THE BEST FINANCE NEWS ON PAGES 18 ‐ 22 Issue No. 1935
4 - 10 August 2022
AXARQUIA - COSTA TROPICAL • EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM
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Chris King A WAITER from a bar in Torre del Mar employed the techniques he had been taught on a defibrillator course to save a man’s life in the street. A 70‐year‐old man was saved from dying of cardiac arrest on Wednesday, July 27, by the quick actions of a waiter from an establish‐ ment in the Velez‐Malaga municipality of Torre del Mar. His previous training in the use of a defibrillator was put to perfect use in the incident, as reported by local media on Thursday, July 28. At around 12:50pm, Jose Antonio Lopez Espinola, the manager of the Espinola cafeteria, located in the Torre del Mar retail market, heard some commotion go‐ ing on outside in the street. When he went to check, he saw that an elderly man had clearly suffered a car‐ diac arrest on Calle del Rio. Having been a student of one of the courses taught
STARTING POINT: The competitors are ready to set off.
Night race winners DEFIBRILLATOR: Can increase the chances of survival by 60 per cent.
by the Velez‐Malaga Coun‐ cil Prevention Service, Jose knew that there was a de‐ fibrillator installed in the lo‐ cal Day Centre. He subsequently used that training to resuscitate and save the life of the 70‐ year‐old man right there in the street. Immediately after being resuscitated, the man was transferred to the Axarquia
Regional Hospital. Pedro Manuel Serrano ‐ the instructor who was in charge of the training course which Jose had at‐ tended ‐ paid a visit to the cafeteria to congratulate him for his good work. Velez‐Malaga Town Hall paid tribute to the waiter’s ‘courage and prompt inter‐ vention’. They highlighted that thanks to the car‐
Summer camps THE summer camps run by the Department of Sports of the Velez‐Malaga Town Hall are being enjoyed by a total of 650 children throughout July and Au‐ gust. The mayor, Antonio Moreno Ferrer, and the councillor for Sports, J Hipólito Gómez, visited the indoor swimming pool in Velez‐Malaga, one of the places where the activities are taking place, on July 28.
Credit: Velez-Malaga Town Hall
WAITER IS LOCAL HERO
Moreno Ferrer highlight‐ ed the success that the ini‐ tiative has always had, say‐ ing: “These activities help families to reconcile home life and work life during the school holidays, and also contribute towards the children’s motor, psy‐ chomotor and social devel‐ opment through sport.” Antonio Trigo, the coor‐ dinator of the activities, added: “These camps are
diopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) manoeuvres that Jose had learned in the course, he was able to revive the man after applying two shocks from the defibrilla‐ tor. The use of a defibrillator during the first five minutes ‐ which is when brain dam‐ age begins to occur ‐ in‐ creases the chances of sur‐ vival by 60 per cent. Credit: Velez-Malaga Town Hall
Children at the summer camp in Velez-Malaga.
some of the most complete in the province, as they in‐ clude sports and water ac‐ tivities, board games and handicrafts.”
SOME 400 athletes of all ages took part in the fourth edition of the Velez‐Malaga Night Race on Saturday July 30. The route took the participants on a tour of the city’s emblem‐ atic historical places. The winners were Sonia Vizcaíno and Rafael Moreno. Rafael Moreno (from Nerja Atletismo) won by just two seconds, finishing the 5,000 metres in 19 minutes and two seconds. Jesús Alguacil (Trotacierra) and Santiago Muros (AdsSevilla) were close behind in second and third place, re‐ spectively. The first female, Sonia Vizcaíno (Atletismo Alfarnate), fin‐ ished the race in 21 minutes and 56 seconds, and 34 sec‐ onds behind her was Marta Pérez (Nerja Atletismo), fol‐ lowed by Inmaculada Toledo (Gedysa Comarcal), with 25 minutes and 20 seconds. The race started and finished at the Plaza de Las Carmeli‐ tas and the competitors ran through the old town of Velez‐ Malaga, passing places such as the Church of San Juan, the Arab walls, the El Pósito building, San Francisco Market, the Church of Santa María, the fortress or Beniel Palace.
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4 - 10 August 2022
Cartagena and Murcia trip
Social inclusion projects autonomy, neighbourhoods and schools as spaces for in‐ clusion and the promotion of social cooperation. The first project is a train‐ ing programme for volun‐ teers, aimed at members of
the general public who wish to help out with local organi‐ sations. The second involves the creation of a digital guide with up‐to‐date information about all of the non‐profit or‐ ganisations and social re‐
sources in Velez‐Malaga, where citizens will have ac‐ cess to an interactive calen‐ dar with the local charity events. Thirdly, work is being done to prepare for Diversity Week, which is held every
year to commemorate the International Day of Disabled Persons (December 3). Final‐ ly, the fourth project will in‐ volve providing specific train‐ ing to those who already work in the non‐profit sector.
Beach showers closed THREE towns in the Axar‐ quia have announced their intention of turning all beach showers off in an at‐ tempt to conserve water during the drought. On Sat‐ urday, July 30, Algarrobo Council joined those of Velez‐Malaga and Rincon de la Victoria in taking these exceptional mea‐ sures. Algarrobo Council said in a statement that it will ‘im‐ mediately’ cut off the water supply to the beach show‐ ers, footbaths, and the rest of the public fountains of the municipality. Water used for the irrigation of
Image of a beach shower in Rincon de la Victoria.
gardens and public parks will also be limited they added, supplying only enough to guarantee their survival. Francisco Salado, the mayor of Rincon de la Victo‐ ria explained in a statement on Friday, July 29, that the action is “unpopular, but extremely necessary”, due to the current drought con‐
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ditions in the region. Sergio Diaz, the councillor for Beaches reported that “the critical situation in which we find ourselves with water resources at a minimum forces us to make an urgent decision. As of Monday August 1, the showers in our municipality will remain closed, with on‐ ly footbaths available".
LUX MUNDI Ecumenical Centre Torre del Mar has arranged a trip to Cartage‐ na, with a day trip to Mur‐ cia, Monday October 3, to Friday October 7. The port city and naval base of Cartagena, in the Murcia region of southeast Spain, was founded by the Carthaginians around 220 B.C. The city boomed dur‐ ing the Roman period, and its many Roman ruins in‐ clude a first‐century BC the‐ atre and Casa de la Fortu‐ na, a villa with murals and mosaics. On Tuesday, there will be a guided visit around the city, and on Wednes‐ day, a full‐day excursion to Murcia. The hotel is the three‐star Sercotel Carlos III. The ticket price for a double room is €340 (€320 with a Friend of Lux Mundi card). Those interested should sign up as soon as possible so that bookings can be made. For more informa‐ tion about the trip and Lux Mundi in general, visit http://lux‐mundi.org/en/, call 952 543 334 or email luxmundi@lux‐mundi.org.
Improvements for A-7 motorway Tamsin Brown THE mayor of Rincon de la Victoria, Francisco Salado, has demanded a definitive and urgent solution to the problematic issues with the part of the A-7 motorway that passes through the municipality and has managed to get the Spanish Ministry of Transport to commit to making specific improvements to it. The mayor visited the headquarters of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda in Madrid on July 27 for a meeting with the Rincon councillor for Town Planning, Miguel Ángel Jiménez, the directorgeneral of Roads of the Spanish government,
Credit: Rincon de la Victoria Town Hall
THE councillor for Social Rights and Equality of the Velez‐Malaga Town Hall, Víc‐ tor González, presented four new social inclusion projects on July 28 at a meeting held with local social entities. The projects will be carried out with three main focuses: the promotion of personal
Credit: Twitter@aytorincon
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GOVERNMENT: Has committed to improving the A-7.
Javier Herrero Lizano, and the head of the Area of Eastern Andalucia, Salvador Fernández Quesada. The mayor explained to Herrero Lizano that the three major problems are the poor condition of the surface of the road, the noise pollution affecting
the residents and the continuous traffic jams. “Another step has been taken in our struggle to achieve a definitive solution to these problems. We had to move forward by bringing the problem to the Ministry, which is what we have done,” said Salado.
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NIBS EXTRA Better facilities THE town hall of Nerja has in‐ vested €170,000 in restoring and improving the services provided on the beach of El Playazo. The toilet and show‐ er modules have been put in‐ to service, there are two new towers for the lifeguarding and beach surveillance ser‐ vice and the energy‐efficient street lighting has been re‐ placed.
Summer concerts VELEZ-MALAGA is offering concerts every Wednesday in August and September at the Francisco Hernandez Centre of Contemporary Art and the Palacio Marqués de Beniel. The next performance, ‘A Journey Through Musical Theatre’, will take place at the Palacio Marqués de Be‐ niel on August 10 at 9pm.
Hotel occupancy THE Association of Hoteliers of the Costa del Sol (AEHCOS) has calculated that July end‐ ed with a hotel occupancy rate of 86.29 per cent, sur‐ passing July of 2019 (84.20 per cent). There was particu‐ larly high demand in two Malaga municipalities: Nerja (94.46 per cent) and Torre‐ molinos (92.49 per cent).
Fishing competition EL MORCHE, Torrox, will hold its traditional fishing competition on Sunday, Au‐ gust 7. The activity is part of the programme of activities for the El Morche Fair, but this year it will be held be‐ forehand. Although most participants are local resi‐ dents, visitors are also en‐ couraged to take part.
Mister RNB Spain UNTIL Sunday August 7, Ner‐ ja is hosting Spain’s most im‐ portant male beauty contest, Mister RNB Spain. The Final Gala will be held on August 6, at the Villa de Nerja Cultural Centre. The 52 candidates will explore Nerja and there will be several key events over the period.
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Free Wi-Fi on beaches Tamsin Brown THE first deputy mayor of the munici‐ pality of Velez‐Malaga, Jesús Pérez Atencia, together with the councillor for New Technology, Juan Carlos Muñoz, announced on Monday Au‐ gust 1, that free Wi‐Fi will be avail‐ able at various points along the coast of Torre del Mar. The initiative is cur‐ rently in its first phase and has been tested over the past few weeks. Pérez Atencia said: “Nowadays, the use of mobile phones has become widespread and we regularly use
Credit: Velez-Malaga Town Hall
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Jesús Pérez Atencia announced the new beach Wi-Fi service.
‘Night Tales’ exhibition FROM July 29 to September 18, the Museum of Ner‐ ja is hosting a temporary exhibition titled ‘Night Tales’ by the photographer Fernando Bayona. This is Bayona’s first retrospective exhibition in the province of Malaga, with 40 photographs and three sculptures that have been selected to represent his last 12 years of work. Fernando Bayona’s photographic work is charac‐ terised by its careful staging, with each element help‐ ing to transmit the feelings and attitudes of the peo‐ ple shown. The observer is invited to reflect on philosophical and social issues, such as relationships, identity or the passing of time. Love is often a key theme in his works. Fernando Bayona was born in Montizon, Jaen, and holds a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Granada. He is considered one of the most impor‐ tant photographers of his generation. His exhibition can be visited from 10am to 5pm (last admission at 4.30pm) until September 11 and from 10am to 4pm (last admission at 3.30pm) from September 12 to 18.
Protecting coastal trees THE Department of the Environment of the Al‐ muñecar Town Hall has carried out a series of maintenance works in Parque Mediterráneo, lo‐ cated on the coastal strip of the La Galera housing development in Taramay. The Conifers and Mediterranean pine trees in the area are being af‐ fected by a plague of an insect called Tomicus piniperda, commonly known as pine shoot bee‐ tles. According to local environmental experts, this type of beetle has always been a very common pest in inland areas with a continental climate, but climate change is causing it to spread to coastal ar‐ eas. So far, more than 1,000,000 affected speci‐ mens have been counted throughout Andalucia. The councillor for the Environment, Luis Aragón, said that the work had “involved the felling of the affected specimens in their entirety,” which was necessary “due to the high degree of transmis‐ sion” of the beetles. A preventative treatment was also carried out to protect all unaffected pines and cypresses.
them when we go to the beach to call, text, listen to music or podcasts and even watch films or read books. People usually carry out these every‐ day activities using Wi‐Fi connec‐ tions, whether at home or elsewhere, and now they will also be able to do them on the beach in Torre del Mar. “The service has been tested for several weeks and now it is stable, al‐ lowing users to have a satisfactory experience. With this initiative, we continue to be a municipality that is ahead in terms of technology applied to tourism,” he added.
1st nautical channel THE Nerja Town Hall, through the Departments of Beaches and Agriculture and Fisheries, has opened the municipality’s first nautical channel for use by public boats. It is located on the beach of El Playazo. Speaking on Friday July 29, the councillor for Beaches, María del Carmen López, said the nautical channel can be used by all those who wish to bring their boats and has a concrete walkway to facili‐ tate the access of vehicles with trailers. The new service has been
authorised by the Ministry of Agri‐ culture, Livestock, Fisheries and Sustainable Development of the Junta de Andalucia. The councillor for Agriculture and Fisheries, Javier Lopez, said: “There was a great demand for this in the municipality, both for recreational boating and fishing. The channel is in a very good loca‐ tion, as it is next to the El Playazo car park, which can be reached from the N‐340 road, so people will be able to access it with their vehicles and park easily.”
Parking spaces THE Almuñecar Association of Rehabilitated Alcoholics (AR‐ DA) has once again been en‐ trusted with the management of a local car park, which has 100 spaces and is located next to the Almuñecar Health Cen‐ tre and near the P‐4 commer‐ cial area. “This measure has two func‐ tions. On the one hand, we are meeting the demand for parking spaces during the peak season, and on the other hand, we are collaborating with a local social organisa‐ tion,” said the councillor for Traffic, Francisco Robles, on Tuesday July 26. There is also another such car park in Almuñecar, situat‐ ed at the Municipal Market and managed by Caritas Al‐ muñecar. It will be open 24 hours a day until September
and is staffed by four people. There is an estimated capacity of 170 parking spaces and parking is available from 50 cents per hour. As for ARDA, the rate is set at €4 per day.
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El Morche festivals AROUND 8,000 people enjoyed the two festivals which were held on July 29 and 30 in El Morche, Torrox. The first festival, ‘Donde Estabas Entonces’ (‘Where You Were Then’), paid homage to Spanish pop from the 80s and 90s and took place on the Friday, and the 14th edition of the Loona Sum‐ mer Festival followed on Saturday. “Torrox does not rest: it offers both residents and visitors a wide range of activities to complement the sun and beaches,” said the mayor, Óscar Medina. He highlighted the town hall’s commit‐ ment to providing cultur‐ al, leisure and sporting ac‐ tivities, as they create an important boost for the local economy. He also thanked the lo‐ cal residents for their pa‐ tience and understand‐ ing, as the festivals meant that there was loud music playing until the early hours of the morning. The councillor for Fes‐ tivities, Salvador Escud‐ ero, also spoke of the im‐ portance of such events for tourism, saying: “They generate income in the municipality, not only in the hotel and restaurant sector but al‐ so in other types of es‐ tablishments.”
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New technology ON Friday July 29, the company Sigfrido Fruit, which is based in Velez‐Malaga and sells more than five million kilos of subtropical fruit each year, presented its new photovoltaic technolo‐ gy. The technology will allow it to directly transform sunlight into electricity so that it can become a significantly more sustainable com‐ pany. The event was also attended by the mayor of Velez‐Malaga, Antonio Moreno Fer‐ rer, and the councillor for Safety, Agriculture and Fisheries, José María Domínguez Pérez. Sigfrido Molina, the CEO of Sigfrido Fruit, said: “From now on, we are a company that is more committed to the environment. The aim is to produce as much energy as we consume. We will reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emissions that go into the atmosphere with this exciting project, making us pioneers in the province.” Sigfrido Fruit currently consumes 231,572 kWh of electricity each year, and the new project is designed to allow them to pro‐ duce less, thereby reducing carbon dioxide emissions each year.
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Clean riverbeds One hundred Tamsin Brown ON August 1, the first deputy mayor of the municipality of Velez‐Malaga, Jesús Pérez Aten‐ cia, signed a letter addressed to the Junta de Andalucia’s Territo‐ rial Delegation of Sustainable De‐ velopment in Malaga urging the Junta to clean up and take care of the beds of the rivers and streams of the municipality. Pérez Atencia said: “The drought affecting our region causes the accumulation of de‐ bris on the beds of streams and rivers, which means that there will be a high risk of flooding when the storms and torrential rain arrive in the next few months.” According to estimates by mu‐ nicipal experts, Velez‐Malaga has approximately 150 kilometres of
police reports
Credit: Velez-Malaga Town Hall
Cleaning rural riverbeds is the responsibility of the town halls.
streams and rivers throughout the municipality, of which almost 90 per cent are in rural areas. According to Supreme Court Ruling 4626/2017, of December 13, cleaning public bodies of wa‐ ter in urban areas is the town hall’s responsibility, while the cleaning of rivers and streams in non‐urban areas corresponds to the Ministry of the Environment of the Junta de Andalucia.
THE Local Police Headquar‐ ters in Rincon de la Victoria has stated that during the local festivities held from July 13 to 17, more than 100 police reports were filed, almost all of them for possession of narcotic sub‐ stances in public. There was a total of 70 reports written up by the Canine Unit (UCAN) of the Local Police, which spe‐ cialises in detecting illegal drugs. The reports were the result of random searches carried out at the fairground, on the main streets and on the prome‐ nade.
There were also four cas‐ es of offences against road safety due to positive Breathalyser tests, two re‐ ports of disobeying police orders, 10 complaints of excessive noise in private residences and more than 20 reports of botellones (group drinking sessions in public, often involving teenagers). The mayor of Rincon de la Victoria, Francisco Sala‐ do, highlighted “the excel‐ lent work and coordination of the police actions” and thanked them for their “professionalism and will‐ ingness to collaborate.”
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Fire in Nerja A RESIDENT of Nerja was seriously injured and suffered burns to vari‐ ous parts of his body on Friday July 29 when a fire broke out at his home on Calle La Cruz. The alarm was raised at around 8pm when a large amount of smoke was seen coming from the kitchen area. The man, whose identity has not been revealed, had tried to put the fire out himself but had been unsuc‐ cessful and injured himself in the process. Firefighters from the Provincial Fire Consortium of Nerja, the Guardia Civil, the Local Police and the medical services arrived quick‐ ly on the scene. According to sources from the Andalucia emer‐ gency services (112), the medical staff treated the man’s burns on the scene and he was later trans‐ ferred to the Regional Hospital in Malaga. The incident caused much com‐ motion. Dozens of onlookers crowded in front of the three‐ storey building. Fortunately, no other residents had to be evacuat‐ ed as the fire and smoke were con‐ centrated in the kitchen area, which was completely burnt out.
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New mayor of La Herradura FOLLOWING the recent appoint‐ ment of Juan José Ruiz Joya as mayor of Almuñecar, Daniel Bar‐ bero will now take over as mayor of La Herradura. Barbero will al‐ so continue in his role as council‐ lor for Tourism and Beaches. On Tuesday July 26, Barbero said that he was taking on the new role “with great responsibili‐ ty and personal satisfaction. It was clear to me that I had to move forward and had to be able to help the mayor by doing everything in my power to facili‐ tate his work as the head of the municipality,” he said after thanking the mayor for the trust he has placed in him. Juan José Ruiz Joya described his term as mayor of La Herradu‐ ra as “some magnificent years in my political life” and highlighted all the positive changes that have taken place in terms of infras‐ tructure and tourism. “I think that Daniel Barbero is
the ideal person for this because of his qualifications and experi‐ ence and because he is also from La Herradura. He will have my full support,” concluded Ruiz Joya.
Credit: Almuñecar Town Hall
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TAKING OVER: Daniel Barbero is the new mayor of La Herradura.
Visitors from Almuñecar A DELEGATION from the town hall in Almuñecar recently visited La Nucia. The Almuñecar councillors wanted to learn more about La Nucia’s Animal Protection de‐ partment and its Sports depart‐ ment, municipal sources re‐ vealed. “Both are a national refer‐ ence,” the visitors told their La Nucia counterparts. Juan Francisco Robles, Francis‐ co Javier Garcia and Luis Aragon, respective councillors for Com‐
merce, Urban Development and the Environment, together with Almuñecar’s fire chief, Jose Luis Varela, later toured the training ground, a simulated disaster area with ruined houses, rubble and fallen masonry. The La Nucia installation is one of the few in Spain where search and rescue dogs can be trained in an environment similar to that following an earthquake, tsuna‐ mi or flood. The visitors were accompa‐ nied by Animal Protection coun‐
cillor, Jessica Gommans, and Manuel Moreno, president of the USAR 13 volunteer associa‐ tion which uses dogs in rescue operations and also carries out humanitarian and social pro‐ grammes. From there the Almuñecar delegation went on to the Ciu‐ dad Deportivo Camilo Cano, where La Nucia’s mayor, Bern‐ abe Cano, and Sports councillor, Sergio Villalba, explained how the sports complex was run on public‐private sector lines.
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Energy-saving measures PEDRO SANCHEZ, the President of the government, on Friday, July 29, an‐ nounced his energy‐saving plan. It was
approved by the Council of Ministers on Monday, August 1, in the form of a de‐ cree‐law.
HOLLYWOOD actor and Ja‐ son Bourne star Matt Damon was spotted in the idyllic coastal town of Javea, where he has previously been spot‐ ted enjoying his holidays. In 2016 he visited Ali‐ cante’s Marina Alta region for the wedding of his broth‐ er‐in‐law. Rumours of the celebrity’s presence in the Alicante re‐ gion had been circulating since Saturday, July 23, but it was not until Tuesday, July 26, his presence was officially confirmed. Damon visited bar Cala Clemence overlooking the bay in Javea, who then pub‐ lished photographs of the acting legend alongside their
Credit: Instagram @calaclemence1
Hollywood actor in Javea
Matt Damon has been spotted on holiday in the town.
staff and other fans on their Instagram account. Matt Damon is a renowned American actor, screenwriter and producer. He received an Oscar nomi‐ nation as well as an award
for Best Original Screenplay for his role in the 1997 film Good Will Hunting. In addi‐ tion he has appeared in ma‐ jor Hollywood blockbusters such as Ocean’s Eleven, Inter‐ stellar and Jason Bourne.
This measure ‐ designed to conserve energy ‐ will include the limitation of air conditioning to temperatures of 27 de‐ grees, and 19 degrees in the case of a heating system. It will be imple‐ mented in places like shops, trans‐ port, hotels, banks, or the offices of private companies throughout Spain. The objective is to save energy consumption in public buildings by being more efficient. This in turn will reduce the use of gas as a source of electricity generation, as combined cycle power plants feed on this raw material to produce electricity. A similar campaign was launched in Germany this week , and most Euro‐ pean countries are expected to fol‐ low. Although the measures are initial‐ ly aimed at the public sector, they will also affect the daily lives of citi‐ zens. These restrictions will be of‐ fered as recommendations to house‐ holders, but will not be mandatory, yet. Homeowners will be obliged to check their heating installations, and be advised on ways to save energy, via the use of billboards and a citizen awareness campaign.
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Whistling ban wrong ON July 27, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss vowed to outlaw wolf‐whistling and cat‐ calling if she becomes prime minister, as part of a crackdown on misogyny in public places. So, for our weekly Sunday debate on Ju‐ ly 31, the Euro Weekly News asked our readers and Facebook followers whether they think wolf‐whistling is harmless fun or sexual harassment. Surprisingly, 97 per cent of female commenters on the post expressed that they have no issue with be‐ ing wolf‐whistled at in public ‐ with many calling it a “compliment.” One comment from Sheree Ruiz said: “In my younger years it was harmless fun. Now the woke brigade have made it sexu‐ al harassment. The woke brigade have al‐ so decided most pick up lines are also sex‐ ual harassment.” Despite the overwhelming majority agreeing that it is all harmless fun, howev‐ er, not everyone agreed, with Joellen Lynn Marsh Trebble saying “I hate it and found it embarrassing.” Interestingly, the majority of men who commented on the post also said it is “a bit of fun” and that it is “complimentary,” with Douglas Vickers saying that it’s “fun as long as ladies are old enough.”
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Atlantic Posse yachting rally YACHTING travel experi‐ ence company Ocean Posse LLC is thrilled to an‐ nounce the launch of the Atlantic Posse, which will bring a new type of sailing rally to Europe. The innovative Atlantic Posse yachting experience is unique because it doesn’t have a set start date or end date and is modelled after the highly successful Panama Posse, one of the largest rallies in the world. Anticipating 50‐ 75 yachts, the rally will cov‐ er 5,400 nautical miles. It begins in Cartagena, the historic epicentre of the Spanish Fleet, with an additional kick‐off location
Image Credit: Nikiforov Alexander/Shutterstock.com
YACHTING EXPERIENCE: A new type of sailing.
in Lisbon, Portugal. The route will stop over in Gibraltar via Morocco, Madeira and the Canary Is‐ lands to Western Africa’s Archipelago Cape Verde before crossing the Atlantic to Martinique, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saba,
the US Virgin Islands, Puer‐ to Rico and the Dominican Republic. Captain Dietmar Petutschnig and Skipper Jacques Felt stated: “Ex‐ plorers are the influencers of influencers. “Come and join the yachting adventure and be part of the posse.”
Support losing steam THE Catalonia independence drive is losing steam according to the latest CEO survey, with those in favour of secession declining. The survey results issued on Thursday, July 28 and covered by a Spanish news site, show that those who are anti‐indepen‐ dence are now in the majority with a lead of at least 10 per cent. Figures show that the number opposed to independence has risen to its highest since 2015 and now stands at 52 per cent, with those in favour falling to their lowest point at 41 per cent.
This is the biggest gap in seven years. The CEO survey is considered a good barometer of the mood within Catalonia, with the latest figure only the third time that those opposed to independence have held a clear majority. Whilst the survey points to the Catalonia independence drive losing steam, it does not provide insight into the possible rea‐ sons for the shift. However, with the world in turmoil, is‐ sues like energy security may well be be‐ hind the shift.
Rear view fines BLOCKING your rear view with luggage, as many of us do when going on holiday, can result in a fine according to the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT). A reminder issued on Sat‐ urday, July 30, when many are heading off on their summer holiday says that blocking the view through the back window of a vehi‐ cle is only permitted under certain circumstances. The regulations that gov‐ ern driving in Spain say that a driver must have a full and unobstructed view of the entire road on which they are travelling, including be‐ hind the car. That means packing the boot all the way to the roof or storing items on the rear
Image ChicoDodiFc Shutterstock.com
CLEAR VIEW: Don’t overload your car.
parcel shelf may result in the vehicle being impounded and a fine issued. The excep‐ tions to the rule are in the case of vehicles that do not have a separate boot, in oth‐ er words, hatchbacks, SUVs
and station wagons. Similar‐ ly unauthorised tinted sheets, adhesives or curtains on the rear window are not legal, with the rear window to be kept free of any ob‐ struction, stickers etc…
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Renfe train rescheduling works are part of the comprehensive renovation of the infrastructure. They will be carried out between August 1 and September 19 at different points on the Yeles, Toledo to Guadalmez, Ciudad Real route. As a result of these works, Renfe assured that: “it will be necessary to make cuts in traffic in a timely manner,” which will force trains to circulate on a single track with speed lim‐
Low levels
its. Renfe will reschedule its trains between August 1 and September 5, with the change of ‘a few minutes’ of the departure and arrival times, and an increase in travel time of about 10 minutes on average. The affect‐ ed lines include the AVE Madrid‐Cordoba‐Sevilla, Madrid‐Cordoba‐Malaga, Barcelona‐Cordoba/Sevilla, Barcelona‐Malaga, and Barcelona‐Granada.
Paragliders in collision THE Emergency Service of Castilla y Leon reported on Sunday July 31, that a mid‐air collision occurred between two paragliders which resulted in the death of one person. This tragic incident occurred near the mu‐ nicipality of Piedrahita, a town of around 2,000 inhabitants just 60km west of Avila. 112 received a call at around 2:43pm in‐ forming the emergency operator that they had observed a collision between two paragliders while in flight. Both users fell to the ground about three or 4km east of the take‐off point in Peñanegra. This location is one of the main areas of Spain for the practice of this sport. After taking the call, 112 immediately de‐ ployed patrols from the Avila Guardia Civil to the location. They were joined at the scene by a team from the Special Moun‐ tain Intervention Rescue Group (GREIM),
Credit: jennyt/Shutterstock.com
AS detailed by Spanish train operator Renfe in a state‐ ment released on Sunday, July 31, renovation work is due to be carried out by Adif on the high‐speed railway line linking Madrid and Andalucia. This action will force the rescheduling of high‐speed and long‐distance ser‐ vices in the community between August 1 and September 5. The company explained that these
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ACCIDENT: Both paragliders fell to the ground.
who sent an emergency rescue helicopter to the accident spot. On arrival, the emer‐ gency services verified that one of the paragliders had lost his life as a result of the collision, while the other did not re‐ quire medical assistance, nor did he need to be evacuated.
By Peter McLaren‐Kennedy PLÁCIDO RODRÍGUEZ, Director of Cañada de los Pájaros wetland near Sevilla, told local media on Tuesday, August 2 that falling water levels are placing the flamingo population in danger. The area, which is home to as many as 3,000 birds of different species in the winter, recorded lower than usual rainfall this year leaving many species unable to breed as nor‐ mal. Typically most inhabi‐ tants breed in spring and raise their chicks in the summer, but poor conditions have made breeding more difficult this year. Rodríguez, bemoan‐ ing the regional adminis‐ tration, said:”Nature is something that sustains us all and we have to look after it when it needs it.”
easyJet strikes off THE unions representing easyJet cabin crew mem‐ bers in Spain called off the final three days of scheduled strikes. Miguel Galan, general secretary of USO at easy‐
Jet, confirmed in a state‐ ment on Thursday, July 28, that the next round of strike action in Spain was called off. Cabin crew members (TCP) had been scheduled to carry
out industrial action again on July 29, 30, and 31. It has taken many weeks of negotiations but the unions have fi‐ nally reached an agree‐ ment with the airline. A deal offering the workers a 22 per cent in‐ crease in their base salary over three years has been accepted. “After weeks of strikes and months of negotia‐ tion, the company has sent us an economic pro‐ posal that, without being exactly what we were demanding, does repre‐ sent an important ap‐ proach to the salaries and conditions that our colleagues in Europe have,” said Mr Galan. Meetings were held where 303 of the total of 418 cabin crew employed by easyJet in Spain at‐ tended. The agreement was ratified by 74.6 per cent of them.
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UK sea levels on the rise THE UK’s sea levels are reportedly rising much faster than last century, according to the Met Office’s State of the Climate report, as stated on Thursday, July 28. In the latest report, the Met Office as‐ sessed climate change in the UK and its effect on sea levels and temperatures, as well as extreme weather events. According to the report, sea levels in the UK have risen around 16.5cm since 1990, with the rate increasing by 3‐ 5.2mm a year, more than double the rate of increase in the early part of last century. This poses a threat to the environ‐ ment and homes, with powerful storms and winds hitting coastal areas, putting up to 500,000 homes at risk from flood‐ ing. The UK’s climate in 2021 would have been exceptional 30 years ago, accord‐ ing to the report, however, in modern standards it is ‘unremarkable’, with hot‐ ter temperatures becoming more nor‐ mal. This is exemplified by the fact that if 2021 temperatures had been recorded in 1992, they would have been some of the highest recorded temperatures in UK history.
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9
Explainer: Do you need an international driver’s licence when in Spain? ON the weekend of July 24 reports online suggested that ‘British looking’ drivers were being targeted on the Costa del Sol. Those reports go on to suggest that they weren’t just targeting residents who hadn’t exchanged their licence for a Spanish one, but that even if you were just a tourist you were being fined. The Spanish legislation is not clear on the issue with the information contained on the DGT website not making specific men‐ tion of any allowance for UK drivers. However, a tweet by Grant Shapps, the UK’s Transport Secretary said that follow‐ ing an agreement with Spanish authorities, UK drivers can use their licences in Spain. That same information is contained on the Gov.uk website, however, the agree‐ ment only covers those who are not resi‐ dent in Spain or who spend more than six months at a time in the country. Those that will be spending more than
Image internationaldriversassociation.com
NEW RULE: International driver’s licence.
six months or who hold driver’s licences from other countries may need an Interna‐ tional driver’s licence. These are governed by the United Na‐ tions according to the International Driv‐ er’s Association and are easy to obtain on‐ line.
The cost is not high and they can last be‐ tween one and three years. Anyone who is resident in Spain was re‐ quired by law to have exchanged their UK licence for a Spanish one before the end of last year. While some grace was allowed, licences can no longer be exchanged and any new‐ comers or those who failed to do so being required to retake their licence here. In terms of the question of whether you do or don’t need an international driver’s licence when visiting Spain with a British driver’s licence, the answer is no. Language barriers may, however, result in your being fined as authorities crack down on British residents in Spain who failed to exchange their licences. If you are fined you should write to com‐ plain, alternatively you could keep a trans‐ lated copy of the information with you as that may help to get you off the hook.
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FEATURE
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW
Crime, lies and alibis
AUTHOR E J Wood, based in Benissa on the Costa Blanca, isn’t known to shy away from crime. The truth is bad things happen to good people. So why the interest in psychopaths? “I grew up watching the likes of Detec‐ tive TV Shows such as Colum‐ bo and films like Silence of the Lambs,” stated Benissa‐based author Emma Wood, in an exclu‐ sive interview with Euro Weekly News. “Psychopaths exert a strange allure, and have been a staple for television and litera‐ ture for years. I’ve always been interested in what makes people tick.” “You call me crazy, a monster and many other derogatory names,” says Amalie Keller in the opening pages of Wood’s novel AMALIE. In Wood’s fiction, she revels in pushing the gory details, and in AMALIE, Wood begins a story in 1939 Hungary, where nine‐year‐old Amalie Keller lives with her older brother and parents just before the break out of the Sec‐
E J WOOD: “Writing is a process that happens rather than something I do.”
ond World War. As such with millions of others, Amalie is taken to the notorious concentration camp, Auschwitz. She’s seen death, and far worse and has no qualms in seeking justice when the Red Army liberate the remaining survivors. As Amalie grows older, both she and the police officer hunting her down acknowledge
the horrific nature of her crimes. Yes, she’s a murderous madwoman, but can we not help but sympathise with this charming social climber she’s now become? “I try to give everything to my readers,” stated Wood. “And it can be quite literally sweat and tears.” It’s quite unnerving when Wood says she doesn’t make anything up. “Nowadays, nothing would shock me. I’ve
read it all,” she claims. The fact that Wood can conjure up serial killers and psychopathic characters in her novels could seem in‐ congruous to those that know her as having a soft spot for ani‐ mals and she describes writing as almost a process that happens rather than something she does. “It can be slow. But some stories need to be told,” stated Wood. In Wood’s latest novel, Beyond the Pale, Wood starts afresh with Foren‐ sic Pathologist Addison Sharpe; a tea‐ drinking singleton that shuns intimacy because of her own childhood and the damage it carries. That is until businessman and philan‐ thropist Guy Davidson moves in next door. “Like my characters, I refuse to be vic‐ timised by the actions of my past,” said Wood. Both AMALIE and BEYOND THE PALE along with Wood’s other books are available on Amazon and you can follow her on social me‐ dia: www.facebook.com/authorejwood www.ejwoodauthor.com.
NEWS
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4 - 10 August 2022
Tight winter forecast THE UK’s National Grid has forecast a tight winter elec‐ tricity supply due to the un‐ certainty of supplies of Rus‐ sian gas to Europe, as reported on Thursday July, 28. Speaking of their concerns, UK National Grid’s Electricity System Operator (ESO) stat‐ ed: “While Britain is not reliant on Russian gas to the extent the rest of Europe is, it is clear the cessation of flows of gas into Europe could have knock‐on impacts, including very high prices,” as reported by the media. Working as a separate legal entity within National Grid, National Grid ESO is in charge of overseeing the nation’s electricity supply. Forty per cent of the UK’s electricity production in 2021 was produced by gas‐fired power plants, with fossil fuels accounting for 80 per cent of heating of the nation’s homes. After the Russian in‐ vasion of Ukraine, the UK’s gas prices hit record highs in
2022. According to the UK’s National Grid ESO, the tight‐ est period for electricity de‐
mand and supply is likely to be in the first half of Decem‐ ber.
Death of actor, 93 Joshua Manning BELOVED British actor Bernard Cribbins, known for his work on the Wombles and Doctor Who, has died aged 93, as reported by his agent on Thursday, July 28. Cribbins was born in 1928, in Oldham, Greater Manchester, leaving school at just 13 years of age and playing small roles in a local theatre before serving an apprenticeship at Oldham’s Repertory Theatre. The actor went on to become a household name in the UK, narrating the 1970s TV series ‘The Wombles’, acting as the iconic Station Master in the 1970s film ‘The Railway Children’, as well as appearing in Dr Who, as the Doctor’s companion in 1966. Tributes following the death of beloved actor Bernard Cribbins poured in: Gavin Barker Associates said on Twitter: “Beloved actor Bernard Cribbins OBE has passed away at age 93. His contribution to British entertain‐ ment is without question. He was unique, typifying the best of his generation, and will be greatly missed by all who had the pleasure of knowing and working with him.”
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Prime price jump AMAZON PRIME prices will rise by as much as 40 per cent across Europe as the company battles soaring costs and falling profits. The announcement in the United States on Monday, July 25 came as the company presented its quarterly financial re‐ sults. Current Chief Exec‐ utive Andy Jassy is under pressure from investors to shore up the massive profits the company made during the lock‐ down, with fears that in‐ flation and a possible downturn will hit re‐ turns. Customers in the Unit‐ ed Kingdom will see membership fees rise by 20 per cent and in Spain by 39 per cent from September 15. Although it is some years since Amazon raised its fees, the in‐ creases represent a sig‐ nificant jump in the cost
and will no doubt be found by some to be too much to swallow. Amazon, which bene‐ fitted enormously from lockdowns around the world, enjoyed super
profits which it used to grow and expand the business. But with con‐ sumers tightening their belts and costs rising, the darling of Wall Street is in cost‐cutting mode.
Betting shops to close THE city of Bremen, in the north of Germany, is set to close all of its betting shops over concerns they may be used for mon‐ ey laundering. The city made the announcement on Wednesday July 27, saying it had turned down requests for betting licences from 32 establishments. This meant that any betting which took place at such establishments would thereafter be considered illegal. The establishments were until August 5, to legally chal‐ lenge the decision or to provide evidence of how they were able to initially start their businesses, such as bank loans. “At its core, this is about checking the reliability of these op‐ erators,” said Ulrich Mäurer, Bremen’s senator for interior af‐ fairs, to the local press. “We also want to guarantee that no money from dodgy businesses like drug dealing or human trafficking is being laundered here and thus flows into legal money cycles.” The president of the Germany Sports Betting Association, Mathias Dahms, called the measures “arbitrary, legally ques‐ tionable and completely out of proportion, motivated purely by political goals.”
NEWS
Best European airports HOLIDU, a search engine for holiday rentals, created the ultimate European airport ranking using the average Google rating and the num‐ ber of reviews. The data corresponds to July 2022 and can be seen at https://www.holidu.co.uk. The winner was Athens International Airport. Greece escaped the Euro‐ pean flight mania relativity unscathed, with most of the delays being experienced at the departing airports. Pas‐ sengers can enjoy airport
Credit: Manfred Werner, via Wikimedia Commons
12 EWN
Athens International Airport.
lounges, archaeological ex‐ hibitions and plenty of restaurants. In second place was Zürich Airport, Switzerland, which has everything pas‐ sengers could need to kill time. From August 1, they
now have live music at the weekends, as well as a games lounge with table tennis, darts and even a mi‐ ni‐golf course. In third place was Porto Airport (Francisco de Sá Carneiro), which may be a good option for avoiding the delays that have been plaguing Lisbon Airport since mid‐June. Porto Airport has a real‐ time tracking app and a space for children with a li‐ brary, videos and activities to keep them entertained.
mRNA vaccine analysis AN Italian court has ordered the analysis of Covid mRNA vaccines after a man com‐ plained that he needed to be vaccinated to do his job, according to reports on Saturday, July 30. After a complaint was made from the man, the court in Italy’s Pesaro ordered lab analysis of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines from Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech to iden‐ tify their contents. According to the man’s lawyer Nicoletta
Morante, the analysis of the Covid vaccine will be carried out in September, as reported by the Italian press. The 50‐year‐old man, who has already contracted and recovered from the virus, worked in an education facility in Italy, an in‐ dustry that is subject to compulsory vaccina‐ tion in the country. However, he was suspended as a result of his ‘non‐compliance’ after refusing to take the jab, according to Morante.
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NEWS
ON Tuesday July 26, Animal Liberation Malta (ALM) an‐ nounced they had just learned that between Au‐ gust and September of 2021 three female dolphins died at the Mediterraneo Marine Park in Malta. The news was never made pub‐ lic, nor was it registered on the non‐profit cetacean register Ceta‐Base, as is common practice in other international wildlife parks. Two of the female dol‐ phins which died, named Onda and Mar, were be‐ lieved to be around 20 and 25 years old, had been caught in the wild in Cuba and had been kept at Mediterraneo since 2000. The third dolphin, Melita, had been born in the park in 2014. She never swam in the open sea. ALM also called upon au‐ thorities to investigate why Mediterraneo is allowed to operate under a zoo licence when their dolphin shows act as a ‘permanent aquatic
circus’. Circuses with animal performers have been banned in Malta since 2014. ALM called on the gov‐
ernment as well as the park owners to shut down Mediterraneo and trans‐ form it into a rehabilitation centre for aquatic animals.
Fire on German border HUNDREDS of firefighters from multiple countries have been struggling to control a huge forest fire at a national park popular with tourists on the Czech‐Ger‐ man border. Smoke drifted over the Czech Republic, reaching Prague, and children had to be evacuated from a summer camp in Germany. On Wednesday July 27, the European Union swiftly mobilised two firefighting aeroplanes and two heli‐ copters to Czechia, and Poland and Slovakia had al‐ ready been operating helicopters in the country since the previous day. The European Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, said: “We are facing very intense wild‐ fires this summer ‐ active across the Mediterranean and in the very centre of our continent. To combat fires ravaging a national park in Czechia’s north bor‐ dering Germany, our Union stands in full solidarity to face the destructive fires. Assistance from Poland and Slovakia has already arrived, and so have the EU’s two firefighting planes from Italy, which form part of the rescue fleet. I thank everyone involved in ensuring such swift mobilisation of support.”
Tamsin Brown THE residents of the remote Tory Island, 14.5 kilometres off the coast of County Done‐ gal, Ireland, have finally re‐ ceived the large cross that leg‐ end says was promised to them in the sixth century but wrongfully placed elsewhere. The legend says that Saint Columba gave his word to the residents of Tory that they would receive a giant stone cross as a gift for having con‐ verted to Christianity, but it ended up going to Ray Church on the mainland, where it re‐ mains to this day.
Credit: Sarah Lewtas
Three dolphin deaths Cardboard cross
The cardboard cross is made from Bible pages.
The contemporary artist Sarah Lewtas and Irish histori‐
an Brian Lacey joined forces to give residents their long‐over‐ due cross, which is not made of stone, but cardboard. The 6.5‐metre cross was delivered to them and buried in a ‘fes‐ tive’ ceremony on July 27. It could not be erected due to the Irish weather and plan‐ ning permission require‐ ments, but there is still a sense of ‘completion’, said the artist. Lewtas expressed her grati‐ tude to the people of Tory, saying: “You couldn’t do any‐ thing on Tory Island without them.”
Notre-Dame on track THE Notre‐Dame cathedral in Paris is set to re‐ open to the general public in 2024, said the French minister of Culture, Rima Abdul Malak, on July 28. The roof of the famous medieval cathedral was destroyed by a huge fire which shocked people around the world more than three years ago, in April 2019. Notre‐Dame has been closed ever since. She said that the clean‐ up part of the project had been completed suc‐ cessfully and that rebuilding work would begin
at the end of the summer. On a visit to the cathedral, Abdul Malak said: “We are confident that 2024 will be the year a large part of this work is completed, the year of the reopening of the cathedral to worshippers and to the pub‐ lic.” Shortly after the fire, the president of France, Emmanuel Macron, promised that the 12th‐century cathedral would be restored and reopened to the public in time for the 2024 Olympic Games, to be held in Paris.
Hot water and heating ban THE German city of Hanover on Thursday, July 28, announced a ban on the use of cen‐ tral heating and hot wa‐ t e r i n a l l p u b l i c b u i l d‐
ings. The city has be‐ come the first in Europe to implement such re‐ strictions as a result of Vladimir Putin and Rus‐ sia weaponising the sup‐
ply of gas, according to UK media sources. Belit Onay, the mayor of the Lower Saxony city has also stopped the use of hot water in swim‐ ming pools, gyms, and sports centres. Onay spoke about an ‘immi‐ nent gas shortage’, with other measures includ‐ ing turning off all the outdoor lighting on ma‐ jor public buildings at night, such as museums and town halls. Public fountains will also be switched off. These measures could well become an annual occurrence between April and September fol‐ lowing a controversial demand from the EU in Brussels on Tuesday, Ju‐ ly 26, for member states to reduce their con‐ sumption of gas by 15 per cent. With some ex‐ ceptions, thermostats in public buildings will also be set at just 20C (68F).
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EUROPEAN PRESS
EUROPEAN PRESS DENMARK
FINLAND
You need me
Bitcoin bonanza
THE normally popular Ed Sheeran fell out of favour when volunteers discovered that even though they were expected to give up their time to undertake work for his open-air concerts in Copenhagen this August, they would not be able to attend any of the four concerts.
DESPITE the fact that Bitcoins exist in the ether, Finnish customs managed to confiscate 1,889 of them from people found guilty of being involved in drug sales and used two local cryptocurrency dealers to sell them raising more than €46 million for the State.
THE NETHERLANDS
IRELAND
Radical farmers
Cashless bank
FARMERS who have been told to tackle nitrogen-based pollution are fighting back, dumping asbestos, manure and old tyres on major roads and then threatening violence to workers brought in to clear the mess causing intervention from police.
MOST people know the song by Slim Dusty, A Pub with No Beer, but the Allied Irish Banks (AIB) planned to have 70 banks with no cash, although complaints from customers and the fact that the State has a 60 per cent stake saw a U-turn.
BELGIUM
ITALY
All light up
Lost in Rome
THE proposal by the Amsterdam Council to limit access to ‘coffee’ shops to residents appears to have struck a financial chord with Brussels mayor, Philippe Close, who wants to see legalisation of cannabis use and the opening of ‘coffee’ shops in the capital.
A FRENCH family visiting Rome in July has placed posters around the city showing an image of a missing family member who was lost on the last day of their holiday and offering a €500 reward. Lost was an unnamed white teddy bear with one black paw.
GERMANY
PORTUGAL
Munich Massacre
Shut out
FIFTY years after the Munich Olympics massacre, families of the victims are planning to boycott the memorial service in Germany planned for September 5, because they believe that they have never received fair compensation for the loss of their 11 loved ones who died in the botched rescue attempt.
HOLIDAYMAKERS in the Algarve were unimpressed with the fact that the Lagoa Council announced on July 25 “Carvalho Beach will be closed to the public on July 27 and 28 due to the production of a feature film and the need to carry out filming at the location.”
FRANCE
UKRAINE
Notre Dame
Bojo fan
THE iconic Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris is on track to reopen in 2024 according to French Culture Minister Rima Abdul Malak. It is now more than three years since its roof was destroyed in a massive blaze and the clean-up has now been completed.
SPEAKING to Piers Morgan on Talk TV, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he does not want Boris Johnson to “disappear” after he stands down as Prime Minister as he is a friend of Ukraine and he wants him to remain in politics
NORWAY
SWEDEN
Sustainable fashion
War loot
NORWEGIAN fashionistas came eighth in a survey by UK company Jewellery Box considering how committed to sustainable fashion 50 different countries were. Britain came first, but Norway also gained fifth place for export of second-hand clothing which goes mainly to African and Latin American countries.
DECLARED by the Swedish government as a legitimate ‘spoil of war’ the document known as Łaski's Statute was looted during the Swedish invasion of Poland in 1655 and now, despite a plea by a Swedish MP that it be returned, the request has been rejected.
FINANCE
STAT OF WEEK
€3 billion
is the worldwide profit made by Spanish bank BBVA in the first six months of 2022.
ADDITIONAL RECOVERY FUNDS Credit: La Moncloa flickr
BUSINESS EXTRA
euroweeklynews.com • 4 - 10 August 2022
18
Shakira shock
Clean Creatives SO concerned about the environ‐ ment (or possibly their reputations) some 350 advertising and PR com‐ panies worldwide have joined the group Clean Creatives which means they will no longer work for fossil fu‐ el companies or their trade associa‐ tions according to a BBC report.
Economy surprise EVEN though inflation continues to spiral upwards, the Spanish econo‐ my surprised analysts by showing a growth of 1.1 per cent in the second quarter of the year, almost three times that forecast, thanks to household spending and the arrival of foreign holidaymakers.
Carpal tunnel TWO Spanish Supreme Court deci‐ sions have recognised that carpal tunnel syndrome is an occupational disease following lawsuits filed by a Spanish trade union on behalf of home help workers and employers will have to recognise this fact. This does not however cover workers using computers.
Price hike AS Amazon profits tumble, the company has announced it is to in‐ crease membership of its Prime divi‐ sion from September to €49.90 per annum in Spain which is much cheaper than the new £95 charge in the UK .
FUNDING FOR SPAIN: Ministers Calviño and Montero (left and right).
SPAIN is the first member of the EU to receive the second tranche of funds from the Recovery Plan. This latest payment which amount‐ ed to €12 billion was paid on July 29 following Spain’s formal request for these funds on April 30. “This is very good news that reaf‐ firms Spain’s leadership in the deploy‐ ment of the Recovery Plan in Europe. “The European Commission contin‐ ues to endorse the government’s roadmap with significant investments and reforms in key areas such as edu‐ cation and vocational training, labour market, sustainable mobility, connec‐
tivity and the deployment of 5G to put Spain at the forefront of the new green and digital economy,” said Min‐ ister of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, Nadia Calviño. Also commenting on this latest payment, the Minister of Finance and Public Administration, María Jesús Montero said “Spain once again demonstrates that it is a country that meets its commitments and will be the first to receive the second dis‐ bursement of the Recovery, Transfor‐ mation and Resilience Plan.” This gov‐ ernment has managed to launch the largest modernisation project in Spain
and we will not cease in our goal of building a more socially just, more digital, more productive and greener country.” Part of the funding received will be utilised in the Labour and pub‐ lic pension system reforms which are an important part of the govern‐ ment’s ongoing commitments. As at the end of June 2022, the Spanish Re‐ covery Plan has already helped fi‐ nance more than 28,800 projects throughout Spain in which more than 19,000 companies, more than 5,500 local authorities and more than 2,000 educational establishments and tech‐ nology centres have taken part.
Review of eco-friendly claims THE UK Competition and Markets Authority is to re‐ view eco‐friendly claims made by ASOS, Boohoo and George at Asda. As British consumers be‐ come more committed to purchasing sustainable cloth‐ ing and accessories, so major companies are anxious to persuade them that their product fits in to the ‘green’ category. The CMA however says that it is to investigate the eco‐friendly and sustainabili‐ ty claims made by the three companies as part of its on‐ going investigation into po‐ tential greenwashing and fol‐ lows concerns around the way the firms’ products are
FINANCE
Credit: Reddit Facebook
COLOMBIAN singer Shakira faces a long prison sentence if convicted of six counts of tax evasion between 2012 and 2014 involving €14.5 mil‐ lion. Her defence will be she was domiciled in the Bahamas at the time but the Barcelona Prosecutor’s Office contendsshe was primarily in Spain as she was in a relationship (now ended) with Barcelona foot‐ ball star Gerard Pique and spent most of her time in that city. On July 27, PR company Llorente y Cuenca said that the singer wanted to prove her innocence in court but in the meantime has lodged the €14.5 mil‐ lion plus interest with a firm of lawyers to show her ability to pay.
RECYCLED MATERIAL: But litte information is available.
being marketed to cus‐ tomers. In January this year, the CMA turned its eye to the fashion sector, where an esti‐ mated £54 billion is spent by consumers annually, and its initial review identified con‐ cerns around potentially mis‐ leading green claims. These included a number
of companies creating the impression that their prod‐ ucts were ‘sustainable’ or better for the environment ‐ for example by making broad claims about the use of recycled materials in new clothing ‐ with little to no in‐ formation about the basis for those claims or exactly which products they related to.
Basically, it’s all about the way in which the products are described and also whether the amount of recy‐ cled material included in their clothing is made clear to the consumer as some items may contain as little as 20 per cent recycled fabric. At this stage, this is a fact‐ finding mission only and the CMA has written to the three firms outlining its concerns and will use its information gathering powers to obtain evidence to progress its in‐ vestigation. Once concluded the facts uncovered will be revealed and a decision made as to whether any further action is required.
Holiday home surprise THE pandemic saw a boost in the number of people in the UK purchasing second homes in popular holiday areas such as Devon and Cornwall as a way of spending lockdown. This however made it even more difficult for local resi‐ dents, especially the young, to get on the housing ladder and now, Leeds Building Soci‐ ety will no longer offer mort‐ gages to people simply want‐ ing second holiday homes. They will still continue to grant mortgages for those under buy to let schemes or those who undertake to rent their properties out for at least 24 weeks in the year and thereby hope to stimu‐ late the residential market.
Squids in THE last year has been a night‐ mare for low‐cost UK energy suppliers and their customers and a bonanza for the largest companies in the market. According to reports from both the BBC and Sky News, Octopus Energy has ap‐ proached the British govern‐ ment with a plan to take over Bulb which collapsed late last year and has been temporari‐ ly put into Administration with financial support from the government. Despite neither side con‐ firming or denying the sugges‐ tion, it appears that Octopus Energy wants to obtain a £1 billion repayable loan from the state to allow it to take over Bulb and purchase ener‐ gy stocks in advance plus pay £100,000 for the customer base.
Windfall tax THE so‐called windfall tax on Spanish banks to be imposed this year and next will only af‐ fect around a dozen organisa‐ tions in the financial sector and smaller credit unions (sim‐ ilar to the old‐style building so‐ cieties in the UK) will not be in‐ cluded.
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C LOSING P RICES A UGUST 1
COMPANY PRICE(P) CHANGE(P) 3I Group 1.271,00 1.274,00 Abrdn 164,25 164,60 Admiral Group 1.883,5 1.892,5 Anglo American 2.942,0 2.946,0 Antofagasta 1.149,00 1.151,50 Ashtead Group 4.484,0 4.522,0 Associated British Foods 1.672,5 1.682,0 AstraZeneca 10.580,0 10.930,0 Auto Trader Group Plc 626,60 631,20 Avast 469,00 497,20 Aveva 2.340,0 2.344,0 Aviva 397,40 399,10 B&M European Value Retail SA424,60 429,10 BAE Systems 755,60 780,40 Bank VTB DRC 0,612 0,612 Barclays 155,14 157,04 Barratt Developments 507,76 507,80 Berkeley 4.262,0 4.276,0 BHP Billiton Ltd 2.240,00 2.248,50 BP 392,10 393,60 British American Tobacco 3.277,0 3.380,5 British Land Company 490,10 490,50 BT Group 155,10 165,10 Bunzl 3.046,0 3.060,0 Burberry Group 1.774,0 1.791,5 Carnival 668,0 670,4 Centrica 85,87 91,02 Coca Cola HBC AG 2.000,0 2.009,0 Compass 1.914,50 1.965,50 CRH 3.145,5 3.148,0 Croda Intl 7.400,0 7.408,0 DCC 5.330,0 5.354,0 Diageo 3.902,0 3.930,0 DS Smith 292,40 293,50 EasyJet 397,80 403,00 Experian 2.834,0 2.851,0 Ferguson 10.090,0 10.090,0 Flutter Entertainment 8.346,0 8.358,0 Fresnillo 730,80 732,60 Glencore 457,61 460,35 GSK plc 1.735,20 1.758,60 Halma 2.282,0 2.305,0 Hargreaves Lansdown 837,00 838,32 Hikma Pharma 1.727,50 1.732,50 HSBC 513,20 519,80 IAG 120,69 125,86 Imperial Brands 1.803,00 1.839,50 Informa 593,60 594,20
% CHG. 1.253,50 162,20 1.876,0 2.852,5 1.133,00 4.422,0 1.670,0 10.532,0 622,80 467,90 2.248,7 394,40 411,50 748,40 0,612 152,54 501,20 4.234,0 2.194,50 386,15 3.243,0 483,30 154,85 3.007,0 1.760,0 654,6 85,56 1.984,0 1.906,50 3.086,0 7.174,0 5.270,0 3.879,5 289,20 393,90 2.791,0 9.844,0 8.144,0 703,00 439,00 1.734,00 2.257,0 822,40 1.687,50 511,80 120,00 1.787,50 583,80
NET VOL 167,15K 1,19M 87,29K 577,25K 197,73K 184,05K 90,60K 455,29K 329,90K 999,77K 9,37K 727,66K 522,52K 3,56M 0 18,50M 379,01K 40,90K 282,31K 5,82M 901,47K 293,93K 13,90M 56,84K 167,52K 135,45K 6,77M 75,11K 834,87K 100,68K 59,38K 1,67K 414,76K 1,20M 893,74K 239,66K 35,79K 80,08K 313,46K 6,80M 1,08M 110,14K 31,37K 157,61K 5,89M 7,93M 431,23K 345,59K
ºCOMPANY
PRICE(P)
InterContinental Intermediate Capital Intertek ITV J Sainsbury Johnson Matthey Land Securities Legal & General Lloyds Banking London Stock Exchange Meggitt Melrose Industries Mondi National Grid NatWest Group Next Norilskiy Nikel ADR Ocado Persimmon Phoenix Prudential Reckitt Benckiser Relx Rentokil Rightmove Rio Tinto PLC Rolls-Royce Holdings Rosneft DRC Sage Samsung Electronics DRC Schroders Scottish Mortgage Segro Severn Trent Shell Smith & Nephew Smiths Group Spirax-Sarco Engineering SSE St. James’s Place Standard Chartered Taylor Wimpey Tesco Tui Unilever United Utilities Vodafone Group PLC Whitbread WPP
4.860,0 1.515,50 4.255,0 74,58 220,30 2.145,0 726,40 259,90 45,15 7.992,0 788,60 160,35 1.557,50 1.127,50 246,90 6.850,0 11,20 826,40 1.908,8 634,80 997,60 6.538,0 2.397,00 542,40 634,60 4.942,5 89,80 0,75 706,60 1.177,00 2.952,0 866,10 1.090,50 2.944,0 2.143,5 1.067,50 1.542,50 11.875,0 1.771,00 1.218,00 576,40 128,62 263,10 135,00 3.971,0 1.087,00 118,31 2.625,0 887,00
CHANGE(P)
% CHG.
NET VOL
4.897,0 1.520,50 4.339,0 74,68 222,90 2.148,0 727,20 260,60 45,43 8.022,0 795,00 163,65 1.560,00 1.135,49 251,90 6.888,0 11,20 829,40 1.913,4 637,20 1.001,50 6.586,0 2.424,00 550,00 662,20 4.945,0 90,06 0,75 709,40 1.182,00 2.964,0 867,20 1.091,50 2.949,0 2.154,5 1.091,50 1.555,00 11.875,0 1.779,50 1.222,50 591,80 129,00 264,80 134,55 4.002,0 1.089,00 119,88 2.644,0 894,20
4.830,0 1.489,50 4.085,0 71,44 219,50 2.106,0 720,60 257,90 44,80 7.900,0 788,40 160,20 1.528,00 1.116,87 244,20 6.732,0 11,20 789,80 1.885,6 624,60 986,00 6.508,0 2.397,00 529,00 633,20 4.848,0 88,22 0,75 701,40 1.174,00 2.898,0 841,60 1.062,00 2.916,0 2.113,0 1.061,00 1.524,50 11.665,0 1.742,00 1.203,50 563,80 126,25 261,00 131,05 3.961,0 1.070,00 117,98 2.597,0 876,00
52,28K 94,91K 155,04K 2,44M 850,46K 7,43K 388,65K 1,71M 25,89M 59,48K 135,77K 4,57M 336,40K 176,56K 11,61M 40,07K 0 349,84K 60,53K 66,36K 907,45K 180,54K 402,25K 1,57M 525,32K 449,05K 7,02M 0 168,09K 2,95K 86,38K 1,20M 388,65K 73,20K 1,97M 871,40K 168,90K 39,63K 453,34K 106,23K 182,48K 1,75M 2,19M 576,19K 330,32K 160,16K 14,34M 81,54K 952,58K
1.19118
0.83985
Units per €
US dollar (USD) ........................................1.0206 Japan yen (JPY)........................................136.07 Switzerland franc (CHF) ...........................0.9733 Denmark kroner (DKK) .............................7.4438 Norway kroner (NOK) ...............................9.8979
currenciesdirect.com/marbella • Tel: +34 952 906 581 THE ABOVE TABLE USES THE CURRENT INTERBANK EXCHANGE RATES, WHICH AREN’T REPRESENTATIVE OF THE RATE WE OFFER
DOW JONES C LOSING P RICES A UGUST 1
COMPANY 3M American Express Amgen Apple Boeing Caterpillar Chevron Cisco Coca-Cola Dow Goldman Sachs Home Depot Honeywell IBM Intel J&J JPMorgan McDonald’s Merck&Co Microsoft Nike Procter&Gamble Salesforce.com The Travelers UnitedHealth Verizon Visa A Walgreens Boots Walmart Walt Disney
PRICE 140,37 152,14 249,75 157,35 159,09 187,84 150,39 45,62 64,06 52,30 329,11 299,63 190,44 129,22 39,71 174,20 114,81 263,46 89,94 276,41 112,23 148,06 181,29 155,74 541,49 45,55 211,35 39,44 129,75 104,90
CHANGE +1,51 +0,51 -1,97 +0,56 +3,00 +2,59 +1,13 +0,98 +1,05 +0,06 +4,57 +0,72 +6,78 +0,10 -0,47 +1,00 -0,43 +4,57 -1,29 +7,67 +4,37 +2,42 +0,99 -3,22 +6,88 +0,64 +0,88 +0,22 +3,16 +1,40
CHANGE% VOLUME(M) +1,09% 3,09M +0,34% 3,08M -0,78% 2,16M +0,36% 68,78M +1,92% 8,70M +1,40% 2,23M +0,76% 6,29M +2,20% 17,43M +1,67% 10,81M +0,11% 5,99M +1,41% 1,65M +0,24% 3,93M +3,69% 3,65M +0,08% 3,88M -1,17% 48,57M +0,58% 5,45M -0,37% 10,36M +1,77% 2,84M -1,41% 13,90M +2,85% 33,02M +4,05% 6,72M +1,66% 6,27M +0,55% 4,41M -2,03% 1,46M +1,29% 2,23M +1,43% 21,97M +0,42% 7,41M +0,56% 4,39M +2,50% 10,77M +1,35% 7,89M M - MILLION DOLLARS
NASDAQ C LOSING P RICES A UGUST 1
COMPANY
CHANGE NET / %
VOLUME
+134.71% +93.04% +81.68% +71.05% +68.59% +60.00% +40.90% +37.14% +37.04% +32.67% +32.62%
2.41M 132.23K 1.00K 265.81M 19.43M 0.54K 1.93M 1.75M 11.87M 1.05K 140.98K
-42.95% -42.55% -41.24% -35.45% -29.74% -28.83% -26.61% -23.74% -23.58% -21.15% -19.88%
19.83M 90.58M 25.67M 103.65K 5.05M 11.68K 7.12M 10.64M 337.01K 1.74M 194.83K
Most Advanced AMTD Digital Biomx Inc Insu Acquisition Athersys SKYX Platforms Rockley Photonics Holdings Wnt ECB Bancorp Aridis Pharma F45 Training Holdings LiveVox Holdings Unit Q And K Intl
Most Declined Community Health Systems Missfresh Bausch Health IG Acquisition Ranpak Holdings Health Assurance Acquisition Lexicon ObsEva Lulu's Fashion Lounge Holdings Pathward Financial Locafy
22 EWN
www.euroweeklynews.com
4 - 10 August 2022
Euro slumps on gas shortage fears, US dollar firms amid global recession concerns
ASK THE EXPERT Peter Loveday Contact me at euroweekly@currenciesdirect.com
Euro EUR/GBP: Down from £0.86 to £0.85 EUR/USD: Down from $1.05 to $1.02 The euro fell back through July, the single currency coming under notable pressure amid concerns over European energy security and the potential knock-on impact on the Eurozone economy. This came amid heightened fears that Russia could completely cut off gas exports to the continent, forcing countries in the EU to start gas rationing and likely tipping the Eurozone economic into a recession in the process. The resulting EUR selling bias saw the EUR/USD exchange rate even briefly hit parity. The European Central Bank’s (ECB) latest interest rate decision also infused volatility into the euro as the ECB shocked markets with a 50bps rate hike this month, but struck a cautious tone in its forward guidance. Looking ahead, it’s likely the focus for EUR investors will remain on Europe’s energy outlook, with the euro poised to extend its downtrend if Russia continues to restrict gas flows to the continent.
CURRENCY OUTLOOK: The euro came under notable pressure throughout July.
Pound GBP/EUR: Up from €1.16 to €1.17 GBP/USD: Down from $1.22 to $1.20 The pound fluctuated over the past month, largely as a result of some notable UK political uncertainty. This was focused at the start of July as a dramatic 48 hours saw dozens of ministers resign from government and ultimately force Boris Johnson to resign as Prime Minister. After briefly buoying Sterling as his resignation brought an end to weeks of speculation over his future. The subsequent
start of the Conservative leadership race created fresh uncertainty and infused volatility in GBP exchange rates through the remainder of the month. The end of July saw Sterling mount a recovery amid speculation the Bank of England (BoE) may be more aggressive in August, although these gains were tempered by some mixed UK economic data. The BoE’s next rate decision will act as a key catalyst of movement in the pound in August. Will a 50bps rate hike help to propel Sterling higher?
FINANCE
US Dollar USD/GBP: Up from $0.81 to $0.83 USD/EUR: Up from €0.94 to €0.98 The US dollar enjoyed notable support over the past month as growing fears of an impending global recession bolstered demand for the safe-haven currency. The first half of July also saw USD exchange rates bolstered by stronger-thanexpected US payroll and inflation releases. The upbeat data sparked speculation the Federal Reserve might raise interest rates by 100bps at its next meeting. However the ‘greenback’ quickly fell back from its best levels as investors scaled back their rate hike bets following some cautious comments from Fed policymakers. The US dollar was also knocked by the latest US PMIs after they reported a shock contraction in the US service sector in June. Going forward the US dollar is well positioned to resume its bullish run through August, so long as global recession concerns persist. Currencies Direct have helped over 325,000 customers save on their currency transfers since 1996. Just pop into your local Currencies Direct branch or give us a call to find out more about how you can save money on your currency transfers.
Visit us at our Spanish offices in Costa del Sol, Costa Almeria, North Costa Blanca and South Costa Blanca. Telephone UK +44 (0) 207 847 9400 SPAIN +34 950 478 914 • Email euroweekly@currenciesdirect.com • www.currenciesdirect.com.
REPSOL REAPS PROFITS
Credit: Repsol media centre
BUSINESS EXTRA Another takeover THE ongoing acquisition programme of the Frasers Group, owner of House of Fraser and Sports Direct continues with the takeover of yet another online fashion group I Saw It First for an undisclosed sum fol‐ lowing its bail out of Missguided earlier this year.
Unemployment down ACCORDING to the latest figures from the National Statistics Institute (INE) Spanish unemployment figures continue to keep below the three million mark, for the second month running, falling to just under 12.5 per cent in the second quarter of the year continuing a downward trend.
EARNINGS INCREASED: The board of Repsol revealed its profits.
SPANISH energy company Repsol has made a net profit of €2.54 billion during the first half of 2022, amid the global fuel crisis according to the company on Thursday July 28. Repsol’s net profit in the first half of the year, saw the com‐ pany’s earnings go up 105.6 per cent. The company headed by Jo‐ su Jon Imaz will take advan‐ tage of this situation to apply a provision of €1.84 billion for the foreseeable deterioration in the valuation of its refining assets due to the ban on com‐
bustion vehicles and the tax measures being prepared by the government. This half‐year result, with the added €2.4 billion ob‐ tained in 2021, offsets the loss‐ es the company saw in 2019 and 2020, with total losses of more than €7.1 billion, due to zero net emissions adjust‐ ments to their assets as well as the Covid pandemic. Repsol has also invested around €1 billion a year in its refining facilities, while refining capacity was being reduced in Europe which allowed the
company to increase and opti‐ mise the use of these assets to respond to the supply tensions seen in the international fuel market caused by the war in Ukraine. This advantage will report‐ edly allow Spain to have a ‘guaranteed’ supply of petrol and diesel in the coming months. The news follows reports of Spanish energy company Rep‐ sol seeing a 115 per cent in‐ crease in profits this year when compared to its results in the similar period in 2021.
Reduced forecasts DESPITE past optimism, Spain’s Economy minister Nadia Calviño conceded on Tuesday July26 that inflation is go‐ ing to continue to grow whilst the economy would not be as healthy as hoped during 2022 and 2023. Blaming amongst other factors the ongoing Ukrainian invasion, she reluctantly has to raise the inflation fore‐ cast to 7.8 per cent in 2022 from the previous target of 6.1 per cent although the figure for 2023 is much lower at 2.9 per cent compared to the anticipated 2.2 per cent. Even though GDP has been quite healthy this year, she also had to announce a forecast for 2023 of 2.7 per cent, down from 3.5 per cent although the International Monetary Fund is more pessimistic at a flat 2 per cent.
High flyers PERHAPS understood by many who have seen this oc‐ cur in the workplace, high performing managers set harsher targets for their employees, according to new research by Vienna University of Economics and Busi‐ ness. The study, conducted by Professor Christoph Feichter, analysed how supervisors’ performance in lower‐level jobs prior to being promoted to manager influenced the targets they set for employees. He found that high performing managers set harsher targets for their employees because they experience bias due to having a distorted awareness that their own experiences are standard practice. The researcher says that firms need to address this as experience bias can lead to negative employee reac‐ tions as well as planning and coordination mistakes.
FEATURE
euroweeklynews.com
LEAPY LEE SAYS IT OTHERS THINK IT ‘NO Blacks. No Irish and No Dogs’. This is the oft publicised ‘unacceptable face of racism’ of the late 50s and early 60s, when landladies renting out rooms in ar‐ eas of London and other cities posted this on the doors and windows of their establishments. By today’s standards these signs are of course totally unacceptable. But opin‐ ions have changed drastically since those far more insular and ill‐informed days. Back then; these were not blanket judge‐ ments, reached for reasons of some‐ one’s skin colour or country of origin. They were decisions made because of the overall reputation gained by many who were considered foreigners. Irish males were not welcomed by landladies because the vast majority who worked the new m’ways and building sites were renowned for arriving back at all hours and upsetting other tenants by bellowing Irish ditties at the tops of their voices. Many people of colour were linked to Windrush and had recently arrived from countries that were far less developed than the UK, with large numbers never having ever seen a toilet or experienced abodes with running water. Through no
4 - 10 August 2022
No thank you fault of their own, their general stan‐ dards of living were vastly different to the locals and I personally witnessed some of them actually using boarding house corridors as toilettes. The land‐ ladies simply couldn’t cope with the cul‐ ture differences. And as for dogs; this was in no way a comparison with hu‐ mans. Merely that landladies didn’t want their barking to annoy the other tenants. We weren’t racists; we were merely treating those around us as we found them. I personally NEVER judged people by creed or colour. In those heady flower power days, I truly did believe that the UK was the forerunner of how the whole world would be one day. For some years I lived in Bayswater. At the end of the road was a pub frequented mainly by the black neighbourhood community. I was often happy to be the only white face in the pub and thoroughly enjoyed the company and the Ska and reggae music while enveloped in the vaguely sweet aroma of ‘pot’. No racism there ei‐ ther. Some years later I returned to remi‐ nisce in the area that held so many won‐ derful memories. The taxi driver wouldn’t even drive down the street! I walked to the packed, still wholly black
clientele pub and after only a few min‐ utes made the decision to leave, mainly because of the uncomfortable threaten‐ ing silence that descended over the whole establishment. I truly was utterly shocked and disappointed. Believe me, we were never the racists. Generally we welcomed those from different societies. We never envisaged that our liberal at‐ titude would in later years bring the threat of other religions and cultures try‐ ing to alter our whole way of life and democratic liberty. No wonder the UK is now infested with racist views. When you find yourself arguing racism with some snowflake or another, remember to remind them of one thing. In those days the local population had all the best intentions in the world; and now it’s be‐ ing repaid in utterly unacceptable ways. No thanks. Keep the faith. Love Leapy leapylee2002@gmail.com
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Leapy Lee’s opinions are his own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.
EWN 23
24 EWN
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4 - 10 August 2022
FEATURE
Advertising Feature
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MiColchon’s friendly and atten‐ tive team receives continuous train‐ ing from physiotherapists and has revolutionised the rest sector, be‐ coming a benchmark in its field with thousands of happy ‐ and well‐ rested ‐ customers all over the peninsula. From manual and articu‐ lated beds, beautiful upholstered beds and fixed bases to canapé
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ty on mattresses and 101 trial nights at their exclusive Nessen sig‐ nature, plus many other guaran‐ tees to give you peace of mind that you have purchased the right prod‐ uct for you. But it doesn’t stop there. Follow‐ ing repeated customer requests, MiColchon branched out into sofas and furnishings using the best raw
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THE HEAT IS ON: AVOIDING HAVOC ON THE HOTTEST DAYS NORA JOHNSON BREAKING VIEWS Nora is the author of popular psychological suspense and crime thrillers and a freelance journalist.
start of the service there was a procession of office‐holders all carrying banners who were played into the Church with the min‐ ister at their head. As one of the office‐ holders parked his banner and took his of‐ ficial seat in front of the organ he glanced over at the newly‐deputising or‐ gan‐player and shouted: “They tell me you have the biggest organ in the Church.” Oddly this had such a paralysing effect on the poor guy that, if said any‐ where else, would have had him rolling in the, err, aisles...
IT’S summer! And when I did a straw poll among girl friends (only the finest of scientific and journalistic methods for this column, folks) about summer eti‐ quette, the thing that really irritates them is men shirt‐ less in supermarkets, show‐ ing what they’ve got (or not). What they do/don’t have is usually a six‐pack, multiple tattoos and/or a fat belly. What a sight! But not as startling as those Nora Johnson’s critically shopping sporting ‘budgie acclaimed psychological smugglers’ ‐ the butt of crime thrillers (www.no jokes everywhere (pun in‐ ra‐johnson.net) all avail‐ Nora’s latest thriller. tended)! able online including Which reminds me of the eBooks (€0.99; £0.99), Ap‐ story of one poor guy strong‐armed into ple Books, audiobooks, paperbacks at playing the organ in a nearby church ‐ the Amazon etc. Profits to Cudeca cancer chari‐ Episcopalian Church of Scotland. At the ty.
Nora Johnson’s opinions are her own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.
LETTERS
euroweeklynews.com
4 - 10 August 2022
EWN 25
YOUR PAPER - YOUR VOICE - YOUR OPINION Letters should be emailed to yoursay@euroweeklynews.com or make your comments on our website: euroweeklynews.com Views expressed and opinions given are not necessarily those of the EWN publishers. No responsibility is accepted for accuracy of information, errors, omissions or statements.
NOT THERE YET DEAR Leapy Lee, Usually we agree whole‐ heartedly with your un PC writings, but felt compelled to comment on this article. You write, ‘Both countries have since descended into ut‐ ter anarchy’, we both feel that is a bit over the top and poten‐ tially giving a rather unfair pic‐ ture. We have visited South Africa many times, and have travelled through southern Africa, including Zimbabwe. We travel on our own in a hire vehicle, yes when at traffic lights we keep windows and doors locked, but I used to do that when working in parts of London. We would not stop for a person/s (white or black) trying to flag us down in a re‐ mote area, that did actually backfire on us once when we ignored a rather large black gentleman trying to stop us in Mozambique, who turned out to be a customs official. We were stopped further down the road and held at gunpoint, he was very pleasant when he realised we were English and not SA! We go shopping in the big malls and also in small, pre‐ dominately black, town cen‐ tres, never have we felt threat‐ ened. Most of the violence we hear about in South Africa is Black on Black, but would say that no doubt things are changing slowly and certainly not for the better. Will end by saying that we do feel that South Africa is cer‐ tainly on decline and much of what you write may be the case in not so many years time, but thankfully it’s not there yet. M&J (in Los Guiraos)
No return Dear Editor, Having just finished a year’s
rental, the owners have not paid back the deposit, despite an airtight legal contact. This is happening more often and part of the problem is the ever larger deposits. Owners think it great to get €1,200, €1,400, etc deposit but instead of leaving it with an agency or whatever till it has to be repaid, they spend it as they spend the rent they get each month. Then sudden‐ ly the deposit has to be repaid and they do not have the money. The renting business needs to be better regulated to stop this from happening. Michael Hill
Rotten service
From experience, one of the top mobile phone companies in Spain is the worst. They charged me for changing my plan, they told me I had to, as this plan no longer exists. Then I get charged double in my next bill and three months lat‐ er, still waiting a refund, which they said I would receive in an email they sent me, and a message confirming the re‐ fund. Always time to get their payment, but not my refund. Anon
OUR VIEW COMING OF AGE WHETHER you are a football fan or not, the fact that the England women’s team beat Germany at Wembley in the final of the Euro 2002 tournament has to have excited many for a number of reasons. First and foremost, there is little question that women’s football in England has finally come of age with huge TV coverage and a packed Wembley Stadium. It has taken a long time for girl power to become so popular in the UK and ironically, it first took off in a country that isn’t renowned for its interest in soccer, the USA, where its teams won both the 2015 and 2019 World Cup Finals. Even more telling is the fact that there are more soccer scholarships at US universities for women than there are for men and there is a national league that is well supported. Gone are the days in Europe when women who wanted to play competitive football were not only unpaid but actually had to pay to play and the women’s game has really seen a blossoming of support, but there have been some hiccups on the way. Most major European clubs now have their own women’s teams but many aren’t allowed to play at the main club stadiums as attendance can be in the low thousands and as recently as 2018, when the first mixed-sex tour in Barcelona football club's history to the USA took place, the men travelled in business class and the women in economy. One rule that applies to men and women alike, as was seen at the Wembley final, is that no matter what sex you are, if you take off your shirt after scoring, it’s an automatic yellow card.
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DAVID WORBOYS “YOU can’t take it with you.” How true. Once we move on (fall off the perch), we shall be separated from all that we have accumulated over a life‐ time. All the possessions will pass on to others to sort out, to be sold, given away or de‐ stroyed. Few of them are likely to be kept. All our experiences will be mere memories in the minds of any survivors with whom we shared them. Our knowledge, opinions and tastes will no longer exist. This means, of course, that everything we collect and hoard is future clutter. We are no more than guardians of all that we regard as ‘ours’ until the day our number comes up. Ideally, therefore, we should keep it all to a minimum be‐ cause, once we are no longer living, somebody else will have to sort through it all and decide on its disposition. Easier said than done! Until
FEATURE
COLLECTING FUTURE CLUTTER Since childhood we have been collecting things, but how much do we still cling on to?
Credit: Iberlibro.com
28 EWN
Credit: Gear4music.spa
that fatal day, there will be several reasons why we should not let these things go. The commonest is because we think we may need them in the future. Photos, letters, di‐ aries that we have not seen for decades and will probably never see again are stored away just in case.
We may have souvenirs of childhood, holidays or past love affairs ‐ toys, children’s books, school reports, stamp albums, football programmes, mementoes, postcards, love letters. And although we no longer have a CD player, we can’t get rid of the CDs. Most of the books that we shall nev‐
er read or re‐ read, despite our in‐ tentions, remain on the bookshelves. Clothing which we no longer wear has to be kept because it is still ‘of too good quality to throw away’. Second, we may want to dis‐ play our collected items, such as books, furniture, paintings and photographs simply to im‐ press others. But other people may have different values or interests. Third, we may hope to sell them one day. Perhaps, after all these years their val‐ ue has increased. Or we may hope to leave everything to our children or others. But are they going to be remotely in‐ terested if they have shown no curiosity during our life‐ time?
It is not only possessions that we cling on to. We pine away for the days of youth and the joys of past relation‐ ships and experiences. Rather than being grateful that we had them, we feel bitter that they have gone. We also value the knowledge we have ab‐ sorbed over a lifetime and re‐ tain as a priority that which we can use to impress our friends, colleagues and strangers. It is not easy to declutter. It’s necessary to be ruthless, to bite the bullet and not dwell on any reason to hang on to it ‐ just in case. But, when done, it offers a sense of freedom, achievement and a new beginning. I have finally managed it!
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David Worboys’s opinions are his own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.
What a lot of cobblers MIKE SENKER IN MY OPINION Views of a Grumpy Old Man I USE a bit of social media but don’t use Tik‐ Tok. For me, it’s always been one for the youngsters. I can’t dance, sing or do back‐ ward somersaults or forward ones come to that. TikTok have strict rules too, or so I thought. For instance, you can’t use the word dead or cigarettes. Hole is not allowed. What you can do is tell people to pretend to be dis‐ abled to use wheelchairs at airports to jump the long lines. As I said, this app is mostly used by young‐ sters and I looked at a few posts and they show these selfish little brats laughing and joking whilst stopping a genuine disabled person from the help they need to get through an airport, I have messaged TikTok about it and had no reply. They’re probably too busy checking there are no nipples on their site or the word thick. Their rules supposedly specifically cover minority groups so they should do some‐ thing. The airports can also help by making sure assistance is booked at least 48 hours before or you have a doctor’s note that you
need assistance or you show your blue badge like you do when parking. Of course there must be discretion but a bunch of laughing kids videoing their mates for TikTok is just wrong. Privacy is a big thing these days. Every page you look at online gives you reams of rules and regulations you have to accept before they let you in. Putting someone’s name and address on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter will probably get you banned. But I remember a time when you could walk down any street and there would be a red telephone box where you could look up anyone’s name, address and ‘phone number. In fact, you didn’t even have to leave your home ‐ just open the cup‐ board under the stairs and the stack of direc‐ tories would be there. I was, of course, ex‐di‐ rectory. What about private photos? You used to take your roll of film to Boots or one of my video shops that developed films and pick them up the next day. I can tell you there were some that definitely wouldn’t have got on TikTok. But was it better or worse times? Interesting that a lot of news channels did not show the Lionesses’ four goals against Sweden because the copyright owners, BBC I think, wanted to charge them too much. What a lot of cobblers! Email: mikesenker@gmail.com
Mike’s opinions are his own and are not necessarily representative of those of the publishers, advertisers or sponsors.
PETS
euroweeklynews.com
4 - 10 August 2022
EWN 29
MANY summer festival cel‐ ebrations, such as San Juan, involve a glorious firework display. Unfortu‐ nately, many dogs and small animals are scared of these pyrotechnic displays and sometimes they run away and get lost as a re‐ sult. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Here’s how you can protect
and calm your dog when they hear rockets and fire‐ crackers. If you know there are going to be fireworks in the evening, try and tire out your dog during the day by taking them on a long walk. This will
mean they have less ner‐ vous energy to expend during the display. By creating a safe and secure place in your home for your dog, you can help them feel more comfort‐ able and less afraid when the display does start. And if your dog does run away from the sound of fireworks, a GPS tracker can be helpful for you to find them again.
Create a safe and secure place at home. Image – lightman_pic/shutterstock
WITH great power comes great responsibili‐ Don’t forget to pay attention to your ty, and having a horse fits this description. horse’s hooves. It’s a very sensitive zone and These animals need a lot of space to live, a if not properly cared for, your horse can de‐ lot of food and a lot of daily exercise to main‐ velop an infection. tain their form. Here are some basic things you need to know before owning your own horse. Rest is fundamental for horses, so it’s important to have a stable with suffi‐ cient space for them to chill out when they need to. The food that your horse needs, and how much of it, can vary depending on differ‐ ent factors, such as their size, weight, breed, age, and physi‐ cal activity. Their diet will consist mostly of hay, although you can use grass, alfalfa or both. You can also occasionally sub in grains as well. It’s also important that your horse drinks between 25 and 55 litres of water a day depending on activity level HORSES: Need a lot of space to live and a lot of food. and size and weight etc.
AS the days get hotter and you and your pooch are heading to the beach, you both might fancy a dip in the ocean to cool off. If you fancy a bit of a doggy pad‐ dle, here’s some tips to keep your canine compan‐ ion safe in the sea this sum‐ mer. Make sure your dog can actually swim! While most dogs are natural swim‐ mers, some breeds will struggle to stay afloat in the waves. If this is the case, like humans, you can teach your dog how to swim by holding their belly in the water and encourag‐ ing them to kick with their back legs. It’s also important to en‐ sure that the water is safe for swimming, that means no strong currents or ex‐ tremely low temperatures. Most beaches will have colour‐coded flags so you know whether to dive in or not. Many people don’t re‐ alise, but like humans, dogs
Image – dog on beach: Masarik/shutterstock
Protection on the beach Taking your pet travelling
DOG BATHING: Keep your pet safe this summer. can get sunburnt too, espe‐ cially short haired breeds! When at the beach, try and
keep them in the shade. Pet friendly sun cream is al‐ so available to buy.
MANY people are desperate for a holiday but don’t want to leave their beloved pet be‐ hind. Don’t worry, you don’t necessarily have to! Many places allow pets and Madrid was recently ranked the sixth most pet friendly city in Eu‐ rope, behind Italian cities like Milan, Rome and Florence. Here’s some of the things you’ll need to fly with your fur‐ ry friend so you can both enjoy your time away in the sun. Like humans, pets will need a European passport to travel so they can be identified. You
should complete a form be‐ forehand to specify what type of animal your travelling com‐ panion is. Travel agents will then be able to calculate the price of your pet’s travel. Your pet will also need a
health certificate and vaccina‐ tions according to the country to which you’re travelling. You should also ensure this is fol‐ lowed by a deworming test 24/48 hours prior to your flight.
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PETS PAGE
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How to calm your Looking after a horse dog during fireworks
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MOTORING
euroweeklynews.com
4 - 10 August 2022
EWN 31
Skoda Fabia SE Comfort – more premium than its price suggests by Mark Slack SOMETIMES you find a car that while ostensibly a rather ordinary means of transport turns out to be something a bit special. Skoda’s Fabia has long been a feature of the Czech manufacturer’s sales lists and in its latest form drives much more premium than its price suggests and is full of clever touches typical of Skoda. The Fabia range starts at
A JOINT venture by Iber‐ drola and BP will see them install 11,000 fast charging points in Spain and Portu‐ gal. The two companies have announced their joint plan to accelerate the en‐ ergy transition. They will collaborate to expand the rapid public recharging in‐ frastructure for electric ve‐ hicles in Spain and Portu‐ gal. They have also decided to develop large‐ scale green hydrogen pro‐ duction centres in Spain, Portugal, and the UK. Ignacio Galan, Chairman of Iberdrola, indicated that “with this agreement, we continue to make progress
€20,786/£17,800 and offers decent standard equip‐ ment and some rather good power units. All bar one are 1.0‐litre, three‐ cylinder petrol units with power outputs of 80PS, 95PS and 110PS, with the two higher power engine variants being tur‐ bocharged. Then there is a 1.5‐litre turbocharged petrol unit developing 150PS, again three‐cylin‐ der. Standard fare is decent on the entry level model
and includes LED lights, Bluetooth, rear parking sensors, air conditioning, alloy wheels and a height adjustable driver’s seat. The previously men‐ tioned clever little touches that set Skoda apart are such things as an ice scrap‐ er inside the fuel filler flap, clip in rubbish bags for the door pockets and an um‐ brella. My test model was the lead‐in SE Comfort trim with the lower power tur‐ bocharged 1.0‐litre engine
Fast-charging Credit: bp.com
ROAD TEST
CHARGING POINTS: Two companies are expanding the infrastructure.
in decarbonisation and en‐ ergy self‐sufficiency through the electrification of two key sectors of our economy, transport and
MOTORING
industry.” He continued: “The di‐ mension of this challenge requires alliances between companies such as Iber‐
that develops 95PS and drives through a manual five‐speed gearbox. Inside there’s pretty much everything you need in terms of modern crea‐ ture comforts, although the rear manual windows are a surprise. Even on cost grounds it’s somewhat of a disparity when looking at the list of other standard equipment included in the Fabia. On the road the Fabia is aimed more at comfort than handling but nonethe‐
less is still capable of being very competently hustled along more twisting roads. My test model is priced at €21,795/£18,350 and it feels more premium than the price suggests. Perfor‐ mance is modest, but the Fabia doesn’t feel in any way hindered in its progress. This is helped by the five‐speed manual gearbox having well‐cho‐ sen ratios and a light and easy shift. Push the throttle hard and there’s a charac‐ teristic thrum from the
three‐cylinder engine that’s far from unpleasant. All this means that despite the small engine capacity the Fabia feels comfortable and long‐legged. Looking at its competi‐ tors the Skoda stacks up very well. Although it lacks the zesty performance feel of something like an Ibiza, it’s not necessarily a bad thing in a car that has to complete a myriad of travel duties. The Fabia is a car that I would be very happy to have on my driveway.
drola and BP, which have the necessary technology and knowledge to help ac‐ celerate industrial devel‐ opment in Europe, and, at the same time, generate well‐being and new oppor‐ tunities for all, through clean energies.” CEO of BP, Bernard Looney, stated that: “De‐ veloping the low‐carbon energy solutions that our customers demand re‐ quires the integration of different technologies, ca‐ pacities, and forms of en‐ ergy, and we will be able to achieve it faster and on a larger scale by working collaboratively with oth‐ ers.”
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4 - 10 August 2022
Expansion on the cards for walking football PRE-SEASON is well un‐ derway now for many of our walking football clubs. The league next season looks like it will expand, with applications and potential applica‐ tions from more clubs. The leagues next year will be split by age group, over 50 and over 60. This was seen as a posi‐ tive move by the league
Credit: Walking football
Tony Aiello - AC Benahavis Chairman.
Steve George - Aston Viñuela player manager.
committee, after chair‐ man Steve Lynton who is also the manager of League new boys Tor‐ rox Tornedoes, sug‐ gested that splitting would allow the older guys to be able to compete at a higher level within that age range. One of the league’s
new boys Malaga el Cañadon based near Mi‐ jas Golf are hosting league champions 20‐21 Aston Viñuela, who are rebuilding their squad nicely in preparation for the new season. This should be an interesting one on Saturday evening (6pm kick off). It will give the clubs managed by the
SPORT
league’s first Spaniard, Pedrin Barrios, a chance to pit his wits against for‐ mer champions. AC Benahavis have a new Chairman Tony Aiel‐ lo, he takes over the reigns from Andrew Sweeney and we wish them both well. The ref‐ erees committee is also looking healthy after a change at the top, experi‐ enced referee David Coverdale and Austin Fenn are now in charge and putting the new guys through their paces in preparation for the new season. For details about your local club please visit walkingfooty.com on Facebook.
SPORT
2022 Games have begun THE 22nd edition of the Com‐ monwealth Games, being held in Birmingham, were de‐ clared open on Thursday, July 28, by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles. A spectacular open‐ ing ceremony took place, al‐ though without the physical presence of the monarch due to her ill health. A giant TV screen at the Alexander Stadium saw a video of the Queen greeting a packed crowd of around 30,000 sports fans. An esti‐ mated audience of one billion watched worldwide as vin‐ tage footage was screened. Making a grand entrance in an Aston Martin DB86 that he purchased in 1970, Prince Charles arrived with Camilla. An entourage of 72 cars ‐ sig‐ nifying the 72 nations and territories of the Common‐ wealth ‐ made their way into the Stadium, and formed the
Credit: Twitter@birminghamcg22
O P E N I N G C E R E M O N Y: Took place in Birmingham.
shape of the Union jack flag. As Mezzo‐Soprano Samantha Oxborough delivered the na‐ tional anthem, the legendary Red Arrows flew overhead in formation. Reading out a message from the Queen, Prince Charles said: “Over the years, the coming together of so many for the ‘Friendly Games’ has created memo‐ rable shared experiences, es‐ tablished long‐standing rela‐ tionships, and even created some friendly rivalries.”
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