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THE INDEPENDENT ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER WITH LOCAL, NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL NEWS
EDITION 634
FRIDAY 13th SEPTEMBER TO THURSDAY 26th SEPTEMBER 2019 MOVIES AT ...
EATING OUT & ABOUT
PAGES PA 25 - 27
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FORTNIGHTLY SUPPLEMENT NT
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PAGES 39 -48
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TENERIFE LINK “STOP THESE MEANINGLESS AS COCAINE PROTESTS” SAYS RYANAIR BOAT SEIZED
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PANISH police and the British authorities have intercepted a sailboat carrying almost 1,000 kilos of cocaine on board.
The ship, which had been acquired in Mallorca, was boarded by the British authorities off the coast of Wales. Six people believed to be part of a British drug trafficking organisation were arrested. The boat had arrived in the port of Ayamonte in Huelva several months before and then headed to Tenerife. Police said the gang had erased the license plate of the boat’s hull. The investigation began in December 2018 when the National Police received information from the UK’s National Crime Agency relating to a criminal organisation in the United Kingdom dedicated to drug trafficking. The British authorities warned that two of its members were planning to go to Mallorca to acquire a vessel with which,
allegedly, they were going to transport cocaine from South America to Spain. In Mallorca, the agents managed to link the members of the British organisation with a sailboat named “Bold.” This boat travelled to Huelva where three other members of the organisation had travelled by caravan from the United Kingdom. After arriving in Tenerife, the boat left for Suriname and, from this country in South America, set out for the coast of Wales. It was intercepted by the British authorities who found 950 kilos of cocaine on board and arrested two crew members and four other passengers, all of them members of the organisation, some of them identified by the National Police in Ayamonte (Huelva).
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ONFLICT, concern and controversy, just three of the emotions being generated as cabin crew with Ryanair Spain continue their industrial action over the base closures of Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Girona. The ten strike days were called for September 1, 2 , 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27 and 29 but union officials are furious over the lack of impact. Most Ryanair flights have been operating as normal, though many have not had a bar service due to the strike. But otherwise, says the USO, passengers might not have even realised a protest was in progress.
NEW ALERT OVER LISTERIOSIS S
PAIN has issued another major alert for listeriosis after the bacteria was found in contaminated shredded meat of the “Sabores de Paterna” brand in the province of Cádiz. Andalusia’s health minister, Jesús Aguirre said an order has been made to stop production of the product in the factory in the town of Paterna de Rivera. The meatloaf is being removed from the shelves of shops and supermarkets and all other meat products from the same
company have been halted. The Spanish Food Safety Agency has been told of the alert which comes in the wake of Spain’s biggest ever outbreak of listeriosis caused by another meat product which has infected more than 200 people, caused six miscarriages and contributed
Photo: Union Sindical Obrera
to three deaths. The suppliers of this latest food product are located in the provinces of Cádiz, Madrid, Málaga and Huelva, explained the health minister, who highlighted the speed in the operation of the health alert system. Confirmation was received from a laboratory that a batch of “Sabores de Paterna” shredded meat tested positive for listeria and the ban
By law, the workers have to abide by a minimum service which would have had some effect on flights. According to the union, however, Ryanair has brought in new staff from other parts of Europe to cover the gaps and therefore negate the impact of the strike. The USO says it is formulating a dossier of complaints against Ryanair which it is to raise at a national
FULL STORY INSIDE was enforced just three hours later.
level. “Ryanair is violating our legitimate right to strike,” claimed Gustavo Silva, general secretary of USO-Ryanair. The low-cost airline has confirmed it will close its bases in Tenerife south, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Girona in January. The union believes 512 jobs are at risk. There are 164 employees in Girona, 156 in Tenerife south, 110 in Gran Canaria and 82 in Lanzarote. Ryanair says the closure of the bases is “irreversible” and has asked the unions to stop their “meaningless” protests. “Bases such as those located in the Canary Islands generate large losses during the winter season,” says the airline, because “almost all of its traffic originates abroad, so it can be serviced by airplanes based in other countries of the European Union (EU), without the high costs and inefficiency resulting from basing airplanes and crew in the archipelago during the period from
November to March. “ The company said the very low cancellation rate of flights is due to the “great work of the great majority of Spanish pilots and cabin crew who have already confirmed that they will operate according to their scheduled schedule or volunteer to work on their days off, in order not to alter the travel plans of customers and their families in September. This way, they will avoid even more job losses and cuts in Spain this winter.” The Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodation says it is concerned about the effect of the base closures on Canary tourism, even though Ryanair insists flights will still be maintained. The authorities in the archipelago have already opened talks with other airlines if gaps have to be met.