Olive Press Gibraltar Issue 204

Gipsy Rock

THE Gipsy Kings touched down in Gibraltar to play at the top of the Rock as part of their worldwide Renaissance Tour.

The group, famous for Bamboleo and Djobi Djoba played an exclusive acoustic set in the iconic Skywalk before their main concert Friday night.

The Grammy award winning band was scheduled to perform in the indoor hall of the Europa Sports Complex at Gibraltar’s Europa Point.

The legendary French-born co-founder of the group Tonino Baliardo led the performance.

Gibraltar’s Minister for Tourism Vijay Daryanani helped facilitate the concert at the top of the Rock and is hoping to use recordings of the show and interview to promote Gibraltar’s unique tourist sites.

“It’s great to see a well known band like the Gipsy Kings performing in Gibraltar,” Daryanani said.

“I’m sure it will be an enjoyable event for our people and for our visitors alike.

“Events like these help put Gibraltar on the entertainment map and we are grateful to Fresh Entertainment for organizing this concert and bringing the Kings to Gibraltar.”

The Renaissance Tour, which features various performances in the United States and Canada comes after the Gipsy Kings sold over 14 million albums worldwide.

P LIVE RESS The O

BUNKERING BACKLASH

ENVIRONMENTAL groups have slammed the bunkering operation that went wrong leading to an oil spill that engulfed Gibraltar’s southwestern coast in thick black tar.

Gibraltar’s Environmental Support Group (ESG) said ‘it was an accident that should not have happened’ and called for a full independent investigation into the accident.

Between 1,000 and 2,000 litres of very low sulphur oil overflowed out of the 180m-long Panama-registered LPG tanker Gas Venus and spilled into the sea.

The Royal Gibraltar Police has now arrested the captain of the Gas Venus and released him on bail pending an investigation. Westerly winds then pushed the oil onto the rocks and jetties

By John Culatto

around the popular southwestern bathing spots of Rosia Bay, Camp Bay and Little Bay. Rosia Bay was the worst hit area, Gibraltar’s Department of the Environment said.

The latest oil spill wreaked havoc in the difficult to access area of Seven Sisters, a marine protected area.

Government workers and Nautilus Project volunteers then set about cleaning the affected areas managing to reopen Camp Bay and Little Bay to bathers.

Department of the Environment workers removed the jellyfish nets from both bathing areas to clean them too and they gave the allclear a week after the accident.

After cleaning the more popular bathing areas, most of the work centred on Rosia Bay, which got the brunt of the spill.

“Contaminated rocks and rubble have been individu -

ally assessed, with many being removed for cleaning off-site before being returned to their original location,” a government spokesperson said.

“Rocks containing marine life are cleaned manually on-site to minimise disruption to the coastal environment.”

Sheen

Port launches removed all free-floating oil sheen from the sea prompting authorities to give the all clear by Monday.

“There are currently no significant free floating sheen patches at sea,” Gibraltar’s government said in a statement.

The Nautilus Project said in a video statement that it was ‘deeply saddened’ by the accident.

“These oil spills will have severe long term effects on our marine

environment,” it continued. “Oil leaks can affect endangered dolphins by being inhaled as they come up to breathe.

“Longer term these animals suffer repressed immune reactions and reproductive capabililities.”

It also described the damage to bird life, fish, shellfish and invertebrates as ‘harrowing’.

Spanish pressure group Verdemar Ecologistas en Accion blamed the spill on the lack of safety measures for ship bunkering.

“Had the oil refuelling ship not cut off the supply, the situation would have been a real disaster,” it said in a statement.

The ESG added: “We have been calling for our bunkering trade to diversify away from fossil fuels given the very high carbon emissions attributable to Gibraltar from this practice,” it said.

NOT AGAIN!: Spillages are becoming common

FILTH: Safety measures are needed to prevent more spills

“However, it is also the air and noise pollution, as well as environmental impacts from oil spills, which also concerns the group.” The latest oil spill followed a winter of more oil damage to the eastern coast from the OS 35 shipwreck that recently left Gibraltar aboard a Dutch barge.

Green activists decry ‘accident that shouldn’t have happened’

CLEAN UP: removing the oil from Gibraltar’s shores

Discover the jewel tucked away on the Andalucian coast in our special supplement

Business fast-track

THE Financial Services Commission is streamlining its processes to allow companies to quicker register themselves in Gibraltar.

Helping hand

THREE new lower primary schools in Gibraltar – St Mary’s, St Paul’s and St Joseph’s – opened learning support facilities to help children with learning needs and disabilities.

Coke cam

POLICE in Gibraltar arrested an 18-yearold cocaine dealer and 24-year-old buyer in Cornwall’s Parade after watching the deal go down on CCTV.

Climate chaos

UK scout chiefs at the World Scout Jamboree in South Korea moved some Gibraltarian children from the main camp to hotels during a heatwave.

AUTHORITIES have clamped down on littering and fly tipping in Gibraltar by raising fines to four times their previous amount.

People who throw, drop or don’t properly get rid of litter will now have to pay £250 for the offence rather than £70.

Fines for throwing dangerous old paint, oil, dog poo or used nappies as well as sharp items, mattresses

Fly tipping crackdown

or furniture went up from £250 to £1,000.

“Any rubbish deposited on the floor constitutes an offence – this includes leaving bin bags next to bins or bin stores that are full,” the government statement read.

“If the rubbish does not fit inside the bin then you need to find an alternative location.” Litter wardens, environmental officers and CCTV will be used to catch offenders leaving rubbish bags beside full bins and not recycling properly.

Ponzi probe

ROYAL Gibraltar Police have finally opened a criminal investigation into the activities of Globix director Damian Carreras after his company lost €40 million in a suspected Ponzi scheme.

The police said the move forms part of a wider investigation into the operation of Globix and the alleged losses to investors.

The RGP called it ‘a very com-

Criminal investigation launched into Globix director

By John Culatto

plex matter’ and refused to comment on queries by the Olive Press as to whether they are liaising with Spanish police. Carreras is known to be ‘hiding out’ in Barcelona, while

A MAN chased a motorcyclist down Gibraltar roads in his car after an argument until the rider fell off and crashed into another vehicle.

Police have now called for witnesses who saw the chase down Line Wall Road after officers arrested a 38-year-old man on Tuesday evening.

The incident took place at around 5.38pm on August 1 when a member of the public called into the station about an argument between the pair.

his co-suspects, Russian nationals Pavel Sidorov and Alla Babenko, reside in Alicante. News that Carreras is finally facing a criminal investigation will come as music to the ears of long-suffering investors, some of whom stand to lose six or seven figure sums

ROAD RAGE

According to a Royal Gibraltar Police statement, the caller said the pair had had an argument. Then the man drove his car northbound along Line Wall Road chasing the biker. Five minutes later the chase ended at Devil’s Tower Road as the motorcyclist fell off and collided with another vehicle.

Headbutt horror

A GIBRALTAR court ordered a man who headbutted a woman in her own home leaving her with a severe nosebleed be sent to prison.

from the scam.

Gibraltarian Carreras (pictured), 39, stands accused of running a Ponzi scheme after taking in €25 million in investor capital – from some of the most powerful individuals in Gibraltar.

The list of investors includes former Chief Minister Sir Peter Caruana, current Leader of the Opposition Keith Azzopardi, and wife of the current Chief Minister, Justine Picardo.

The giant crypto exchange went into liquidation in March one week after the Olive Press first broke the scandal, leading to legal proceedings to recover the missing funds.

Lee Cruz Parry, 49, pleaded guilty to common assault at the Magistrates Court that gave him a 10 week sentence for the violent attack. The incident sparked off at 4pm on December 12, when Cruz Parry was in the victim’s home and they had an argument. Cruz Parry first insulted her and then headbutted her on the nose, causing her to bleed heavily. He then left the home and the victim called the Royal Gibraltar Police for help and requested an ambulance. Doctors treated her for bruising and swelling at St Bernard’s Hospital. Police officers swooped in to arrest Cruz Parry later that day at 9.30pm and charged him with common assault.

What’s the beef?

IT is dubbed the oldest treaty in Europe, signed in 1375 and its terms have been met nearly every year since.

The people of the Baretous valley in France have paid a tribute of three cows to their neighbors in Spain’s Roncal valley every July.

The Tratado de las Tres Vacas (Treaty of the Three Cows) was signed to settle a dispute over grazing rights, although it is thought the ‘arrangement’ may date back 1,200 years.

In 2011 it was recognised as an Intangible Cultural Heritage by the government of the Navarre region. It is thought the tribute has only been missed twice - in 1794 during the War of the Convention and in 1944 because of World War II. The cows are handed over during a ceremony at the Piedra de San Martin stone marker involving the mayors of towns in the two valleys who wear traditional garb.

WOLVES DEMISE

Predator declared extinct in Andalucia but may soon return to Valencia

AS experts predict that wolves may soon return to Valencia, the animal has been officially declared extinct in Andalucia.

The Junta de Andalucia’s environment department has been carrying out a wolf census for 20 years and, despite it being a protected species, they’ve admitted ‘there has been no sign of its presence since 2010’.

Until 13 years ago, it was believed that there were up to eight wolfpacks in Andalucia consisting of as many as 56 wolves principally in the Sierra Morena.

Luis Suarez from the WWF in Spain said: “This confirms the negative trend for the few existing wolf packs in southern Spain, which are threatened through being physically and genetically isolated from wolves in the rest of Spain, by loss of habitat, poaching and illegal hunting.”

By Alex Trelinski

But leading biologists believe that the combination of dwindling human population figures in rural areas and the increasing abandonment of agricultural land will encourage the arrival of the predator to Valencia in the coming years.

Castellon Province is predicted to be the main entry point, as several specimens have already been located in the Los Monegros area in neighbouring Aragon after travelling down from the Pyrenees.

Another possible gateway is the Rincon de Ademuz in Valencia Province.

Opinions on the legendary animal vary greatly. The Spanish government’s decision to ban hunting the Iberian Wolf was met with an outcry on behalf of farmers and hunters, who see the Canis

lupus as a dangerous predator that severely threatens their livelihood.

Just a few hundred wolves remained in Spain by the 1970’s due to a policy of eradication through poisoning, but since that was outlawed numbers have crept up.

In the most recent 2021 national census there were

ALVES INDICTED

up to 2,500 wolves in 297 packs - 90% of which were in the north-west, mainly in Castilla y Leon, Galicia and Asturias.

Sheer delight

HE has only been in business three years but Spanish designer Arturo Obegero has scored a major publicity coup.

Beyoncé took to the stage for the Boston leg of her ‘ Renaissance World Tour’ wearing an ensemble designed by the emerging fashion talent that embraces the current ‘sheer trend’.

The Grammy-winning star wore a black corset bodysuit-style dress complete with opera-glove style arms, fishnet stockings and an embroidered lace train.

The dress was designed in collaboration with Atelier Sara Couture in Paris, who worked 318 hours on the outfit, including hand stitching all the lace from Sophie Hallette.

Naughty return

SPAIN’S former king Juan Carlos I has announced he will ‘soon’ be back in Spain for more stays in Galicia.

THE

Barcelona

has been formally indicted by a judge in a sexual assault case. The judge said that she had found evidence of wrongdoing by the 40-year-old player and if convicted he faces jail time of between four and 15 years.

Alves has denied sexually assaulting a woman in a Barcelona nightclub last December and says they had consensual sex.

The footballer was arrested in January and has been in prison since then amidst claims that he poses a flight risk. His lawyer, Cristobal Martell said that Alves would not appeal the judge's decision because he wants the legal process to be concluded as soon as possible.

CAN YOU SEE ME? THEN SO CAN ALL OUR READERS

Juan Carlos, who went into self-imposed exile in the United Arab Emirates in August 2020 after a number of scandals involving his finances emerged, made his third return visit to Spain last month. The father of Felipe VI participated in two sailing regattas in Galicia’s Sanxenxo with his boat El Bribon (The Naughty one), winning one of them.

The former monarch has told the Spanish press that he intends to pay ‘many more’ visits in the near future.

former

and Brazil footballer Dani Alves

EXTINCT: Wolves have disappeared from Andalucia

Breaking the Rock

CONSTRUCTION work has begun ahead of schedule for the latest set of buildings in the Gibraltar Government’s affordable homes scheme.

Situs Construction Group started the noisy piling process to make way for the foundations of Chatham Views at the old location of Westside Comprehensive School on Queensway. The school itself moved to new premises four years ago but the buildings there were in use for a while until being demolished earlier this year.

Builders have also started the second phase of Hassan Centenary Terraces overlooking Eastern Beach.

Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said he was ‘delighted’ that the piling had started.

Turfed off

Mother horror after 5-year-old child thrown off flight to Gibraltar

A WOMAN has spoken out after her five-year-old child was amongst several Gibraltarians removed from a flight over mistaken concerns they needed a Schengen visa if the flight was diverted to Malaga.

The mother of the child, Enya States, claimed on social media that BA staff were ‘awful and rude’ to her ‘crying mother-inlaw and scared five-year-old daughter’ who were travelling together.

They were part of a group of about 10 Gibraltarians forced off the morning flight from

TUNNELLING TRIUMPH

TOURISTS will be able to relive the role Gibraltar played during World War II after the reopening of the Hays Level tunnels.

Heritage minister John Cortes said he was ‘pleased’ that the newly refurbished tunnels were now open to the public after closing earlier this year. His department carried out ‘a number of essential works’ during the last few months, including removing old cables, strengthening the roof and putting up new information panels.

Dubbed the World War Two tunnels, they

Heathrow Airport.

States described the horror flight, saying: “They boarded the plane in Heathrow, along with everyone else this morning, and over the tannoy system came an announcement that they are looking for Mrs Green.

“She lets herself be known to staff who then tell her she needs to get off the plane with my five-year-old daughter.”

She said her mother-in-law and daughter were ‘very worried and scared’ at that point, and even though they tried to

By John Culatto

reason with staff ‘they have just taken them all now to look to be booked on another flight tomorrow or sometime later in the week’.

Later in the day, States said that British Airways ‘have admitted fault’ for the shocking incident.

“They have told [Gibraltar House] that they made a mistake and those affected passengers should have been allowed on the plane,” she wrote.

Passport

“The fact that they have a passport that was issued in Gibraltar should have had no effect on whether they could board the plane or not.”

She even said there was an off-duty coast guard officer on the flight and they would not listen to him either.

States has already filed an official complaint for compensation but is still shocked how the airport staff treated her mother-in-law and child.

Olive Press.

“I asked for them to speak to me on the phone and my mother in law asked and begged them to talk to me and they said no and then ignored her whilst she stood there crying and at one point just pushed past her like she wasn’t even there.

“And still now, even with BA talking to the Gibraltar government and claiming an admin error, myself and my mother in law are yet to hear a word from them.

“I hope I get my daughter back, and that something like this never happens again.”

said.

“Who pays for the distress we were put through, loss of work tomorrow and the jet lag after travelling from Canada?” she asked. She said she was scheduled to fly back on Tuesday instead, making her lose a day at work. Minister for Tourism Vijay Daryanani, Director of Civil Aviation and the Gibraltar government representative in London immediately contacted British Airways.

Schengen

are located on Willis’s Road close to the entrance of the ever-popular 1,300-year-old Moorish Castle site.

“My mother in law was crying down the phone to me, my child was crying, begging to go home to mummy, it just broke me,” she exclusively told the

To add to insult to injury the flight touched down at Gibraltar airport at 12.50pm. Another woman turfed off the flight, Yvette Sene, told the Olive Press that BA staff gave her overnight hotel accommodation, dinner and breakfast plus a bus return fare.

“No matter how much we tried to reason with them they just brushed us off saying those were their instructions,” she

“The airline confirmed that the Gibraltar information sheet for BA loading staff at Heathrow Airport wrongly stated that Gibraltarian passengers would require a Schengen visa in the case of a diversion to Malaga, which was a possibility due to wind in Gibraltar,” the government said in a statement. “The Government has received assurances that this issue will be resolved immediately.”

Big hits!

GIBRALTAR continued to defy its size as both men and women came third at the annual Eurohockey international championships held recently in Poland and Croatia respectively.

Minister for Sport Steven Linares sent his ‘warmest congratulations’ to the Gibraltar Hockey Association. Both teams’ respective goalkeepers Izzy Edwards and Joe Borg celebrated being named best shot stoppers of their respective events.

Medal magnet

STAR swimmer Asia Kent is heading a group of two swimmers and two athletes who are representing Gibraltar at this year’s Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad and Tobago.

“All four athletes competed in the Guernsey Island Games very recently,” the Gibraltar Government said.

“Asia Kent in particular did extremely well in breaking national records and winning a Gold Medal,” the statement added. The teenager won the 200m breaststroke and got a bronze at the recent Island Games in Guernsey.

She was also Junior Sports Person of the Year in 2022, and is already being tipped for future greatness.

FIREFIGHTERS from Andalucia had to act fast to put out a bush fire near the Santa Margarita residential complex 15km north of Gibraltar. The blaze started in an undeveloped plot of land in the La Linea urbanisation And quickly spread as far as Venta Melchor and El Burgo beach.

Six groups of Cadiz firefighters used two water-carrying planes, three helicopters and two fire trucks to put out

Blaze beaten

the flames. They report the fire has charred an estimated 150 hectares of countryside and urban areas. Various residents chose to evacuate themselves from the Venta Melchor area after the westerly wind fanned the flames in that direction.

Shipwreck sails

GIBRALTAR bade a final relieved farewell to the OS 35 which left local waters aboard the Fjord semi-submersible barge on its way to the Netherlands.

It ended a forced 11 month stay in Gibraltar waters where it constantly shed oil into the sea after beaching 700m from Catalan Bay on August 29. Captain of the Port John Ghio said: “I’m delighted to confirm that the long and chal-

OS 35 finally hauled away after 11 months

By John Culatto

lenging operation to remove the wreck of the OS 35 from Gibraltar has been brought to a safe conclusion.”

He expressed his gratitude to Koole for their sterling work and thanked the public and Catalan Bay residents ‘for their understanding at each stage of this long and delicate process’.

Sporting encounter

GIBRALTAR’S Minister for Sport has met his counterpart in Azerbaijan after travelling to the central Asian country for a European junior basketball championship.

Minister Steven Linares travelled with Gibraltar’s Under-18 national basketball team and met Azerbaijani Minister for Sport Farid Gayibov. They discussed the possibility of carrying out youth exchanges.

Gibraltar’s youngsters lost all their games in Group C of the FIBA U18 basketball tournament in the central Asian country.

Chief Minister Fabian Picardo thanked Ghio and authorities in Algeciras for their help during the accident.

“From inception of the incident to the final removal of the wreck their work has been praised throughout the industry and from across the frontier and across the Bay,” Picardo said.

“Our frequent critics have

Digging the past

ARCHAEOLOGISTS will soon start a dig at a new location after the national museum said there could be ‘important remains’ there.

The new dig will take place east of Arengo’s Gardens and Arengo’s Palace Car Park near Moorish Castle Estate, a government spokesperson said.

Gibraltar’s Ministry of Heritage has labelled it a ‘scheduled archaeological area’.

This is the first archaeological dig the ministry has established after giving the Gorham’s World Heritage site similar protection.

Antiquity

become our partners in dealing with the issues that have arisen and that international support and recognition has been remarkable.”

Spillages

He was referring to the various tugs that came across the Bay to help out in securing the wreck and cleaning oil during spillages. The Syrian captain accused of causing the accident through negligence got a four month suspended prison sentence at a Gibraltar court on June 12.

“Any disturbance of the ground, excavation or removal of any object or antiquity from the scheduled archaeological area without having ‘scheduled archaeological area consent’ is not permitted,” the government said.

Minister for Heritage John Cortes called the start of the dig ‘another very important milestone in the protection of our heritage’ in the statement.

“We now have our first scheduled archaeological area, an area that deserves protection due to its rich material culture,” he said.

“I am looking forward to seeing the work undertaken by our heritage specialists and what they will uncover.”

*Data extracted from process closure surveys after using our roadside assistance and breakdown services.

Voted top expat paper in Spain

A campaigning, community newspaper, the Olive Press represents the huge expatriate community in Spain with an estimated readership, including the websites, of more than two million people a month.

OPINION

Why oil spills happen

THE Gas Venus oil spill must go into Gibraltar history books as one of the most unnecessary in recent history because it was totally unavoidable.

A Royal Gibraltar Police spokesman told the Olive Press the ship’s captain has now been arrested.

But as both the Gibraltar Environmental Safety Group and Spain’s Ecologistas en Accion said, the port needs more oversight over each refuelling operation.

The police’s arrest of the Gas Venus captain is a reminder that most of the responsibility for checking the fuel tank level lies with the ship’s crew.

Its engineers must check the whole process from start to finish to make sure the tank does not overflow. They must also make sure their equipment is not faulty so that the fuel gauges provide accurate information. Unfortunately, there are other factors that might lead to a bunkering accident like distractions, overconfidence or crew fatigue.

In the end, it was only the refuelling ship’s decision to stop pumping the oil that stopped it being a worse accident.

But a Gibraltar Campo expert on the issue has proposed a solution to the problem.

Jose Andres Bolanos Marin, manager of Gibraltar Strait Surveyors, said ships should sound alarms when their tanks are nearly full.

The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) already has such a system in place for transferring liquid cargo.

“Why don't we make it mandatory by MARPOL, that fuel storage tanks have a high-level device installed and automatic stop of the bunker supply?” he asks in an online editorial.

If international bodies do not act, is there any way the person on the pump knows how much fuel there is in the tank at all times, or can that be communicated to them?

Otherwise Gibraltar, as the largest bunkering port in the Mediterranean, will continue to be the victim of these oil spills.

PUBLISHER / EDITOR

Jon Clarke, jon@theolivepress.es

Dilip Kuner dilip@theolivepress.es

Alberto Lejarraga alberto@theolivepress.es

Jo Chipchase jo@theolivepress.es

John Culatto

ADMIN

Victoria Humenyuk Makarova (+34) 951 273 575 admin@theolivepress.es

DIGITAL DYSTOPIA

How will Artificial Intelligence affect our lives in Spain?

By Jo Chipchase

ARTIFICIAL intelligence (AI) is being hailed by some people as the next industrial revolution. Others say it’s a danger to humanity and will soon get out of control.

American commentator, Joe Rogan, is currently voicing concern over a fake AI-generated podcast featuring an interview between him and the CEO of a company called OpenAI, Sam Altman.

On a similar theme, Berlin-based photographer, Boris Eldagsen, recently fooled the Sony World Photography Awards with an AI-generated photo. He won first prize in the creative category but did not accept the award, saying he has shown how even top professionals are unprepared for AI. If you are new to AI, you won’t be for long. Some large investors are developing it, such as Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and IBM. If you use social media, Meta is developing AI elements for Facebook and Instagram, and Snapchat is launching an AI feature for paying users.

If you use streaming services, you’re already seen the hand of AI when it suggests films or other content you might enjoy.

So, with 2023 being the year of AI, how could its growing use affect our lives in Spain?

HERE NOW: CHAT BOTS AND IMAGE

GENERATORS

Many people are signing up for the new chatbot AI apps, such as Chat GPT from OpenAI. A chatbot is an AI app where you give it prompts, or asks it questions, and it draws on a large data set to answer with the content you want (this process usually needs some refining).

The idea is that the bots can instantly ‘research’ and explain any topic in detail, and it only takes a few minutes.

The current chatbots can write articles, essays, devise book plots, and generate computer code. You can easily save yourself several hours’ work.

With image AI, the popular apps - such as DALL-E and Midjourney - use written prompts from the user to produce images. They will render anything you can describe (such as ‘Pedro Sanchez riding a Spanish bull’). And, unlike human designers using Photoshop, they do it in seconds. Seeing this speed and efficiency of these existing apps, some people fear that AI will eventually overtake or dominate humans, plunging us into a plot worthy of Netflix’s popular series, ‘Black Mirror’.

DEMOCRATIC DANGERS

The recently held general election might be the last campaign period unaffected by AI. The main worry is: how will voters distinguishing real content from AI-generated propaganda? Some voters already find it difficult to identify fake news on the ‘old’ social networks, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. As for YouTube, “I saw a video, so it must be true” has been a long-standing problem.

Now, there are AI voiceover apps, AI face generators, and you could ‘skin’ video content with someone else’s face – such as a politician.

Using a simple prompt on Midjourney, the reporter created a convincing image of “Boris Johnson DJ-ing at a rave in a dry, dusty riverbed in southern Spain”. OK, we know this would never happen but would your 80-year-old granny be so sure?

For the experienced user, generating AI deepfakes is easy. These are videos or audio recordings that show someone saying or doing something that isn’t real. Think of the old ‘mashup’ videos, where snippets of a politician’s voice were blended to make a funny song (such as Nigel Farage saying he loves Europe), only more sophisticated.

EMPLOYMENT – LOSSES AND GAINS

In the next few years, AI is likely to automate many jobs, particularly those involving repetitive tasks that rely on data sets – such as coding, paralegal research, analysis, etc. Warehousing is another affected field, with Amazon already deploying robots called Proteus.

AI will impact art and design, as it is cheap-

Simon Hunter simon@theolivepress.es

Alex Trelinski alex@theolivepress.es

Cristina Hodgson cristina@theolivepress.es

Walter Finch walter@theolivepress.es

OFFICE MANAGER Héctor Santaella (+34) 658 750 424 accounts@ theolivepress.es

DISTRIBUTION ENQUIRIES (+34) 951 273 575 distribution@ theolivepress.es

NEWSDESK: 0034 951 273 575

For all sales and advertising enquiries please contact 951 27 35 75

HEAD OFFICE

Carretera Nacional 340, km 144.5, Calle Espinosa 1, Edificio cc El Duque, planta primera, 29692, Sabinillas, Manilva

Deposito Legal MA: 834-2017

CHATPROBE

Concerns rise over the ChatGPT app that is threatening Spain’s privacy laws

SPAIN’S data-protection agency is investigating the ChatGPT artificial intelligence application fearing it breaches the country’s privacy laws.

There are suspicions that the platform that can write essays to realistically converse with humans, could be illegally harvesting the data it gleans from conversations with us ers and which is the basis of training the application’s algorithms.

ChatGTP, which was created by a company called OpenAI, may also be storing payment information of subscribers, have weaknesses against possible hacks and lack an effective age filter.

A working group at the AEPD will also be created so that infor mation about the app can be ex changed between the different agencies that form the European Data Protection Board.

Italy briefly blocked Chat GPT over data protection concerns until Open AI added privacy controls to comply with Italian regulations.

ChatGPT gathers masses of human-created data from the internet and then uses it to make computer predictions

to answer questions and requests that are inputted by users.

Since it was made available to the public, users have been trying it out for writing anything from computer code and blog posts, to translating texts and even writing songs. 75-year-old British scientist and former Vice President of Engineering at Google Geoffrey Hinton played a key role in the development of the techniques ChatGPT uses.

But now Hinton is warning the world of the dangers related to AI after leaving the company.

“I used to think AI attempted to imitate the human brain without being able to match its capacities. However, I have changed my mind in the last few months as I now believe we can develop something much more efficient than the human brain,” he said.

Hinton added: “This can lead to the elimination of a number of jobs, which will increase the gap between rich and poor. There will also be leaders like Putin that would want to create robot soldiers for war”. “We need to learn how to control AI before it becomes too intelligent,” he concluded.

STILL SPARKLING

SOTOGRANDE is a gem that shows no sign of losing its glitter.

It’s the largest privately owned residential development in Andalucia, home to the discreetly rich and famous, and a beacon of luxury on the coast of Cadiz.

Sixty years ago it was farmland.

That was until American Joseph McMicking had a vision. Married to Mercedes Zobel de Ayala and president of the wealthy family empire, the Ayala Corporation in Manila (the Philippines), McMicking had already been responsible for a luxury property development, Forbes Park.

Now he was dreaming about creating a similarly exclusive residential community in the Mediterranean.

When his cousin Alfredo ‘Fredy’ Melian used his Swiss Air frequent flyer ticket for a trip to Spain, McMicking told him to keep his eyes peeled for

a suitable location.

Travelling mostly dirt roads back then on a motorbike, Melian traipsed around Andalucia and the Costa del Sol until he found a 1,800-hectare estate comprising a cluster of farms at the mouth of the Guadiaro, close to Gibraltar’s international airport, El Peñon.

The farmland had been owned by a succession of the rich and famous – the Duke of Arcos, the Larios family and then financier Juan March, arms and tobacco dealer, founder of the eponymous science and arts institution and once the richest man in Spain. It seemed fated for grander use – and it ticked the boxes.

“We bought the land at Sotogrande without having seen it, like a pig in a poke,” said McMickling, speaking in 1967. “Paid $750,000 down and had to pay another third in six months and the rest in a year.”

McMicking arrived with his nephews, Jaime and Enrique Zobel (Enrique had overseen work on his friend the Sultan of Brunei’s 1788-room palace) and Melian stayed on as director of works.

As it was the only bar for miles, the Antigua Venta Toledo served as an early HQ. The team had experience, connections but, best of all, patience and plans.

Inspired by golfing communities like Palm Beach and Pebble Beach in the US, McMicking was determined to build the community around a golf club and, in 1963, the world’s top golf course designer, Robert Trent Jones, was flown

in to design the course.

The Real Club Sotogrande was Trent Jones’ first European venture and the first course in Europe with a new-fangled automated irrigation system.

None other than Spain’s top modernist architect, Luis Gutierrez Soto (Callao Theatre and the Fnac building, Madrid), designed the low-slung clubhouse – still avant-garde today, as well as the ultra des-res course-side bungalows. McMicking then poached the director of The Ritz hotel in Madrid to run the club.

Trent Jones would return a decade later to design the world famous course Valderrama, which later became the setting for Volvo Masters events, the Spanish Open and even the Ryder Cup.

Continues on page 14

Continues on page 14

PREFERRED AGENTS FOR KNIGHT FRANK IN SOTOGRANDE & SURROUNDINGS.

60 years on, Sotogrande has not forgotten its founding values

From page 13

MINI MONACO

With another three courses in Sotogrande, and almost 70 within driving distance (no pun intended), McMicking helped the Costa del Sol become one of Europe’s top golfing destinations.

A keen polo player, Enrique Zobel

also decided to built a polo ground by the beach.

La Playa, inaugurated in 1965, wasn’t Spain’s first (the Jerez Polo Club dates back to 1872), but it revived a passion for the equestrian sport and set the social tone.

Although La Playa has gone, Sotogrande’s popular Santa Maria Polo Club is now considered one of the best in the world.

Sotogrande, particularly in August, is very much an enclave of wealth and privilege.

And with its privacy, space and amazing views of the Rock of Gibraltar and the Rif mountains of Africa the likes of ex-UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, the British royal family and countless European celebrities, who don’t want to be spotted, have been here for holidays.

But keep your eyes peeled and you might spot Irish motor racing guru

Eddie Jordan or former Genesis keyboard player Mike Rutherford who have homes in the resort.

Internationally renowned for its polo, golf and sailing, as well as a burgeoning gastronomic scene, this ‘mini Monaco’ of high net worth residents has all the hallmarks of what is often considered the top private

resort in Europe.

But don’t be fooled - you don’t have to be a millionaire to live here. There is a wide choice of accommodation available from reasonably priced apartments to multi-million euro villas.

Everyone rubs shoulders together and shares a love of the relaxed lifestyle that was McMicking’s original vision.

And, most importantly, it is all a far cry from the ‘look at me’ vibe of nearby Puerto Banus and Marbella. Indeed it is very different from other upmarket resorts around Europe where talk of wealth and fame is de rigueur. In Sotogrande they like to keep such talk, appropriately, ‘sotto voce.’

Mention the palpable sense of community, however, and you’ll discover how that is the privileged enclave’s true treasure.

Outside Sotogrande Raquet’s club Wendy, from London, explained how she had been coming for family holidays every summer for over a decade.

“This place is family-friendly and less hectic than further down the coast,” she explains, still out of breath from her on court exploits.

“It’s very open and we love it because you can cycle around and everywhere feels very safe.”

And of course having security guards checking all entrances to the enclave makes a big difference in keeping thieves and other troublemakers out. And there really is an abundant offering of outdoor pursuits on offer.

The profusion of yachts and kayaks spotted on a trip around the immaculate tree lined streets down to the marina is testament to that.

If year-round residents have a complaint, it’s that the winter months can be very quiet, so they have generally welcomed the recent invest-

ment in the area.

There has been a serious amount of spending in the extended port area, Ribera del Marlin, as well as in the hills up towards La Reserva golf.

There is a very real sense that the place has upped a gear in the decade since it was bought for €225 million by Orion Capital Management and all of Sotogrande’s 2,500 hectares are being carefully planned and used.

This is best showcased by La Reserva’s extraordinary man-made lagoon, which saw sand brought over from Morocco.

A great place for lunch and relax for the day on a sunbed, it accentuates the many

changes in Sotogrande recently. Still the very best of Sotogrande can be found in its marina.

Head over to this privileged place and sit down at a quayside restaurant to overhear how multicultural this place has become.

Conversations are conducted in Spanish, German, French, Italian, Scandinavian - it’s a veritable tower of Babel.

The marina is yet another highlight of Sotogrande where the welcome is warm, the hospitality outstanding and the sporting offer unequalled by anywhere else in the world that’s not a town or a village but merely a gated community.

Sotogrande has undoubtedly become the benchmark resort for residential luxury living and quality sport tourism.

PAST OWNERS: McMickling (top), and the Larios family (top right)

TIP TOP: The beach is as well kept as the marina (above)

er to use Image AI to visualise an idea than pay a human worker.

However, for now, AI is more likely to enhance than replace jobs, as humans need to oversee the processes and check the accuracy of the content - whether it’s code for an e-commerce system or a travel guide about Andalucia. Errors are widely reported. AI will also create new jobs. These might include data scientists, AI hardware engineers, AI programmers, and people employed to input prompts to make content.

EDUCATION ENHANCEMENTS?

AI could be used to create ‘personalised learning experiences’ for students. This is, presumably, instead of a teacher lecturing from the front of the class. It is intended to be more engaging.

However, the use of AI in education could cause a ‘digital divide’ – according to how computer technology is provided. Some people (of all ages) already struggle to use existing mobile phone apps or can’t afford the gadgets.

A teen told the Olive Press that some ‘instituto’ students already use Chat GPT and other essay chatbots for their homework, as well as AI apps to solve maths equations. Even the teacher used an AI app on a complex maths challenge, he said.

However, savvy teachers can install their own apps to detect if homework is AI-generated. This is easy to spot, as the apps look for the the GPT-3 (or more recent GPT-4) protocol, and flag this up in submitted homework. Schools tend to hate plagiarism, so don’t abandon your traditional research methods just yet.

CHAT GPT – THE NEW OFFICE COPYWRITER?

While Chat GPT is being hailed as an all-singing, all-dancing writing tool, the tone of its output is easily spotted. If a newspaper used it instead of humans, every article would sound the same - without the personality or charm of individual writers.

The reporter asked Chat GPT to summarise several seaside towns on the Costa Tropical. The results contained serious errors, muddling up the important historical events and landmarks. Someone without local knowledge might miss these mistakes. Furthermore, Chat GPT’s knowledge cut-off point is September 2021, which means that some content is naturally outdated. Despite the shortcomings, many companies already use Chat GPT to write their website content, product descriptions, blogs, and more. Although the chat-

Olive Press online

‘SPAIN’S BEST ENGLISH NEWS WEBSITE’

Thinking of you

ALOOK at our top-ranking web stories over the past two weeks is revealing.

Page hits statistics are a crude but reasonably accurate way of seeing what our readers are interested in.

Then why don’t we simply slavishly follow the online stats when laying out the newspaper?

The answer is that we do use them as a guide, but they do not give the complete picture.

For an interesting read – and a newspaper that people look forward to picking up as soon as it’s out – there has to be a little of something for everyone.

And this is where good old-fashioned journalism comes in.

It is a judgment call and our team of experienced reporters and writers is well placed to make that call.

We all work hard and strive to put together the complete package.

bot is handy for ‘boring’ content, it isn’t a replacement for seasoned copywriters with a lively style - just yet.

PHOTOGRAPHY ADVANCES – OR REPLACEMENT?

AI is creeping into every area of photography – from apps that enhance your cameraphone snaps to professional-level programs that creates images from scratch, like Midjourney and DALL-E.

While colourful, fantastical images are modish these days, and the AI ‘engines’ are constantly learning and improving their accuracy, they currently don’t render text correctly. So, you can’t enter “passengers boarding Ryanair plane” and have a correct logo returned.

AND…

ARE THE RESULTS A BIT SOULLESS? SOME CRITICS THINK SO.

Professional photographer, Graham Knipe, of Granada, says: “Cameras have been slowly taking over the image creation process for years. I embrace technology, but not to the point where it completely removes any artistic interpretation – all images will end up looking the same.”

“However, I don’t think that AI will completely take over photography, just as digital never completely replaced film.”

The most obvious problem with AI image generation is that many people will think the

end-result is real, leading to unanticipated situations.

WHERE’S IT ALL HEADING?

The interest in Chat GPT has been phenomenal. Since launching in November 2022, it has attracted 100 million users. This is much faster than the growth of the ‘old style’ social networks. The rapid spread of, and investment in, AI raises ethical, privacy, and security concerns.

BUT

ARE PEOPLE MAKING TOO MUCH FUSS?

Remember when we were terrified of the ‘Millennium Bug’, thinking that computer systems would roll over to 0000 and destroy the world?

There was also a time when people didn’t want music to turn digital. We were eventually happy to carry around CDs, rather than bulky vinyl records, with the formats becoming smaller and more portable over the years. Pendrives, Bluetooth… life has become more convenient with progress.

Overall, the impact of AI on Spain – and the rest of the world - will depend on how it is developed and deployed. While it brings some risks, it can also make many daily tasks quicker and easier.

We might end up working more closely with machines that help us with our personalised daily tasks, and speeding up dull chores is never a bad thing.

The main AI apps in our daily lives

● Virtual assistants

● Chatbots

● Social media algorithms

Of course, news comes top of the agenda and we certainly print more than our fair share of hardnosed news reports.

This is where website stats can help - for example, the story announcing this week’s heatwave with temperatures of 47C and the Spanish Government moving against low-cost airlines for charging travellers for hand luggage proved a big hit.

But when it comes down to it, it would be an extremely dull paper if that’s all we put in.

This is why we always leave plenty of space for interesting in-depth features and articles. These not only allow our reporters and writers to stretch their wings but more importantly, they provide you with a fascinating and informative read.

But it comes at a price. While the paper is free, the Olive Press still has to pay for the staff to keep producing a quality newspaper and popular website.

While the paper can survive thanks to our advertising clients who recognise a good read when they see one, the website needs to be funded too.

This is why we ask readers to pay a modest subscription for full access. For less than a fiver a month they can get access to the best investigative news site in English to be found in Spain.

Help us to provide the best news service targeted at expats in Spain and sign up now!

The top five most read stories on www.theolivepress.es in the past two weeks are:

1- WATCH: Mallorca locals struggle to get their heads around disgusting video of Dutch tourist

● Personalised recommendations online

● Language translation, such as Google Translate

● Healthcare applications

● Smart home devices

● Navigation and ride-sharing apps, including Google Maps

● Fraud detection by banks, etc.

HOW DOES CHAT GPT WORK?

The chat AI apps are machine learning Natural Lan- guage Processing models known as Large Language Models (LLMs). They digest massive quantities of text data and infer relationships between words.

HOW DOES IMAGE AI WORK?

Image AI text-to-image generators use a machine learning technique called artificial neural networks. These receive input in the form of words and pro- cesses them to form images.

2- WATCH: Moment man opens fire with automatic gun in Marbella

3- Seagull control campaign starts in Spain´s Malaga

4- Family ties forging the way for Costa Blanca business built on traditional values

5-Spanish insults that will make you sound like a native

951273575 for a special quote

AUTO GENERATED: All pictures were made with AI

It is cheaper to use Image AI to visualise an idea than pay a human worker

A resident of Chite, Lecrin, Gym, combines wit, irony, angst, and a ‘touch of anarchy’ for her life drawings and large paintings on canvas. She has recently completed a portrait of music producer, Youth – famous owner of the Space Mountain recording studio in Lecrin. She likes to observe the ‘human condition’ and ‘individual fragility’. She says: “My Godmother's faultless ink and watercolour sketches for fashion catalogues during the 50s and 60s influenced my desire to make art. Norman Rockwell’s lyrical caricatures and then the Pre Raphaelites stole my attention as a teenager. Life drawing became addictive to me.”

Gym ofHalama Lecrin

GETTING ARTY

By Jo Chipchase

GRANADA has a long history of art and self-expression, with the most famous luminary being Frederico Garcia Lorca. Since then, many creatives have been drawn to this beautiful area -

The Spanish region that is becoming a magnet for modern female artists

including poets, painters and, later, digital nomads. Living amongst the mountains surrounding the Sierra Nevada are many talented female artists, who document their personal experiences using media ranging from paintbrushes to pixels.

Jo Chipchase speaks to five local artists about the inspiration behind their work.

Mix Amylo of Granada

Mix Amylo is an English artist, musician, writer, and composer. She hails from London but is usually found in Órgiva, or a cave house in Granada. Having always drawn and created as a child, she returned to it later, studying in London, Accademia d'Arte in Florence, Cyprus School of Art, and Metàfora in Barcelona.

Described as ‘beautiful chaos’, her artwork weaves ‘the strength and

Andalucia has attracted Gym since 1970. She says: “I moved into Chite in the early 90s. Over a 10-year period, I fixed my eye on an abandoned flour mill, created my space to live, paint, and show my work downstairs at The Sandpit Gallery.”

“In 2021, I rented a warehouse near Lanjarón for three months as a challenge to myself, with absolutely no idea of what I would paint. Ten weeks later, 12 large canvases were hung for a 'one night only' exhibition called ‘TERMINAL’.”

● TERMINAL is on show at the Instituto de America in Santa Fe, Granada, from 21-22 September.

Armelle Boussidan of La Alpujarra Meg Robinson of the Contraviesa

Meg Robinson moved to Alcázar in the Sierra de Contraviesa because she was drawn by “the wisdom of the country people, the richness of the ancient culture, the blue sky, and summer starry nights”. She creates art from personal experiences and describes her work as ‘autobiographical’, but she also has some themes. One prominent theme was based on tracing her Jewish roots from Sephardic Spain to Lithuania, with five years travelling to explore countries including Alaska. In 2018, having found her

Jewish roots and grandparents’ village of ori- gin, a strong theme in her art was the inherited trauma passed down from generations of Baltic Jewish individuals and communities. She says: “Discovering the identity of my Jewish father after 50 years searching was traumatic. It unleashed a tsunami of grief I couldn’t explain.

So, I drew it.” Meg is now creating art around a new theme, with a new palette of colours celebrating the three cultures she lost thought adoption - Irish, Dutch, and Lithuanian.

www.megrobinsonart.com

Armelle Boussidan, a resident of Lanjarón, is a French born painter and multidisciplinary artist working with acrylics, posca, ink, watercolour, pigments, and sand. She has roots in Morocco and, for the last 12 years, she has exhibited her work in various places throughout Europe.

Armelle explores ‘invisible energetic states channelled into an intimate, intuitive and sensitive language’, sometimes used for art therapy. Her work can take different directions, according to personal experiences.

Armelle is inspired by: “Me, you, all of us, the seen and unseen, nature and natural patterns, everything we feel, dream and can't describe, the visible and invisible, portals of high energy, beauty in details and mud, pain, pleasure, grief and joy, the healing path, the vibration of a colour under a ray of light, a crystal glistening in the riverbed, all of it…”

She first arrived in Andalucia in 2016. A year later, she strolled around the spa town of Lanjarón with her ex-partner and ended up staying there.

Since then, she has been in and out of La Alpujarra, which keeps “calling me back like a magnet”. After spending time in Egypt and France, she returned to seek a home and studio for the winter.

www.armelleboussidan.com/art/

fem inine

ing a highly detailed black and white surrealism’. She creates personal dreamscapes, tries to capture the subconscious, and find quirky ways to reveal the ‘dark beauty hidden in the ordinary world’. Her artistic language uses recurring themes, such as circles, doorways, chessboards, female figures, eyes, mountains, and ladders.

The resulting works have been shown in different countries.

Since living in rural Spain, Mix joined the art group, Artists Network Alpujarra (ANA), and has participated in many exhibitions. She organised an Open House exhibition in Órgiva, where other artists could exhibit their work alongside hers.

www.mixamylo.com

Lunita Loca of La Alpujarra

Lunita Loca is a digital illustrator living on an olive farm. She has a passion for creating healing art full of colour, symbolism, and magic.

After 30 years away from art, she started drawing again during lockdown. She was trying to make sense of what was happening around the world through creativity. She could share her work instantly over social media and connect with others.

She explains: “The concept of ‘art is for everyone’ really appeals to me. Before moving to Spain, I lived in Bristol, where street art transformed the city into a walking gallery. From the rich to poor areas, the art spoke for itself and was inspirational, lifting your spirits and making you think or laugh out loud.”

“When my family moved to Spain, the landscape changed drastically. Now it was a time for reflection and healing. The mountains held me as I became a mother for the second time and found my way in the community.”

“During the summer of 2022, I was

stung by a scorpion. What followed was a dark night of the soul. After 24 hours of pain, I awoke to find myself charged with a new spark of energy and confidence.”

Instagram: @_lunitaloca_

Dear Jennifer:

POLICE in Gibraltar arrested two Brits who allegedly siphoned off £43,900 from a company between August 2022 and April 2023.

Officers arrested Wendy Simpson, 66, for making the 67 transfers out of her employer’s account.

While she allegedly paid 54 of those transfers to her own bank account in the UK, she made 13 of them to her partner’s account.

Once the Economic Crime Unit discovered this fact, they arrested her partner Peter West, 67, whose bank account is in Gibraltar.

Prosecutors charged Simpson with various fraud, false accounting and money laundering charges.

They charged West with acquiring criminal property and unauthorised use of a computer.

At a recent Magistrates Court, they were denied bail and jailed until their trial.

Cashing out Export boom

Malaga has achieved a historic milestone in exports, recording €1.296 billion in sales during the first five months of 2023. The province has emerged as Andalucia’s top performer in terms of growth, registering a remarkable 14.5% increase compared to the same period last year.

Malaga’s exports account for 7.6% of the region’s total exports. Despite the impressive figures, the province still maintains a negative trade balance of -€105 million due to imports worth €1.401 billion.

The leading export category is animal and vegetable fats and oils, particularly olive oil, with sales of €203 million and a growth rate of 11.9%.

Secret bonuses

A FORMER Gibraltar police officer and a woman who allegedly swindled £230,000 from two UK citizens via online payments is facing trial.

Police arrested Darren Gonzalez, 28, and Kelly Anne Cooper, 23, both of Mid Harbour Estate, after a 10 month investigation.

Royal Gibraltar Police officers charged Gonzalez with 16 counts of Fraud by False Representation for offences that allegedly took place from February 2020 to October 2022. They also charged Cooper with one count of

READ THE SMALL PRINT

Make sure you have the right home cover to meet your needs

IREGULARLY have extolled the virtues of Liberty’s fully comprehensive house policy. When asking the right questions, you will discover that many house insurance policies are inadequate.

money laundering and another of acquisition of criminal property. Police found that Cooper had received some online transfers into her bank account.

Jobs boost

Unemployment fell to 11.6% of the active population in the second quarter, the lowest level seen since 2008

SPAIN posted record employment figures in the second quarter of 2023, exceeding the 21-million mark for people in work for the first time ever.

Meanwhile, unemployment fell to 11.6% of the active population, which is the lowest level seen since 2008.

That’s according to the Active Population Survey, published by the country’s National Statistics Institute (INE).

The figures show that the 21-million barrier of employed workers was broken thanks to 603,900 people joining the labour market in April, May and June.

Unemployment, meanwhile, fell from 13.26% in the first quarter to 11.6%, shedding 365,300 people for a total in

Pricey stays

THE Costa del Sol is now the third most expensive region for hotels in Spain. It is beaten only by Guipúzcoa (Basque Country) and Barcelona.

The average cost per room along the Costa del Sol is around €150 a day.

These prices have caused hotel occupancy to drop slightly in the past month.

Data published by the National Institute of Statistics (INE) shows that the percentage of rooms occupied on average was 77.76% - down from 79.62% from this time last year.

Although occupancy is down in the region, it is still higher than the national average of 71.46%.

By Simon Hunter

the second quarter of 2.76 million unemployed.

The jobless rate is currently at its lowest since the third quarter of 2008, while the economically active population in Spain currently stands at a record high of 23.8 million from a total population of around 47 million.

The numbers build on similarly strong figures for the first quarter of the year. From January to June 2023, a total of 592,800 jobs were created – that’s double the figure for the same period a year before.

The INE figures also show that the number of workers on indefinite contracts has also hit a record high. Of the

GLOVOS OFF

THE Spanish government is exploring legal action against delivery service Glovo if it continues to refuse to obey the law and give its ‘riders’ work contracts.

The company allegedly treats these staff as what are known in Spain as ‘false freelancers’, thus saving money by paying them as independent contractors.

The Socialist Party-led administration of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez introduced what was dubbed the ‘rider law’ in 2021, in a bid to get these delivery drivers on proper work contracts.

Prison

The legislation included prison sentences for company employees who are responsible for the labour conditions of staff.

However, despite fines totalling €205 million - which it is appealing - Glovo has reportedly ignored the new legislation.

The secretary of state for employment, Joaquin Perez Rey says the government is now resorting to the courts to force Glovo to comply.

You do need to read the small print on your house policy, including checking that you have the correct policy with Liberty Seguros.

One of the very important issues when discussing house insurance is the amount of contents cover, always remembering that with Spanish Home insurance the kitchen is included in the contents, not the buildings.

Also there is a wonderful extra you can add to your policy and that is accidental damage, which is unique to Liberty Seguros and covers many breakages and claims within the home.

Therefore can I please ask you all to double check the coverage of your home policies, whether you are with Jennifer Cunningham Insurance and Liberty, or another company, to understand the cover you actually have. Finding out you have the incorrect and insufficient coverage when you want to make a claim is far too late.

My consultants are currently working on assessing the home policies, and if they feel you would benefit with increased, additional coverage, they will contact you at renewal.

In the meantime, if you have any concerns or questions, please contact one of my offices and we will be able to give you the advice you require and answer any questions.

Just remember that your property is likely to be your most valuable asset, and needs the right protection.

We also have optional guarantees available, which include dangerous dog liability, public liability for mobility vehicles, cover for electric vehicle chargers, and illegal occupation and unpaid rent if you are a landlord renting your property.

If you have expensive garden furniture, we can increase the cover for these. We can also offer increased cover for valuable objects and jewellery in event of theft with violence.

We can tailor your house policy to suit your own individual needs.

505,500 new employees registered between April and June, 410,100 were on permanent contracts and 95,400 on temporary contracts.

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR A QUOTATION, PLEASE CALL ONE OF MY OFFICES, EMAIL INFO@ JENNIFERCUNNINGHAM.NET OR VISIT THE WEBSITE WWW.JENNIFERCUNNINGHAM.NET

OP QUICK CROSSWORD

Across

1 Frown (5)

4 Grey (5)

10 “Raising ---” (1987 Nicolas Cage film) (7)

11 Hibernian (5)

12 Outer covering (4)

13 Final course sounds dry (7)

15 Stalwart in the lead, or out of sorts (11)

19 Implore urgently (7)

21 Emperor of Rome, 5468 AD (4)

23 Throw out (5)

24 Angers (7)

25 Inheritors (5)

26 Rounds up (5) Down

2 Dry red Italian table wine (7)

3 Horse-stopping command (4)

5 Gymnastic pommel horse exercise (8)

6 Banish (5)

7 Bears out cavalryman’s sidearm (5)

8 Obsolete form of marine propulsion (6,5)

9 Snap (5)

14 Forebear (8)

16 Appeared (7)

17 Grew less (5)

18 Pinch in the fundament (5)

20 Filch (5)

22 It’s made of wood in the woods (4)

All solutions are on page 15

SPEAKING IN WHISPERS

WHEN I think of Madrid

I think of whispers. It has always been a place of intrigue and conspiracies, of hermandes, closed societies, and tertulias, private gatherings. It is perhaps as a result of this secret history, and history of secrecy, that I have never quite been able to put my finger on the city (despite having written a guidebook to it.) Paris is a romantic idea, New York a bustling reality, London is the last vestige of an empire, Rome the ruin of one. Madrid is... I don’t know.

However, I keep going back because that is where the power in this country lies, and always has.

I have two great friends - in both senses of the phrase - who live there. They both come from illustrious backgrounds, their families affected the course of Spanish history.

Estanislao Pe rez, ‘Tanis’, does not of ten use his second sur name, what in English we would call his mother’s

Trying to get a handle on Madrid is an impossible task

maiden name (I wonder what banks here use to verify people’s identity...) It diverts attention, being García Lorca. His maternal grandfather Francisco was brother of Spain’s most famous poet, Federico García Lorca, whose ‘Lament for Ignacio Sánchez Mejías’ every Spanish school child knows, with its haunting refrain of ‘at five o’ clock in the afternoon’. Federico has been a bone of contention between Left and Right ever since his death at the hands of Nationalists in Granada at the start of the Spanish Civil War in 1936. However, even before that he followed the Spanish trend of linking

Art and Politics: think of the bombers that gave

birth to Picasso’s Guernica or the firing squad in Goya’s The Third Of May.

Which is why his brother married the daughter of his university professor, and one of the founders of Spanish socialism, Fernando de los Ríos. In 1919 de los Ríos joined the executive of the Partido Socialista Obrero Español, the PSOE, and in 1920 he was part of a delegation to Soviet Russia.

While there he famously interviewed Lenin, ending with the question ‘what about freedom?’

To which the most famous Vlad - more so than both Putin and the Impaler - gave a chilling three word answer, ‘freedom for what?’

De los Ríos became a minister of the Republic and went into exile after the Civil War along with Francisco, an escape which Federico tragically missed However, I am not visiting the softly spoken, highly intelligent architect from that bloodline of the Left, but instead the man they call the Godfather of the Partido Popular, the PP, on the Right.

Adolfo Suárez Illana does use his second surname, but this is to distinguish himself from his famous father, Adolfo Suárez, who was the first democratically elected Prime Minister following the death of Franco. More than that, he was co-founder, along with his friend King Juan Carlos, of Spanish democracy itself. I realise the former King’s star has somewhat waned, and his legacy has been apparently tarnished. However, nothing can remove the fact that he risked the same fate as the famous poet by leading this country into democracy. The story that sticks in my mind is that one of the people to whom the young Prince Juan Carlos turned for advice on the future when Franco began to ail was the exiled head of the communist party,

AT HOME WITH XANDER

Santiago Carrillo. The prince had the renegade politician smuggled into Spain and the palace, at great risk to both of them, to ask what he should do when he took power. Carrillo’s answer was blunt. “I don’t know the answer to that but I do know that you will go down in history as Juan Carlos ‘The Brief’.”

At the end of last year, Suárez Illana stepped down from his role as congressman for Madrid, and secretary of the bureau in parliament. He has not revealed yet what he is going to do and that is, in part, what I hope to find out.

Next time I will ask Tanis the same question. Despite their polar opposite histories, there are remarkable similarities between the two men. Both are fiercely intelli-

gent and loyal, but also have a great sense of humour and the rare ability to be invariably good company. They also listen to the other side, as I, sitting in the middle and frequently on the fence in matters political, have often tested late into the night. It is a shame there are no more like this in politics today. Or perhaps there are, behind closed doors, in smoke filled rooms, speaking in whispers.

‘I do know that you will go down in history as Juan Carlos The Brief’

GOOD COMPANY: Adolfo Suárez Illana with Xander and (left) Adolfo with his father Prime Minister Adolfo Suárez González and right with King Juan Carlos I

Cancer spotter

A NEW screening machine at Gibraltar’s St Bernard’s Hospital will help find moles and skin cancer easier than ever with its AI function.

The fourth generation Fotofinder Mole Mapping Screening Machine is ‘the most advanced device for Mole Mapping, Dermoscopy and Lesion photography’ the Gibraltar Health Authority (GHA) said in a statement.

Local lawyer James Levy and businessman Rafael Benaim donated the machine that maps the total surface of the skin to spot any warning signs of skin cancer.

The GHA said that ‘the majority of melanomas arise in clear normal skin rather than in pre-existing moles’.

Grieving space

GIBRALTAR’S St Bernard’s hospital will re-open its mortuary facility in mid-August to allow people to grieve for their loved ones after they pass away. The health authority announced the new mortuary will be located at the site of the old hospital chapel.

GHA Director General Patrick Geoghegan said he had reached an agreement with the Catholic Church to relocate its chapel to another area of the hospital.

The GHA said in a statement it had closed down the hospital mortuary to ‘expand and improve the much used and necessary A&E services’.

But after the pandemic, ‘the GHA has reconsidered the need for hospital mortuary facilities.

SLASHING TIMES

A FIFTH operating theatre opened this week at Gibraltar’s main hospital that will be dedicated to trauma and emergency surgery.

The Gibraltar Health Authority (GHA) said the new specially fitted room at St Bernard’s Hospital will allow other operating theatres to ‘operate more efficiently without an interruption’.

It said in a statement that this will ‘increase planned surgical procedures and reduce waiting times, as there will now be almost no cancellations resulting from emergency theatre use’.

People in line for orthopaedic operations will be first in line to benefit, with a 50% increase in this type of surgery.

DRINK UP

Take in fluids to avoid urinary stones

URINARY tract stones are one of the most frequent issues treated by urologists in Spain with hot temperatures forcing reported cases up by 30% over the summer months.

Simple changes in daily diets can reduce the risk of a stone being formed according to Dr. Bartolome Lloret, a urologist at Alicante's Vithas Medimar Hospital.

“Environmental heat is one of the most recognised causes of stone formation which is more frequent in hot climates and in Spain at this time of the year.”

“High temperatures in the workplace cause big water losses due to high perspiration while vigorous physical exercise, especially in summer, can cause periodic dehydration and increased concentration of crystals

in the urine which form stones,” he added. Cases of urinary tract stones are also more frequent in patients who have a parent who has had kidney stones. Dietary factors that promote the development of kidney stones and others that exert a protective effect have been identified so diet should be considered as an integral part of treating stone sufferers.

Dr Lloret said: “There are a number of dietary factors that encourage stones to be formed like a high consumption of animal protein. a low intake of fluids, a high intake of sodium and eating of oxalate- a substance present in some foods of plant origin.”

Oxalate foods include walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, spinach, and chocolate.

BREASTFEEDING BLISS

GIBRALTAR’S maternity department at St Bernard’s Hospital has highlighted the health benefits of breastfeeding babies using the latest research.

Aided by the Gibraltar Health Authority (GHA) Breastfeeding Team, they put on a

OP Puzzle solutions

Quick Crossword

Card happy

The specialist recommends everybody especially at this time of the year to drink more than three litres of water per day backed up by eating healthier foods like cereals, fruit, and vegetables. He also suggests reducing the consumption of butter, sausages, preserves, soups,

dehydrated creams, cheeses and ham, as well as avoiding adding extra salt to meals.

RESIDENTS of Gibraltar can now get their new health cards online through their Gov.gi portal or app where most of the details are filled in automatically. The government boasted in its statement that the whole card can be ordered ‘in five clicks’ without the need for proof of address.

The Register or Renew medical healthcare eService is already one of the most used online services with 3,3000 service requests in the last six months.

“Making the eService simpler, easier and quicker to use is crucial to making eGovernment an integral part of a citizen’s life,” Minister for Health and Digital Services Albert Isola said. “This has become even easier with the new Gov. gi app, where the eService can be accessed via a mobile phone.”

stand at the Piazza and told passers-by how ‘breast milk is the perfect nutrition to help babies.’

The event was part of World Breastfeeding Week, which is supported by the World Health Organisation (WHO) that aims to promote the practice in the community and at work.

The GHA’s Maternity Department also offered support to mothers that are unable to or choose not to breastfeed their children.

But wherever possible, the GHA pointed out in a statement the ‘great benefit’ of breastfeeding both to mother and baby ‘especially during the first six months after birth’.

Across: 1 Scowl, 4 Ashen, 10 Arizona, 11 Irish, 12 Rind, 13 Dessert, 15 Lionhearted, 19 Beseech, 21 Nero, 23 Evict, 24 Enrages, 25 Heirs, 26 Herds.

Down: 2 Chianti, 3 Whoa, 5 Scissors, 6 Exile, 7 Sabre, 8 Paddle wheel, 9 Photo, 14 Ancestor, 16 Emerged, 17 Ebbed, 18 Goose, 20 Swipe, 22 Tree.

Playground justice

A QUEUE for a child’s swing turned violent in Valladolid when two fathers started trading blows - with a baseball bat. It is unknown if the children managed to get their turn on the swing.

Unlucky rescue

AN elderly woman nearly croaked her last when vapours from the huge stash of drugs she was storing in her home began to overwhelm her. Thankfully - or not - passing police heard her cries for help and saved her.

No cigar

A BRIT who ran out on his €1,500 hotel bill almost got away scott free, until police intercepted him boarding a ferry in Santander.

P

SEX CRIME

IF you are going to gossip about a neighbour's noisy sex life, do it quietly. And definitely don’t do it live on national television.

A woman in Salamanca who did just that has been hit with a €10,000 fine for besmirching her passionate neighbour’s honour.

The facts date back to 2017, when the defendant appeared in a television report complaining about how she couldn’t sleep due to the noise made by her neighbour during sex.

The woman, identified by her initials LMI, referred to the ‘ardour’ of her fellow resident.

FOR THE FANS

Gossip ordered to pay €10,000 after discussing neighbour’s ‘ardour’ live on TV

By Simon Hunter

She also explained how the woman had been reported to the authorities and fined for excess decibels and ‘noises from her bed’. LMI added that the neighbour had even caused cracks in her ceiling and that her radiator vibrated due to the young woman’s activities. Asked if she might be a prostitute, the defendant said that

she did not know but that she had ‘seen a number of different people’ go up to the apartment. The comments were broadcast on a TV show called La Mañana on state broadcaster RTVE, prompting the neighbour, identified as JVG, to file a lawsuit both against the defendant and the TV channel itself. A lower court first threw out the case on the basis that JVG had not been identified in the

A FOOTBALLER has quit professional football to star on sex site Onlyfans Miguel Angel Guerrero, goalkeeper of Velez CF, has left the fourth tier of Spanish football for what he believes is a much more profitable career. The 29-year-old became well-known

broadcast, and that LMI was protected by freedom of expression. But an appeal at the Provincial Court was upheld, slapping LMI with a €10,000 fine. The Supreme Court has now also upheld the sentence, meaning the compensation will have to be paid.

after taking part in La Isla de las Tentaciones, the Spanish version of Love Island, earlier this year. The former goalie explained that he made the decision to start an Onlyfans account after receiving several erotic messages during his time on the reality show.

The ex keeper may no longer be

A MAMMOTH iceberg weighing over 15,000 kilos is set to make its grand appearance in Malaga at the start of September. The iceberg is being hauled all the way from Greenland in a refrigerated container and will be placed on swanky shopping street Calle Larios. It will be left there until it melts naturally, serving as a ‘poignant’ visual reminder of the pressing issue of climate change. The Arctic Challenge 2023 team, led by Manuel Calvo has just returned from Greenland and managed to get an export licence for the iceberg ‘for scientific research’.

making saves but he will surely start saving more money, as the platform users can pay between €5 and €50 a month for a subscription. “If you want to show non-sexual content you will not make money as Onlyfans is porn. I have a big gay public and I am open to do things that they would enjoy,” he added.