Olive Press Gibraltar Issue 183

Rock.

The specimen found in Vanguard Cave are believed to be the oldest ever found in the Iberian peninsu lar.

Madrid’s Museum of the Sciences expert, Antonio Sanchez Marco, identified the specimen during digs organised by the Gibraltar Muse um.

Vanguard Cave is part of the Gor ham’s Cave UNESCO World Heri tage Site.

Ospreys used to nest on the Rock until they were scared off by mili tary activity during World War II.

“The historical breeding site of the osprey is known from the detailed records and photographs of Vic torian and Edwardian naturalists based on the Rock,” a spokesman for the Heritage Ministry said.

The bird was found on a ledge above the cave, close to Monkey’s Cave.

Ospreys still visit the Rock during migration, and are regularly spot ted by local birdwatchers.

Minister for Heritage and the Envi ronment John Cortes said: “An ar tificial osprey nest with a decoy was placed near the site several years

HUNDREDS of angry expats are threatening to ‘invade’ the British embassy next week.

They are converging from all over Spain in a pro test to demand action over their inability to drive here due to Brexit changes.

The group - including mostly long term residents - are furious the British and Spanish governments seem unable to strike the most basic deal.

Meanwhile, expats in almost every other Europe an country have been given the right to swap their licences for local ones.

“It is totally unfair and really disgusting that Spanish residents are being trapped in a game that has nothing to do with our ability to drive,” said Scott Rattray, who lives in Lloret de Mar.

“All the other countries managed to not treat their foreign residents like this.”

Another victim, Tom Kington, based in rural Va lencia, added: “The fact there is speculation that

this may be linked to the future of Gibraltar is atrocious.

“We are real people with real lives and not pawns in some political game.” Negotiations over the movement of workers and trade across the Spain-Gi braltar border are now in their second year and are bogged down in legal issues.

A Facebook group titled ‘Invasion of the British embassy in Madrid’ has pencilled in October 13 for a protest out side the embassy in northern Madrid. The victims, who will mostly come by bus or train, are urging expats from all over Spain to turn out

to support them.

They have been writing dozens of letters to their MPs back in the UK and politicians in Spain, as well as backing the Olive Press U-Turn campaign we launched in June.

INVADE THE EMBASSY U-T URN N O !W

So far demands to Spain’s DGT traf fic authority have gone unanswered, while the British embassy itself has limited its responses to the video up dates by ambassador Hugh Elliott. Despite announcing in July that the ‘main text’ of the deal had been agreed, Elliot’s latest message has dashed any hopes that a solution is near.

He admits there are a couple of ‘complex’ issues.

COUGH

Ship

By John Culatto

ers found and removed ‘oil pockets’ trapped within the frame of the hull after recent storms.

Tugs meanwhile repaired the booms surrounding the ship and at local beaches that have managed to keep the oil from spreading fur ther.

Clean up crews mainly focused on Seven Sisters beach, which bore the brunt of the recent storm-in duced spill.

Tar

They also removed tar balls from Catalan Bay and Eastern Beach, which were reportedly stinking with oil. Divers then patched up leaks from the shipwreck that had appeared af ter the first storm.

“The oil that is escaping the vessel is likely to be unpump able residues that remained in Tank 1 or the surrounding pipework,” a government spokesman said.

As the urgency of the situation subsided, the Port has now re turned to normal operations, including refuelling.

FIND:

Clean-up operations at sea and onshore

Saved and bound

AFTER Customs officers rescued three juveniles from the sea about 3 miles off the Eastern side, they were arrested on sus picion of being non-Gi braltarians on the Rock without a valid permit.

Fuel fright

THE Gibraltar gov ernment has reduced tariffs on motor vehi cle fuel until January 6 to reduce fuel pric es during the current crisis caused by Rus sia’s war in Ukraine.

Booking now

TICKETS to Gibraltar Literature Week from November 7-12 featuring UK and local writers are now on sale online and at the John Mackintosh Hall.

Gambling fine

THE UK’s Gambling Commission has slapped a £2.87 million fine on betting company Betfred for failing to meet social responsibility and money laundering standards at its subsidiary Petfre.

Gaelic gang war

Police

DETECTIVES are probing if two shootings in under seven hours could be linked to the arrest of Irish mafia suspect Johnny Morrissey.

The incidents in Marbella came just a week after the se nior member of Ireland’s most feared mafia gang, the Kinah ans, was arrested nearby.

Johnny ‘Cash’ Morrissey, 62, was picked up along with his wife Nicola at a rented apart ment in Mijas over the laun dering of €200 million in just 18 months through their Nero vodka firm.

The shootings in Nueva Anda lucia and next door San Pedro are believed to be warnings and ‘likely settling of scores’ for associates who might be pre paring to give evidence to save themselves.

By Anthony Piovesan & Jorge Hinojosa

One man was shot at 5.45pm on September 20 as he met an associate by a lake in the exclu sive Aloha area, while the other shooting took place just after midnight outside the coast’s famous Ferrari dealership, C de Salamanca.

“Police have confirmed that the two shootings are linked,” spokesman for the garage, Ale jandro Terroba, told the Olive Press.

He revealed that one bullet had landed in the parking lot by San Pedro boulevard early on Wednesday morning. “Luckily it didn’t hit any of our cars.” He said police were still prob

Monk goes on trial

A COSTA-based Irish gang lord is set to go on trial in Dublin next week.

Gerry Hutch, aka ‘the Monk’, was extradited from Spain after his arrest in Fuengirola last year.

His two decade drug war with the Estepona-based Kinahan gang led to the deaths of around 20 people, many on the Costa del Sol. He is going on trial over the murder of David Byrne at a boxing weigh in at the Regency Hotel in Dublin in 2016.

ing who had been aimed at and how many bullets were fired. Meanwhile, an Irish victim of the shooting, six hours earlier at the Lago de las Tortugas, is refusing to reveal to police who he met.

The 24-year-old somehow made it to the Costa del Sol hospital bleeding heavily after being shot in the stomach.

A spokesman for the National Police told the Olive Press: “He is currently stable but refus ing to tell us who he met at the lake.”

The UDYCO organised crime unit is continuing to probe the shootings, along with another incident involving a shooting by an Irish man at Marbella’s Opi um nightclub in July.

A report in the Irish Mirror claims the recent shootings are

connected to an Irish drug lord, called Mr Flashy, who has tak en over the Dublin crime baton from the Kinahan gang.

Tensions

The Kinahans, who are all wanted by the US authorities for a range of crimes, moved from Estepona to Dubai a few years ago.

According to the US Treasury their chief enforcer and money launderer, Johnny Morrissey, remained on the Costa del Sol, where he owned at least 11 properties.

The Olive Press revealed how police have seized a series of black notepads that document hundreds of cash payments to and from businesses around Spain.

FINES TRIPLED

FIXED penalty fines for speed ing have tripled from £100 to £300 amid a significant tough ening of road offence penalties.

Minister for Transport Paul Balban said the increases would keep up with inflation while helping to ‘make our streets safe for the most vulnerable road users in our community’.

Fines for parking and waiting offences have doubled to £50, with a 50% discount if they are paid within two weeks.

As part of the changes, any use of a mobile phone while driv ing will now be punished, even checking the time.

Balban said he was also plan ning a new law that will intro duce a points system.

Guardia hurt

TWO Guardia Civil officers were seriously injured while chasing a van loaded with hashish that was trying to es cape from Getares beach in Algeciras.

Police finally managed to catch the drug traffickers, arresting five people and seizing over 1,400 kilos of cannabis resin.

During the chase, the drug smugglers rammed the Guar dia Civil vehicle, injuring the two people inside.

But police officers finally stopped the vehicle and found 56 bales of hash inside.

TIGHT-LIPPED: A man shot at Lago de las Tortugas is not cooperating with police

Taxing time for Shakira

POP star Shakira will have to face trial accused of avoiding taxes in Spain in 2012, 2013 and 2014. This comes after the pros ecutor and Shakira failed to reach an out of court agreement.

The next step will be to set a date.

Shakira remains on un conditional bail.

Prosecutors want her to be fined €24million for ‘de frauding’ Hacienda (The Tax Agency) out of €14.5 million on income earned.

The prosecutor has also asked for an eight-year jail sentence.

Shakira argues that she was living in the Bahamas at the time so no taxes were due.

However, the prose cutor claims that she moved to Spain in 2011 due to her rela tionship with Barcelo na footballer, Gerard Pique, but kept her tax residency in the Ba hamas until 2015 yo avoid her obligations.

San Sebastian film festival’s 70th edition included scores of films and attracted stars of the calibre of Liam Neeson and Ana de Armas

By Simon Hunter

THE San Sebastián Film Festival has come a long way since its first edition, 70 years ago.

Back then, in 1953, it hosted just 19 movies and was viewed as an event for the elite. Fast forward to 2022, and the event not only included hun dreds of films in and out of competition, but also attract ed stars of the calibre of Liam Neeson and Ana de Armas (pictured below).

The event is held every year in the stunning Basque sea side city, and even managed to continue during the coro navirus pandemic. This year’s edition, however, was the first that marked a proper return to post-Covid normality.

The winner

Here’s looking at you

HONORED: David Cronenberg

of the Golden Shell award for Best Film went to The Kings of the World, a Colombian drama from director Laura Mora, while Argentina, 1985 from director Santiago Mitre took the audience award. The Best Director gong was taken by Genki Kawarmura from Japan, for his debut feature Hyakka

In attendance for the pre miere of her Marilyn Mon roe biopic Blonde, Ana de Armas caught the atten tion of the public and press alike on the red carpet. At a press conference, she ex plained how she ‘did things in this movie I would have

never done for anyone else, ever. I did it for her’, she said, in reference to Monroe.

The festival closed with the premiere of Marlowe, both of whose stars, Diane Kruger and Liam Neeson, were in atten dance in the Basque city. Set in 1930s Los Angeles, the film is directed by Neil Jordan. “To make a film like this, you have to reinvent the image,” Jordan told a press conference at the festival. “The reference I chose was Blade Runner, which is set in LA in the future. I’m making a film set in LA in the past, but somehow it’s a sci-fi film.”

Queen of Hugs

PRINCESS Di may have been known as the Queen of Hearts, but it turns out Letizia is the Queen of Hugs.

Spain’s queen was the star attrac tion at a charity award ceremony at Madrid's Circulo de Bellas Artes when 91-year-old Maruja piped up: “Letizia would you mind giv ing me a hug?”

Quick as a flash Letizia gave a heart-warming smile and reached out with her arms to comply. An awards presenter had gone to chat to Maruja as she had won an

award last year, and Maruja took her chance on the microphone to make her cheeky request.

The lifetime achievement award went this year to Ca nadian filmmaker David Cronenberg, with a screening of his latest film Crimes of the Future after the ceremony.

Legend

“I used to think that a life time achievement award was a message to me saying ‘It’s time to stop, you’ve made enough films’…” said Cronen berg. “But I have since come to realize and especially with an award like this, at a festival with so much history, given in such a beautiful city, that it really is an encouragement to me to make more films."

Thanks to sentiments such as this one, the legend of the San Sebastián Film Festival con tinues to grow.

CHEF

The 42 year-old who is the owner of Madrid’s three Michelin starred DiverXo, collected his award in front of several hundred top chefs who had gathered for the event in Spain’s capital.

Accepting the prize he said: “I do not feel like the best chef in the world, far from it. But I believe I have the best team in the world.”

Lady and the scamp

SHE is an aristocrat, half sis ter to Enrique Iglesias and a TV personality boasting her own Netflix reality series called Lady Tamara

Now a very public split with her businessman fiance has thrust Tamara Falco into the gossip columns.

Falco - the sixth Mar chioness of Griñón an nounced that she was en gaged to Iñigo Onieva. But within days a video emerged of him canoodling with a New York model at a music festival in the US. Despite his initial claims the image was from 2019, before he knew 40-yearold Falco, TV sleuths had identified the festival as being held just a few weeks ago.

The TV gossip shows went into meltdown and the saga has bare ly been off the screens since, with Falco bringing her rela tionship with Onieva to a very public end.

MADRID chef Dabiz Muñoz has scooped the top prize in The Best Chef Awards for the second year running.

FOREIGN Secretary James Cleverly told a packed Gibral tar reception that the sover eignty of Gibraltar had to be decided by its people at the Tory party conference in Bir mingham.

He declared himself a friend of the Rock after Chief Min ister Fabian Picardo said he could call Conservative party members ‘fellow Gibraltari ans’.

The Chief Minister greeted the Tory party as a group that ‘cares deeply about Gibraltar and our prospects for the fu ture’.

“We are family,” said Clev erly. The Foreign Secretary added that he could not wait to visit the Rock agai.

Cleverly done Labour lift

THE UK’s Labour Party has confirmed it will support Gi braltar’s self-determination and the goal of getting a lasting EU deal.

Shadow Minister for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Stephen Doughty spoke of his ‘unshakeable’ commitment to the Rock at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool.

The pledge followed a speech on Gibraltar’s current issues by Deputy Chief Minister Joseph Garcia to hundreds of invited guests at the conference.

Garcia was heading up a Gibral tar stand at event this week.

Airport shutdown

Passengers forced to pay for taxis to get home from Malaga after flight diverted

THE Gibraltar Government has said it is ‘unacceptable’ that the Ministry of Defence closed down Gibraltar Air port for an afternoon, forc ing flights to be diverted from the Rock.

As a result, an Easyjet flight to the Rock from Gatwick was diverted to Malaga be cause of ‘continued labour issues’, according to a gov ernment spokesman.

Passengers were then held on the plane while Schengan visas were applied for, with

By John Culatto

the delays meaning many missed coaches laid on to take them to Gibraltar. They had to fork out up to €180 for taxis to get home. Easyjet has told them to ap ply for reimbursement.

The government said it ‘regrets’ that the UK’s Na tional Air Traffic Services (NATS) and the MoD ‘con tinue to fail to resolve their labour relations issue, a

Bullseye beckons

TWO young sportsmen from Gibraltar took part in the World Darts Federation Europe Cup in Gandia, Spain.

Minister for Business and Tourism Vijay Daryanani gave his support to Craig Galliano and Justin Hewitt before they left the Rock.

The pair were joined by Sean Negrette in Wigan for the PDC Development tourna ment and the Under-24 World Cup. The players take part in a local league around Gibraltar.

“It is great to be supporting our youngsters,” Daryanani said.

“They are excellent darts players who have made Gibraltar proud at various tourna ments. I wish them the best of luck and hope they can continue following their dreams”.

CLOSED: The runway shut due to labour shortages

failure which will be of in convenience to hundreds of passengers’.

A spokesman said these issues

‘will have an adverse impact on Gibraltar’s reputation’.

In a later press statement, the government revealed the clo sure was due to ‘staff illness’.

NATS is a UK company that handled over 2.5 million flights that transported 250 million people in the UK, Europe, the Middle East, North America and Asia be fore the pandemic.

Control

It is contracted by the Minis try of Defence to handle flight control at Gibraltar Airport.

Gibraltar’s government has a deal with the MoD to provide air traffic control services in return for shared use of the airport for military activity.

Flights are normally di verted to Malaga when the winds are too strong to land on the local airfield.

GIBRALTAR has been forced to restart the bidding process for the much delayed sewage plant after the company it was dealing with went bankrupt. If everything goes according to plan, the building of the new urban wastewater treatment plant could start next year, the government indicated.

The site chosen for the plant is the Brewery Crusher at Euro pa Point.

But the Department of the Environment said other loca tions ‘will be given equal con sideration’ if they conform to their high standards.

The sewage plant ‘must be de signed to meet population and effluent flow increases over the next 20 years’.

Sewage resurfaces Sporting success

SPORTS authorities ran a successful summer of activ ities for over 570 children during the Summer Sports and Leisure Programme.

It was the first time that the full summer programme of events was held since the start of the pandemic.

“The success of this pro gramme goes to show the hard work and dedication by the GSLA team,” Minister fo rYouth and Sport Steven Lin ares said.

Simple things that can make customers feel

And many extra benefits,

True pioneers

THE holding of the Commonwealth Women Parliamentari ans Conference in Gibraltar is an interesting time to reflect on the representation of women on the political stage. With one of the subjects of the conference being how to get more women into politics, Gibraltar needs to continue on that same path towards equal representation.

In a democracy the idea is that politicians represent its population.

On the Rock, that is roughly split down the middle with roughly 50% of each gender, according to the last census. After Liz Truss took over from Boris Johnson as UK Prime Minister, not long after Theresa May held the same role, it is clear women are now being afforded the same access to power in Britain.

The current government has laid some of the foundations for this possibility in Gibraltar too.

Its referendum allowed Gibraltar to make abortion legal for the first time on the Rock, showing that its residents trusted women to make the right choices over their bod ies.

And GSLP politician Samantha Sacramento has set about making the equality portfolio her own.

By hosting this Commonwealth conference, she has set the bar for other women who want to get into politics. Her work to get tough on domestic violence has led to the police having more powers to use against gender-based abuse.

This will hopefully allow women to come out of the shad ows and discover their potential to lead.

One woman who has already done so is Marlene Hassan Nahon, the sole representative of the Together Gibraltar party in Parliament.

As a descendent of one of Gibraltar’s greatest ever states man, Sir Joshua Hassan, she is truly a pioneer for women on the Rock.

Her participation in the Commonwealth conference will undoubtedly strengthen the local field.

At the head of a new party, she was able to have a much more gender balanced slate of candidates at the 2019 elections, and their decent showing at the elections showed Gibraltar might now be coming of age. While women are leading movements for political change in countries like Iran, it is time to ditch patriarchy altogeth er and acknowledge the plurality of our gender-balanced society.

TOP OF THE PILE

As Spain comes No.1 in the food stakes, Josh Parfitt examines the nation’s greatest achievements and whittles them down to ten

IFyou’re thinking Spain must, at least,

the world in speaking Spanish, you’re wrong: that’s Mexico. If you’re thinking Spain had the largest empire, you’re wrong again: that was Britain.

With 83.7 million visitors in pre-pandemic 2019, Spain almost topped the world tour ism charts, but was knocked into the sec ond slot by France with 90 million. And no, Spain does not hold a record for the annual consumption of sangria. Sangria is just the generic Spanish word for ‘punch’ which people drink just about everywhere. But Spain has a stellar cast of inventors, business leaders and do-gooders to make the nation proud.

 2

SPAIN has consistently been the country with most Blue Flag beaches since the day the awards were launched in 1987.

The iconic Blue Flag is the most rec ognised stamp of excellence for the world’s best beaches, marinas and sus

INVENTIVE INVENTIONS

WE can’t say Spain invented the mop –that was the American Jacob Howe in 1837 (and his compatriot, Thomas W. Stewart, figured out how to attach the mophead to the stick properly 56 years later). But the mop-and-bucket combo is a Spanish invention. In 1964, Manuel Jalon Corominas was the first to patent the now classic design incorporating the plastic colander thing that fixes onto the bucket, thus allowing mops to be squeezed out. That makes him a kind of leader in house hold cleanliness.

Other Spanish inventions include table football, writing quills, epidurals, Chupa Chups lollipops and the digital

MOST ORGAN DONATIONS

FOR 29 years, Spain has consistently led the world in organ donations.

 3

Figures from 2021 show that Spain had 40.2 donors per 1 million people, more than dou ble the EU average of 18 per million. The most commonly donated or gans are kidneys, allowing patients with kidney failure to live without the need for daily dialysis.

tainable boat tour operators. Continuing its 34-year reign, Spain was awarded a stunning 615 of them in 2021. Most Blue Flag beaches are in the Valencian Community, followed by Andalucia.

calculator.

Oh, and by the way, Spain also invented may onnaise. Quoi? I hear you shout. Ce n’est pas Français?

Non: According to the most popular origin story, it was concocted in 1756 when French forces laid siege to Port Mahon on the Balearic island of Menorca. After discovering the Spanish island lacked cream for a righteous victory sauce, the Duke de Richelieu’s chef stole an egg and oil dressing from the locals, and his name for it was mahonnaise.

The term has been a bone of contention ever since, with many proud Spanish chefs refusing to call it anything but mahonesa after the Menorcan capital of Mahon.

 4

WILD Spain leads the world as the country with the most UNE SCO biosphere re serves. Together they cover more than six million hectares.

Driven to distraction

FEDup with being unable to drive in Spain since May 1, British driving li cence holders are plotting a demo outside the British Embassy.

By Simon Hunter

thing,” complained Edward Lambert in re sponse to a post from the Olive Press inviting feedback.

In fact, six emails were sent to our newspaper within just two hours on Sunday morning, with many more arriving since.

U-T

Many of those affected have joined a Facebook page called ‘Invasion of the British embassy in Madrid’ - but accord ing to one of the admins of the Facebook group, Pascal Siegmund, the fact that many of the people affected cannot currently drive in Spain is making it difficult for many people to get to the capital to protest.

A message posted by Sieg mund said a possible date for a protest is Octo ber 13.

An idea has also been mooted for a protest out side the DGT traffic author ity offices in the country’s provincial capitals.

According to the page, the aim of the group is to organise a peaceful demon stration ‘at the British Embassy in Madrid regarding the problem of the exchange of British licences in Spain’.

The exasperation of those affected by the issue, however, is clear for all to see in the comments. “It’s so frustrating when you try to do things by the book and then get punished as if we had ignored every

Christine Asparassa wrote to tell a familiar story, one of administrative problems in exchanging the licences before the deadline, despite having tak en on the services of a lawyer.

“We travelled to [our lawyer] in December [2020] and gave her all the copies of the required documents and thought nothing more of it,” Christine explained.

“Now we have not been able to drive for six months. She re ally did not help us and we im mediately sacked her, as we felt she let us down drastically.

“My husband has terminal cancer and is fre quently staying in hospital for sometimes two weeks,” complained Elizabeth.

An email from Isra Rojas González also showed, once again, that the issue is not just limited to UK residents. “I am a Spanish na tional and I hold a British driving licence, be cause I passed my tests in Britain,” he wrote.

UK licence holders join Facebook group called ‘Invasion of the British Embassy’ as they plot demo

Colonial times

was during heavy storms in November 2021 when a ravaging high tide uncovered what could prove to be one of the most exciting discoveries on the Costa del Sol this century.

After a long night of howling winds and waves crashing down on the wilder, western extremes of San Pedro Alcantara beach, locals woke up to find a collec tion of large brick ovens, ex

posed by a landslide.

When it emerged they were ap parently Roman and probably led to a much larger complex, the authorities quickly stepped in and did what any responsible archaeologist would do; took some photos and measure ments and quickly covered them up again in sand.

I had been one of the fortunate locals to stroll past that morn

ing and got a good look at the treasure that had emerged over night. Alongside a friendly local historian, who curates visits to the nearby Roman baths (above) and neighbouring sixth century Paleochristian church, we mar velled at the extent of the com

plex.

Right next to the ancient Roman road from Cadiz to Cartagena, in Murcia, (the one that also goes past the Roman bridge at the

It is 200 years since San Pedro Alcantara became one of Spain’s key agricultural colonies… and 2000 since the Romans enjoyed their time here, writes Jon Clarke

EPOCHS:

bathhouse,

Focus on San Pedro Alcantara

HISTORY LESSON

From front

Puente Roma no hotel and the Villa Ro mano at Rio Verde in Ba nus) it seemed obvious to him that this was a key industrial complex and all three sites were once linked.

We speculated a garum fish paste, or even a brick fac tory and he said he hoped an archae ological dig would launch some time next

year to investigate further. But in Anda lucia, that might be in 2030.

It is sometimes easy to forget about the incredible rich history that surrounds those of us fortunate to live around Marbella and its sister resort San Pedro Alcantara. Particularly after a busy sum mer season.

Fortunately in San Pedro you’ve got reminders all around you, if you know where to look.

To get a really good idea of what makes San Pedro tick, start by walking the en tire length of the town’s new, hypermod ern boulevard, with its spaceage flyerov ers, skate parks and fountains.

At both ends remnants of this once im portant agricultural centre are still firmly anchored.

At the Trapiche de Guadaiza sugar mill and around the atmospheric hamlet of El Ingenio, with its now-protected working men’s cottages and adjoining mill/distillery, you find yourself trans ported back to the early 19th centu ry, when the area comprised Spain’s most modern, profitable agricultural community.

A conglomeration of estates pulled to gether by the grand Marques del Du ero and his, even grander, wife Fran cisca de Paula Tovar y Puguera Amat de La Gasca, aka the Marquess of Re villa, its 5000 hectares were almost all planted with sugar cane. A highly profitable crop at the beginning of the 19th century, there were nearly two dozen sugar mills (‘trapiches’) on the coast and no less than two either end of San Pedro.

While large swathes of the coast were covered in cane (and the famous Larios gin family owned much of it), it was San Pedro that got the headlines nationally.

Importing the most modern ma

chinery from France and Britain, the landowners also broke from the mould by building colonies for their workers, hamlets made up of small, but well built cottages, that would guarantee a modicum of comfort.

Workers soon arrived from as far and wide as Valencia, Murcia and Almeria, as they heard of the success of the groundbreaking new crop and irrigation sys tems.

The Agricultural Colony of San Pedro Alcantara was officially opened in 1860 and became the ‘most important in Spain’, creating thousands of jobs and leading to a key nucleus on the Costa del Sol. When sugar cane

stopped being profitable by the late 1880s, the colony diversified into other produce, including beetroot, cereals, citrus fruit and even cotton. And after things were brought to a grinding halt by the civ il war, they soon found themselves a new indus try: tourism!

Today, the only cotton you will find is in the var ious fashion shops scat tered around the bustling town centre, with one, a Norwegian owned bou tique in the Ingenio area.

While not quite up to the high fashion levels of nearby Marbella, there are loads of interesting boutiques dotted around, as well as a mixture of book shops (two English ones alone), half

a dozen bike shops, and hundreds of others selling fruit, ice cream or restau rants and tapas bars.

“Everything is so close and it has still got its village feel,” explains local estate agent Ana Troyano, whose family have run a bakery and other businesses lo cally since the 1940s.

“You can find anything you need and both the beach and hills are within walk ing distance,” adds the owner of iHome, which has a bijoux office in the heart of the town.

“My mother was actually born in it and I hope the authorities can somehow maintain the close-knit old village feel you still get here.”

There is certainly a very local feel to the centre, which is crammed with narrow streets of whitewashed houses inter spersed with dozens of shady plazas.

Fantastic, spacious, three bedroom apartment in the prestigious Acqua building. Located in the heart of San Pedro Alcantara, Beachside. The master bedroom is en suite, while the other two bedrooms share a bathroom, there is a modern, fully fitted, open plan kitchen, a lounge with direct access to the south facing terrace, boasting wonderful views of the surrounding area and sea. There is an underground parking space and a storage room. Easy access to the apartment via lift. There is also a communal pool for the residents. Close to all amenities and the beach. Call us to book a viewing, we have keys.

Located in the beautiful hills of El Madroñal, a gated community with 24 hour security. The location is unbeatable, near the famous urbanisation La Zagaleta. This villa is a paradise for lovers of architecture and nature, with fantastic views of the sea

the

is in

consists

fully equipped

condition. The house is beautifully decorated,

en-suite

one guest toilet. The

with direct access to the private

also has a sauna and a garage

home with character, personality, nature and

Alcántara

Banús.

to

REFORMED: The Ingenio millmade rum from sugar cane, while (right) an English bookshop

‘Most important in Spain’, creating thousands of jobs

FOUNDER: The Marques del Duero

It’s not grand and ornate like other more celebrated Andalucian towns, but the at tractive Plaza de la Iglesia is well worth a visit and home to the impressive 19th century Iglesia de San Pedro.

Surrounded with statues, benches and water features; and a myriad of bars and restaurants with outdoor terraces, it is usually a lively place.

Behind the church on a roundabout look out for the statue of the Marques del Duero, Don Manuel Gutierrez de la Concha, the former army general standing guard over his 5000 hectares, which extended as far as Benahavis, Cancelada and Estepona.

From here walk downhill towards the continually evolving Bulevar de San Pedro, best known for its undulating pe destrian bridge that snakes high above it like a fairground ride.

Something of a tourist attraction, this

head-turning ironwork addition to the main drag sits beside a giant play park, an ice rink (for winter) and a superb skate park, down by the Trapiche.

Whether you love this impressive feat of engineering or regard its design as a bridge too far, it is hugely symbolic. For this gyrating overpass and shiny boule vard is a bold statement of how the town has progressed since a decade ago, when it was split in two by the main coastal mo torway and awash with traffic and all the fumes and noise this inevitably brought.

Today, this unpretentious coastal resort, wedged between Estepona and Marbella and hugged by two mountain ranges, has come of age with a long tunnel under its feet.

Just ask any of the Spanish families or couples taking an evening stroll down the boulevard, perhaps after they have

stopped to watch a show in sum mer at the am phitheatre, or sat down at one of the handful of ca fes for an evening cana and tapas. They’ll tell you how the €85 million tunnel has total ly revolutionised their town, how the new green spaces are a joy to run around, and how there’s a new school, new sports cen tres and a new underground car

park. Next they’re expecting a big com mercial centre on the outskirts of town, plus another new school, possibly a new theatre and even a university.

Head another half mile south and you’ll find the San Pedro promenade. A once scruffy zone that has been much spruced up over recent years, with hundreds of palm trees and a dozen chiringuitos.

While the beach always needs a fair bit of TLC after the winter storms it is start ing to get noticed. There are football and volleyball clubs setting up, a beach gym and at least half a dozen yoga, crossfit and zumba classes on the grass every day through most of the year.

most mornings, you can also book a visit through the tourist office.

watchtowers built in the 17th or 18th centuries to warn of approaching pi rates.

Nowadays you can walk - or cycle - all the way to Puerto Banus (even Mar

A bit further west, crossing the stream beside Macaao Beach Club, you’ll come to the most remarkable Roman bathhouse, known as Las Bovedas, standing next to one of the ancient

SAN Pedro Alcantara takes its name fromits founder, general Marques del Duero’sdevotion to the patron saint of Extremadura, as well as honouring his mother, LadyPetra de Alcantara Irigoyen.

There has also been much debate aboutwhether the correct name is San Pedro Alcantara or San Pedro de Alcantara… andincredibly Google Maps and the majority ofroad signs for the town - even on the A7 motorway through it - still use the latter.

The facts are it has been known as San Pedro Alcantara since its first census in 1860and Malaga’s official property register reflected the name as such in 1870.

The confusion comes because the town’spatron saint is ‘San Pedro de Alcantara’ or‘Saint Peter of Alcantara’, a town in the re-gion of Extremadura.

The local mayor in 2009, Miguel Troyano,brought the issue up at a Marbella town

ALL IN A NAME

hall meeting in October that year, insistingthat from then on ALL official documentsmust reflect the correct name.

The motion was passed unanimously, withthe records also stating that the town hadits own distinct crest (that of its founder,the Marques del Duero).

While now technically in Guadalmina, if it happens to be open to the public, this is one wonderful construction to take a poke around and was once clearly linked to the basilica.bella) and this is one busy passtime from 9am when the whole world seems to be out taking their morning constitutional. Heading west, you must look out for the fragments of the town’s history. Hid den a few hundred metres behind a row of fishing boats and shacks, and towered over by a giant euca lyptus plantation are the ruins of the sixth century ‘early-Chris tian’ basilica Vega del Mar. First excavated a century ago, the ru ins were discovered by a farmer planting trees, and they offer up an atmospher ic alternative view of the town. Open

DID YOU KNOW?

ANCHORED: Unusual maritime fountains near centre

Half a dozen yoga, crossfit and zumba classes every day of the year

MODERN AGE: Spaceage flyover (top) lords over the new boulevard, while (right) the popular beach

BUENAS NOCHES, ESTEPONA €349,500 REF: WW688

This three bedroom, two bathroom detached villa sits beautifully within its immaculate plot and is right next to the beach! The interior is light and spacious and the kitchen has been completely renovated.

exterior includes a pretty shaded patio and the roof top terrace provides wonderful views of the sea from where you can enjoy

magnificent sunsets.

This traditional style villa has lots of character. The accommodation provides three bedrooms and three bathrooms, the living room is extremely cozy with its open fire and the kitchen has plenty of space for dining. The wonderful covered terrace provides plenty of space for entertaining and relaxing while enjoying the beautiful views of the 2,000m2 garden .

ESTEPONA WEST €510,000 REF: WW1732

Renovated in 2021, this detached villa has all of the accommodation on one floor. The living/dining area has access to the covered terrace. The kitchen is fully fitted with modern units and there are three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The easily maintained garden features a private swimming pool and lovely BBQ area.

GUADALMINA ALTA €595,000 REF: WW1708

This light and bright townhouse is located in Guadalmina Alta and has five bedrooms and three bathrooms. The interior is extremely spacious, the living area leads to the terrace and private garden, the brand new kitchen is fully fitted and there is a guest WC. In addition, there is street parking with a carport and a lovely free form pool in the centre of the complex.

Occupying a double plot in desirable Guadalmina Alta, it is rare for a property of such quality to come to the market. This special family home has been fully renovated by the present owners and provides a stylish, comfortable home that lends itself beautifully to both inside and outside entertaining. With four double bedrooms and four bathrooms

simply must be seen.

The full refurbishment of this four bedroom family villa has recently been completed resulting in an elegant, contemporary and stylish home. Located in a front line golf position, this property is ideally situated for local schools, golf, proximity to the beach and all amenities. Exceptional attention to detail can bee seen throughout, resulting in a most desirable home set within a plot of 1,000m2.

GUADALMINA ALTA €2,500,000 REF: WW1465

SOTOGRANDE ALTO €790,000 REF: WW1675

GUADALMINA ALTA €2,100,000 REF: WW1717

MOST HECTARES OF VINEYARDS

THOUGH wine-slugging France tips Spain to the top as the world’s most popular tourist destination, Spain beats France when it comes to the size of its vineyards.Touché!

A whopping 961,000 hectares of land in Spain is dedicated to grow ing vines. That’s an area larger than Cyprus.

Despite this, Spain is not the world’s biggest producer of wine –that’s Italy. The vineyard size could be explained by the need to plant vines further apart in Spain because of the dry climate and arid soil.

MOST BARS PER PERSON

BEFORE we start thinking Spain is health-crazy, it’s worth admitting it has the most bars per person of any nation.

According to Spain’s National Institute of Statistics, in 2020 there were 277539 bars in Spain. That’s one bar for every 175 people.

Apparently, Spain has more bars than the United States of America despite Spain having a population of 47 million and the USA, 332 million. Needless to say, the culture of eating and drinking out runs deep here.

In fact, the average household spends 16.8% of their monthly earnings on it,

“I came from Britain a year ago and this situation is affecting [my ability] to find work in my country.”

The United Kingdom’s ambassador to Spain, Hugh Elliott, has released another update on the issue.

In his message the ambassador said that he too was ‘frustrated by the pace’ of talks but stated that there have been ‘unfore seen issues that we have been working very hard to resolve’.

“As the government’s representative in Spain, I hear and understand your frus trations. We previously thought, we gen uinely thought, that we’d have concluded negotiations by the summer.”

Complex

He added: “I’m as disappointed as you are by the length of time that this is ac tually taking,” before explaining that there ‘are only a couple of issues left’, but that they ‘are complex’.

There is, he continued, ‘a lot going on be hind the scenes, even if it doesn’t feel like it to you’.

which is over double the European average and triple the German average.

Another fun claim is that Madrid’s Restau rante Botin is the oldest restaurant in the world, having opened its doors in 1725.

TOP FOR EXPORTS

 5  8

SPAIN’S newfound status as the world’s largest exporter of pork products coincided with recent headlines about the state of its pig farms, which rather took the shine off the commercial triumph. Anyway, it ranks third now, after the USA and Germany. But there are other record-breaking exports that aren’t so controversial:

Spain is the world’s leading exporter of citrus fruits, for example, enjoying a 24.2% market share that’s well ahead of South Africa’s 10.9%.

Unsurprisingly, Spain also leads the world in olive oil exports, commanding a whopping 46.9% of the international market.

The country has over 300 million olive trees with 80% of the annual crop harvested from southern Andalucia. Italy comes in a poor second with just 16.7% of market share.

MOST INDUSTRIAL

9

MOST SOLAR ENERGY STORAGE

FOR several years Spain has led the world in having the most storage capacity for solar energy. That’s 6,850MWh of stor age capacity, compared to 5,200MWh in the US, 2,699MWH in sunny South Africa, and 1,000MWh in China. That doesn’t mean Spain produces the most solar energy – not even close. We’re just good at storing it. However, Spain has beefed up to enjoy the second-most installed wind power capacity in the EU (after Germany). And, commendably, almost half the nation’s electricity came from renewable energy last year.

THE world’s most successful male tennis champion and Mallor ca’s most famous son, Ra phael Nadal holds the record for Grand Slam titles with 22. He may have slipped to sec ond in the world rankings, but the good news is that the new number one is also Spanish -

YES, Spain is a clear world leader in construction and transport infrastructure. Eight of the world’s top 32 infrastructure con tractors were Spanish in a ranking by Public Works, more than from any other nation. Spain’s Grupo ACS enjoyed the top spot with the largest number of projects in motion (59 at the time) and with the most amount of in vestment with US$95 million. Other top Spanish contractors included Fer rovial, Abertis, Sacyr, Globalvia, OHL, Acciona and Itinere.

While not a world leader, Spain boasts the third-most extensive highspeed rail network in the world after China and Turkey, and the most extensive network of highways and motorways in Europe.

WE HAVE NADAL

teen sensation Carlos Alcaraz from Murcia became the youngest men’s player in the Open Era to hold the number one ranking, after sealing a four-set victory over Casper Ruud in the US Open.

YOU’VE

got Spotify, you pay for Netflix and now you’re going to have to pay for your journalism. While traditionally anyone who wanted to be in formed bought a newspaper or magazine, this changed over the last decade with the advent of digital media.

As the world changed, the leading media groups, in cluding the Daily Mail, the Guardian and the BBC guaranteed top quality, well researched content on the hour every hour.

But when Google and Facebook started to unfairly dominate global advertising revenue (by as much as 85%) media groups could no longer fund their jour nalism through adverts.

It has caused a crisis for the worldwide news media industry (whether TV, radio or print) of enormous pro portions.

A giant trust lawsuit filed by the European Union this year, alongside the UK, for 26 bil lion euros in damages against Goo gle for unfair practices, could not come to court soon enough. Most people realise that you only get what you pay for!

And currently, the ONLY way out for the media groups is to charge for their content and thankfully the vast majority of respectable groups now have paywalls. In Spain, that means El País, El Mundo and el Público, while locally Diario Sur, Provincias and Última Hora also do.

All of them offer a cheap, good value subscription ser vice for their readers to enjoy largely ad-free, reliable, well researched news content.

The Olive Press is no different and for over a year now has provided 20plus stories a day with unfettered access and almost no ads for under €1.50 a week!

Over 30,000 of you have now registered and have taken the opportunity to have decent, well re searched content delivered to you daily.

While the newspaper remains free, and always will be, to be really well informed and up to date on ev erything from fires to the environ ment and from changes in the law to health warnings, it’s time to get on board.

The Olive Press is the trusted En glish speaking news provider, qualifying and checking all its facts before publication and calling out the many fake news sources. This is, above all, our role.

Advertising no longer funds this profession, the fourth estate, which is vital in a healthy democracy to keep checks and balances on the powers that be.

Just like the musicians who create the songs on Spo tify or Apple Music and the actors and directors who create the movies and TV shows you now subscribe to on Amazon Prime or Disney, we hope you believe that journalists need to be paid for their work too.

If so, please join us at www.theolivepress.es to find the best package to suit you.

Falco’s

licence

Too hot to bear

UK HOLIDAY makers be lieve Spain will be off-limits as a summer travel destina tion by 2027, according to new research.

Following this summer’s wildfires and record-break ing temperatures across the UK and Europe, specialist travel insurance providers

InsureandGo asked 2,089 people to estimate which European countries could be too hot to travel to by 2027.

Spain was the destination holiday makers were most worried about, with 65% of respondents believing the climate in the popular desti nation for Brits would be un bearable in five years.

About 53% of people aged between 18-34 said Spain would be too hot to travel to, while 83% of over 65s said the same.

It comes after Spain this year sweltered through the most torrid summer since 1961.

The country’s average tem perature for June, July and August was 24 degrees cel sius, 2.2 degrees more than

EELS SAVED

SOME 180 kilos of critically endangered glass eels have been released into the wild after they were seized from poachers and smugglers.

The elvers, worth €270,000 on the black market, were rescued and 29 people ar rested by Spanish police, who carried out nearly 3,000 checks at ports, airports and other transport hubs.

The glass eels are regarded as a delicacy in Spain and parts of South East asia. They are often smuggled on to planes in suitcases bound for Asia.

“Most of the offences relate to illegal fishing, unlawful possession, illegal trafficking of endangered species and violations of laws governing natural spaces,” the Guardia Civil said.

Why UK tourists will stop traveling to Spain in five years

By Anthony Piovesan

the usual average.

InsureandGo chief execu tive Chris Rolland said the results from the study were ‘staggering’. But he added: “The family summer holiday will certain ly not go away. Our research

does suggest however, that it may well change in terms of holiday makers moving to ward cooler climates - or per haps that Easter and Christ mas will become the school holidays when more families head abroad for their break.

“I think this research is a real eye opener that things need to change - and fast.”

Going green

THE UK has extended the two key international environmental treaties of the Paris Agreement and the London Convention to Gibraltar, the Rock’s government has announced.

The incorporation by the UK Government fol lows the work of Minister for the Environment, John Cortes, to bring Gibraltar into the interna tional fold.

Gibraltar, which has already made moves to wards reducing its carbon footprint by estab lishing a Climate Change portfolio, will now be included in the 2015 Paris Agreement. Signed by 196 countries to limit global warming to below two degrees celsius, it is a legally binding document.

WINTER OF DISCONTENT

I’M not referring to a scene from Shakespeare’s Richard III, but to the here and now.

The stars are aligning to create the perfect storm:

• The consequences of the murdering psycho path Putin’s actions in Ukraine

• Food shortages

• Cost of living escalating prices

• Energy shortages

• Climate change inaction

Let me focus on the last two points.

ENERGY SHORTAGE

Continuous lack of investment in renewable en ergy resources by Europe and the wider world have exposed us to the problems we now face. Putin is using Russia’s plentiful stock of oil and gas as a weapon in his war against the west. Europe is scrambling to find available supply elsewhere. This is easier said than done.

And we all know what happens when demand outstrips supply. Prices go up.

Europe is still dragging its heels rolling out addi tional renewable energy installations. Have you seen more solar farms or wind turbines being installed near you?

I haven’t.

The European Commission’s vice-president, Frans Timmermans, summed it up perfectly last week….

“The era of cheap fossil fuels is over. The faster we move to cheap, clean and homegrown renew ables, the sooner we will be immune to Russia’s blackmail.”

CLIMATE CHANGE INACTION

It’s a very simple formula - insufficient action = inadequate results.

Take Spain as an example.

Last year, Spain was Europe’s 4th biggest pol luter. Carbon emissions increased by more than 3%, while other EU countries reduced them by 5%.

Looking back over a longer period, between 1990 – 2020, Spain reduced carbon emissions by 8%. In the UK emissions were reduced by 45% in the same period. Germany managed to reduce them by 42%. The top 10 polluting companies in Spain are –Endesa, Iberdrola, Repsol, Cepsa, EDP, Arcelor mittal, Naturgy, FCC, CEMEX and LafargeHolcim. According to EU targets, Spain will have to re duce emissions by 55% by 2030 if it is to be on track for carbon neutrality by 2050. Fat chance of that given the lack of progress to date.

There is not long to go before the next United Nations next meeting in Egypt in November. Once again we can look forward to ministers de livering promises on action they won’t deliver. New UK Prime Minister Liz Truss promised during the leadership campaign to ‘double down’ on the UK’s commitment to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

In its latest report on net zero, UK government adviser the Climate Change Committee (CCC), said that ‘tangible progress is lagging behind policy ambition’.

Expect to witness more of the same shallow rhet oric coming from Sharm El Sheik next month. I’m still amazed that the UN selected a host country for this event with an appalling record on human rights.

Martin

TOO HOT: for chimps too

COP 27

IT’S OVER: Message from Frans Timmermans

& TRAVEL

Busier than ever

NEARLY 125,000 trav ellers and more than 315,000 overnight stays were recorded in August in Malaga City. In 2019, before the pandemic, data for the month showed 139,888 visitors who generat ed 302,553 overnight stays, meaning, for ho tels at least, the market has now fully recovered from Covid-19.

Additionally, the aver age stay has increased from 2.16 days in 2019 to 2.53 days in August this year.

Councillor for Tourism, Jacobo Florido, called the figures ‘very good news for the destina tion’.

Families hit in pocket by soaring air fares

FLIGHT prices for the UK’s upcoming autumn half-term school holiday are 42% more expensive than they were before the Covid-19 pandemic hit in early 2020.

Consumers’ organisation Which? reports that the average cost of a one-way ticket at half term for six popular destinations was £212 this year compared to £150 in 2019.

Rising fuel costs, pentup demand and passen ger caps at airports are all contributing factors to this rise.

Of the six destinations an alysed, three are in Spain:

Smooth sailing

THE Port of Malaga is looking forward to a busy autumn, with 113 passenger ships expected to dock in the city.

According to data from the port’s official website, October will see 55 cruise calls to the capital of the Costa del Sol and an other 49 in November. The port authority expects to close the year with a total of 267 cruise calls, just 21 calls shy of pre-pan demic figures when 288 cruise ships ar rived in 2019.

But the number of tourists on passenger ships since January have been fewer than those of 2019 due to capacity restrictions.

SKY HIGH

By Simon Hunter

Alicante, Malaga and Tenerife. The remainder were Antalya, Dubai and Dublin. The departure air ports were England’s bus iest: Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted, Lu ton and Birmingham. The study found that the Heathrow to Tenerife route had experienced the big gest ticket hike, with an average extra cost of £262 per passenger per flight compared to pre-pandem ic days, meaning an extra £2,096 spent for a family of four.

Meanwhile, Heathrow to Malaga flights had risen from £193 to £282, which

Calling Malaga

THE cruise sector is going from strength to strength post pandem ic with an ever growing number of stopovers to the Port of Malaga. The increase in calls is headed by the shipping company MSC Cruises - the third largest in the world among cruise companieswhich has just announced it will increase its sailings to Malaga by 31% next year, meaning that its fleet will visit the city 38 times in 2023, 50% more than in 2019.

is a hike of 216% in just three years. Which? also found that those who booked their half-term flights six months in advance paid an average of £60 less each way com pared to those who booked three months before, which translates into savings of £480 for a family of four.

Rights

The consumer champion is calling for passenger rights to be upheld and enforced in this context of higher prices, and wants to see the Civil Aviation Authority to be given powers to impose heavy fines on operators when they break the rules.

Frosty report

THE Sierra Nevada ski sta tion in Granada has reported its first snowfall of the sea son.

With two months to go be fore the official ski season kicks-off, the Sierra Neva da summit has been dusted with a fine layer of white snow.

Sierra Nevada is expected to be the first ski resort in the Iberian Peninsula to open this season, followed by Baqueira Beret in the Pyre nees and from December on wards the Andorran resorts.

Slopes

The Granada resort has set Friday, November 25, as the date to open its slopes and lifts. The ski season will run until April 23, 2023 and will see the inauguration of 105 brand-new snow cannons, meaning snow conditions will be optimal all winter. One day later, Baqueira Be ret, one of the most popular and ski resorts in Spain, is set to open in the Val de Aran area of Catalunya.

Mandatory Spanish driving license

New regulations for English expat residents in Spain governing the mandatory issue of a Spanish driving license

issue of

citizens is

governing the manda

drivers license for

that’s

ing concern for some of our English

customers.

Legal Assistance service will keep you

explain the regulations and procedures that you’ll have to follow, and the possible sanctions for non-compliance. If you need more information or you’d like to speak to our Legal Assistance team, please call 919 180 022 and we’ll be happy to assist and advise you.

AUTOMATIC LICENSE EXPIRY AFTER APRIL 30, 2022

As of December 31, 2020, the UK ceased to belong to the European Union, and regulations that allowed driving in Spain, with a British driving license, ceased to be applicable. UK issued driving licenses were only autho rized to drive in Spain until April 3O, 2022, and

are now not valid. All existing agreements on highway regulations that protect the Member States of the European Union have ceased to be valid and applicable. However, those British drivers who do not have their main residence in Spain and travel for periods of less than six months (tourist type), may continue to drive in Spain, during that period, with their original permit.

ENGLISH FOR SPANISH LICENCE SWAP

Residents with a British driving licence, had until December 31, 2020 to swap and redeem theirs for a Spanish licence. Consequently, they must now obtain a new Spanish driving licence from scratch, submitting to the require ments and tests established in Spain for ob taining said.

Round 4

A VACCINATION drive using a new delivery of vaccines has begun throughout Spain. The new vaccines are adapted to better match the circulat ing variants of SARSCoV-2 and are expect ed to provide broader protection against dif ferent variants, spe cifically targeting the Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5.

In total, 44 million doses of the booster will be administered in Spain, starting with the over-80s and residents of care homes. This will be followed by over-60s, staff at healthcare centres and those people who have not been able to com plete their vaccination schedule.

BOOSTING UP

People most at risk can now get new omicron jab

ELDERLY and vulnerable residents of Gibraltar can now get the latest omicron resistant COVID-19 booster vaccine at health centres, the Gibraltar Health Authority (GHA) said.

At the same time, a flu jab is now on offer to children and the elderly after lower lev

By John Culatto

els of natural immunity saw cases jump in Australia last winter.

The COVID-19 booster is available to people who are either over 50-years-old, have a long-term health condition, live with someone who is vul nerable or are pregnant. Health and social workers as well people who live in a closed setting like a prison can also get the booster.

Ironically, the Director of Public Health Dr Helen Car ter has said that because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the drop in social mixing has meant people are less resil

ient to the flu.

The GHA are primarily focus ing the flu vaccine on primary school children as well as all those groups that can get the omicron booster.

Children will be able to get the seasonal flu vaccine by nasal spray.

The plan to give the vaccine to children is to stop them pass ing it on to the elderly who of ten take care of them during the daytime.

All those who are in line for both jabs will get appoint ments from their health centre.

‘I strongly encourage every one who is eligible to take up the offer of these vaccines,” Dr Carter said.

“Both COVID-19 and the flu are nasty viruses, with dan gerous consequences for those

who are more vulnerable.

“Vaccination continues to be the best possible way of protecting yourself and your loved ones.”

Become a live-in carer in the UK

Tragic toll

CARDIOVASCULAR deaths have increased by 15% in Spain since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Comprehensive Heart Disease Plan for Andalucia director Ra fael Hidalgo said the rise came down to a relaxation of healthy habits, difficulties with mobili ty and patients’ fear of doctors.

“The abandonment of healthy habits, a sedentary lifestyle, the fear of going to the doctor due to infections may have some thing to do with it and now is when it must be tackled,” he told Despierta Andalucia. There are 15,000 heart at tacks a year in Andalucia and 100,000 throughout Spain.

September 29 marked World Health Day and Dr Hidalgo urged people to get regular checkups and look out for symptoms.

Start

live-in

journey

TO THE POINT: New vaccine roll-out

POLICY: Dr Carter

Sadness and reflection

Ramping up

RYANAIR has announced that it will boost by 17% the number of flights scheduled from Mala ga this winter.

It is expected that more than two million passengers will be boarding a Ryanair flight from the city.

The low-cost airline has also invested in eight new planes based at Malaga airport, three of which are the new Boeing 737 'Gamechanger' version.

Ryanair says that these three planes will be able to transport 4% more passengers, reduce fuel consumption by 16% per seat and reduce the noise level by 40%.

Remote hope

SPAIN is planning to issue ‘digital nomad’ visas to Brit ish citizens and foreigners outside the EU who wish to work remotely while enjoy ing the country’s summery weather.

However, it will not be as straightforward as simply turning up and starting to work.

The visa will only be given to people who work remote ly for companies outside Spain and who derive a

Millionaire game

Spain plans digital nomad visa to attract remote workers

By Jorge Hinojosa

maximum of 20% of their income from Spanish firms.

If, as is expected, the law is passed, it will allow digital nomads to stay in Spain for up to a year. This would be extendable to five years.

Applicants to the scheme

must be able to show ev idence that they have al ready been working remote ly for at least a year before they move to Spain.

They must also be able to show a contract of employ ment from a company out side Spain, or, if freelanc ing, have been regularly employed by a company outside the country.

Evidence of sufficient funds to live (probably around €2,000 a month) and proof of an address in Spain will also be needed. It is unclear whether they will need to have private medical cover. On the other hand, they will be taxed at just 15% of income.

Successful applicants will be able to bring their close family such as spouses and children.

IFEEL

that it is appropriate to speak about Queen Elizabeth instead of insurance this month.

I have been overwhelmed by the reaction of people in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and England.

As we know the Queen loved Balmoral, where she has spent many happy days growing up and having her family there, with no press around to disturb the joy. It was so appropriate that her last request was to go to Balmoral.

I believe the Queen knew she didn’t have much time left and she wanted to die in one of her favourite places. How proud and sad the Scots were and they gave her a very dignified and loving goodbye.

Then she was returned to London and I think the Royal Air Force handled her return with great respect and dignity. It was the start of the enormous part the Services played in her funeral.

On the day of the funeral, everything was extraordinary and beautiful. The organisation and planning behind it all was very professional and sensitive. From family and friends, dig nitaries and politicians and both the British and worldwide public, everyone was able to say goodbye to such a wonder ful Queen, who had been part of our lives for so long.

I have nothing but admiration for King Charles. He managed to do his duty and what was expected of him, although his grief was etched on his face and with Camilla by his side he was able to carry out all the duties expected of him.

His sister, Princess Anne was just amazing - she never left her mothers’ side, wherever the Queen went, she was there.

A MYSTERY buyer has paid the Gibraltar Ad miralty £35 million (US$ 37.5 million) for the ‘My Axioma’ luxury yacht formerly owned by a Russian billionaire.

Gibraltar’s Supreme Court officials auctioned the Axioma in late August after impounding the yacht from Russian businessman Dmitry Pumpyansky on March 23.

The yacht has been valued at £64 million –nearly double the sale price.

Authorities on the Rock impounded ‘The Axio

POUND

ma’ in line with US sanctions over the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

“The funds will remain in court for a period of 60 days from the date the sale is advertised in Lloyd’s List,” the Admiralty Marshal of the Su preme Court said in a statement.

“Any person with a claim against the vessel, or the proceeds of sale thereof needs to submit a claim before the expiration of the said period.”

The court received a total of 63 bids for the boat. It did not name the final buyer.

Nomads

Spain will join 15 other Eu ropean countries that al ready offer digital nomad visas - but each country has its own set of conditions. For example, Greece offers residency of one to three years for digital nomads with a monthly income of at least €3,500.

I wonder if the Queen realised how much she was loved by both her family and by so many millions of people through out the world. The British people pulled together in their grief to give the Queen the send-off she deserved and also to wel come the new King and the beginning of another era.

I personally feel that King Charles, who has been preparing for years, will make an excellent King and gives us hope for the future.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE ANY INFORMATION OR A QUOTATION, PLEASE CONTACT ONE OF MY OFFICES, EMAIL INFO@JENNIFERCUNNINGHAM.NET OR VISIT THE WEBSITE WWW.JENNIFERCUNNINGHAM.NET

AFTER

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO LOOK OUT FOR?

Economic data is fairly thin through the first week of October, so head lines around the Russia-Ukraine crisis and the volatility in UK markets could drive most movement in the pound euro pair.

ESTEPONA

the

of September, the pound euro (GBP/EUR) exchange rate then collapsed at the end of the month following the UK government’s mini-budget.

the last two weeks, GBP/EUR slumped from €1.156 to a two-year low of €1.087, before recovering some losses and wavering at around €1.118.

WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING?

After slipping to a 17-month low in mid-September following a larg er-than-forecast slump in UK retail sales, the pound euro exchange rate started to inch higher once again.

Expectations of a 75-bp interest rate rise from the Bank of England (BoE) gave Sterling some support, although thin trading conditions due to a lack of data and the Queen’s funeral meant GBP movement was limited.

Meanwhile, the single currency came under pressure as Russia es calated its invasion of Ukraine. Four Russian-occupied territories in Ukraine announced plans to hold referenda on joining the Russian Federation, then Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilisation and threatened the use of nuclear weapons.

The pound’s upside was stopped short as the BoE opted for a halfpoint hike, rather than the three-quarter-point move markets had been expecting.

The following day, Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng unveiled his ‘mini-bud get’, announcing £45bn in unfunded tax cuts – the biggest tax-cutting event in 50 years. The prospect of unmanageable levels of govern ment debt, rampant inflation and soaring interest rates sent UK mar kets into meltdown, with GBP/EUR plummeting to a 19-month low. Sterling briefly hit a two-year low against the single currency – and an all-time low against the US dollar – on the last Monday of September before recovering some ground amid speculation of an emergency rate rise from the BoE.

The pair then wavered in this region through much of the last week of September, with Sterling exhibiting bouts of volatility. While the BoE did not enact an unscheduled rate rise, it did step in with an emer gency bond-buying programme to staunch the sell-off in government bonds, helping the Pound recoup some losses.

In addition, growing tensions between Russia and the West main tained pressure on the euro, thereby supporting GBP/EUR. However, Sterling remained weak.

Whether the Bank of England’s intervention in financial markets is enough to bring about stability remains to be seen. If the bank’s plans fail to alleviate concerns, it may be forced to act again, perhaps with an emergency rate hike, although there is very little appetite for this at Threadneedle Street.

Investors will be keeping a close eye on any rumours or announce ments from both the Treasury and the BoE. The outlook remains incredibly uncertain, meaning there’s a high risk of volatility in the pound.

At the same time, if the Russia-Ukraine war continues to escalate then the euro may face more headwinds. A renewed Russian offensive, fur ther sanctions, or signs that the conflict is spreading beyond Ukraine’s borders could all spell trouble for the single currency.

As we approach the middle of October, some high-impact UK data could prompt GBP/EUR movement. Traders will be watching the lat est labour market and GDP reports closely. Any more signs that the UK economy is faltering will likely add to the intense pressure on the pound.

PROTECTING AGAINST VOLATILITY

This kind of volatility can cause some nasty surprises if you need to transfer money overseas. On a £200,000 transfer, that four-cent gap between €1.15 and €1.11 translates to an €8,000 difference. And the larger the sum, the higher the discrepancy.

Fortunately, there are ways that you can protect against volatility.

Specialist currency brokers, such as Currencies Direct, offer different tools to help you navigate the ups and downs of the currency market. For instance, you can use a forward contract to secure an exchange rate for up to a year. This way, you won’t lose out if the market moves against you.

Services like rate alerts and daily updates make it easy to keep track of what’s going on in the forex world so that you can make informed deci sions. And with Currencies Direct you’ll have a dedicated account man ager there to provide guidance and support whenever you need them.

At Currencies Direct we’re here to talk currency whenever you need us, so get in touch if you want to know more about the latest news or how it could impact your currency transfers.

Since 1996 we’ve helped more than 325,000 customers with their currency transfers, just pop into your local Currencies Direct branch or give us a call to find out more.

MARBELLA

FUENGIROLA

BENALMADENA

NERJA

The Rock’s free

Judge Rude-y

Bedrock ambassador

THE caves of Nerja are so popular that the local tourism board have given them the title of ‘Tourism Ambassador 2022’.

Refuse corrector

A MADRID resi dent has been fined €2,001 for leaving a cardboard box next to the bins in a City Hall crackdown on ‘littering’.

Plane daft

CLUELESS Saz Ismail has launched a Go Fund Me appeal after getting stranded on Ibiza when he first missed his flight, then booked a second from the wrong island and finally bought a ticket to the wrong UK airport.

Storm in a paella pan

Spanish police dub Tesco sandwich a ‘health hazard’

SPAIN’S Guardia Civil have waded into a row over UK retailer Tesco’s paella sand wich.

Perhaps still smarting from celebrity chef Jamie Oli ver’s definitely not pucker recipe for the rice dish that included chorizo sausage, to the outrage of many ‘afi cionados’, the police are not impressed with the culinary innovation.

By Jorge Hinojosa

“Today is world paella day, so we need to celebrate with real paella, not with those paellas that are sold abroad,” wrote the Guardia Civil on its Twit ter account.

“The paella sandwich for some people is something amazing, but for others it is disgusting and could be a

A SPANISH Boeing cargo plane, has crash-landed into a lake near Mont pellier airport in southern France The plane overshot the runway and nosedived into a lake, leading to three people being rescued from the aircraft.

health hazard,” it insisted. Some Spaniards living in the UK are also ‘surprised’ and front of the beach in Spain, not on my way to work in Ox ford street.”

can't believe that there is a paella sandwich.

Splashdown

According to Flightradar24 data, the plane was travelling a very fast 160 knots when it landed and was unable to stop in time to avoid the end of the runway.

Carla Cano, 23, current ly working as an events assistant in London, told the Ol ive Press: “I imagine my self having a paella in

And plenty of Spaniards have taken the news extremely seriously. One Spaniard on Twitter thundered: “This is an insult and a lack of respect for a Spanish dish, for the community in Spain, for all Valencians.”

To make matters worse, the sandwich follows Jamie’s ad vice and includes the dreaded chorizo.

A MAN due to stand trial for ‘exhibitionism’ was turned away from court when he arrived totally naked.

Alejandro Colomar, 29, was due to appeal a fine handed to him for walking around Valencia without a stitch on except for a pair of boots. But when he tried to enter the court, cops refused him entry and told him that if he did not put on his clothes, he would get another fine. “I have been to nudist beaches since I was little and I have never had any problem with nudity. One day I discovered that it was legal to be naked and I started to do it,” said Colo mar.

Stingy

A WOMAN who drove the wrong way down a motorway for seven kilometres because she was too mean to pay a toll now faces a hefty fine instead. Police were called by staff on the R3 in Madrid to tell them a car had turned around when it arrived at the tollbooth and was driving against oncoming traffic.

The woman told officers that she was trying to avoid the toll.