the dog. Those daily outings were rather like furtively slinking through an eerie twilight zone; somewhat comparable to a deserted film set. On one of my excursions I was in fact pulled up by the police, who sternly requested my ID and address. I meekly obliged, but when you consider I was simply walking my dog, you get some idea of just how subservient and acquiescent to the authorities we had actually become. As we slowly and hopefully emerge from this horrifying pandemic, one thing has been made abundantly clear; when push comes to shove, the authorities have many vays and means of controlling us all!

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

Inventing Anna : Fake heiress cons NY’s elite

INVENTING ANNA follows the true story of a fake heiress who conned her way into the lives, and the parties, of New York’s elite.

Inventing Anna tells the sto‐ ry of how Anna Sorokin (better known as her fake name, An‐ na Delvey) pretended to be a German heiress to defraud hundreds of thousands of dol‐ lars from banks, hotels and wealthy friends.

This nine‐part drama has a critic rating of 58 per cent and an audience rating of 28 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes and, I have to say, I expected more from this Netflix series. Anna Delvey’s story went under the radar in New York at first, be‐ fore her antics were covered by journalist Vivian Kent (based on the real journalist who picked up the story, Jessi‐ ca Pressler) at ‘Manhattan Magazine’ (New York Maga‐ zine).

Vivian secretly visits Anna at Rikers Island where she is be‐ ing held until her trial, and the

story begins. I remember being enthralled when I first read about Anna Delvey running around in the circles of Man‐ hattan’s super‐rich and jump‐ ing from hotel to hotel without paying the huge bills she had accumulated living her fake lavish lifestyle. I read the Vani‐ ty Fair article written by one of Anna’s former friends Rachel Deloache Williams and I would say I found reading about An‐ na slightly more riveting than this long‐winded drama.

I felt the series focused too much on Vivian Kent rather than Anna herself, as she was clearly an intriguing person. Vi‐ vian is still an interesting char‐ acter, however, and her band of colleagues assisting her on the case are a humourous touch. Inventing Anna is still worthy of a watch if you want something to binge over a weekend (be warned, the episodes are around an hour‐ long), but this series fell short of the mark for me.

Released on February 11.

38 EWN

17 - 23 February 2022

www.euroweeklynews.com

FEATURE

PARDON, WHAT A TURN UP FOR THE BOOKS! codswallop! But maybe another at‐ tempt to obliterate our cultural her‐ itage and replace it with woke interna‐ tionalist gibberish.

‘All things considered’, I think I use pretty much all of the above. However, I do find myself these days using other ‘endangered’ words and simple terms, such as: ‘man’, ‘woman’, ‘male’, ‘fe‐ male’, ‘normal’, ‘commonsense’ etc.

Maybe I’m just flogging a dead horse that I’m still using such terms?

Just sayin’.

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

ACCORDING to a recent survey, tradi‐ tional phrases such as “know your onions” and “pearls before swine” are among those barely used by modern speakers and risk being sent to the, err, “knacker’s yard”.

How I remember being drilled at pri‐ mary school in idioms like “too many cooks spoil the broth”, “a rolling stone gathers no moss” plus ‘“look before you leap” versus “he who hesitates is lost” ‐ which is more helpful? Discuss’, because part of the 11‐plus exam re‐ quired you to complete such sayings.

Though I’m pretty sure “you can’t have your (Birthday) cake and eat it” will forever have a special meaning now for Boris…

But the naval ones are the best. I re‐ member an aunt throwing open the curtains every winter morning, reveal‐ Nora Johnson’s opinions

TRADITIONAL PHRASES: Are hardly used these days by modern speakers.

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.

ing the Jack Frost on the windows and block”, “push the boat out”… saying, “Show a leg!” And, while you All so neat and economical, nothing were slumped in your chair day‐dream‐ wasted, like life on board, these phras‐ ing, teachers saying: “Look lively!” or es were passed from sailors to their “Jump to it!” families, their local areas and spread Later at work, you’d hear “nail your across the nation. And though they colours to the mast”, “showing your took on meanings beyond the sea, the true colours”, a “shot across their original ones remained at their core. bows”. Not to mention: “cut and run”, How on earth do people make them‐ To read more articles from our columnists “broad in the beam”, “touch and go”, selves understood nowadays without and to have your say in the comments go “by and large”, “sailing close to the this fantastic short‐hand? to www.euroweeklynews.com wind”, “copper‐bottomed”, “chock‐a‐ It’s such a huge loss and a load of are her own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.

THURSDAY 17/02 FRIDAY 18/02 SATURDAY 19/02

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Escape to the Country Garden Rescue Antiques Road Trip Pointless BBC News at Six; Weather BBC London News; Weather The One Show EastEnders Dragons' Den The Apprentice

4:00pm 7:00pm

Garden Rescue Antiques Road Trip Pointless BBC News at Six; Weather BBC London News; Weather The One Show A Question of Sport Would I Lie to You? EastEnders Death in Paradise

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Final Score Superman & Lois BBC News BBC London News; Weather Weather Celebrity Mastermind The Wall Pointless Celebrities Michael McIntyre's The Wheel Casualty

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Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa The Green Planet BBC News BBC London News; Weather Weather Countryfile Antiques Roadshow Call the Midwife Chloe BBC News

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Garden Rescue Antiques Road Trip Pointless BBC News at Six; Weather BBC London News; Weather The One Show Panorama EastEnders Kelvin's Big Farming Adventure

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Escape to the Country Garden Rescue Antiques Road Trip Pointless BBC News at Six; Weather BBC London News; Weather The One Show EastEnders Holby City Garden Rescue

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Escape to the Country Garden Rescue Antiques Road Trip Pointless BBC News at Six; Weather BBC London News; Weather Party Political Broadcast The One Show We Are England

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Winter Olympics Richard Osman's House of Games Great Coastal Railway Journeys Winter Olympics - Today at the Games Great British Menu Hubble: The Wonders of Space Revealed The Apprentice: You're Fired!

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Winter Olympics Richard Osman's House of Games Great Coastal Railway Journeys Winter Olympics - Today at the Games Your Garden Made Perfect QI XL Live at the Apollo Newsnight Weather

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Flog It! Great Coastal Railway Journeys Great Coastal Railway Journeys World's Busiest Cities: Delhi Natural World Winter Olympics - Today at the Games The Perfect Morecambe & Wise

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Kelvin's Big Farming Adventure Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby Winter Olympics - Today at the Games Wonders of the Celtic Deep Louis Theroux's Forbidden America Tupac Shakur: A Life in Ten Pictures

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Heir Hunters Back in Time for...

Flog It! Richard Osman's House of Games Great Coastal Railway Journeys Yorkshire Firefighters Mastermind University Challenge Rise of the Nazis: Dictators at War

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Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is The Heights Heir Hunters Back in Time for...

Flog It! Richard Osman's House of Games Great Coastal Railway Journeys Yorkshire Firefighters Great British Menu

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Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is The Heights Heir Hunters Back in Time for...

Flog It! Richard Osman's House of Games Great Coastal Railway Journeys Yorkshire Firefighters Great British Menu

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Yorkshire Walks Fred Dibnah's Made in Britain Mark Kermode's OscarWinners: A Secrets of Cinema Special Annie Hall The Deer Hunter Yorkshire Walks Fred Dibnah's Made in Britain

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Lingo ITV London Weather Tipping Point The Chase ITV News London ITV Evening News Emmerdale The True Cost of Train Travel? Tonight Emmerdale The Martin Lewis Money Show: Live

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A Place in the Sun A New Life in the Sun Four in a Bed The Simpsons The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News The Dog House Extraordinary Escapes First Dates

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An Evening with Nat King Cole Sounds of the Sixties TOTP: 1992 TOTP: 1992 Lionel Richie - Dancing on the Ceiling Lionel Richie at the BBC Top of the Pops: The Story of 1979

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Lingo ITV London Weather Tipping Point The Chase ITV News London ITV Evening News Emmerdale Coronation Street Vera ITV News ITV News London

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Countdown A Place in the Sun A New Life in the Sun Four in a Bed The Simpsons The Simpsons Hollyoaks Channel 4 News Unreported World George Clarke's Amazing Spaces Gogglebox

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Glacier Mountain Goats Lost Cities of the Ancients Around the World in Eighty Days The Promise The Promise Parkinson: The Interviews Young Ahmed Yes, Prime Minister

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Tipping Point: Best Ever Finals The Chase: Celebrity Special ITV News and Weather ITV News London Celebrity Catchphrase Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Take Away Starstruck Paul Sinha's TV Showdown

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Four in a Bed Four in a Bed Four in a Bed Four in a Bed Four in a Bed Kirstie and Phil's Love It or List It: Brilliant Builds Devon and Cornwall Channel 4 News Matt Baker: Our Farm in the Dales Wondrous Wales

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The Birth of British Music Dance Passion 2022 Firestarter: The Story of Bangarra Dance: BBC Introducing Arts For Folks Sake! Morris Dancing and Me Inside America's Treasure House: The Met

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ITV News and Weather ITV News London Dancing on Ice The Good Karma Hospital Trigger Point ITV News and Weather ITV London Weather Bradley Walsh and Son: Breaking Dad Kate Garraway's Life Stories

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Wonder Chateau DIY Channel 4 News The World's Most Luxurious Holidays The Great Pottery Throw Down Celebrity Hunted The Curse Gogglebox Gone Girl

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Gareth Edwards' Great Welsh Adventure Fred Dibnah's Made in Britain Timeshift: How to Write a Mills & Boon The Romantics and Us with Simon Schama Desperate Romantics Desperate Romantics Botticelli's Venus: The Making of an Icon

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FEATURE

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CLAIRE GORDON FINDING BALANCE IN AN UNEVEN WORLD I AM all about showing up for things that you think are important. It is, in fact, why I write this column.

I sit and I write what I feel so that other people can engage with those musings and hopefully connect in some way with them, whether they agree with me or not.

I do it more for the people who will find something they will agree with though, be‐ cause I want to let those people know they aren’t alone in thinking or exist‐ ing in the world in the way that they do.

When facism is on the rise again in almost every country in the world, is rife in media, and the same rhetoric is rehashed time and time again in the name of ‘free speech’, it is important for people to know they are not alone. That it isn’t everybody who wants to repeal rights and take things back to ‘the good old days’ of

17 - 23 February 2022

Showing up overt racism, sexism and hostility, and it isn’t ev‐ eryone that wants to kill the planet in the name of profit.

It is also important to share your ethics and views because it is exact‐ ly what the people up‐ holding the status quo don’t want you to do.

They don’t want people talking openly about their thoughts, experi‐ ences and visions for a better world because the more connections people make with each other over shared goals, the stronger those people be‐ come and the more tangi‐ ble the goals get. They don’t want people exist‐ ing openly in ways that deviate from the stan‐ dard, in case it inspires more people to be their individual selves and not hide away quietly.

Like bosses who don’t want employees dis‐ cussing salaries, less they figure out they are worth

more, people with privi‐ lege don’t want anyone being open about any‐ thing that is different from the ‘norm’, in case they recruit more person‐ nel to the cause.

Whether the people with the upper hand do this through blatant silencing of minorities, or more the more subtle “do what you wish, just don’t shove it in people’s faces,” it has the same aim. Don’t let people know there is another way that varies from the one we tell them about, because once that knowl‐ edge is out, it’s very hard to hide or back away.

People being unapolo‐ getically themselves, when who they are and how they think is railed against, is a brave and revolutionary act. How many stories of radical change start with some variation of “I saw some‐ one who was like me standing up for them‐

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.

selves, and realised I could do it too?” And how many times have you heard those that

would rather people don’t stand up for them‐ selves, say “kids don’t need to learn about

EWN 41

that”, “that’s in the past and we should move on”, or “stop pushing your agenda at me?”

These are all common phrases used to squash the sharing of informa‐ tion and the inspiration behind being different, make no mistake. Keep watch for them, and keep being different!

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

FIFTY BEDS AT Christmas Lesley Boreham started a fundraiser on Facebook called ‘A bed for Christmas’, for the dogs at Finca la Castellana Animal Welfare Centre, her target was 50 beds or €1,000.

With lots of work and effort Lesley managed to raise €456 towards the cause, purchasing approximately 25 beds for some of the dogs currently living at the rescue centre. These beds are raised on legs, avoiding the cold coming through the beds and helping to keep the dogs extra cosy. Despite Lesley’s immense efforts, she did not manage to raise the full amount for 50 beds, the €1,000 target she had aimed for originally.

Husband Richard, of Autolease Renting & Autocarga in Benijófar, stepped in and offered to match the amount already raised to make the €1,000 needed for the 50 beds! An amazing and generous gesture which we here at Finca la Castellana are extremely grateful for.

Thank you to Lesley and Richard, and to all the people who either donated or bought these fantastic beds for all our dogs.

Regards, Beccie.

Different rules Dear Euro Weekly,

KURT ZOUMA: Should he have been banned from playing?

Ian Kemp He should have been suspended, prosecuted and made to do community service... an example to young people people that animal abuse is totally unacceptable.

COSY BEDS: Raised on legs to avoid the cold.

Can someone please tell me why the Spanish are only targeting British people regarding the 90-day ruling when visiting Spain?

This ruling has always been in place but never really been enforced, so why are the Germans, Southern Irish, French, Italians etc allowed to stay longer?

ONE STEP FORWARD AS more autonomous communities scrap the need to show a Covid passport to enter hospitality areas it seems that slowly but surely, we are coming to terms with the fact that whilst the coronavirus is here to stay, we have to learn to live with it rather than tr y to fight it tooth and nail.

Perhaps the time has come to spend the next few weeks studying the effects in the UK and Sweden where effectively all restrictions have been removed, to see whether there is any significant rise in fatalities caused by the Omicron variant.

So many people suffered when the most virulent variants arrived, but there is little doubt that many of the restrictions will have helped save lives even though the cost in mental health, economy and freedom were significant.

CORRECTIONS

From our Facebook

This is discrimination. I know of many people that have overstayed in Spain for many months from these countries.

How can this be investigated, I would like some answers, but where from?

Regards, Lesley

OUR VIEW

More and more people across the world are actively protesting about the restrictions that still exist and unless one believes that there is a global conspiracy to keep citizens under control, it seems sensible now to try to return to a type of pre-pandemic normality.

If there is going to be a further wave of a new variant of the virus, it’s going to happen regardless and with all of the information gathered over the last two years, it shouldn’t be difficult to respond quickly and reintroduce safety measures if necessary.

In the meantime, however, everyone and every business needs to be able to plan ahead so that we can all recover from the effects of the past two years and whilst things will never be completely normal, accept the virus in the same way that we accept flu and deal with it accordingly.

Sandra Park I detest what he did. He has been fined. He now knows that he is hated for it. He has to live with that. It won’t be easy. He should go and help at a rescue centre. Then he really will understand why the public have reacted so strongly. Then let him get on with his life.

Alison Kemp Animal cruelty is intolerable. Dreadful thing to do. He will have to live with what he has done and face the consequences.

Laura Margaret He should definitely be banned, animal cruelty has no place in the world and young people look up to footballers.

Janine Turner Go to West Ham page and kick up about this and message the club. Shocking.

Jo Ripley Should have been suspended for a lot longer without pay, which should have been donated to animal charities.

Garry Glennie How funny would it be if Leicester supporters threw soft toy cats onto the park during the game.

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

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HEALTH & BEAUTY

www.euroweeklynews.com

By Clinica Britannia

Anti-ageing treatments WE would like to offer a warm welcome back to our amazing Aesthetic Doctor Irina Artemenko after the birth of her baby daughter.

She is now available by appointment once again at Clilnica Britannia and looks forward to treating her ex‐ isting and new clients. She is offering an extended range of anti‐ageing treat‐ ments which are suited for men and women including Botox, Hyaluronic acid fillers, facial peelings, vita‐ min treatments and a new Hyaluronic acid treatment called Cytocare™.

Cytocare™. helps with the reduction of fine lines and wrinkles, whilst at the same time slowing down the ageing process.

DR IRINA: Looks forward to treating her clients.

It is extremely versatile as it is available in different variants so can treat all skin types from young to ma‐ ture. Wrinkles and fine

lines are visibly reduced, the brightness and softness of the skin is improved giv‐ ing a natural and brighter complexion.

Contact us at Clinica Britannia and book an appointment with Dr Irina who will give you her honest, expert advice on what would be the best treatment suited to your individual needs, whether it be enhancing your lips for a perfect pout, adding volume to get those to die for cheek bones or to simply revitalise and refresh your skin.

17 - 23 February 2022

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48 EWN

www.euroweeklynews.com

17 - 23 February 2022

SINCE its invention by chemist Robert Chesebrough back in 1870 to its current boom in popularity, Vaseline is a prod‐ uct that takes care of our skin perfectly ‐ there’s a reason why old‐school products nev‐ er go out of style!

Dermatologist and associate professor of dermatology, Joshua Zeichner, said of the wonder product: “It can be

A trusty favourite: The power of Vaseline

used from your nose to your toes, and it’s particularly useful for areas like the elbows, knees or feet. It can even be applied around the eye area or cuticles.”

Some favourite uses for

Vaseline An overnight treatment for dry hands and nails Some people swear by ap‐ plying a generous amount of Vaseline on their hands, putting gloves on, and then leaving it to sink in overnight. If you can’t keep gloves on overnight, a few hours will do a good job.

Skin discolouration Specifically on ethnic skin, Vaseline can work in a similar way to bio‐oil and prevent dis‐ colouration (post‐inflammato‐ ry hyperpigmentation) after cuts, scrapes and pimples.

Wash those areas with a gen‐ tle soap and then apply Vase‐ line to help the area heal and help to avoid skin discoloura‐ tion.

Beauty uses We all know Vaseline helps with dry lips and can be used as a lipgloss, but it can also be used to groom brows, for eye‐ lash growth and can even be used under eyeshadow or highlighter to help it stay on longer.

HEALTH & BEAUTY

By Clinica Britannia

Get a spring back in your step PODIATRIST: Will diagnose and treat conditions of the feet and lower limbs.

I HAVE suffered with pain in my feet for many years especially when walking and have now been ad‐ vised to see a Podiatrist, but how they can help me?

Podiatrists also known as Chiropodists are profession‐ al healthcare workers who diagnose and treat condi‐ tions of the feet and lower limbs. They specialise in the treatment of diabetic pa‐ tients who often suffer with wounds on the feet due to

the disease, they can cor‐ rect deformities such as bunions, treat infections like athletes’ foot, verrucas, warts and troublesome nail fungus.

You may also be advised to see a podiatrist if you are suffering from an ingrown toenail, cracks on the soles of the feet or suffering from foot or heel pain. A session can also be to simply assess the feet, trim the nails and remove any calluses on the

soles of the feet to relieve any pressure points.

Orthotics which are tai‐ lor‐made insoles, padding or arch supports used in footwear to realign the foot, correct posture, and relieve pain and pressure on the foot can be individu‐ ally made for you if neces‐ sary.

Contact a Podiatrist who can help diagnose and treat your feet giving you back that skip in your step.

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

50 EWN

17 - 23 February 2022

www.euroweeklynews.com

Single life begins at 50

SOCIAL SCENE

Berlin Philharmonic Quintet

IF you want to meet new people and socialise, join the Single Life Begins at 50 friendship group at 6pm today, Thursday February 17 at The Railway Tavern Denia for their monthly meeting.

The group meets every month to enjoy a chat over a drink and a bite to eat. Tickets are €5 per person in‐ cluding your first drink and some tapas.

To find out more about the group, call 642 156 494.

CARNIVAL TIME: Promises to be an exciting and colourful event for all ages.

Benidorm Carnival 2022 KICKING off on February 26, the Benidorm Carnival 2022 promises to be an exciting and colourful event for all ages.

On February 26, the Children’s Carnival will be held from 10am, starting from Calle Escuelas. At 10:30am, the carnival will proceed along Ruzafa, Herrerias, Plaza Doctor Fleming, Plaza del Ayun‐ tamiento, Parque de L’Aigüera, coming to an end at the Julio Iglesias Auditorium.

At the end of the parade, there will be sand‐ wiches for all of the participating children and the prize‐giving ceremony. Finally, there will be a children’s performance by Disneconcierto and a bar offering drinks. The Adult Carnival will begin on the same day at 8.30pm, beginning at Calle

Tomas Ortuño. At 9pm, the procession will fol‐ low a route along Calle Venus, Herrerias, Plaza Doctor Fleming, Plaza del Ayuntamiento, Parque L’Aigüera, ending at the Julio Iglesias Auditorium.

At the end of the parade, snacks and refresh‐ ments will be handed out to all participants. Fi‐ nally, there will be a party with bars selling drinks and the prizes will be awarded.

On March 1, the Entierro de la Sardina (Burial of the Sardine) will take place from 9pm in the Plaza Mayor. From 9.30pm, the procession will take a route along Calle Tomas Ortuño, Calle Limones, Ruzafa, Paseo de la Carretera, ending in the Parque de Elche. The evening will finish with the Picaeta in the Casa del Fester.

J AV E A will be one of the stages of the Quintet Berlin’s 2022 Spanish tour, the string quintet of the Berlin Philhar‐ monic.

The event will be on March 6 at 5pm in the church of Sant Bertomeu, accompanied by the Valencian clar‐ inetist Miquel An‐ gel Tamarit.

Tickets cost €5 and will be on sale from February 28 at the Casa de Cul‐ tura.

The Berlin Phil‐ harmonic String Quintet is a unique formation, with the addition of a double bass to the basic quar‐ tet.

SOCIAL SCENE

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A weekend of entertainment THIS weekend in Benidorm has a variety of entertainment acts and shows for you to enjoy!

From 4pm on Friday, February 18, Gareth Fulton will be performing his Mu‐ sic, Comedy and Craic show at The Crown, Calle Gerona to kick off your weekend.

If you’re into Motown, head to Buddies Bar at 6pm, where you will be en‐ tertained by Jonathan Hawkins ‐ ‘Mr Motown with all your soul n Mo‐ town hits.’

At 7.30pm, Rock n Roll Stephanie will be perform‐ ing all the rock hits at The One Bar, Benidorm.

At 8pm, The Crown, Calle Gerona will be hosting Emi Sax. Head to Yorkshire Pride 3 for Quiz Time at 9pm and test your general knowl‐ edge.

On Saturday, February 19, Sean Mac will be bring‐ ing 60s, 70s, 80s at The 12th Man Bar and Bookies at 4pm.

At 5pm, head over to The 12th Man Bar and Bookies to catch Roy West’s 60s, country & Rock and Roll show.

If you like a quiz, Quiz Time will be held from 7pm at Gwen’s Bar and Kitchen.

Spanish finalist in The

Voice, Alex Escribano, will be performing at The Rio Park Hotel at 8.45pm.

End the night by cele‐ brating the 80s, Duran Du‐ ran, Spandau Ballet, Ultra Vox and Soft Cell with Rick Hadley at 11pm at the Red Lion 2 (Rincon).

Egyptian art

SEEING Through the Eyes of Horus is a lecture focusing on the development of Egyptian art from before the birth of pharaonic civilisation to the death of Cleopatra.

The lecture will be presented at the Arts Society Marina Al‐ ta by David Rohl, a British Egyptologist and former director of the Institute for the study of Interdisciplinary Science. The event will begin at 10am and tickets cost €15, this includes coffee before the presentation and complimentary wine and soft drinks afterwards.

David is not only a bestselling writer, who has produced several unconventional theories relating to the chronology of ancient Egypt, but also an explorer, TV presenter, renowned public lecturer, composer, rock musician, record producer and photographer. The British press has quoted that “when it comes to exploring, David Rohl makes Indiana Jones look like an under‐achiever.”

Further information can be found on the Arts Society web‐ site www.marinaaltaarts.com.

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17 - 23 February 2022

Girls Behaving Badly Choir on the Costa Blanca ON February 25 at 12pm, Bar Enzo on Plaza de Igle‐ sia in Moraira will be hosting the Girls Behaving Badly lunch for a donation of €28. Money raised will be donated to the dogs at Akira Animal Sanctu‐ ary.

In what promises to be a great event with pro‐ ceeds going to a wonderful charity, those attending will enjoy a Cava reception as well as a three‐ course meal including a drink of your choice.

Starters include garlic prawns, Caesar salad, al‐ bondigas or pumpkin soup. The choice of mains are fish and chips, a veggie or meat burger and a veggie or chicken tagliatelle. For dessert, there is a choice of chocolate pudding, apple strudel or ice cream.

The meal will be accompanied by entertainment from Pauline McGough.

Proceeds will go towards Akira Animal Chairty, a local dog shelter for rescuing and rehoming aban‐ doned dogs in the Benissa, Teulada, Moraira area.

To book and provide your food choices, please contact Debby at debbysa999@gmail.com or call 665 127 627.

THE Costa Blanca Male Voice Choir is looking for more singers to add to its group.

The group rehearses once a week at the Teulada Mediter‐ ranean Bar on Avinguda del Mediterrani, 36, 03725 Teula‐ da, starting at 5.30pm. Anyone who is interested in joining can go to listen, talk to the mem‐ bers and join if they wish to ex‐ perience the camaraderie and benefits of singing in a choir.

This popular choir, which in the last two years has attract‐ ed many English, Spanish, Ger‐ man and Dutch voices, is look‐ ing for new members to increase its international ap‐ peal.

The choir has a complete programme of concerts for

MALE VOICE CHOIR: Are looking for singers to join them.

this coming year that includes a wonderful concert at the Caves in Benidoleig in June.

Choir president Mike Evans said: “Although some of our members read music, most don’t, and we have a comput‐ er software package that can be used to listen to any song over and over again, helping them learn a song. No prior

choir singing experience is re‐ quired. All we ask is that you enjoy singing and can sing pri‐ marily in English.”

More details can be found at www.costablanca malevoicechoir.wikidot.com, on the Costa Blanca Male Voice Choir Facebook page or by calling Mike Evans on 965 744 577.

SOCIAL SCENE

Board games afternoon L’ALFAS DEL PI is launching a free monthly board games af‐ ternoon in English beginning on Wednesday, February 23, at 4.30pm.

The board games after‐ noon will be held at the Pen‐ sioners’ Home, with an aim of promoting socialisation through leisure and entertain‐ ment in a town where people of almost 100 different na‐ tionalities reside.

There is no age limit to take part in the games and brain teasers, however, they are aimed at adults. The events are aimed at English speakers but are also beneficial for oth‐ er nationalities to practise the language. Those wishing to at‐ tend must book in advance by calling 629 816 197.

The councillor for Residents in L’Alfas, Martine Mertens, said of the new event: “We are a multicultural municipali‐ ty and we see these board game workshops as a fun and different way to broaden our circle of friendships, and also to strengthen links between the different groups living in our town.”

PETS

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www.euroweeklynews.com • 17 - 23 February 2022

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FEATURE

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Signs of cancer in cats and dogs include: • Persistent or abnormal swelling.

• Non healing wounds.

• Loss of weight and/or loss of appetite.

• Bleeding or abnormal discharge from any body opening.

• Difficulty eating or swallowing.

• Lethargy or weakness.

• Persistent lameness or stiffness.

• Coughing or difficulty breathing • Changes in bathroom habits, difficulty urinating or defecating.

• Evidence of pain.

• If you see any of these signs, you should go to the vet. A physical exam, blood tests, X‐rays, CT and MRI will be necessary. Once diagnosed, it is important to re‐ sort to advanced diagnostic techniques, whether they are specific analyses and advanced imaging techniques.

For example, one of the most common are breast tu‐ mours. Before surgery, it is convenient to rule out metastasis. These tend to occur more frequently in the lungs. Many times a simple x‐ray is not enough. To de‐ tect a metastasis by radiography, it must be at least half a centimetre.

In contrast, a CT scan can detect metastases as small as a millimetre. This is important for the prognosis.

In Costablanca Norte: Anicura Marina Baixa Hospital Veterinario www.veterinariamarinabaixa.com

humans tend to dream about the information they process during the day, Dr Deidre Barret, a Clinical and Evolutionary Psychologist at Harvard Medical School, believes there’s no reason that dogs shouldn’t do the same.

As dogs are extremely attached to their own‐ ers, Dr Barret claims that it’s likely that a dog’s

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Follow the snail trail

PROBABLY the most pop‐ ular pets are cats, dogs or birds, but finding a family with a pet snail would most likely be quite rare.

Snails are quiet, they don’t take up much space, they don’t need to be taken for a walk, and it does not cost a lot to feed and care for them.

They can be kept in a special clear terrarium made of plastic or glass.

A layer of soil is need‐ ed at the bottom of the container, approximately 4cm deep, so they can bury themselves in it and it is also where they lay their eggs. Rather than earth from the garden, it is recommended a spe‐ cial terrarium earth is used, which can be bought from local pet stores, as garden soil

Do dogs really dream about their owners?

ACCORDING to a new theory developed by a Harvard psychologist, dogs are likely to dream about their owners when they sleep. It has already been shown that our four‐legged friends have a similar sleep pattern to humans, consisting of a phase of deep sleep fol‐ lowed by a period of REM (rapid eye move‐ ment).

As dreams are believed to take place during this time, there is no reason that a dog’s night‐time reveries wouldn’t be similar to those of humans.

Given that

17 - 23 February 2022

dreams are in some way related to their owner; be that the owner’s face, smell or what they do to please or annoy their owner.

Unfortunately for cat owners, feline compan‐ ions are thought to be more self‐interested when they doze. As they are more independent by nature, their dream‐ life will likely reflect this, so they are more likely to dream about hunting prey and their outdoor pur‐ suits.

DAY DREAMING: Dogs are extremely attached to their owners and will dream about them.

may contain parasites.

As snails do not like ex‐ treme temperatures, keep them protected from the cold and the heat. A terracotta pot on its side gives them a good place to hide if there is sun.

These small creatures are hermaphrodites, which means they have male and female repro‐ ductive organs at the same time. These mol‐ luscs are more active at night, when they feed and reproduce. They like to eat most green leaves, vegetables, carrot halves, beetroot, etc.

At least once a week, the terrarium should be cleaned of all mucus and faeces, and any rotten food cleared away, as once decayed, it could be harmful to the snails.

SNAILS: It does not cost a lot to feed and care for them.

56 EWN

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AIR CONDITIONING

AIRPORT TRANSFERS

ELECTRICAL

SOLAR ENERGY

INSURANCE

PLUMBERS

SERVICES

SERVICES

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PLUMBERS

REMOVALS & STORAGE

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SERVICES

SERVICES

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REMOVALS / STORAGE

TV & SATELLITE

SOLAR ENERGY

INSURANCE

EWN 59

CLASSIFIEDS ARCHITECTS

APPLIANCE REP. WASHING MACHINE BROKEN? Call Bluesky Repairs for ALL your domestic appliance repairs.

626 430 671 (Whatsapp) (292063)

BUILDER BUILDER, ARCHITECT, NEW HOUSES, EXTENSIONS,PLANNING PERMISSIONS, 697834934 (295169)

BUY & SELL PRIVATE collector will buy your Gold, Rolex & Patek Philippe Watches Telephone – 678 716 693 (288662) I BUY RECORDS 50’s to the 90’s. Best prices for good records. Tel: 622 750 117 / 962 851 809 (293823)

CHARITY EL CAMPELLO CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY - Life and Family Sunday Service in English at 10.00 a.m. and a Spanish Service at 11.45am. C / San Bartolomé 35 bajo, No.6 campel locc@gmail.com www.el campellochristiancommuni ty.org For more information call Juan Zuniga – 686 203 183 (Spanish) or Sue Bishop - 610 63 94 26 (English) If you can read it, so can your clients. Contact us and have your business grow at + 34 951 386 161

CAMPING

THE SALVATION ARMY English Speaking Church of Denia Worship Service. Sunday 10:30 am Followed by a time of Fellowship Everyone is welcome.

Come as you are! For more information: Dieter Zimmerer +34 698 609 658 or Barbara Zimmerer +34 652 319 810 Email dieterzim merer@hotmail.com, www.centrosaron.com (10008) www.helpbenidorm .org and on Facebook VOLUNTEERS NEEDED, particularly Spanish speakers for interpreter service, and car owners. Tel President 607 387 040, Welfare 607 386 964, Interpreters 607 385 842, Equipment 663 495 396. We are an English speaking charity that assists residents and tourists of all nationalities in times of crisis, we also organise social events for members. We meet every Thursday at 10.30 in Jose Llorca Social Centre C. Goya s/n.

Benidorm. It is opposite the Foietes Car Park where there is a Wednesday market.

Everyone welcome. It is 400m from Benidorm tram station and on bus routes 1 and 8. We loan out mobility and medical equipment including oxygen concentrators on a short-term basis. (288658)

60

CARS FOR SALE

GARDEN MAINTENANCE PALM pruning & treatments. Palm & tree removal. Garden & plot clearance.

CHANDLER GARDENS. Facebook & Instagram. +34 634 716 703 (292071)

GOLD WANTED

HEALTH & BEAUTY CHIROPODIST/PODIATRIST, Philip Mann, clinics in Benissa, Moraira, Javea, Calpe and Albir.

686 912 307 (285241) If you can read it, so can your clients. Contact us and have your business grow at + 34 951 386 161

INSURANCE

KITCHENS CLEANING SERVICES COSTA BLANCA AREA. EXPERIENCED & RELIABLE CLEANERS. WEEKLY & DEEP CLEANS, KEY HANDOVER, LAUNDRY SERVICES. 634 176 318 (292066)

COMPUTERS COMPUTER REPAIRS – Laptops/PCs Qualified Technician –648 065 224 No Call Out Charge No Fix No Fee andy@wiz ard-computers.biz (290467)

DECORATING

CHURCHES English church in Benidorm – check out our website http://www.eng l i s h c h u r c h benidorm.com (292067)

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ELECTRICIAN MB ELECTRICS. Approved electrician. Any electrical repair. Iberdrola paperwork. Affordable prices. Miquel 655 282 175 www. mbelectrics.es (291516)

FOR SALE/WANTED WANTED Gold, Silver, Rolex & Patek Philippe Watches Telephone – 678 716 693 (288662)

THE Stonehouse Kitchen Company High Quality imported Kitchens at LOW PRICES www.stone housekitchenco.com Or call Steve: 683 31 77 65 (292079)

INSURANCE

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681 049 502 (294518)

CLASSIFIEDS INSURANCE FED UP OF NOT BEING SENT YOUR RENEWAL? CUT YOUR INSURANCE COSTS AND STILL HAVE 100% COVER. YOU HAVE TRIED THE REST NOW TRY THE BEST WITH SOS INSURANCE. WE CAN EVEN INSURE YOU FOR UPTO A €1,000 OF WATERLOSS. CALL 686 116 297 (WHATSAPP TOO) OR VISIT www.sosin suranceinspain.com or email tracey@sosin suranceinspain.com (294938) BENEFICIAL INSURANCE SERVICES. Car, Home, Business, Travel, Life, Funeral, all insurances available. Policies in English. BEST rates, covers & service. Immediate quotes. Tel 961 129 215 / 622 275 561, (WhatsApp) info@bene ficialinsuranceinspain. com or visit www.benefi cialinsuranceinspain.com for online quote.

(294254)

MOTORING

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METALWORK

17 - 23 February 2022

MOTORING

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Large fenced area. 699 790 080 Altea (291399) PET / HOUSE sitting, your house or mine. Benidorm area. 637 160 545 (294755)

PROPERTY

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PAINTERS/DECORATORS DECORATORS W.D. GILMOUR. Painter & Decorator. Established 35 years in Moraira. ESTIMATES FREE. Call William on 609 691 776 or 966 490 602 (294549) SOC PINTURA. House painter and decorator.

All Costa Blanca North covered. Call 641 642 669 (292073)

WE have buyers for Villas in Denia. Contact André on 629 185 343 Stirling Ackroyd (295312)

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TELECOMMUNICATIONS FED UP PAYING TOO MUCH FOR YOUR MOBILE PHONE CALLS? THEN CONTACT TELITEC TODAY. CALLS TO SPAIN 7C PER MINUTE INCLUDING MOBILES. CALLS TO UK 5.3C PER MINUTE. NO MONTHLY FEES, NO CONT R A C T .

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62 EWN

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ROAD TEST

by Mark Slack ITS looks more coupe crossover, think slimmed down BMW X6, and Re‐ nault’s new Arkana certain‐ ly adds a dash of style with my test model looking par‐ ticularly stylish thanks to its splendid Zanz‐ ibar Blue paint finish.

Prices start at €31,093/£26,290 for the lead‐in Icon‐ ic model, with two further trim levels and two engines, offering mild hy‐ brid and full hybrid powertrains. The 1.3‐litre turbo‐ charged petrol unit develops 138hp and has a seven‐speed dual clutch automatic, while the more powerful 1.6‐litre petrol offers full hybrid and a six‐speed clutchless auto‐ matic.

Standard equipment is good with all models having automatic lights and wipers, climate control, cruise, front and rear parking sensors, rear view camera and navi‐

Renault Arkana a dash of style with this new coupe crossover

A feeling of quality.

gation. My test model was the S‐Edition starting at €33,817/£28,590, including adaptive cruise control, high beam assist, LED lights, key‐ less entry and start, plus a host of safety and other kit.

Oddly there’s no rear wiper, although it doesn’t seem to obstruct vision in wet

weather but still a strange omission.

The Arkana’s full hybrid system allows the car to sort out when to go electric, petrol or both, and to manu‐ ally select pure electric for short distances. It makes for a very easy drive with

smooth tran‐ sitions between electric and combustion power. This smooth and refined drive is audibly interrupted if you opt for sudden, hard accel‐ eration, as the engine revs rise and wait for everything else to catch up. It’s a trait that isn’t unique to Renault transmissions of this type, and to be fair this is one of

the better systems in this re‐ gard. Go for smooth, pro‐ gressive acceleration and the Arkana will power itself away with a delightfully un‐ ruffled air.

With a 107 mph top speed and 62 mph passed in 10.8 seconds it’s by no means pedestrian. Despite a taller stance it handles well and rough roads

MOTORING

did not upset the Arkana’s comfort.

Inside there’s a nicely laid out, modern looking dash with buttons (hurrah!) and sensible touchscreen opera‐ tions. The central touch‐ screen is portrait orientated, rather than the more usual landscape, and works better for it in my view.

The Arkana’s style won’t be to everyone’s taste but it has real presence without the compromised looks of similar coupe crossovers.

There’s a feel of quality along with decent levels of interior space. It’s definitely one that should be high on the hit list for those seeking something a little different to the conventional norm.

Facts at a Glance Model: Renault Arkana Engine: 1.6-litre petrol developing 142 bhp with hybrid electric power Gears: 6-speed clutchless automatic Performance: 0-100 kmh (62 mph) 10.8 seconds/Maximum Speed 172 kmh (107 mph) Economy: 4.8l/100km (58.9 mpg) Combined driving (WLTP) Emissions: 109 g/km (WLTP) Model tested was UK-specification and equipment levels and prices may vary in other markets.

No ITVs in force

ACCORDING to data from the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT), two out of 10 cars involved in accidents with victims in 2020 did not have a valid ITV in force. This represents an increase of seven percentage points compared to the 10 per cent recorded in 2019.

Also, 15 per cent of motor‐ cycles involved in road acci‐ dents with injuries or victims during 2020 did not have the ITV in order, compared to 12 per cent recorded in 2019.

In the case of industrial ve‐ hicles of up to 3,500kg, al‐ most 33 per cent of the units that were involved in acci‐ dents with victims did not have the ITV in force, a figure that is double the 15 per cent registered the previous year.

Spain’s vehicles have a re‐ ported average age of over 13 years, making it one of the oldest in Europe, with one year above the average.

These are figures that, ac‐ cording to the Spanish Asso‐ ciation of Collaborating Enti‐

INVALID ITV: Common when involved in traffic accidents.

ties of the Administration in the Technical Inspection of Vehicles AECA‐ITV, “should concern us”.

This association points out that in recent months absen‐ teeism in the ITV has in‐ creased by up to 40 per cent.

For this reason, AECA‐ITV has highlighted the ‘funda‐ mental’ importance of checking cars, to reduce or avoid risks on the road.

Guillermo Magaz, the managing director of AECA‐ ITV, indicated that vehicles

begin to have defects over time, so that, regardless of proper maintenance, con‐ trols at ITV stations are “nec‐ essary” to detect faults, and be able to correct them.

AECA‐ITV has also empha‐ sised the relationship be‐ tween the age of the vehicle involved in an accident, and the state of its technical in‐ spection. Thus, the older there is, the higher the per‐ centage of vehicles with the ITV expired at the time of the road accident.

MOTORING

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Help for car buyers

THE DGT has launched an on‐ line platform allowing me‐ chanics to register work carried out to second‐hand cars and make it easier for buyers to see a car’s work history.

The Electronic Workshop Book, developed by the Span‐ ish Confederation of Automo‐ bile and Related Repair Work‐ shops (CETRAA), allows

workshops to register with the DGT and also offers an interac‐ tive map to participating me‐ chanics throughout Spain.

The website’s ultimate goal is to increase transparency in the second‐hand vehicle mar‐ ket in Spain. Each time any ve‐ hicles pass through these asso‐ ciated workshops, the establishment will register the

WORK HISTORY: Online platform will now be helpful.

work carried out.

From there, the data will be sent to the DGT and anyone will be able to know a car’s complete revision history by requesting a vehicle report.

By registering data as reveal‐ ing as the vehicle’s mileage, possible manipulations in the odometers ‐ one of the most reported practices in this type of transaction ‐ will be avoided.

EWN 63