HOME ALONE

OFFICIALS are calling on the European Union to grant a ‘Balearic exception’ that would limit non-resident Brits and Germans from buying second homes on the islands. They are looking to the example of the Aland Islands in Finland, where there are limits on buying second homes. Recent Schengen addition Croatia also limits EU citizens who have not lived there for

THE rape accusation against footballer Dani Alves in a Barcelona nightclub has raised awkward conversations in Spain about the lack of protection for women on a night out.

Now, nightclubs on the Balearic Islands are catching up with campaigns like ‘Ask for Angela’, first launched in the UK in 2016. Staff are being trained in a basic protocol to deal with such situations, including sticking with the victim, calling security or even the police.

Balearic politicians want restrictions on non-resident second home sales to counter ghost villages phenomena

By Walter Finch

at least 10 years from buying agricultural land.

Beyond the EU, Canada also recently introduced a two-year ban on property purchases by non-residents with exceptions for immi-

Is Angela here?

For the last three years Nuevo Zar Maritimo has been offering a ‘special’ cocktail which, when asked for, alerts the staff that the customer is in trouble. If someone orders a regular zarito, it means they need someone to walk them to the car. A ‘take away zarito’ means that the customer needs a taxi, and a ‘blue zarito’ tells the staff to call the police.

grants and legal residents - a model that Balearic Islands vice-president Juan Pedro Yllanes says should be followed.

The islands are facing a crisis as rising property prices driven by foreign investment push out local residents and harm local businesses. This creates ghost villages where holiday homes are the majority and the few year-round residents wander deserted streets much of the time. One example is Fornalutx with just over 600 residents. People are reported to be frustrated with second homeowners who rent out their properties at prices beyond the reach of local residents. Deia is another.

Yllanes has said that the ‘exception’ he is calling for is