Spanish news - Spain news from 1Casa 24 June 2007

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Spanish News

Latest News from Spain

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24 June 2007

Spain Disagrees with Britain and Poland on Future EU Foreign Policy Chief

London and Poland faced pressure from Madrid and other EU partners to end their opposition to a new, simplified European Union treaty to replace the bloc's stalled constitution. The government of Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero put pressure on outgoing British PM Tony Blair to give way on the issue of a new EU foreign minister. Spain threatened to veto a plan to create a stable presidency for the EU if Britain opposes the creation of a foreign minister. Currently, Javier Solana, is the EU foreign representative and would be a leading candidate to become the new foreign minister, however British foreign secretary Margaret Beckett said Britain could not support any measure which would allow the independence of its foreign policy to be compromised.

Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said all 27 EU nations stand to lose if their leaders fail to reach an agreement on the new treaty at the summit, which began on Thursday. ''If there is no compromise, no agreement, everyone will have lost,'' Steinmeier told reporters. ''We need all the efforts. We need this for the future of Europe.'' German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country currently holds the EU presidency, wants to end a two year impasse on the constitution the charter laying out how to govern the expanding EU by replacing it with an updated EU treaty. She has urged EU leaders to accept a plan that aims for ratification of the slimmed down treaty by 2009, all 27 EU nations would need to endorse such a treaty for it to come into effect.

Spain to Spend 2 Billion Euros on Energy Saving Plan

Spain's Government is to spend 2 billion Euros on a new energy saving plan. Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, has announced a package of 170 urgent measures to be put in place between 2008 and 2012. The package will cost 400 million Euros and will include savings in heating and air-conditioning in all public buildings, more freight going by rail and energy efficiency will be promoted in all new buildings and homes. The plan will also include the hiring of bicycles in city centres such as Bilbao, Barcelona and Sevilla.

New AVE Train in Operation

A new modern AVE high speed train came into service on the Sevilla to Madrid and Tarragona to Madrid lines yesterday, 22nd June. The Siemens S-103 will also be used on the new line to Malaga which is expected to come into service before the end of the year. The train has a maximum speed of 350 km/hour and 404 seats. Renfe says that it will be introducing 149 new AVE trains over the next three years.

YouTube Launches Site in Spanish

YouTube, the online video site, has launched international sites in seven languages for nine countries, including Spain. YouTube founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen unveiled the new international expansion plan last week in Paris, an initiative designed to expand market share and add more users to the popular site.

Spain, Brazil, France, Japan, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Britain will have their own national sites, with the home page and search functions translated in to the country's own language.

Warm Winter Followed by a Hot Summer in Spain

The long range weather forecast for the summer in Spain says that it will be hotter than normal on the Levante coast, the Balearics and in the south. Official figures show that last winter in Spain was the warmest since 1289 when reports say that people in Spain were eating strawberries at Christmas and the trees were in bloom as if it was May. The temperatures were caused by a volcanic eruption in the tropics.

Saudi King Given the Keys to Madrid

The King of Saudi Arabia, Abdala bin Abdalaziz, was given the keys to the City of Madrid in a ceremony witnessed by King Juan Carlos last week. The keys were presented by the Mayor of Madrid, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon, who spoke of the 'the old links of affection' which unite the Saudi and Spanish people.

The Odyssey Treasure Find a Misunderstanding

The treasure found by the American company, Odyssey Exploration, reported to be 17 tons in weight and worth 500 million dollars was a joke which went wrong according to new reports coming from the US.

The Spanish judiciary has issued an order to board company's two boats when they leave Gibraltar, convinced that the company had taken either Spanish treasure illegally, or treasure from other sources but found in Spanish waters.

Now the co-founder of Odyssey, Greg Stemm, is reported to have said the company's secretive movements near Spain were in fact part of a job for car maker Volvo, which had asked it to plant treasure that one lucky prize winner would later be taken out to 'find'. Stemm said a deal with Volvo to keep quiet about its competition, promoting Disney's latest 'Pirates of the Caribbean' epic, meant it could not silence growing accusations linking Odyssey's movements and the massive haul. Now he says it has led to a terrible misunderstanding which had cost many people a lot of money and was being made worse by sections of the media. Greg Stemm is now in Gibraltar to try and free the company's two ships.

Sagrada Familia Cathedral has no Building Licence

It has been reported that the Sagrada Familia Cathedral, designed by Antonio Gaudi, and still under construction, does not have a building licence. The Barcelona Cathedral has been under construction since 1885 without any paperwork being granted. In 1885 Gaudi applied for a licence to adapt a previous planning application requested two years earlier, and soon after the foundation stone was laid. Gaudi presented his plans to the authorities at the end of the 19th Century followed by his plans for the Cathedral Square in 1916, but none of the work was officially given permission.

Documentation was last presented to the City Hall in 1990.

A spokesman at the time is reported to have said that because it was such an exceptional building it was treated differently from normal buildings.

Spanish Seats in the White House

A Catalan carpentry company has obtained an order from the White House to supply the new fold up seats in the refurbished White House Press Room. Founder, Martin Figueras, could never have imagined that when he set up his company in 1929 to construct cinema seats that 78 years later it would receive such an order. The Spanish chairs can already be found in companies such as Sony and Yahoo.

Water Levels Drop in Malaga Reservoirs

Water reserves in Malaga province have dropped in the past week, with 211.19 cubic hectometres now stored in reservoirs, a reduction of 3 hectometres on levels a week ago. The reservoirs are now at 35.1% capacity, which is lower than in the same period last year, when they were at 38.2%.

Vinuela has the most, with 67.2 cubic hectometres and 39.5% of its total capacity. La Concepcion is at more than 97% capacity, with 54.5 hectometres. The news came at the beginning of June that the drought decree is to remain in place for the Guadalhorce Valley and Malaga City.

Parking Charged Per Minute at Malaga Airport

Motorists parking at Malaga airport are now charged by the minute. The change has been required by the Ministry of Development which is presently enacting a new law which prevents the 'rounding up' of such charges. Drivers are now charged 0.02 Euros per minute for the first half hour, 0.031 Euros per minute for the next half hour, and 0.025 Euros per minute thereafter. This sets the charge of 60 centimos for half an hour and 1.53 Euros an hour. Previously, a driver who had parked for an hour and one minute (now costing 56 centimos) was charged the same as another who had parked for an hour and 59 minutes (now 1.50 Euros). The daily charge is fixed at 16.95 Euros for the first four days, and at 13.55 Euros thereafter. Parking at Malaga airport is among the highest in Spain, along with Madrid Barajas, Barcelona El Prat and Palma de Mallorca.

Malaga Railway Station Shops Begin to Observe Sunday Trading Laws

Many of the shops in the Vialia commercial centre at the RENFE railway station in Malaga chose not to open last Sunday, 17th June, in line with regional laws on Sunday trading. The law only allows trading on eight Sundays and Bank Holidays throughout the year.

Vialia management have been claiming since the centre opened that a legal loophole allowed year round trading in railway stations, airports and bus stations. The owners of the complex face a fine of 1.5 million Euros for continuing to trade on Sundays.

It now appears that 45% of the shops decided to remain closed this Sunday following a memo from Vialia advising each business owner to make their own decision.

Junta Rejects Plans for Large Residential Area between Alora and Pizarra

The Junta de Andalucia has rejected the plans of the Ayuntamiento of Alora to create a large residential area in the area of El Polvillar, at the foot of the old road that joins Alora with Pizarra. The request was to change the 330,000 square metre area from industrial use to residential use. The Provincial Commission of Town planning has rejected the petition arguing that "it does not comply with the objectives and decisions of the territorial planning of Andalucia", according to a report published in the Official Bulletin of the Junta de Andalucia.

Festival of San Juan

The people of Malaga will celebrate the festival of San Juan on its beaches of tonight. The celebrations start at midnight on the 23rd June each year when large papier-mache caricatures are put on top of burning bonfires. Part of the fun of the night involves jumping over and dancing round the fires. As the clocks strike midnight everyone heads for the sea where it is tradition to wash away the evil spirits and be granted eternal beauty.

Harley Davidson Rally

The 16th HOG (Harley Owners Group) European Rally started this week and runs until Sunday 24th June. Nearly 8,000 Harley fans are participating in the event. The Rally takes place at the Fuengirola fairground and has become the base for the biggest concentration of Harley Davidson motorcycles and their owners in Europe.

Track Days

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Picasso Drawing Stolen

A Picasso drawing, dating from 1920, has been stolen from the house of a Russian diplomat close to the Austrian capital, Vienna. The 30 x 20 cm pencil drawing, called ‘Corrida’ is a bullfighting scene and shows a bull charging a horse in the bullring. Police say they are looking for a gang of professional thieves who knew exactly what they were after.

Castellon 0 - 1 Malaga

Malaga dominated play to end the season with a win against Castellon.

Henry Moves to Barcelona

Arsenal has confirmed that Thierry Henry will join Barcelona subject to a medical with the deal thought to be worth £16 million to the Gunners.

Most Spaniards Fed Up With Football in Media

According to a recent poll, most Spaniards think professional football is more about glitz than solid athletic competition and that the media pays too much attention to the game.

The survey by the government-funded Centre for Sociological Research found Spaniards still love the sport, though many doubt professional leagues are bound by the same rules of fair play and fun that dominate amateur matches. Of the 2,473 people surveyed seven in ten said that the media reports too much on the sport; eight in ten believe professional matches are more about showmanship than sportsmanship and 73.8% agreed with the statement that 'soccer generates a lot of money and is therefore susceptible to corruption.' 72.8% said they watch as much football as they can on television and almost half of those surveyed believed that referees decisions always favour the same teams and end up influencing the results.

Despite the scepticism, football remains Spain's most popular spectator sport with 58.2% saying that football is of intense personal interest to them. Almost one third said they are sad when their team loses and 15% expressed irritation with their team after a loss.

Alonso has no Intention of Leaving McLaren

Fernando Alonso has denied that there was a problem with Lewis Hamilton. The Formula One World Champion has dismissed suggestions that he may drive for Ferrari and said it is his intention to fulfil his contract at McLaren because he has the best car in his hands. Alonso also spoke of his good relationship with team mate Lewis Hamilton, saying press claims that the two were not speaking were untrue. The Spaniard did add, however, that he thought that the Englishman was leading the Championship table because he had driven well, but also that he had enjoyed plenty of good luck.

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