1 November - 7 November 2022

Dig continues at Albatera concentration camp

the archaeological dig, currently taking place at Albatera concentration camp, has documented 3500 points of interest so far. the dig will continue until mid-november as teams of archaeologists comb the earth for items that will shed light on the troubled time in spain’s history.

the facility was built as a work camp in 1938 and between April and november 1939, was a prison camp where many are believed to have

suffered and died.

Architects have been carrying out a survey of the 3-hectare plot, now used to grow coriander, with metal detectors. inch by inch, they have used GPs to log 3500 markers, showing remains of structures that once stood on the site. significant material has also been collected by the team on the dig, with around 400 items gathered that will later be cleaned, classified, entered in an inventory and held by the mArQ

archaeological museum. the items include bullets, triggers from guns, a revolver butt and mostly, mauser shells used by the Francoist army. Lab tests will tell the team if the bullets were fired or not and this will confirm if executions were likely carried out there.

Lead seals have also been found that would have sealed the ammunition boxes. A microscope reveals the

inscription “sevillan pyrotechnics”, the factory that supplied the rebel army. in that same area where the prisoners’ barracks would have been located, a lapel pin of the national railway Union of the UGt was found. the group of railway workers was one of the most impacted after the end of the war. many were imprisoned or executed.

Among the other objects found, there are numerous coins from the second republic. once the war was over, they no longer had value. Archaeologists also found several empty tubes. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the majority of inmates caught scabies at the camp and in letters home to relatives, they requested tubes of ointment.

this is the third dig to date at the site and there are currently no excavations planned to find the mass grave but archaeologists have said that what they are finding at the moment confirms the likelihood of its existence.

the foundations of a barracks, 60 metres long by seven wide, were found at the site last year. the government is planning to buy the land over the next year.

International drug trafficking gang arrested

nine men have been arrested and two women are being investigated for the crimes of belonging to a criminal group, drug trafficking, falsifying public documents and illegal possession of weapons. A large amount of drugs, vehicles, mobile devices, documentation and weapons have been seized. orihuela Court decreed prison without bail for the three main perpetrators.

the investigations began in January 2022, specifically in the customs area of the Alicanteelche miguel hernández Airport, when the Fiscal Analysis and investigation office (odAiFi) intercepted two packages with more than 2,200 kilograms of hashish bound for France.

the territorial team of the Judicial Police of Pilar de la horadada, in order to clarify the origin and the senders of the drug, launched an investigation. in the first phase of the operation, after analysing all the information and evidence obtained, the investigators identified two 28-year-old French men who, regularly and with forged documentation, sent parcels to France, belgium and the netherlands.

After investigating the two men, police located their homes and a clandestine cannabis association with which they were linked, all located in orihuela Costa. the person in charge of the illegal club was a 26-year-old russian man, who worked for the two French men. in February, at valenciamanises international Airport, two new packages with more than 2 kilograms of marijuana and destined for the netherlands were intercepted. those being investigated, realising that their packages did not reach their destinations, modified the modus operandi, sending their subsequent drug shipments from an ordinary post office.

Police also carried out a raid earlier this year in which the gang lost merchandise worth more than 70,000 euros. After this, they improved their security, moved to a new safer address and acquired various self-defence weapons.

After obtaining information from the UK authorities, the supplier of the drug was identified as a 30-year-old british citizen and resident of orihuela Costa. he himself, along with others under investigation, ran five indoor marijuana plantations throughout the province of Alicante.

on september 1, at a routine check, the underage son of the british supplier was arrested for drug trafficking in san miguel de salinas. officers said that “it was possible to verify how he did not hesitate to use his own son with an electric scooter to

make sales.”

the final phase of the operation was carried out on september 28, when police carried out nine simultaneous house raids in orihuela Costa, torrevieja, san miguel de salinas, Crevillente, Agost, miranda-Cartagena (murcia), balsicas-torre Pacheco (murcia), and also at a clandestine cannabis association of orihuela Costa. officers had the support of the UseCiCs (the Guardia Civil’s rapid response Unit) from Alicante, torrevieja and murcia as well as several canine units and Guardia Civil officers from both Alicante and murcia.

the investigation resulted in the arrest of eight men, aged between 23 and 50 years of French, british, russian, bolivian, Colombian and spanish nationality, as well as a british

minor.

the next day, two women of bulgarian and Colombian nationality, aged 27 and 38, were also questioned.

during the operation, 479 marijuana plants, almost 4 kilograms of hashish, more than 10 kilograms of marijuana buds, 100 millilitres of pure tetrahydrocannabinol ( thC) normally used to vape with electronic cigarettes, other quantities of drugs such as cocaine, ecstasy (mdmA) were seized along with more than 70,000 euros, 2 short firearms, 1 camouflaged taser flashlight weapon, 2 large machetes, 4 cars, 2 vans, 1 large-capacity motorcycle and 1 jet ski. in addition, forged official identification documentation, mobile phone devices and other documentation was seized.

One of the men posts a package

Torrevieja to save 30% on Christmas lighting

over the next few days, torrevieja City Council will begin to install lighting for its forthcoming patron saint festivities and for Christmas. this year, festive lighting will be installed on some sixty streets, walkways and squares in the city, placing more than 570 arches and lamppost motifs that will shine between november 26, 2022 and January 6, 2023. Although the coverage of festive lighting has been considerably expanded this year, with installations across a greater number of places in the municipal area, there will be savings in electricity consumption of more than 30 percent, said the town hall.

the Councillor for Festivities, Concha sala, explained that the reduction of more than 30 percent will be possible thanks to the installation of all the

latest technology Led bulbs with high efficiency, in addition to a considerable reduction in the lighting time. Until last year, festive lighting remained on from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., but for this year 2022, in accordance with the rules of reduction of energy consumption, lights will only be turned on from 6:00 p.m. to 02:00 a.m.

the electrical installation itself has also been renovated with the provision of new wiring, electrical panels, and new magneto-thermal clocks that will offer better performance. the lighting project will be carried out by servicio integral de instalaciones eléctricas radiluz s.L., for an amount of 291,152.36 euros plus vAt.

As well as the expansion of the festive street lighting, to areas such as La siesta, torreta Florida and Los balcones,there

will also be festive lighting on several of the roundabouts approaching the town centre as well as in La mata where the town hall there will be decorated for the first time.

Walking football returns

the C.d.m sports club in the orihuela Costa have recently had the football Astroturf playing surface replaced and all football had to be cancelled, but good news it is now officially playable.

the Playa Flamenca Walking Football Club will be able to resume playing on mondays from october 31st at 4pm.

if you would like to play Walking football for the over 50’s, gain some

exercise join the wags and players in a fantastic social club contact the secretary: vickyhillspain@gmail.com

or turn up watch or play on mondays - K.o is at 4 ish and you can expect to have fun and meet likeminded people.

Los Montesinos offers free self-defence course for women

the department of sports and equality of the City Council of Los montesinos is planning to run a free self-defence course aimed at women, framed within the activities of the commemoration to be carried out for the 25th november, the United nations’ international day for the elimination of violence against Women. the course will be held during november, on mondays and Wednesdays throughout the month: the 14th, 16th, 21st, 23rd, 28th and 30th from 8:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in the pavilion of the virgen del Pilar de Los montesinos public school. Lessons are being taught by instructors from the draco Kwan taekwondo Club.

Within the self-defence course, different self-protection techniques will be taught to equip participants to deal with several types of potential situations: intimidation, grabs, assault with a knife, rape, etc. the objective of the course, according to Councillor Juárez, responsible for both sports and equality, is “to provide the attendees with basic knowledge and skills of self-protection and self-defence, improving their personal safety and equipping them with the basic knowledge necessary so that they can avoid situations of violence. it is about

teaching them techniques and strategies so that they can incapacitate the aggressor and flee in case of attack.”

Juarez also said that “training in self-defence helps women to develop more confidence in themselves and their environment and implement strategies for prevention and detection of dangerous situations, since these courses allow them to integrate personal security habits into daily life. and promote confidence and self-esteem in order to overcome risky situations. i would like to conclude by clarifying that we launch this initiative knowing what the current reality is, but we know that the ideal situation is not that women have to learn to defend ourselves, but that men have to learn that women

are not to be attacked nor raped”.

registration for the course will be free of charge and can be completed at Los montesinos town hall from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., monday through Friday.

New manager of Torrevieja Hospital meets mayor and Councillor for Health

the new manager of the department of health of torrevieja, José Cano, has started a round of meetings with the mayors and Councillors of the ten municipalities served by the hospital and health centres that fall under his jurisdiction.

on his first day as head of torrevieja health department last monday, the manager met the Company Committee, members of the management team and the staff board. on tuesday he met the heads of service and care coordinators and on Friday, held a meeting with the entire emergency service team. the latter has been in the spotlight since direct management began, due to consecutive changes of heads of service and significant service problems during the summer.

Cano is not a stranger to local politics. most of the mayors of the local towns know him for his long career as head of Public health in the area since 2003.

José Cano held a working meeting with the mayor of torrevieja, eduardo dolón, and the councillor for health, diana box. “both parties have insisted on the importance of working

together for the benefit of the well-being of patients to offer the best standards, both in terms of personnel, assistance, health technology or quality of service,” according to a statement by the department of health.

After his meeting with Cano, mayor eduardo dolón has said on social networks that he has “a close relationship” with the new manager. dolón said, “Among the requests that i have made is the urgent need to solve the problems we have in the hospital and in the CAPs as soon as possible. i hope that the professionalism of dr. Cano represents a ‘before and after’ in the health management of this last year.”

José Cano has insisted on the

importance of “working actively listening to all parties with the aim of improving assistance and reinforcing resources to offer citizens the best quality of care available”.

doctor Cano has only been in office for a few days. he took up the position after the resignation of Pilar santos, who had been in charge for a year. together with santos, the financial director of the health department also left. only the director of nursing remains from the total number of members of the management team who began when direct management took over the hospital in october 2021. several of the vacancies, such as medical management and primary care, have not yet been filled.

Local Police get thermal camera drone

Local Police in orihuela have taken delivery of a new drone to add to the two that were already part of the police unit. however, the new ‘super drone’ has a thermal camera which will allow officers to locate people in areas difficult access, to detect fires and to locate dumping of illegal garden waste or rubbish. it can also detect breakdowns that may occur in the electricity distribution network. thanks to this drone, officers will be able to work in adverse weather conditions and take an active role in rescues as required.

Councillor Jose Aix has explained that “investing

in the Local Police is one of our priorities” through the reinforcement of human and material resources. “For a small investment, we are greatly reinforcing the work of the entire Local Police, as well as increasing the safety of our neighbours,” he added.

the new drone will allow the municipal urban inspection services to reach all sites and make a diagnosis in terms of urban planning needs, as well as gain evidence for urban illegalities and law breaking.

the machine is power by two batteries, which gives it a range of 41 minutes. it also has obstacle detection by vision and infrared detectionand

a wind resistance system of up to 15 meters per second. the drone can fly at 83 kilometres per hour, reaches 7,000 meters in height and can operate in a temperature range of between minus 20 degrees and 50 degrees. in addition, it with stands rain, has pinpoint positioning accuracy and flies with three propellers, which facilitates the emergency landing in case one fails. the drone is operated by software that is managed from the command, which allows planning flights and mapping, while sending a signal from the camera to any mobile device that is granted permission.

Vega Baja Hospital expansion

the mayor of orihuela, Carolina Gracia, has expressed her satisfaction after learning that the department of Public health has awarded the expansion works of the vega baja hospital to the roverGermanía joint venture group, which means the building work will begin in the next month. she explained that this is “very good news for the residents of orihuela and the entire vega baja who depend on this health centre, as it means increasing the numberof beds, health services and, in general, an improvement in patient care for everyone”.

the imminent start of the project fulfils the promise given by the President of the Generalitat, Ximo Puig, as well as the former health minister Ana barceló and the current minister, miguel mínguez,that the hospital would be expanded to me the needs of the community.

Carolina Gracia showed her gratitude by making orihuela City Council available to the Generalitat “to cooperate in everything that is necessary for

the project to run smoothly”. the extension will see the construction of two new buildings, one, which will be on the ground floor, destined for the outpatient area for external consultations and include a mental health centre. the otherwill be dedicated to operating rooms, dialysis and endoscopy, which will be annexed to the existing surgical block. in addition, the vehicle parking capacity will be increased through the addition of an underground car park.

At the beginning of August, the health minister, miguel mínguez, reported in a meeting at vega baja hospital, where Carolina Gracia was present, that the works would be carried out in phases in order to hinder the daily work in the hospital as little as possible. the capacity of the hospital will be increased by 52 beds.

the minister said: “this is a real project; it already has its budget and will be complemented by the expansion of the orihuela Costa and Guardamar del segura health centres.”

Expansion Plan in a first phase, the temporary ramp for emergency vehicles, adaptation of the new heliport, new parking areas and demolition of existing buildings will be carried out. in the second phase, the construction of the building located to the north, the first section of the platform and the connections with the existing building will be completed.

thirdly, the south building, the rest of the platform and the connections with the current building will be built. And finally, the urbanisation of the plot, the perimeter fence and the access for users and personnel will be added.

vega baja hospital currently has a workforce of 1,400 workers, added to which are those who work for external companies such as the cleaning service. however, the minister of health announced that staff numbers will be increased with the creation of various positions to ensure newly expanded hospital has the relevant human resources necessary to provide an increased service.

Veteran rockers

Iron Maiden to play Murcia next year

Man arrested for renting out empty homes

A man has been arrested in elche for renting out houses that were empty following evictions. the man is said to have taken advantage of the fact that the properties were empty after residents were evicted. he changed the locks and acted as an ‘estate agent’ to rent the properties out to unsuspecting third parties.

83 year old dies as tractor overturns in Albatera

Treasure Island comes to San Fulgencio

Legendary rock band iron maiden has announced three spanish concerts as part of its 2023 tour - including murcia. the english heavy metal band are set to play enrique roca stadium in murcia on July 20th, as well as Palau sant Jordi in barcelona and bizkaia Arena in bilbao. iron maiden was formed in Leyton, east London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter steve harris. the band have released 41 albums, including 17 studio albums, 13 live albums, four ePs and seven compilations. they have also released 47 singles and 20 video albums. two electronic games have been released with iron maiden soundtracks, and the band’s music is featured in a number of other video games. since the return of lead vocalist bruce dickinson and guitarist Adrian smith in 1999, the band has undergone a resurgence in popularity, with a series of new albums and highly successful tours. tickets for the spanish leg of the Future Past tour go on sale on Wednesday november 2nd.

Agents of the national Police arrested the 39-year-old man who is charged with usurpation of real estate and damages.

According to the national Police in a statement, the man took ‘absolute control’ of the properties and proceeded to work illegally as if he were a real estate agent. in this way, he managed the rental of the properties with third parties and after he had changed the locks, delivered keys to tenants in exchange for an agreed amount of rent.

After several police investigations, the officers in charge of the case managed to verify that the person at the centre of the investigation had allegedly rented out several properties. in addition, to access the properties, he caused what police called “serious economic damage.”

Among the effects that were seized from the arrested man, officers found several locks prepared and ready for installation. the investigation is still open at this time as police consider that they might locate more properties ‘rented’ by the suspect.

A tragic accident in Albatera took the life of an 83-year-old man who suffered an accident and was trapped under his tractor when it overturned. the victim was working in the fields when the incident occurred around 3:30 p.m. on sunday.

Five firefighters, a sergeant and a corporal from the elche and Crevillente parks travelled to the scene. during the attempted rescue, they used a powerful hydraulic pump and a towing van but to no avail. despite the efforts of the emergency services, the operation finally ended at 6:00 p.m. without having been able to rescue the 83-yearold man alive.

Join in when the rojales Pantomime Group goes ‘Pirating in the Caribbean’ with Captain Long John silver and his dastardly shipmates on the good ship hispaniola looking for buried treasure Will they find any and if so, who wins the prize?

there will be lots of mayhem and laughter on this madcap journey, together with slapstick comedy, rip roaring songs, Crazy Ladies dancing and surprises galore you really won’t want to miss. so for an exceedingly entertaining few hours why not join the fun on december 1st and 2nd at 7.15pm or saturday 3rd at 2.15 pm at the Cardinal belluga theatre in san Fulgencio.

tickets are only 10€ adults and 5€ children which can be purchased from the following ticket outlets. Card

Place, benimar; Post room, benijofar; Post box, dona Pepa; Post box, entre naranjos; Cards and more, La marina; Carpet heaven, Los montesinos; bargain books, san miguel; help vega baja, san miguel; Quesada Computers, Quesada

if you are not able to purchase from any of these email voreilly16@ googlemail.com to reserve tickets at the theatre. donations from ticket sales will be allocated to various local charities.

the scene is set at the Admiral benbow where various seafaring ne’er do wells and their girlfriends are discovered enjoying a rousing singsong, so come and join in for merry jests and happy laughter, you won’t want to miss it... oh no, you won’t!!

New laws for electric scooters in Orihuela

new laws in orihuela have been issued to govern municipal mobility, including electric scooters. the change to local ordinance means that these rules are now local laws and must be adhered to. Although the laws look at general mobility of the population to ensure mobility for all, the rules specifically applied to electric scooters are of most interest.

Flagrant misuse of personal mobility vehicles (Pmvs), such as electric scooters, in orihuela can now be penalised since the new bylaw came into force.

these scooters have proven particularly popular in orihuela Costa, where there is little public transport, and the taxi service has far too few vehicles and cannot meet demand. scooters have fast become a cost-effective and convenient way to zip round the coast, with people of all ages catching on to the trend.

however, the new laws state scooter riders must adhere to general traffic rules; so no riding against the flow of traffic or cutting across pedestrian crossings. it is illegal to use an electric scooter on pavements, promenades or in other pedestrianised areas.

riders cannot use mobile phones or music headphones whilst travelling – they must focus on the sound around them in order to be able to react to emergency situations. however, the biggest rule affecting scooter users is that more than one person is not allowed under any circumstances – this includes a parent transporting a child. All electric scooters

are single person vehicles and riders must be 16 years of age or over. Children are not allowed on electric scooters under any circumstances.

Parents need to take note of these new laws as fines of 100 euros or more will be issued to any electric scooter users caught breaking the new regulations and those regulations are in force now.

How to invest in times of turbulence

• Amid turbulence, this could be the moment to commit money to the markets

• Diversification is key at present as is a focus on market leading companies

the reverberations of the recent upheavals in the UK government which have seen the markets in turmoil, have left investors feeling unsettled.

but experts argue, that should be the impetus for a rebalancing of your portfolio to ensure exposure to a broad range of assets against a possibly even more challenging period ahead.

Your instinct may be to take shelter in cash, despite the negative real returns. but, if you can take a longer-term view, it’s time to get creative.

While a cash buffer is important in an era of volatility, this could be the moment to commit money to the markets.

Fears of higher interest rates have hit prices of government gilt-edged stocks and of corporate bonds, driving up their yields.

bonds make up a portion of the rathbone strategic Growth Portfolio fund, one of the funds that seagate use in a balanced portfolio.

diversification is key at present. Portfolios need a solid base, so they are diversified over asset classes, currencies and geographies.

this approach may not radiate happiness, but

it should help you to achieve some sense of balance.

if you are new to investing, or have an existing investment without an adviser, or are unhappy with your current adviser, then get in touch today.

Why should you choose seagate to advise you?

All our advisers were trained at high street banks in the UK. We pride ourselves on putting our clients first. Unlike other advisers on the Costas we believe in regular reviews with our clients to ensure that their pension or investment is on track. We have a fully staffed office in benijofar with a back-up team to support all our clients with withdrawals, encashments and top ups. do not delay and call us.

Torrevieja town hall to sack pest control company

torrevieja town hall confirmed it is to sack the company contracted to deal with pest control in the town due to the lack of efficacy against the current mosquito infestation. the mayor confirmed in a plenary session last week that it will liquidate the contract, saying that the company only has one vehicle to deal with the daily reports of infestations and that the town hall is set to sign the termination of the contract early this week.

the company awarded the pest control contract has been totally overwhelmed to provide the service since it was awarded in mid-2020. the town hall has received a barrage of criticism on social networks and directly from residents about the current infestation, which started two weeks ago.

on thursday, in response to a question from the opposition, the mayor assured that he plans to terminate the contract with the current company. dolón said that the company only has one vehicle for the entire municipal area, when, he admitted, four or five should be deployed daily in a situation like the current one.

the Councillor for health, diana box, criticised the previous municipal

government. torrevieja was left without a pest control contract in 2017 and began processing a new one.

the current firm was hired by the present government in september 2020. Councillor box attributes the current contract’s insufficiency to the specifications outlined by the previous government team which she described as insufficient for the needs of the town and with an investment of only €57,000 per year.

she also said that it does not include treatment of the land around torrevieja salt lake, something that has a huge impact on residential areas such as torreta Florida and torreta i,

ii and iii, as well as other nearby areas. What is not clear is what will happen once the town hall dispenses with the current company, inti, which still has almost a year left on its contract and could potentially file a claim against the town hall for lost profits.

opposition parties Los verdes and sueña torrevieja said in last week’s plenary session that the current plague is affecting the daily life of torrevieja to the point where people are not able to participate in sports activities and in some cases, attend school. Also, they pointed out, there have been cases of people sensitive to bites who have required medical assistance.

GBP

it has been another week of relative calmness for the UK. rishi sunak and Jeremy hunt took the decision to delay the medium-term fiscal plan from the end of this month until the 17th november. they will use the extra time to crunch the numbers with the obr, and ensure that there are properoutcomes factored into their assumptions. All of this clearly makes sense. the fact that for every day that passes, government borrowing costs have been reducing, which has ensured that the hole in the fiscal plans has already reduced by about £10bn to £30bn, may also be relevant. At this rate, if the government leave it long enough, there is a chance that they will be left with no deficit.

As we highlighted in our daily commentaries, markets have reacted with overwhelming positivity to the change in both Pm and chancellor. the sell-off that the pound and UK gilts in the truss/Kwarteng era underwent has now been totally reversed, and replaced with a respectable rishi rally’ ensuring that gilt yields continue to move steadily lower, and GbP/ Usd journeying beyond 1.1600 for a spell through this week.

on the data front, the accelerating weakness in the UK economy is become ever-more apparent, with the latest Pmi survey reflecting softening across the board, as the key services Pmi dropped to 47.5 from 50. next week is dominated by the boe meeting, and whilst they will not have the benefit of the government’s updated fiscal plan to help guide their path, inflation is now running beyond 10%, and with everything else settling down, the boe look likely to go with a bold 75bps hike. Quite whether the UK economy can withstand much more in the way of hikes beyond that is questionable.

As for the pound, and assuming that there are no more bumps in the road, sterling’s fortunes from here are far more likely to be driven from broader market appetite for risk. As we said at the top, GbP/Usd has made a fantastic recovery from the 1.0300 low, but much of that is down to a recently weakening dollar (see Usd).

GbP/eUr popped back up to 1.1600 yesterday, as profit-taking from long eUr positions after the eCb drove the single currency lower.

EURO

it has been another disappointing week for euroarea economic data, as the economy continues to struggle across the region. the latest batch of Pmi readings reflected particular weakness in Germany, with the key composite and manufacturing components both missing estimates by some margin. the region-wide composite also missed estimates, slipping to 47.1 from 48.1.

As expected, the eCb raised euro-area interest rates by 75bps yesterday ( thursday), which increased the key rate on deposit Facility to 1.5%, and brings rates up to levels not witnessed in a decade or more.As well as highlighting that the eCb will need to raise rates again over the coming months, eCb head Lagarde also observed that the depreciation of the euro has added to the region’s inflation problem. We often highlight how countries import inflation through weaker currencies. similar comments have recently emerged from other key central bank heads. Lagarde also mentioned that ongoing tight monetary policy results in weaker global growth, which could lead to higher unemployment in the future.

Looking ahead, Lagarde reiterated that any decision on interest rates in the future will remain data dependent, and those decisions will be made on a meeting-by-meeting basis, comments she has said on more than one occasion previously. the single currency had been moving steadily higher leading into the eCb meeting, culminating witheUr/ Usd moving as high as 1.0100, as markets positioned for that hefty rate hike. however, profit-taking and broader market caution, resulted in a sight pullback through parity yesterday afternoon. next week will also key for data, as the latest inflation and retail sales data are published, with the former expected to highlight just why the eCb need to maintain their current pace of rate hikes.

‘Seniors on the march’ in Orihuela Costa

orihuela Costa has, for the first time, hosted a combined social and sporting event for those over 60 years of age called “seniors on the march”. the walk was organised by the department of social Welfare, in collaboration of the department of sports and transport.

the day brought together 350 people from across the municipality of orihuela to participate in the workshops offered by social Welfare and sports. Carolina Gracia, mayor of orihuela and Councillor for social Welfare highlighted the importance of organising these events for this sector of the population, which is

so important to society. she explained “their well-being is a priority for this government team and for the next budget we are going to implement new services for the elderly, in addition to organising new recreational activities adapted to their needs so that they remain active at this stage of their lives”.

throughout the morning, different activities were held, such as the 2,000-meter-long march on an urban route that included refreshment points and, at the end, trophies were handed out to the top three to cross the line, both in the women’s category and men´s, there was also entertainment,

activities and raffling gifts.

“it is very important for the town hall to encourage the practice of physical activity among the elderly, as it helps control and prevent some diseases,” said Patricia menárguez, Councillor for sports who accompanied the participants on the march.

the event was held on the esplanade at Playa Flamenca beach front and proved hugely popular. so much so that after this first edition in orihuela Costa, it has been decided that the event and other similar activities will be organised for the same location and will join similar events which take place in the Palmeral de orihuela.

Walkers in Natural Park hear shots fired

members of the public walking in torrevieja’s natural park this weekend reported hearing gunshots, presumably from hunters. With hunting season underway, many gun enthusiasts go shooting at the weekends in free-hunting zones. hunting within the bounds of torrevieja and La mata natural park is not permitted. even in areas where hunting is permitted, there is strict legislation surrounding the activity. For example, hunters must be in possession of the required licences and permissions and must follow basic rules such as the collection of cartridges. however, witnesses claim that the land around the natural park is full of cartridges.

Walkers on sunday reported hearing gunshots a few metres from the road that runs alongside Casa sala and Casa de les Palmeres, in an area that is always very busy with hikers, cyclists and dog walkers. Legislation prohibits hunting within 25 metres of roads, highways and houses, which makes it very difficult, in a very popular natural area, for hunters who move around the natural Park to comply with the law. the groups of hunters alternate their activity between the farms located outside the park -the hunting activity has the support of farmers in the area

- in the vicinity of the Casa de Les Palmeres, which falls inside the boundary of Guardamar, as well as an area within the limits of the protected area, next to the vineyards, the old irrigation pond and the path that leads to the birdlife viewpoint of the park, which is also widely used for tourist routes on horseback.

A good part of the land is private, but it is not fenced nor are there any signs that authorise it as a hunting area.

hunting is prohibited within the protected area of the natural Park; it has only been authorised occasionally with dogs - without firearms - to stop the plague of rabbits that occasionally threatens the harvest of the scarce 30 hectares of vineyards that are still cultivated in the surroundings of the La mata lagoon.

As a tourist municipality,

torrevieja is not known for its hunting activity, its practice is considered very minority and carried out above all by locals from the area and from neighbouring municipalities such as Guardamar. Las Lagunas natural Park area is frequented by hundreds of people who regularly come to walk with their dogs or to practice sport, enjoying the many scenic trails offered by this natural area. the team of environmental agents warned of the potential danger for those people who, unaware of the outer limits of the protected area, walk through places used by hunters. in addition to the road that connects La mata and Campo de Guardamar, which on sundays is full of traffic on its way to the market located in the vicinity of el raso. the n-332 road and its urbanizations are just 250 metres away.

Los Montesinos football tournament

the Councilor for sports of Los montesinos town hall, Ana belén Juárez, and the director of the Los montesinos musical Association, José Francisco Paredes Pérez, presented the 1st 8-a-side Football tournament for music bands in honour of santa Cecilia, which it will take place on saturday, november 5, throughout the day, at the Los montesinos municipal soccer field.

Councillor Juárez announced that “starting at 9 in the morning on saturday, november 5, you will be able to experience a great day of football in a new and unprecedented tournament never before held in this format, with musicians as protagonists. ” and added that “the final phase of the tournament will be played from 4:00 pm.”

the 13 bands that will compete on the day are all from the vega baja region: Unión musical san Fulgencio, sociedad “Arte musical de rafal”, Agrupación musical de Los montesinos, Unión musical de san bartolomé, Unión musical de redován, Unión musical san miguel de salinas, sociedad Unión musical de bigastro, Unión musical santa Cecilia de rojales, Agrupación musical de Guardamar, sociedad musical

“La Armónica” de Cox, sociedad musical Ciudad de torrevieja, Unión musical de dolores and the sociedad musical de benejúzar.

Ana belén Juárez mentioned “the importance of holding this type of event where it is shown that culture and sport are compatible in the same event, without always having the need to enjoy each of them independently.

” and added that “for Los montesinos it is an honour to receive in our town all these representatives of the bands of the region and i hope they enjoy the day of coexistence, which will also feature a giant paella for the participants and their companions”.

President of Los montesinos musical Association, José Francisco Paredes Pérez, stressed “that this tournament

is new and one of its main assets is that young musicians and students see that you can combine sports activities as well as cultural and musical ones.”

Paredes expressed his wish “that this tournament is repeated year after year and is a meeting point for all the bands in the region.”

Our 13 year old daughter says she wants gender reassignment and cosmetic surgery. I am so exasperated with her. My husband says to play it down because he suspects it is a phase. She says she thinks she should have been born a boy. She complains her face is ugly, wants to have fillers, and have her lips plumped up and have her rear made bigger. She is also set on having tattoos when she is old enough. She says if we don’t pay for it, she will find ways of earning the money and paying for it herself. She is obsessed with her phone and is never off it. She has a male friend who is putting his parents through it at the moment, wanting to change sex, so we think this is where she has got the idea from.

If this were me, I would try not to worry too much. It’s possible she is testing you, so be cool about it and say she can be what she wants, but you are most certainly not

financing this for her. She is only 13, and she needs parental consent for anything like this until she is older anyway. Try and find some outside group activity that does not involve taking her telephone or using

Write to Sara in confidence.

all letter

054 467.

the internet - like sports, or drama. Children today can become obsessed with social media, reality TV shows with unachievable body images, and it can be the cause of problems like low self-esteem, when they how see celebrities live.

Ryanair celebrates 15 years at Alicante-Elche airport

to mark 15 years of operating on the Costa blanca, ryanair announced its schedule for the winter season at the Alicanteelche airport. during ‘low season’ which started on sunday and will last until the end of march, ryanair will connect the airport to 23 countries, 87 cities (97 destinations because some cities have several airports) through 155 routes, revealed airport director, Laura navarro. navarro said, “We are here to celebrate this decision - ryanair’s arrival in Alicante in 2007 - which was undoubtedly a success and that, after going through some tough years of the pandemic, we can see how that initial commitment remains firm”.

ryanair has transported more than 45 million passengers to date since its first flight from Alicante to London stansted. this winter the irish company introduces four new routes to Fez, helsinki, Frankfurt and Lodz, bringing the total to 64 routes.

navarro continued, “ this sunday the winter season starts and traffic is recovering, although with a scenario of great uncertainty. the airlines have made a significant offer of seats, with 5.46 million seats until the end of march, and this means exceeding the figures for the 2019 winter season,

although as i already said, we are facing an unpredictable future.”

“ryanair contributes in a very clear way to this traffic recovery and that is why today i feel that this birthday is something shared with everyone. Costa blanca as a destination is one that attracts the international and national passenger year after year and that has also done a great job and an important contribution to this recovery,” said the director.

elena Cabrera, Country manager for spain and Portugal said that “ryanair is delighted to

celebrate the 15th anniversary of operations and its base in Alicante, having transported more than 45 million passengers to date. With seven aircraft based here, a $700 million investment and more than 210 well-paid pilot and cabin crew jobs, ryanair continues to deliver more traffic, more growth and lower fares than any other airline in Alicante. this winter, we offer more than 460 flights weekly on 64 routes, including four such interesting destinations as Fez, helsinki, Frankfurt hahn and Lodz”.

PROBABLY THE BEST UK TV IN SPAIN

Go satellite has been providing UK english television for expats in the Costa blanca, spain since 2000. Providing both satellite and iPtv systems to suit all needs and budgets.

our office in Avenida naciones 36, Ciudad Quesada is open from monday to saturday. We are official distributors of Portuguese manufactured dishes, Famaval. We also work with inverto ultra sensitive Lnb’s and other top brands like Formuler & Amiko.

if you do not have room or simply do not wish to have a big dish, contact us as we have a solution!

over the past decade the company has installed thousands of tv systems. the Go satellite system uses the highest quality Portuguese Famaval dishes and requires no monthly payments. Packages are available to suit everybody’s requirements and budget. Go satellite offer expertise, reassurance and a proven track record, which can be backed up by many a satisfied customer. Any concerns or queries

are dealt with in a clear and professional manner and clients can call the office at any point if they have any queries. Added to that is the fact that Go satellite is a fully legal, spanish registered business that provides a free no obligation site survey.

Phone: 0034 965 725 670 Email: info@freetvspain.com Web: www.freetvspain.com

Come and visit us in our new office based at: Avenida Naciones 36, Ciudad Quesada 03170 Rojales

Opening hours: Monday – Friday

10:00am – 4:00pm

We are now accepting all major credit and debit cards

BUSINESS PROFILE

Please note that all information contained within this Costa blanca People business Profile has been provided by the client, and is therefore deemed correct and accurate. Any errors, omissions or inaccuracies are the sole responsibility of the client.

Alicante resident jailed after Microsoft detected child porn on the ‘cloud’

A resident of the Alicante province was arrested this week when microsoft detected that he was storing child pornography on the cloud.

the alert came from the United states after microsoft algorithms detected that a resident of a municipality in Foia de Castalla was storing child pornography files in his cloud storage. Artificial intelligence systems are becoming an effective tool for pursuing paedophile content on the internet. the defendant appeared in Alicante Court on thursday after the complaint received by the spanish authorities from the United states led to his arrest.

the defendant used an application through which he entered chat groups where paedophile material was shared. throughout 2018, he managed to accumulate nearly a hundred files that were downloaded via that channel through his mobile phone and then stored on his personal computer. some of these files ended up being uploaded to the microsoft cloud by his laptop which had the

onedrive backup application active, and immediately alarms about the presence of paedophile content were triggered.

the accused alleged that the files were never shared with third parties and that he only downloaded them for his own use. initially, the Prosecutor’s office demanded five years in prison, understanding that the files were indeed shared with third parties. however, at the end of the trial, the Public ministry ended up asking for a year in prison, as it was not possible to prove the dissemination of the material.

microsoft onedrive is a digital storage service on the cloud that allows its users to store files, and exchange access links to folders with files with other users. the national Center for missing and exploited Children (nCmeC) received an alert from microsoft that a user from the Alicante province was storing child pornography on his computer. nCmeC, based in the Us, is in charge of dealing with complaints from citizens and from the main internet providers about the presence of paedophile material

on the internet.

in this case, microsoft was alerted that child pornography files were being uploaded to its servers. the Us authorities, in turn, communicated these facts to the technological Crimes Group of the Alicante Judicial Police brigade. the Police carried out the search at the suspect’s home and seized the illegal material after requesting a warrant in a court in ibi.

this is not the first case where residents of the Alicante province were found to be in possession of child pornography by internet platforms’ algorithms. in may, another resident of Alicante was accused of the same crime for files that he kept on his Google drive server. in this case, the files were stored and there was no evidence that they had been shared by third parties.

spain’s security Forces revealed that they are detecting an increase in the use of virtual storage platforms to store these types of files, using encryption systems which would try to circumvent the controls of the algorithms that try to detect prohibited content.

if you have a question or problem that needs my help, please email brian at cbtechnology.help@gmail. com. if you want to join the technology help Group search Facebook for “Costa blanca technology help Group”. if you do not use Facebook you can still join by sending an email with your details to cbtechnology. help@gmail.com.

When joining on Facebook please make sure that you scroll all the way through and answer all questions and give your email address. i use your email address as the primary means of communication.

scan the Qr for a reminder of what the Costa blanca technology help Group offers.

“For some time, I have been getting notifications warning that my device is infected and on clicking to remove, get McAfee saying my subscription has expired. I have never subscribed to them. I also receive multiple advert notifications which

Your tech questions answered by Brian Hoile of the Costa Blanca Technology Help Group, helping over 200 members with their PCs, smartphones and more. Find the group on Facebook (Costa Blanca Technology Help Group) or attend the meetings in person or online via Zoom.

I remove. What can I do, please?”

this is quite common.All sorts of companies will try to get money from you usingthese tactics. Windows defender comes with Windows 10 and is the only Antivirus software that you need.

Companies will try to get you to pay to use their software but it is not necessary.

if you are vigilant and don’t open anything you are unsure of or click on links in emails or messages from people you don’t know, you should be ok.

You need to make sure your Windows is up to date. Go to settings. select Update and check you have the latest version.

You may also benefit from downloading malwarebytes. this is an anti-malware Application that minimises those annoying ads that pop up.

“How is Internet speed quoted and what does it mean in practice?”

internet speed is measured in mbps per second – mbps/sec Files are measured in m bytes per second. how many megabytes per second in a megabit per second?

1 megabyte/sec is equal to 8 ×

megabit/sec.

1 megabit/s = 0.125 megabytes/ sec.

internet speed refers to the speed at which data or content travels from the World Wide Web to your home computer, tablet, or smartphone. the speed of this data is measured in megabits per second (mbps).

it is recommended at least 3 to 4 mbps for standard definition video streaming, 5 to 8 mbps for high-definition video streaming, and at least 25 mbps for streaming Ultra hd 4K videos.

Your hard drive doesn’t have any effect on your download speed, but how you use that drive during downloads can. if you’re multitasking while downloading, such as transferring files or using other programs during the download, it can slow things down as your hard drive attempts to do too many things at once.

the equation for calculating download time is:

• File Size in Megabytes / (download speed in megabits / 8) = time

For example:

• 50MB / (10Mbps/8) = 40 seconds

• 50 MB / (100Mbps/8) = 4 seconds

Brian Hoile

Join the Group by searching Facebook for “Costa Blanca Technology Help Group” Send your questions to cbtechnology.help@gmail.com

This Week´s Movie Picks

during World War ii, 8-yearold bruno (Asa butterfield) and his family leave berlin to take up residence near the concentration camp where his father (david thewlis) has just become commandant. Unhappy and lonely, he wanders out behind his house one day and finds shmuel (Jack scanlon), a Jewish boy of his age. though the barbed-wire fence of the camp separates them, the boys begin a forbidden friendship, oblivious to the real nature of their surroundings.

> After learning that his father is dying, karate master mr. miyagi (noriyuki “Pat” morita) returns home to okinawa, bringing his protege, daniel (ralph macchio), with him. in Japan, miyagi is surprised to discover that his old sweetheart, Yukie (nobu mcCarthy), has remained single. meanwhile, daniel is attracted to Yukie’s niece, Kumiko (tamlyn tomita). but romance must be put on hold while daniel and miyagi deal with local bullies and long-harbored grudges.

November

Football

Highlights

Morning Britain

Morning

Lunchtime News

News London

Real Deal

05:50 Best of Britain by the Sea

Chase

News London

News at Ten

News London

Spider-man

01:50 Ideal World 04:00 Fresh Cuts 04:35 Unwind with ITV 06:05 Dickinson’s Real Deal 07:00 Good Morning Britain 10:00 Lorraine 11:00 This Morning 13:30 Loose Women

BBC News 11:00 Politics UK 11:45 Live: Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup 14:00 Live: Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup 16:30 Mountain Vets 17:30 Murder, Mystery and My Family 18:15 Flog It! 19:00 Richard Osman’s House of Games 19:30 Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two 20:00 Iolo’s Anglesey 20:30 Live: Match of the Day 23:00 Mock the Week

Newsnight

ITV Lunchtime News 14:55 ITV News London

Dickinson’s Real Deal

Riddiculous

Tipping Point

The Chase 19:00 ITV News London

ITV Evening News 20:30 Emmerdale

Coronation Street

DNA Journey

ITV News

ITV News London

The NFL Show

Find It, Fix It, Flog It 07:05 Countdown 07:45 Cheers 08:10 Cheers 08:35 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:25 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:55 Frasier 10:30 Frasier 11:00 Frasier 11:30 Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares USA 12:25 Channel 4 News Summary 12:30 Chateau DIY 13:30 Steph’s Packed Lunch 15:10 Countdown 16:00 A Place in the Sun 17:00 Sun, Sea and Selling Houses 18:00 Four in a Bed 18:30 Come Dine with Me 19:00 The Simpsons 19:30 Hollyoaks 20:00 Channel 4 News 20:55 Stand Up to Cancer 21:00 Aldi’s Next Big Thing 22:00 Taskmaster 23:00 How to Survive a Dictator with Munya Chawawa

07:25 Blue’s Clues & You! 07:45 Fireman Sam 08:00 Thomas & Friends: All Engines Go 08:10 Peppa Pig 08:15 Peppa Pig 08:25 PAW Patrol 08:45 Milo 09:00 Pip & Posy 09:15 The Adventures of Paddington 09:30 PAW

Ollie

Engines

Scammers:

War With The

in the

at

Highland

the Tower of London

Fogle’s

Family Fortunes

Alan Carr’s Epic Gameshow 16:05 One Tree Hill

One Tree Hill

Hart of Dixie

Catchphrase

Dress to Impress

Bob’s Burgers

Bob’s Burgers

Family Guy

Family Guy

Family Guy

Family Guy

01:10 Agatha Christie’s Marple

Unwind with ITV 03:30 Teleshopping 07:00 Coronation Street

Coronation Street 08:05 Emmerdale 08:35 Emmerdale 09:05 Bless This House 09:40 Bless This House 10:10 Upstairs, Downstairs 11:25 Upstairs, Downstairs 12:30 Heartbeat 13:35 Heartbeat 14:40 Emmerdale 15:15 Coronation Street 15:50 Coronation Street 16:55 Midsomer Murders 19:00 Heartbeat 20:00 Heartbeat 21:00 Vera 23:00 Foyle’s War

05:50 Best of Britain by the Sea 06:45 Find It, Fix It, Flog It 07:05 Countdown 07:45 Cheers 08:10 Cheers 08:35 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:00 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:25 Everybody Loves Raymond 09:55 Frasier 10:30 Frasier 11:00 Frasier 11:30 Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares USA 12:25 Channel 4 News Summary

Chateau DIY 13:30 Steph’s Packed Lunch 15:10 Countdown 16:00 A Place in the Sun 17:00 Sun, Sea and Selling Houses

Four in a Bed 18:30 Come Dine with Me 19:00 The Simpsons 19:30 Hollyoaks 20:00 Channel 4 News 20:30 Unreported World 21:00 The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice

Gogglebox

Told You

Carr’s I Literally

08:00 Thomas & Friends: All Engines Go 08:10 Peppa

08:15 Peppa

08:25

Patrol 08:40 Milo 09:00

& Posy 09:15 The Adventures of Paddington 09:30 PAW Patrol 09:45 Daisy & Ollie 09:55 Odo 10:05 Milkshake! Story Den 10:10 Thomas & Friends: All Engines Go 10:15 Jeremy Vine 13:45 Shoplifters & Scammers: At War With The Law 14:40 5 News at Lunchtime 14:45 Home and Away 15:15 Every Christmas Has a Story 17:00 Bargain Loving Brits in the Sun 18:00 5 News at 5 19:00 Britain’s Parking Hell 19:30 Eggheads 20:00 Aldi: Secrets Of The Billion Dollar Discounter 21:00 Susan Calman’s Grand Days Out

Agatha Christie’s

Unwind

Teleshopping

Coronation Street 07:35 Coronation Street 08:45 Emmerdale 09:15 Bless This House 09:50 Bless This House 10:20 Upstairs, Downstairs 11:30 Upstairs, Downstairs 12:40 Heartbeat 13:45 Heartbeat 14:45 Emmerdale 15:20 Emmerdale 15:55 Coronation Street 16:25 Coronation Street 17:00 Midsomer Murders 18:55 Martin Clunes: My Travels and Other Animals

Live: ITV Racing Live

Foyle’s War

Emmerdale

Emmerdale

Coronation Street

Street

I’m a Celeb…

Islander Olivia Attwood, rugby player Mike Tindall and Boy George are among the famous faces reported to be heading into the jungle for the upcoming series of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!

Owen Warner and Sue Cleaver, radio veteran Chris Moyles and Gogglebox star and comedian Babatunde Aleshe, are also rumoured to be part of the line-up.

They will be joined by A Place in the Sun host Scarlette Douglas and Loose Women star Charlene White, according to reports it is also rumoured that the current rumoured 10 strong line-up could see an 11th addition who might waltz in later on.

It has also been previously reported that Seann Walsh has signed on for the series, though ITV is yet to officially confirm any of the line-up for the show.The comedian was previously

embroiled in scandal following his kiss with 2018 Strictly Come Dancing partner Katya Jones.

Former England footballer Jill Scott fuelled rumours she is also one of the celebrities heading into the jungle, as she was spotted arriving in Australia.

The reality show is returning to its original jungle location after the past two series were filmed at Gwrych Castle in North Wales due to Covid-19 travel restrictions.The forthcoming series, which is launching on 6th November, will see a new batch of famous faces undertake challenges and trials to secure food and treats for the group and avoid being voted out by the viewers.

McPartlin and Donnelly are returning to host the popular show, with a recent trailer showing them jumping out of a helicopter back into the jungle.

Italy supermarket stabbings

One person has died and at least five others have been injured - some seriously - in a stabbing in a supermarket near the Italian city of Milan, police have said.

Local media reported that a 30-year-old supermarket cashier died after a man started attacking people in Assago.

Among the injured was Pablo Marí, a football player on loan from Arsenal.

A 46-year-old suspect has been detained and Police have ruled out any terrorist motive. According to reports the attacker has had mental health problems and had grabbed the weapon from the supermarket shelves. He then began stabbing people at random at a Carrefour in a local shopping centre.Screams were reportedly heard inside the centre, as terrified visitors tried to flee in panic. The attacker is reported to have been detained by several customers and handed over to police who arrived at the scene.

Footballer Pablo Marí, a 29-year-old Spanish defender, suffered a stab wound to the back - but his injuries are not life-threatening. His agent,

Arturo Canales, told media sources that the star was conscious, and no vital organs had been affected.

Monza CEO Adriano Galliani told Sky Italia that Marí had been shopping with his wife and young son when the attack took place.

“He had his son in a trolley and his wife next to him. He didn’t notice anything. He then felt something painful

in his back,” Mr Galliani said.” Unfortunately, he also saw the criminal stab someone in the throat. He saw everything that happened and it was deeply disturbing,” Galliani added.

Marí joined Arsenal from Brazilian side Flamengo in January 2020. He has only played 19 times for the Gunners and is currently on loan with topflight Italian club Monza.

Royal Mint produces first King’s coins

Production of the first coins of the King for circulation has started at the Royal Mint, beginning the transition from Queen Elizabeth II to her son’s portrait on the nation’s coinage.The move represents the biggest change to UK coinage since decimalisation, with a memorial 50 pence in honour of the late Queen appearing in the public’s change through banks and post offices from December.

Workers at the Royal Mint in Llantrisant, south Wales, will produce 9.6 million copies of the coin to mark the Queen’s death at the age of 96. In tribute to the Queen, the reverse of the 50p features the design that originally appeared on coins to commemorate her coronation at Westminster Abbey in 1953.

It includes the four quarters of the Royal Arms depicted within a shield, with emblems of the home nations – a rose, a thistle, a shamrock and a leek.

There are approximately 27 billion coins bearing the portrait of the late Queen currently in circulation in the UK and these will remain legal tender, being replaced over

time as they become damaged or worn and to meet demand.

Historically, it has been common for coins featuring different monarchs to be used at the same time and this will now happen with coins of the late Queen and Charles.

Kevin Clancy, director of the Royal Mint Museum, said: “For many people this will be the first time in their lives that they have seen a new monarch appear on money.

“The new memorial 50 pence marks a moment in history and honours a landmark reign that lasted for 70 years.”

The coins will be made on demand in line with the wishes of the King and the late Queen, who asked for minimal waste during the process.

Rebecca Morgan, director of collector services at the Royal Mint, confirmed that “nothing is removed or changed just for change’s sake. It wasn’t unusual to see two or three different monarchs on coins before decimalisation,” she said.

“As a result of decimalisation, most people under the age of 50 only ever have seen Queen Elizabeth II in their pockets.”

Queen’s legacy

The 50 pence coin was chosen as it is one of the most popular for people to start collecting.It takes between 18 months to two years to design a coin, with the monarch personally signing off each one. Before her death, the Queen signed off a number of coins – including a Harry Potter commemorative series – and production of these will continue. This will mean that two of the Harry Potter series will feature the Queen, with the final two bearing the portrait of the King. Production of coins with the Queen’s portrait will conclude by the end of the year.

Acclaimed British artist Martin Jennings, who usually works in bronze and stone, designed the official portrait of Charles to be struck onto coins. In the portrait, Charles faces to the left, the opposite direction to his mother. This is because tradition states monarchs face the opposite way to their predecessors on coinage. Tradition also dictates that Kings do not wear crowns in their portraits on coins, while Queens are pictured crowned.

It’s pomegranate season

If you live in or near the countryside of the Alicante region, you’ll have noticed trees laden down with pomegranates. If you’ve never tried this amazing fruit, you’re in for a treat!

Pomegranates are high in fibre, vitamins, and minerals but low in calories and fat. Antioxidants, heart health, urinary health, exercise endurance are among just some of their benefits.

Pomegranates have a white interior flesh that is crammed full of arils, which are edible seeds that are crisp and delicious.

This unusual fruit is worth including in your healthy eating routine since they have the ability to boost a variety of physiological functions, from immunity to brain health.

Nutrient rich

The pomegranate’s edible element are the arils, which are tiny pink seeds inside the fruit. Even while it can be timeconsuming to separate them from the fruit’s inner flesh, their flavour and nutritional value make the effort well worth it.

Pomegranates are often high in fibre, vitamins, and minerals yet low in calories and fat. They also have some protein in them.

The nutrition for the arils in a typical (282 gram) pomegranate fruit is as follows:

• Calories: 234

• Protein: 4.7 grams

• at: 3.3 grams

• Carbohydrates: 52 grams

• Sugar: 38.6 grams

• Fibre: 11.3 grams

• Calcium: 28.2 mg, or 2% of the Daily Value (DV)

• ron: 0.85 mg, or 5% of the DV

• Magnesium: 33.8 mg, or 8% of the DV

• Phosphorus: 102 mg, or 8% of the DV

• Potassium: 666 mg, or 13% of the DV

• Vitamin C: 28.8 mg, or 32% of the DV

• Folate (vitamin B9): 107 mcg, or 27% of the DV

Bear in mind that the nutritional information for pomegranate and arils differs from that of pomegranate juice, which won’t provide much fibre or vitamin C. This applies to fruit in general — eating the whole form will provide more fibre.

Antioxidants

Antioxidants are substances that aid in defending your body’s cells from damage brought on by free radicals. Although free radicals are constantly present in the body, an excessive amount of them can be toxic and help to cause a number of chronic diseases.

Antioxidants and polyphenolic chemicals found in abundance in pomegranates provide defence against this harm. Punicalagins, anthocyanins, and hydrolysable tannins are the three primary bioactive substances with antioxidant activity that are present in pomegranates.

Consuming antioxidants from fruits and vegetables, including pomegranates, is a fantastic approach to boost general health and fight disease.

Anti Inflammatory

An illness or injury will typically cause short-term inflammation in the body. Chronic inflammation is widespread nowadays, especially in Westernised cultures, but it can be problematic if left untreated.

Chronic illnesses like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease can all be made worse by inflammation if it is not treated. Pomegranate consumption could reduce the chronic inflammation that raises the risk of chronic disease.

Punicalagins, which have been demonstrated to have antioxidant and antiinflammatory activities in testtube and animal experiments, are mostly responsible for this.

Pomegranate juice consumption has been shown in several human studies to lessen inflammatory markers in the body.

Anticarcinogenic

Pomegranate fruit, juice, and oil include chemicals that can either help kill cancer cells or delay their growth in the body, according to research.

Studies on pomegranates in the lab and on patients suggest that they may help to reduce inflammation and inhibit the growth of cancer cells. In fact, studies exist on the fruit’s antitumor properties in lung, breast, prostate, skin, and colon cancers

Pomegranate appears to reduce tumour growth in the early stages of liver cancer, according to additional animal research. Additionally, it lessens oxidative stress and inflammatory reactions.

Pomegranate extract may also be helpful for delaying the growth or perhaps inducing the death of prostate cancer cells, according to an older test-tube study.

More human studies are needed, but current research is promising.

RECIPE IDEAS

So, if you have a harvest of pomegranates and aren’t sure what to do with them, here are some ideas:

• Make your own pomegranate juice

• Toss the seeds into a salad

• Stir the seeds into your morning porridge

• Make some Fesenjan, a fancy stew made from pomegranates and walnuts

• Try a jug of pomegranate spritzer at your next dinner party

• Add pomegranate to your pre workout smoothie

• Include pomegranate in your breakfast muffin recipe

• Try making homemade pomegranate ice cream or sorbet

Ignore best before to save cash

There are more and more people ignoring best before dates on food to save money and cut food waste. Most of us at some time have eaten food that’s out of date and there’s nothing wrong with that as long as you know the ones to avoid that will make you sick.

You could save as much as 350€ a year by not throwing out perfectly good to eat food.

But anyone looking to save some cash should check carefully first that they understand what’s safe and what’s not.Generally, if an item looks, tastes and smells ok, you can probably use it past the best before date, according to food experts at food waste app Too Good to Go.

The best before date is related to quality and there is no harm in eating items that have gone past “best” if they have been stored correctly, like at the right fridge temperature. This is different from the use-by date, which is very important in the safety of food.

You can eat food right up to the use-by date but not after, the Foods Standards Agency says.You should also keep food with a ‘use by date’ in the fridge and think about freezing it on or before the day of the date if you’re not going to use it.

Food past its use-by date could be unsafe to eat. There is more flexibility with best-before dates and consumers will find items nearing this date are often heavily discounted.Foods with use-by dates include meat products and ready to eat salads. But anything

with a use-by date should be followed, as it could make you sick if you ignore it. Even if it looks, smells and tastes ok, food after its use-by date can still contain unseen bacteria that can make you ill.

With food prices rising, household finances are under pressure for most of us. Avoiding throwing out food that’s still good could help you save some much-needed cash. Here’s what you can eat after the best before date has passed, as long as you’ve kept it in the right conditions and it looks, smells and tastes ok.

Milk

Milk is the third most wasted food and drink product, after potatoes and bread, with around 490 million pints chucked away annually, according to food waste charity Wrap. It’s easy to tell if milk has gone off as it can go lumpy, smell funky, or taste sour.

Bread

If you store your bread in the fridge you can use it for up to two weeks past the best before date. Bread that has gone a little hard will still be great for toast and bread sold in long-life packaging like pittas can last for

considerably longer too - potentially months.

Eggs

Around 720 million eggs are thrown out every year. Keep them in the fridge and this could increase usability by as much as three weeks after the best before date.

Hard cheese

Hard cheeses like cheddar are perfectly good to eat after the best before date. You can cut any surface mould off hard cheeses and eat the rest safely if it’s free from mould.

Lasts for years

Canned foods, frozen foods, pasta

and rice can all last well past there best before dates. Canned foods go through intense high-heat processing which kills bacteria and sterilises the contents. When you leave food in the freezer the quality deteriorates over time, but it’s still safe to use. Rice and dried pasta can last up to three years after the best before date. You just need to make sure that it’s been stored in an air-tight container for that time.

Honey will also last for years, in fact it will pretty much last forever and is safe to eat even when it crystallises. Soy sauce and vinegar will also last for years in the cupboard as will another store cupboard essential, sugar. If sugar is stored in an airtight container, it will last indefinitely.

Eating to be diabetes free

The keto diet might be more than just a trendy health fad. An ultra-low carb diet can significantly lower bloodsugar levels in people who are prediabetic, according to a study.

The ketogenic diet involves drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with foods high in fat and protein. Advocates claim it can cause a myriad of health benefits, from keeping the mind sharp to improving heart health. While many of the claims have proved to be bogus or unprovable, the latest study indicates the diet can prevent type 2 diabetes for those at highest risk.

Researchers looked at 150 people aged 40 to 70 whose blood-sugar ranged from prediabetic to diabetic levels and who were not taking medication for the condition. One group ate their normal diet and were monitored for six months. The rest ate the equivalent of just 16 grams of carbs per month, the same as just one slice of bread. By the end of the study, those in the low-carb group saw between 0.19 per cent –0.33 per cent decrease in hemoglobin A1c, or the amount of glucose (sugar) in their blood.

Switching to an ultra-low carb diet could be enough to help prediabetics stave off worsening A1c levels, potentially avoiding a diabetes diagnosis. The group that maintained their normal diets saw their A1c levels drop only about 0.02 to 0.10 per cent.

People in the low-carb group saw A1c levels drop 0.23 percent more than the people in the group who maintained their normal diets.

Dr Kirsten Dorans, lead author and assistant professor of epidemiology at Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine called these findings ‘modest but clinically relevant. “The key message is that a low-carbohydrate diet, if maintained, might be a useful approach for preventing and treating Type 2 diabetes, though more research is needed.”

Risk factors for developing diabetes include being overweight, having a family history of diabetes, not maintaining an active lifestyle, and consuming a lot of alcohol and fats.

People older than 35 and those who are African American, American Indian, Asian American, Hispanic/Latino, or

Pacific Islander have a predisposition toward type 2 diabetes.

People living with diabetes are encouraged by healthcare professionals to maintain a low-carb diet, which can help diabetics manage their blood sugar better, decrease medication needs, and reduce the risk of diabetic complications such as heart disease, chronic kidney disease, and nerve damage. Experts recommend people with diabetes and prediabetes stick to low-carbohydrate, low glycemic index, and high-protein diets to help manage their blood sugar. The study does not say that diet alone can manage a person’s blood glucose levels, but Dr Dorans said it opens the door for more investigation.

New wave of covid

The European Medicines Agency says a new wave of COVID-19 infections will hit the continent in the coming weeks as we move towards winter. At a press conference held in the Netherlands, EMA officials said the pandemic is not over and that the Omicron variant continues to mutate and therefore to cause concern.

“Last week one of these new Omicron variants that is called BQ.1 has been identified in at least five countries in the European Union and European Economic Area,” explained Dr Marco Cavaleri, Head of Health Threats and Vaccines Strategy. “According to the ECDC BQ.1 and each sub-lineage,

which is called BQ.1.1 will become the dominant strains by mid-November to the beginning of December.”

The EMA said it expected the new wave to begin within a week and added that the virus is evolving faster than the ability to supply adaptive vaccines, which are still in the early stages of development.

The health officials also said that the influenza virus (flu) will be circulating at the same time as COVID-19 this winter, and that they recommend people in high-risk groups be vaccinated against both. On a more optimistic note, the EMA clarified that current vaccines are still effective.

Birds linked to mental wellbeing

Watching birds or listening to birdsong may boost mental wellbeing, with effects lasting up to eight hours, according to scientists.The findings, published in the journal Scientific Reports, come from real-time reports of participants from around the world, including those who have been diagnosed with depression.

The researchers said their work shows the potential role birdlife could play in helping people with mental health conditions.

The study ‘provides an evidence base for creating and supporting biodiverse spaces that harbour birdlife, since this is strongly linked with our mental health.In addition, the

Mystery solved: why mosquitoes bite some people and not others

There has been much speculation about why mosquitoes bite some people and not others but a new study has just delivered a verdict. Apparently, the amount of carboxylic acid that each individual produces from our skin will determine the extent to which we attract mosquitoes. Those who generate higher levels of this compound will give off a certain body scent and will become a “magnet for mosquitoes”, while those who generate less will manage to go unnoticed by the flying bloodsuckers.

The study was carried out by two researchers from the Rockefeller University of New York, Leslie Vosshall and María Elena de Obaldia. Their results have been published in the journal Cell and may have finally put an end to speculation and theories about the reasons that attracs mosquitoes, which are often without scientific basis of any kind.

Both researchers managed to show that this type of acid that emanates from the skin can create an intoxicating perfume for mosquitoes. Each person secretes carboxylic acid in different quantities and compositions.

“There is a very, very strong relationship between having large amounts of these fatty acids in your skin and being a magnet for mosquitoes,” said Professor Vosshall.

Their report was based on a three year study in which the scientists asked 64 volunteers to wear nylon stockings on their forearms so that the ‘socks’ could be impregnated with molecules from each participants’ skin. 2,300 different tests were carried out in which the mosquitoes were presented with samples of the socks to determine their preference.

To carry out this test, Aedes aegypti mosquitoes were used, the main

vector species of Zika, dengue, yellow fever and chikungunya.

By far, the volunteer who was most attractive to these mosquitoes was so-called ‘Subject 33’, who received four times more mosquitoes than the next in the ranking, and no less than 100 times more than the least popular, ‘Subject 19’.

The samples in the trials were not identified, so the researchers did not know which participant had worn

which stocking. Still, they immediately noticed that something unusual was happening in any test involving Subject 33, because the bugs would pounce directly on his stockings. “It was evident within seconds of starting the trial,” says De Obaldia.

In view of these results, researchers looked in more detail at the different volunteers to find out what differentiated them. They used chemical analysis techniques to identify 50 molecular compounds present in the participants’ skin. It was then that they discovered that the most attractive volunteers for the mosquitoes produced much higher levels of carboxylic acid than the others.

This substance is used by bacteria on the skin to produce the body odour that each human has and that is unique to each person.

This discovery opens the door to the manufacture of mosquito repellent products that reduce the presence of these acids or affect the bacteria that produce each person’s body odour.

Although the experiment (which was later extended to more participants, with identical results) was carried out with the aforementioned species of mosquito, the researchers believe that other specimens would behave in the same way.

findings support the implementation of measures to increase opportunities for people to come across birdlife, particularly for those living with mental health conditions such as depression’.

Researchers used data from the Urban Mind app, where more than 1,000 participants worldwide completed assessments during the study period.Volunteers were asked three times a day whether they could see or hear birds, followed by questions on mental wellbeing.The team found that among those with diagnoses of mental health conditions, hearing or seeing birdlife was associated with improvements in mental wellbeing.

Fit-tastic Fridays boost learning at local school

Local school Willow International has launched a new brain-boosting activity called ‘Fit-tastic Fridays’. School Principal Amanda Riding said, “Our wonderful students start their Friday mornings off with a 10-minute workout. When you do any type of intense physical activity, it causes blood to flow to the brain. This in turn fires up your neurones and promotes cell growth, particularly in the hippocampus. This means that just 10 minutes of exercise before studying can improve your concentration and help you focus your learning.”

Amanda continued, “We think it’s a great way to begin the day and our students seem to enjoy it!”

Face-to-face workshops for pregnant women and their families

The Department of Health of Torrevieja has launched a new series of face-to-face workshops to help women prepare for one of the most important moments of their lives: the birth of their baby; and also to manage the first months of breastfeeding and proper care of the newborn.

The goal is for pregnant women and their partners to benefit from advice on caring for newborns, breastfeeding, self-care and postpartum care, among others. In addition, the activities are necessary for the facilities to achieve phase 3 and 4 iHan certification for health centres.

The workshops are ‘open attendance’ activities which means that mothers and babies as well as pregnant women can participate, without the need for an appointment.

Part of the workshop involves breastfeeding sessions in which pregnant women and mothers can ask questions and solve problems. There will also be activities around infant massage and early stimulation, where massage techniques will be taught. Some time will be reserved at the end of each class so that mothers who wish to do so can ask questions about breastfeeding or any topic related to parenting. Finally, through guided postpartum

classes, exercises focused on abdominal and pelvic floor recovery will be taught.

Pregnant women and new mothers will be informed about the workshop at their last pregnancy visit, at their postpartum visit with the midwife (a week after the birth) and at the first visit of the newborn, 48-72 hours after hospital discharge.

The University Hospital of Torrevieja has a breastfeeding consultation service in the afternoons, aimed at women

who need help and advice.

A hospital spokesperson said that the hospital is, “committed to promoting women’s health through its area of comprehensive care for women and children. It has a complete multidisciplinary team to meet all the needs in the different stages of life. In the case of pregnant women, the midwives of the Health Center are responsible for monitoring them, promoting healthy lifestyles and giving advice on diet and exercise.”

Modernising the Road Network

With the aim of reducing road traffic incidents, the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) continues to tighten restrictions. By the year 2026, the DGT wants to have total control of all the vehicles that circulate on Spanish roads.

To do this, it will create a platform that will record the data of all vehicles. Cars, trucks, buses and motorcycles will have to connect to the platform, which will record data such as the position they are in or the speed at which they are traveling. The DGT explains that this measure will be established not to control people, but vehicles.

In addition to position and speed, the new system will also be able to access more information about the vehicles: the number of people inside, if any of the passengers is smoking ... One of

the new regulations that the DGT wants to apply in a near future is the prohibition of smoking inside the car if children or pregnant women travel.

The system will allow access to the location of the vehicle in real time. In this way, in the event of an incident, the emergency services will be able to act more quickly. In addition, by recording the speed and other data of the vehicles, it will help to clarify the causes of the incident.

Although everything seems to be advantages, the new total control that the DGT wants to have over vehicles from the year 2026 is of particular concern to drivers with regard to their privacy. But the body is willing to move forward, and from this 2022 it will begin to perfect the platform so that it is ready in 2026.

Buying a Second-Hand Vehicle in Spain

If you are going to buy a secondhand vehicle, you should take into account a series of recommendations that the DGT advise in order to carry out the process avoiding problems.

Buying/selling a vehicle can be complicated. To make sure you carry out the transaction in the simplest and safest way possible, the DGT advise you to follow their guidelines.

The first point they makes is that after signing the purchase contract, you are obliged to make the change of ownership of the vehicle within a period of 30 days.

A vehicle in a situation temporarily deregistered, without local taxes up to date, or with pending fines cannot be transferred.

In the event of donation, inheritanceor divorce, if you want to change the ownership of a vehicle but you are not going to buy it, but rather that it comes from a donation, inheritance or as a result of a divorce or separation, the steps you have to follow are slightly different.

When buying a second-hand vehicle:

Check the general condition of the vehicle

You can request a detailed report of the vehicle from the DGT, in which you will find information that may be interesting when buying a vehicle, both at the administrative or judicial level, such as data about the validity of the technical inspection (ITV), including the repairs and revisions that are carried out by the workshops attached to the digital maintenance or workshop book.

It is better to have the vehicle checked by a professional, but if this is not possible, you can check the most important points yourself:

Check its condition outside and in daylight: paint, bumps, signs of a previous serious accident.

Open the bonnet: check the oil and the timing belt.

Check that the tyres are the same as the ones that appear on the technical inspection card and that their tread is at least 1.6 mm deep.

Push the car sideways hard to check the damping.

Enter the car and check that the

seat belts, seat adjustment and door locks are all working properly.

Insert the ignition key and press all the switches to check that they work correctly and that any warning lights illuminate.

Start the car: confirm that the pedals do not have too much play and press the brake pedal fully for 20 seconds: if it does not return to its initial position, the circuit is leaking. The wheels must respond to steering wheel turns with no slack.

Take a road test of the car. First, let the seller drive and try to detect possible sounds that may be a sign of failure. Then drive it and check that the car has no problems.

When in doubt, it’s best to ask the seller to let a mechanic verify that it’s in good condition before you sign for it.

Check the vehicle is transferable and free from charges

To make this task easier for you, we advise you to request a reduced report on the condition of the vehicle from the DGT. This free report offers information that allows you to confirm the correct identification of the vehicle, check if the vehicle is registered and information on whether there is any incident, load or impediment when driving that could affect the vehicle.

If in the reduced report you see that the vehicle had any incident, we advise you to request a detailed report or go to a traffic office before continuing with the purchase.

In the event that the vehicle is temporarily deregistered, before making the transfer, the owner of the vehicle (the seller) must register the vehicle.

Possible issues: Circulation Tax of the previous year paid. A vehicle without local taxes up to date cannot be transferred.

Possible penalties imposed for paid vehicle violations. A vehicle with penalties cannot be transferred.

Free from any disposition limitation that was registered in the Movable Assets Registry, except with the express consent of the Finance Company or subrogation by the buyer.

Free of embargoes and seals. If the vehicle has an embargo or a seal, you must be informed of it and if you are satisfied with the situation, in order to make the purchase, you must sign a document indicating that you are aware of said situation.

Sign a sales contract

It is important that you sign a sales contract, the following information must appear as a minimum:

Buyer data: Name and surnames or business name and your DNI/NIE/CIF.

Seller data: Name and surnames or company name and your DNI/NIE/ CIF.

Vehicle data: Make, model and registration plate.

Purchase price.

Date and time the contract is signed (the time is as important as the date).

Do not forget that the contract must be signed by both the buyer and the seller on each of the pages that make it up.

Pay or settle tax

You must justify the payment, exemption or non-subjection of the Property Transfer Tax (IPT), model 620 or model 621, as appropriate, in the autonomous community in which you have your fiscal domicile. In almost all the Autonomous Communities you can do it easily and electronically.

Apply for change of ownership with the DGT

Remember that you have a period of 30 days from the signing of the contract to transfer the vehicle.

This can be done online, via the virtual office on the DGT website, or face-to-face in one of their offices, for which you will need an appointment, and to be able to speak Spanish.

Remember to check the ITV validity

If the vehicle you just bought has an expired ITV, you will not be able to drive with it, so to carry out the corresponding inspection you must take it to the ITV station of your choice by mounting it on a tow truck or similar means authorised for its transport.

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Another seven days in football passes in the blink of an eye and the one fact we are all becoming very aware of is this - need a win to avoid the sack? Play Liverpool.

Last week, Steve Cooper kept the wolf from the door (don’t let the new contract fool you) by pleasing his Greek megalomaniac owner with a win over King Klopp’s side.

This week, Jesse Marsch ‘stopped the bleeding’ - a phrase he must have used more times than Liverpool hit the target - as his Leeds side delivered the first home Premier League defeat at Anfield since Crystal Palace did them over in April 2017.

Leeds’ 2-1 victory was the first time Virgil van Dijk has lost at his home ground in the league. The game built into the perfect Crysencio as Summerville netted the late, late winner leaving Kloppo to surmise that qualifying for the Champions League when you are as inconsistent as they are was unlikely.

In recent weeks, Trent AlexanderArnold has been talked into the England squad and talked out of the England squad. One potential option spoken of is his team-mate Joe Gomez - well, he seems to be on a creative par with Trent, the way he spotted Rodrygo’s run and picked him out for Leeds’ opening goal.

Here’s a debate almost as pointless as this column for you. Which is better - the free-kick that curls in top corner clean as a whistle or the free-kick that curls in hitting the woodwork before bouncing in? If you are a fan of the latter, you’ll have liked Kevin de Bruyne’s winner for Man City against Leicester - a goal good enough to stop people talking about the fact that Erling Haaland has picked up his first niggly little sky-blue injury. It’ll be the

first of a few, you suspect. Even robots need maintenance.

For the record, Leicester seem to be fixed - and their David Luiz lookalike at the back seems to be part of the solution.

Even if they did beat Liverpool last week, nobody really expected Forest to get anything from an away day at Arsenal - even if Arsenal have started to stutter a bit and Gabby Jesus has started to look like a player who needs the World Cup off to recharge his batteries.

The thing with a stutter is that quite quickly, things become smooth again and Arteta’s side eased to a 5-0 win against a team that still looks anything but. Beating Liverpool at home is one thing - and really not that rare, by the looks of it. It’s the away performances that will dictate whether they go down or not. And I didn’t really need to add the ‘or not’ as they are definitely going down.

Post-match, Graham Potter bit back with more bite than his Chelsea side had in their 4-1 loss at Brighton. Slightly disgruntled at the reception he got at the Amex, Potter reminded the fans that he was probably the reason they were able to beat a Chelsea side in that manner.

Personally, I suspect it was part of the financial package that took Potter, his backroom team, the head of recruitment, the tea lady and team

Chaplin to Stamford Bridge. €25m plus three points when we next meet, we have a deal Mr Boehly.

That might be slightly on new coach De Zerbi, who certainly deZerbed his first win as Brighton boss. His team were very good, Brighton’s old boss’ lot not so much - clever systems look exactly that when they work, but when they fail as abjectly as they did here, in the words of Chelsea’s manager himself, “you look like a bit of a fool.”

Tottenham might actually be a very good side if they committed to playing the first half of a football match as well as the second 45. They came back from 2-0 to beat Bournemouth 3-2 in injury time. Conte liked the character shown, but you can’t help feel that they wouldn’t need to fight back like that if they weren’t so negative to begin with - don’t get me wrong, Gary O’Neil has made an interesting fist of his caretaker job so far, but this was Bournemouth. Not City. Don’t celebrate the late winpunish the fact you were two down in the first place.

Water is wet and David Moyes failed to win away at one of the “big clubs”. Man United beat West Ham United 1-0 thanks mainly to David de Gea. That’s five clean sheets in a row at Old Trafford, apparently. Pep thinks they are back - others need a little more convincing.

Newcastle look like the real deal. And by real deal, I mean capable of finishing in the top six and being

disappointed when they end up in the Europa Conference League because the bright lights of Europe’s secondchoice competition felt so close in the run-in.

They destroyed Aston Villa 4-0, who would have had their new manager Unai Emery watching on and, like many others in his position, wondering if he could change his mind. Unfortunately not, Unai - and given that you’ve managed Sevilla and Villarreal it seems somewhat apt that you’ve gone to the Villa. The only other club I’ve ever noticed with this kind of quirk was Arsenal with Arsene Wenger - not the same I know - but it is leading me to the irony that Emery failed there, so will probably do quite well as Steven Gerrard’s replacement.

Callum Wilson is almost certainly better than Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Tammy Abraham, Marcus Rashford, Ollie Watkins and Ivan Toney. Let’s see if Gareth agrees in a couple of weeks.

Everton managed to stop Fulham and Big Mitro scoring. Not many do that. Coady and Tarkowski are actually making quite the partnership for Frank Lampard and given England’s central defensive woes… Well, you know.

The most startling thing about Diego Costa’s red card against Brentford was the fact that it was only his first in the Premier League - after 90-odd games. Unfortunately for Wolves fans, the pantomime villain is just that now. All pantomime and no football ability left in the tank. They will go down this season, which will be a waste of Ruben Neves’ talents.

13 of the 16 points won by Crystal Palace have come at Selhurst Parkwhich tells me their away form must be as good as Liverpool’s. That statement at the start of the season would have had the Eagles dreaming of Europe (even more so than they are currently doing). They beat Southampton, meaning the Hassenhuttl Out swingometer has moved in the other direction once again.

Abbey Anglers

On Tuesday the 25th of October we once again made the short journey over to fish the Rio Segura at Murcia Town centre. Only 8 anglers took part in the main I would say as the river has been fishing so poorly recently.

Sadly after four of us had a fish first cast we all thought that we were in for a cracking days fishing. This was definitely not the case with the river generally once again fishing below par after this initial flourish.

Winner on the day was Bill cannon, Bill fished the method feeder most of the day catching

carp across for 12.88kg.

In second place was a new member Robert Robinson, who started well by firstly finding the river this week as he had failed miserably the week before.

Drawn on the upstream end peg Robert caught carp once again on the method feeder for 12.40kg.

In third place was Mr Fixit, Terry Screen who drawn on the first peg after the first bridge caught well on the feeder for most of the day with 11.50kg.

Rods N Reels

The following day we fished the

El Bosquet complex at Crevillente. I did not attend the match so only have basic details but here are the results.

1st Barry Homer peg 17, 33.22kg on the pole.

2nd John Waples peg 28, 21.52kg pole

3rd Nick Bastock Peg 23, 2018kg

Further details of all the clubs can be found on our website www. abbeyangling.es

We will be holding a charity match for Ukranian aid on the 15th of November details attached.

Ian Brown