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THE border town of La Linea de la Concepcion has been handed extra harsh coronavirus restrictions by the Junta de Andalucia. The municipality, which borders Gibraltar, has been placed into Level 4.2 of the region’s coronavirus tier system. The town is facing an unprecedented climb in the number of cases and was forced to order all non-essential business and trade to cease activity from midnight on Sunday. This includes shops, hotels, restaurants and bars - with the exception of essential businesses such as supermarkets or petrol stations. Experts made the decision along with regional president Juanma Moreno on Friday after the town’s cumulative incidence rate reached 1,247.9 cases per 100,000 people.
Double
That is more than double the average rate of the currently besieged Campo de Gibraltar health district, which stands at 506.5 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. The whole district, made up eight towns, is currently closed down, meaning no one can leave or exit without a justified reason, such as medical, legal or for work. These measures will remain in place until at least January 25, Moreno said at a press conference today. The campo was first closed off when health authorities discovered the more contagious UK variant of the virus had arrived in Gibraltar. Since then, La Linea, which receives cross-border workers daily, has seen an extremely sharp increase in COVID-19 cases. One worker told the Olive Press this week that the situation in the area was ‘out of control.’ The young woman, who works on the Costa del Sol but lives in the Campo, and her partner are still both waiting to be tested after coming into direct contact with a COVID-19 infected person.
Dark times THERE have been a total of 16 deaths from COVID-19 since the pandemic first struck in Gibraltar. The last four occurred on the weekend the vaccines finally arrived on January 9. The majority of the deaths were of elderly people with underlying conditions although there were also some exceptions. COVID-19 active cases surpassed the 1,000 mark just after the Christmas period although they have since stabilised. The strict measures imposed in the social lockdown introduced by the government on December 27 and January 2 have finally taken effect. Public health experts believe the start of the third wave was initiated by Black Friday shopping on November 29. As the pre-Christmas shopping spree continued and families started to meet together it is believed to have spread further.
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Vol. 5 Issue 139 www.theolivepress.es January 13th - January 26th 2021
Peri-less crossing
STUMPED: Lathey was angry when his chilli and cloves were accepted but his Peri-Peri hot sauce was confiscated at the border A BRITISH expat has branded Spanish border officials ‘ridiculous’ and ‘clueless’ after they confiscated his Nando’s Peri Peri sauce at the Gibraltar border. Joseph Lathey, 27, was left fuming when much of his weekly shopping was binned as he tried to cross back into La Linea. This meant seeing his bananas and leeks being tipped into a customs officer’s bin. It also included his vegetable samosas, one of his favourite weekly treats he buys from Ramsons, on Waterport Road. Meanwhile, his chilli and cloves were deemed acceptable. “I was completely stumped. I had a chicken which I thought might have been stopped but not the Peri-Peri sauce,” Lathey told the Olive Press. “The officials said it contained onion puree, meaning it contained processed veg and was therefore not allowed over.
British expat left fuming after most of his shopping including the Peri-Peri sauce - was labelled ‘contraband’ at Gib border due to new Brexit rules
“I said it was ridiculous as that would mean most of my shopping would also not be allowed in.” Indeed, officials told the Brit the only items from his £55 shop that could cross the frontier were his cloves and chilli powder. “It didn’t make any sense,” he added, “they seemed to be pretty clueless. “I asked them to provide documents to justify what they were taking and they just sent me a photo of a link to a Spanish Government website.” Lathey was told he could take his shopping back onto the Rock to store it. “I ended up selling it all for £20, which is better than nothing,” added Lathey. It comes after several reports on social media of Brits See page 16 having food seized at the border. One expat,
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Exclusive by Laurence Dollimore
who asked not to be named, admitted that he stuffed bacon down his underwear after hearing they were seizing the majority of someone else’s products. The EU now classes the UK as a third country, bringing in tougher controls on what can and cannot cross the border into the bloc. According to the Gibraltar Government website, several items for personal consumption are now banned, including all meat and milk products (bar powdered infant milk, baby food and special food required for medical reasons or pet food required for animal health reasons). You cannot bring in more than 20kg of any fish product or more than 2kg of other specific animal products, including honey, oysters, live mussels and snails. The Government reminder, published on January 4, does not list vegetable products as being on the
prohibited list. But Spanish legislation, specifically law 2019/2072, dictates that vegetables and vegetable-based products are prohibited from entering the peninsula from a ‘third country.’ The Gibraltar Government told the Olive Press: “The Government’s understanding is that EU law specifically exempts plant products intended for personal consumption from official controls at Border Control Posts on introduction to the EU.
Agreement
“Therefore, the Government will be seeking to clarify this matter with the relevant Spanish Authorities. “Until the final agreement with respect to Gibraltar’s future relationship with the EU is settled, and unless the Government advises on specific bridging measures or derogations having been agreed whilst that agreement is negotiated, Gibraltar will be treated as a third country for the purposes of EU customs controls.”