Live News From Spain As It Happens

STORMS battering the east coast of Spain have hit the region of Catalunya worse than anywhere, with 13 roads blocked off on the Costa Brava, four rivers threatening to burst their banks and even sink-holes opening in a street (pictured below right).

The AP-7 motorway has been closed to traffic in a southbound direction near the Figueres exit, and the N-II national trunk road close by has been shut.

Figueres town council has set up emergency beds in the sports centre in case anyone is forced to flee their homes or cannot reach them because of the floods.

Roads closed in the province of Girona include the C-252 in Far d'Empordà, the C-26 in Borrassà, the C-31 in Vilamalla, the GIV-5129 in Vilafant, the GIV-6219 in Siurana, the GIV-6226 in Garrigàs and the N-260 in Llançà and Portbou.

In Barcelona, the C-1411b in Manresa has been shut due to floods, and in Lleida, the C-26 in Alfarràs is closed.

Authorities are concerned that the rivers Fluvià, Ter, Cardener and Siurana may overflow if the rainfall gets any worse.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

SKI stations across Spain 'officially' open today (Sunday) and up to 30,000 tourists are expected to hit the slopes between now and the end of the snow season.

Although the French Alpes and Andorra continue to be the European skiing community's mecca, Spain's underrated slopes are perfect for everyone from total beginners to experts and considerably cheaper in most cases.

Whilst Spain is more commonly associated with sun-drenched beaches to northern European travellers, the Pyrénées, the Sierra Nevada in the province of Granada – just a short drive from its stunning coastline – and the mountains of the province of Teruel in southern Aragón are frequently packed out with Spanish residents seeking some winter sporting fun.

Foreign skiers travelling to Spain exclusively for its snowy pistes continue to be in a minority, but the cost of a skiing holiday in the country – or a weekend or even a day trip – is far lower than elsewhere in Europe and, in the case of Granada and Teruel in particular, easy to reach by car in anything from half an hour to three hours for tourists staying in beach areas.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

SPANISH motor manufacturers are piloting a scheme where cars are fitted with a SIM card that automatically calls the 112 emergency hotline in the event of an accident.

A chip similar to those found in mobile phones records details of the vehicle, the seriousness of the accident and the location, and alerts the police while the crash is happening to ensure a faster response time.

Known as the eCall system, all European Union countries must fit these to every car sold by October 1, 2017.

The SIM card will also tell the police whether or not the airbag has inflated, how many people were in the vehicle and whether or not they were wearing seatbelts.

It even tells the 112 hotline which language the car-owner prefers to speak, given that multi-lingual services - especially English - are already available to anyone calling the emergency number.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

PERMITS issued for building new homes in Spain have increased dramatically this year with 2,883 handed out in September alone, says the ministry of public works.

By the end of the third quarter of 2014, a total of 27,598 new build licences were granted by the College of Technical Architects, compared to 22,817 in the same period last year.

And the amount of permits issued in September this year was up 31.6% on the same month in 2013.

Although these figures are encouraging in terms of the housing market recovery, they remain a far cry from their peak in 2006 when over 600,000 were issued in the first nine months of the year.

But the ministry says the upsurge of 20.6% so far this year is a positive sign that interest in buying property in Spain is on the up.

In total, 45,604 permits were handed out by the College of Technical Architects in August this year for new builds, renovations and extensions – an increase of 2.2% on the same month in 2013.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

LEGENDARY flamenco-pop singer Isabel Pantoja wants to start a women’s choir in prison and has introduced herself to her fellow inmates one by one.

Serving two years for money laundering in connection with the massive ‘Malaya’ corruption case, Pantoja has decided to make the best of her situation and was seen approaching each and every woman in her cell block, chatting to them and telling them she was keen to set up a choral group.

The singer said she hoped to earn the trust of the other prisoners at the women’s detention centre in Alcalá de Guadaíra, given that they would be living together for many months, and also to dispel rumours that as an international musical star she would be getting special treatment.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

MADRID’S iconic El Retiro park and El Prado boulevard leading to the art museum of the same name are a step closer to becoming UNESCO heritage sites.

The area has been included in a shortlist, which means it is very unlikely at this stage that the keenly-sought title will be refused, but that the city will be given one year to work on and present its formal application to the world heritage department of the Paris-based global organisation.

Madrid city council says it has a ‘very strong’ case for the Retiro and El Prado boulevard becoming UNESCO world heritage sites.

At present, it is one of the few European capitals which have no UNESCO heritage sites, but it is hoped this will change in 2016.

The area in question encompasses the Retiro park with its huge boating lake, the Los Jerónimos neighbourhood from the Cibeles square – a traffic island with a life-sized statue of the Roman goddess in the centre – as far as the main Atocha station, the El Prado art museum and its adjoining avenue of the same name, and the botanical gardens, all measuring around 203 hectares.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

The head of Málaga's weather centre, Jose María Sánchez, said today that the high winds that hit the city today "could almost certainly" be classed as a tornado, given that they reached speeds of over 140 kilometres per hour.

Sánchez explained that the damage caused to the regional capital - overturned cars and roofs lifted off - was typical of this particular meteorological phenomenon.

Specialists were quickly on the scene to evaluate the damage and to carry out the necessary field work in anticipation of the inevitable insurance claims.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

It has just been announced that Ana Mato, Secretary of State for Health, Social Services and Equality, has resigned over allegations of involvement in the high-profile Gürtel corruption case.

The judge handling the Gürtel case, Pablo Ruz, has today confirmed that he intends to put a total of 43 of the 100 or so people believed to be involved in the money-laundering and corruption racket into the dock, including Mato.

Ruz has confirmed that there is proof that Mato was a financial beneficiary of the crimes committed by her now ex-husband, the former mayor of Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid), Jesús Sepúlveda.

One of the main protagonists of the corruption scandal, Luis Bárcenas, has already been held in preventative detention for more than a year, due to the real risk of him absconding.

The judge considers Mato to be a "financial beneficiary" of the gifts received by her ex-husband, meaning that she is unlikely to be charged with any crime, but will be arraigned for "civil responsibility".

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

The number of new mortgages signed in September this year reached 19,323, a 29% increase on the same month in 2013.

According to figures published today by the National Institute of Statistics, the September figures confirm a tendency that began in June 2014, with two-figure year-on-year increases being posted every month for the past four months.

June 2014 saw an almost 19% rise in the number of new mortgages being signed compared with the previous year. This was followed by a 28.8% year-on-year increase in July, and a 24% rise in August.
 
The average value of the mortgages being signed in September was 107,850€, a 10.6% increase on the same month in 2013, whilst the total capital loan increased by 43.5% compared with the previous year, topping the two billion euro mark.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

Lionel Messi has become the Champions League's all-time top scorer with a hat-trick against Apoel Nicosia on Tuesday evening.

The 27-year-old Barça star had already equalled former Real Madrid forward Raul's record of 71 Champions League goals before Group F match in Cyprus, and Tuesday's hat-trick gives him a record 74 goals.

Luis Suárez opened the scoring before the half hour mark with his first goal for the club, then Messi diverted a shot from Rafinha past the keeper barely ten minutes later to double Barcelona's advantage. Messi's second came in the 58th-minute and he added a third three minutes before time.

It was Messi's 28th hat-trick for Barça (his second in four days), and his fifth in Champions League. He has amassed 74 goals in 91 appearances, compared with Raúl's 71 goals in 142 matches.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A NEW branch of the retail giant El Corte Inglés set to open in Madrid’s business district will be the largest department store in the world.

It is due to go up on what used to be a railway station near the Nuevos Ministerios metro stop, and will adjoin an existing branch of the store based on the Paseo de la Castellana, a strip lined with high-rise office blocks and company headquarters.

The land purchased from rail board ADIF for 136 million euros is over 13,000 square metres and the neighbouring branch of El Corte Inglés is already considered to be one of the group’s largest.

Read more at thinkPSAIN.com

SPANISH motor manufacturer Seat has announced plans to take on 233 workers ‘imminently’ to handle the increased demand for the Ibiza model and the Audi Q3.

Temporary staff will be contracted in January to cover the three shifts on Line 2.

Already this year, the firm has employed 550 new workers due to the healthy level of sales seen with the Seat León, and 200 of these were made permanent staff in October.

An agreement reached with unions means priority for permanent jobs now goes to those who have worked in temporary positions with Seat in the past.

The company took on 45 workers who had graduated from its apprenticeship programme in July to handle the launch of the new FP Dual model.

With the 233 extra workers due to join in the New Year, this will mean Seat has employed a total of 800 extra staff members in 12 months, according to vice-chairman of human resources, Josef Schelchshorn.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

In an interview on Spanish television on Sunday, King Juan Carlos of Spain, who is close to his country's Formula One ace Fernando Alonso, revealed that the two-time champion had told him he had signed for McLaren.

Rumours had been circulating for some time about a possible move to McLaren for Alonso, but neither the driver nor the team had confirmed them.

When Alonso was asked about the King's comments after the race in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, he said, smiling: "What the king says, I don't say anything opposite. He is the king. He is always right."

The Spaniard, who is leaving Ferrari after five years, found it difficult to cope with the emotions in his final race for the team and confessed to finding the start of the race, surrounded by the team's mechanics, particularly hard.

"It was the worst moment," the 33-year-old said. "We fired up the engine and the mechanics stay there with the tyre blankets to the last minute. Two guys at the front, I saw they were looking at me, eyes shining. It was difficult to put first gear and start."
 
He added: "It is terribly difficult to close the door with Ferrari and knowing I will not wear this red colour next year."

Germany's Sebastian Vettel will take Alsonso's place at Ferrari, who announced today that they have sacked Marco Mattiacci after just seven months in the role, with Maurizio Arrivabene succeeding him as team principal. Arrivabene has spent the last 27 years with Ferrari sponsor Philip Morris. The Italian team has had another disappointing season, finishing fourth in the constructors' championship, behind Mercedes, Red Bull and Williams.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A JOB website has revealed which languages are the most important when seeking work – and shows that the average European Union citizen of working age speaks three, including their own.

The portal Primer Empleo (‘first job’) says Spanish workers do not even average two languages on the whole, including Spanish.

This average is also skewed by the fact that several regions – Catalunya, Valencia, Galicia, the Basque Country and the Balearic Islands – have co-official languages spoken jointly with Spanish.

A total of 50% of adults aged between 25 and 64 speak one or more foreign tongues, putting them third from last in the EU, according to research carried out by the Central for Sociological Investigations (CIS).

Although the CIS blames the education system for its limited emphasis on language teaching and the structure of the curriculum, where and when they are learnt differs for each one.

Whilst a quarter of the working-age population speaks English and 9.6% speak French, these were learnt either at school or college, and it is only nowadays that those with limited knowledge of English are studying it as adults, workers with at least an intermediate level of German or Portugueses say they learnt it abroad after finishing their education.

Languages are considered, if not crucial, at least a heavy advantage in many professions, says Primer Empleo.

English is the most-requested language by potential employers in all fields, whereas a few years ago, it was French – and English overtook French as the main second language taught in schools in 2002.

German comes second and French third, although in the fields of construction engineering, Portuguese is the most likely to be expected when seeking employees.

Although European languages are the most keenly-sought in Spain at present, a growing number of employers are seeking staff who speak Chinese, Russian, Arabic and Japanese, given that industry and the economy are constantly growing in countries where these are spoken and trade between them and Spain has the potential to increase.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

EGYPTOLOGISTS and archaeologists from Spain have discovered two hitherto concealed tombs in Luxor, filled with gold and silver jewellery.

Excavation leader Myriam Seco says the findings date back to the Middle Empire, which lasted from 2050 BC to 1750 BC, and that they sit beneath the temple of the Pharaoh Tutmosis III.

The temple, dedicated to the Pharaoh who reigned from 1490 BC to 1436 BC, is based in Luxor, on the west bank of the river Nile close to the Valley of the Kings, and already famous in its own right for the iconic temple there of the same name.

Sra Seco says one of the tombs carried the mummified body of an upper-class lady wearing two gold bracelets and a necklace in a cylinder shape, studded with semi-precious stones, and several silver ankle bracelets.

The gold items are in perfect condition, although the silver pieces were heavily deteriorated, say the archaeologists.

They have excavated 14 tombs to date, all of which were pillaged in ancient times, but the two found under the Tutmosis III temple – one of which was empty – had been buried for thousands of years after the ceiling caved in, crushing part of the body of the woman, meaning grave-robbers were unable to get to the valuables inside.

Myriam Seco said the collection discovered is ‘valuable, beautiful and very impressive’, as well as being extremely unique and important historical findings given that there are very few items of jewellery from the Middle Empire left to give experts an insight into what life was like during this era.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

THE long-awaited new Hepatitis C drug will be available on Spain’s national health system shortly, but only for certain patients.

According to Dr María Londoño from the Hospital Clínic in Barcelona, a member of the Spanish Agency for Medication and Healthcare Products, the drug Sovaldi will be administered to sufferers awaiting a liver transplant or who have undergone one, those with liver cirrhosis, or who have found more traditional treatment to have been ineffective.

Those with minor fibrosis – which accounts for the majority of Hepatitis C sufferers – will not be given the new drug.

“They will not be left untreated – they will be given other types of medication – but this is just a way of establishing which patients have the most urgent needs,” explains Dr Londoño.

Sovaldi is currently being given to patients with the most advanced conditions subject to authorisation from the Agency.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

SPANISH nationality has been granted to two African missionaries and doctors who have helped the country in its attempts to save citizens from Ebola.

Sister Paciencia Melgar Ronda, 47 (pictured), originally from the former Spanish colony of Equatorial Guinea, had been working with Miguel Pajares at the Saint Joseph hospital in Monrovia, Liberia when they and two other colleagues caught the deadly virus.

Pajares was repatriated to Madrid, where he died within two days as he was in the later stages of the disease – as was Sister Paciencia, who was left lying in the Liberia hospital with nothing but prayers and paracetamol to help her.

The nun’s miraculous recovery meant she was able to donate blood to help save her colleague from Sierra Leone, Manuel García Viejo, but arrived in Spain too late.

Nurse Teresa Romero, 44, from Alcorcón (Madrid) caught Ebola whilst caring for García Viejo, and Paciencia’s blood – now immune to the virus – was vital in saving her life.

Since then, Paciencia has repeatedly offered herself for research purposes over the long term to study her evolution, and says Spain can have as much of her blood as it wants.

Teresa thanked Paciencia when she left hospital, completely cured, and said she wanted to meet her in person and give her a hug.

Paciencia’s colleague, 36-year-old Helena Wolo, from Liberia, also recovered from Ebola in her country of origin and has travelled to Spain on several occasions since to donate blood and allow herself to be used for research.

Studies on Helena were also crucial in treating and curing Teresa, who describes herself as ‘a walking miracle’.

Helena has also agreed to let Spanish health authorities study her and take blood donations whenever it needs to.

To show its gratitude for their generosity and valuable contribution to medical science, Spain has granted them citizenship.

Normally, Spanish nationality is granted to foreigners who have been resident in Spain for at least 10 years – two years for Latin Americans - after passing a language and culture test, and who can prove they have sufficient funds or work to maintain themselves, unless they are married to a Spaniard or a direct descendent of a Civil War refugee who fled abroad, normally to Cuba, Argentina or Uruguay.

But in special cases at the government’s discretion, nationality can be awarded without meeting these requisites by Royal Decree where exceptional circumstances feature.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

PRESIDENT of Catalunya Artur Mas could face charges for up to four criminal offences based upon the recommendations of the State general prosecution board.

As well as Mas, his deputy president Joana Ortega and the education minister for the region Irene Rigau could also face fines and being struck off if they are charged and found guilty of ‘continual political power-dealing’, ‘serious disobedience against public authorities’, ‘perverting the course of justice’ and ‘misuse of public funds’

The most serious offence is the ‘perverting the course of justice’, which carries a sentence of between six months and a year in jail – although in Spain, where a first offence leads to a prison term of two years or less, the guilty party does not have to serve it unless or until he or she commits another crime.

‘Political power-dealing’ and ‘serious disobedience’ do not carry prison terms, but for the first of these, would mean being struck off and banned from holding public office for between seven and 10 years, and in the second case, between six months and two years.

‘Misuse of public funds’ – an offence applied based upon the regional government’s use of taxpayers’ money to finance the independence referendum campaign – does not mean prison either, but does involve a hefty fine and a ban on holding public office.

Overall, each of them would be sentenced to around a year in prison, six years of suspension from their role and a 12-year ban on running for or holding a position in office.

‘Perverting the course of justice’ in this case means ‘preventing the effecting of a verdict passed by the relevant judicial authorities’, or going ahead with some form of referendum despite the courts having essentially banned it.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A SWISS court has refused to allow documents relating to former PP treasurer Luis Bárcenas’ bank account to be used as evidence in the case against him.

Initially, the Federal Justice Office (OFJ) allowed judge Pablo Ruz to use all the paperwork he applied for in trying Bárcenas and other parties charged in connection with the infamous Gürtel corruption racket, but the Federal Criminal Court of Switzerland has overturned this and denied Ruz permission to do so.

Bárcenas’ solicitor had appealed against the OFJ’s consent granted to judge Ruz on the grounds that, in accordance with European law, the account-holders in question were required to be given the right to a hearing and subsequent appeal before the information was used as evidence against them – something that had not taken place.

The Federal Criminal Court of Switzerland upheld this argument and blocked the National Court in Spain from using data concerning the extreasurer’s own accounts and those of his Company Tesedul at the LGT Bank in Geneva.

Its panel of judges, Stephan Blättler, Giorgio Bomio and Nathalie Zufferey Franciolli, agreed Bárcenas’ ‘right to be listened to’ and ‘right to legally defend himself’ would be ‘seriously violated’ if they allowed the OFJ verdict to stand.

This data was acquired by judge Ruz in July 2012, and he duly contacted the Swiss authorities to request permission to use it in investigations into offences related to corruption, not just of a fiscal nature – according to a bilateral agreement between Switzerland and Spain, the latter is not permitted to use account information merely to follow up financial or tax-related crimes.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

CAYETANA Fitz-James Stuart, 18^th Duchess of Alba has died in her sleep at her home, the Dueñas Palace in Sevilla.

She was admitted to hospital in the city on Sunday after suffering a stomach upset and lung infection for some time, experiencing a relapse when she appeared to have been recovering well.

On Monday, possibly suspecting she may not pull through, the Duchess, 88, asked to be taken home to the Dueñas Palace and treated there.

The same staff attended to her round the clock, and on Tuesday it was reported that she was on a life support machine and had been unconscious since the night before.

Born at Liria Palace (Madrid) on March 28, 1926, her full name is María del Rosario Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart y de Silva and she is the only child of the 17^th Duke of the House of Alba and goddaughter of Queen Consort Victoria Eugenia of Battenberg, King Alfonso XIII’s wife.

With over 40 noble titles, the Duchess holds the world record – she is the Countess-Duchess of Olivares, holds seven Duchess titles, 19 Marquise titles, is Countess 22 times, Viscountess of La Calzada, Lady of Moguer, has four The Most Excellent titles, is a Dame six times over, and has eight honorary appointments including Constable of Aragón, Honorary President of the Red Cross in Spain, Member of the Hispanic Society of America in New York, Marshal of Castilla and Honorary President of the Opera Philharmonic Orchestra.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A SPANISH aid worker suspected to be at risk of having contracted Ebola in Mali has been repatriated and is under observation at Madrid’s Carlos III hospital.

The Navarra-born woman works for the charity Doctors Without Borders and had been treating patients in Bamako, Mali, one of the focal points in the African country which has seen an outbreak of the deadly haemorrhagic virus and to which the Spanish foreign office is currently advising against all travel.

Whilst injecting a patient with Ebola at a hospital in Bamako, the doctor accidentally pricked herself with the needle.

She is not displaying any symptoms at present, which means even if she has Ebola she cannot pass it on to anyone at this stage since it only becomes infectious once signs of it begin to appear.

Medic and member of the new and dedicated Ebola committee Fernando Simón says the likelihood of the doctor being infected is ‘difficult to ascertain at the moment’ but is ‘relatively high’.

She has been brought back to Spain as a precaution only at present, the fourth person to be repatriated with confirmed or suspected Ebola.

Two missionary doctors, Miguel Pajares, 75, working in the Liberian capital of Monrovia, and Manuel García Viejo, 69, treating patients in Sierra Leone both died within days of reaching Spain.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

LEGENDARY flamenco pop singer Isabel Pantoja entered the women’s prison in Alcalá de Guadaíra (Sevilla province) this morning at 08.00hrs to serve a two-year sentence for money-laundering.

One of the most high-profile parties found to be involved in the long-running ‘Malaya Case’, a property development corruption racket involving estates in Marbella (Málaga) and Los Alcázares (Murcia) which came to light in 2007, Isabel Pantoja, known as La Tonadillera based upon her singing style within the flamenco genre, tried to get her sentence suspended recently.

She explained that she had five live concerts to perform at between now and mid-December, and that her fans had already bought their tickets.

In the end, however, she cancelled the concerts and her promoters refunded the money.

The court refused to grant her a stay of grace since, although she met all the criteria which would normally allow this, her custodial sentence was an ‘exemplary’ one – meaning to show her and society what happens when you commit multi-million money-laundering offences, and to discourage Pantoja and anyone else from doing so.

Pantoja arrived at the prison, some 20 kilometres from Sevilla city this morning in a grey Mercedes A-Class, accompanied by her chauffeur and her brother Agustín, all of whom were dressed in black.

Brother and sister were seen going into the reception area to fill in an entrance form, and minutes later, both the men left the building.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

FAMILY and friends of the Duchess of Alba are beginning to fear the worst since 88-year-old Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart has been unconscious since last night.

A breathing tube has been inserted and she has not moved or reacted in around 12 hours, according to her husband Alfonso Díez, 64, and her children.

The much-loved aristocrat, who holds the world record for the highest number of titles and owns more land in Spain than any other citizen was admitted to intensive care at Sevilla's Sagrado Corazón Quirón hospital on Sunday night with gastroenteritis, or an upset stomach, and a lung infection.

She was said last night (Tuesday) to be improving very slightly and, although she was not out of the woods, doctors remained cautiously optimistic.

But she and her family asked for her to be transferred to her home, the Dueñas Palace, to be treated there instead.

Home care will be provided by the team of professionals who looked after her in hospital.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

OIL extraction has started off the coast of the Canary Islands despite protests from the regional government and Greenpeace.

Fuel giant REPSOL perforated 90 metres down into the sea bed around 60 miles to the east of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura after a full day's work yesterday (Tuesday).

In total, they will go down some three kilometres, which will affect around 880 metres of water and 2,000 metres of sea bed, to find out if useful oil reserves can be exploited.

The whole operation, in which REPSOL has invested 200 million euros and set aside a further 100 million for a second drilling session, will be finished between the end of January and beginning of February.

Although Canary Island president Paulino Rivero is dead against the oil-drilling, believing it will cause untold environmental damage and destroy beaches the region needs for summer tourism, REPSOL spokesman Marcos Fraga stresses this will not be the case.

Drilling comes with 'full safety guarantees' and is carried out in accordance with industry standards used in Norway – the most stringent in the world.

Oil slicks are extremely unlikely since the rig workers are highly experienced, and many other countries worldwide with fuel plants offshore – including Brazil, Venezuela, Norway, the UK and New Zealand – have not suffered any ill effects to their coastlines, sea water or fishing industries.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

GRANADA'S iconic Alhambra Palace is celebrating its 30th anniversary as a UNESCO heritage site this week by opening up parts of the complex normally off limits to the public and offering guided tours.

The most-visited historic site in Spain, the Moorish palace - dating back to the Nazarí dynasty of the Middle Ages - will be flung right open to visitors.

Sites which are usually shut to tourists include the Torres de la Pólvora, or 'gunpowder towers'; Los Picos ('the peaks'); Las Infantas ('the princesses'), the Gateway of Seven Floors, the Nazarí house, the public baths in the Mosque and the viewing point from the south pavilion.

They are otherwise out of bounds for conservation reasons, to prevent their becoming damaged by literally millions of people from all over the world traipsing around them all day and every day.

By booking in advance, visitors can also enjoy guided tours of parts of the massive complex which are undergoing restoration, and the allotment plots in the Generalife gardens.

A 'golden book', or special visitors' book, allows tourists to share their experiences of the Alhambra and leave their indelible stamp on it.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A FORMER chairman of Barça FC and his son have been sent to prison to serve a two-year sentence for allegedly bribing the tax authorities to turn a blind eye to the club's accounts.

Josep Lluís Núñez, 81, a retired building contractor and property development boss, and his son Josep Lluís Núñez i Navarro have been taken to the Quatre Camins jail in La Roca del Vallès in the province of Barcelona where they will each be held for 26 months.

They were given 10 days' grace at the beginning of November after their appeal failed.

Núñez Senior (pictured) had applied for a formal pardon, or reprieve, which only the government has the jurisdiction to grant, and had called for his entering prison to be postponed until he received an answer.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

PETROL in mainland Spain is at its cheapest in the Pyrénéen province of Huesca and most expensive in Roquetas de Mar (Almería province), according to a countrywide study by a leading press agency.

The lowest prices can be found in the Balearics and the Canaries, since the islands have a different fuel tax régime from the mainland, as do the Spanish-owned city-provinces of Ceuta and Melilla on the northern Moroccan coast.

For 95 unleaded, the most commonly-used type of petrol, filling up in Santa Úrsula in Tenerife at the Shell station on the main north road at kilometre 31 costs just 92.9 cents a litre, whilst on the same road at kilometre 27 in La Victoria de Acentejo, another Shell station sells 95 unleaded for 93 cents a litre.

In the Canary Islands, the most expensive petrol is found at the Marina Rubicon-DISA petrol station on C/ El Berrugo in Yaiza, at 1.109 euros a litre.

Once on the mainland, 95 unleaded can be found at 1.184 euros a litre in Binéfar, Fraga and Monzón (Huesca province) and at 1.186 euros a litre in Bujaraloz and Graus (Zaragoza province) at the Bonárea petrol stations.

No one province is cheaper than another across the board, however, since parts of Navarra and La Rioja are cheaper than other places in Huesca, and the Santa María Águila Co-op on the Camino de Roquetas in El Ejido (Almería province) sells unleaded 95 at 1.224 euros a litre, whilst just down the road in Roquetas de Mar, the most expensive petrol in the country is found at kilometre 285 of the La Mojonera road, costing 1.535 euros a litre.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

GREENPEACE has reported that one of its activists was injured early this morning when two Armed Forces vessels collided with theirs as they protested over plans to extract oil from the sea-bed off the coast of the Canary Islands.

The 23-year-old woman from Italy is said to be 'out of danger' after falling in the sea and colliding with one of the propellers, suffering two deep cuts and an open fracture to her leg.

According to the environmental charity, their boat, the Arctic Sunrise, was rammed twice by the Army's own craft after stationing in exactly the point off the islands where petrol giant REPSOL was due to start drilling for oil today (Sunday).

The Army shielded the REPSOL craft, the Rowan Renaissance, and prevented the protesters from blocking the way.

As a result of the impact, the young Italian woman fell in the water, but was rescued by the Army and Air Force and taken to hospital in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria by helicopter.

Another activist is said to have needed medical treatment for minor wounds as a result of the collision between the crafts.

Spain's ministry of defence claims that the Greenpeace activists intended to board and 'hijack' the Rowan Renaissance just before 07.00hrs, where it was about to start work off the east coasts of Lanzarote and Fuerteventura.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

SPAIN'S foreign affairs minister may be open to recognising Palestine as a State in its own right after being petitioned by 78 senators from the opposition.

Socialists, non-affiliated MPs, and independent parties say they want Spain to consider the disputed territory as a nation in the same way as Sweden has already announced it will do so, but that the move 'is not against anyone' and 'certainly not against Israel'.

“This is merely about acting in favour of international legality, complying with the United Nations' resolutions concerning the Palestine-Israel issue...in order to help with restarting and truly taking forward negotiations between the two parties with a view to reaching long-term peace,” said the manifesto presented to minister José Manuel García-Margallo.

All attempts to date to restore peace have failed to bear fruit and the situation is at stalemate, meaning the playing field needs to be modified, the missive states, and it is 'time for politicians to employ actions rather than words'.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A FAST-FOOD delivery company operating all over Spain has designed a fridge magnet which automatically places an order when pressed.

The Click&Pizza magnet, launched by Telepizza, is pre-programmed so that the user's favourite variety is stored along with his or her address, meaning that at the touch of a button the company receives details of an order via its online system.

Using technology built into the magnet, the details of the order are communicated to the owner's nearest branch of Telepizza via SMS, or text message.

The only downside is that the system does not allow for pizzas to be varied, so is mainly for use by people who have a specific favourite they order again and again.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

BRITISH tour operators have put Spain's industry minister on the spot demanding to know what he was planning to do about unsavoury antics in Magaluf (Mallorca) which were milked by UK tabloids and reached most of Europe's press this summer.

They are very concerned, as are hoteliers, shopkeepers, bar-owners and restaurateurs in the popular coastal resort area, about losing business if holidaymakers who are not into drunken debauchery decide to boycott the area, or even the island, based upon tales of scandal going viral.

José Manuel Soria attended the World Travel Market tourism trade fair in London this week and was approached by representatives from UK-based holiday companies calling for tougher sanctions – not only for visitors themselves who cause trouble, but for excursion groups organising pub crawls where 'anything goes', and bars allowing or even arranging degrading X-rated activities.

The tour operators claim that at least two of their counterparts – in Italy and in one of the Scandinavian countries – have decided to stop offering holidays in Magaluf, and add that as many as 25,000 fewer Brits have booked to go next year.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

MOUNTAIN mist from the highest peaks in the Canary Islands is being bottled and sold as drinking water – an environmentally-friendly way of collecting this heavily-consumed commodity.

Two young adults from Gran Canaria captured fog from altitudes of 1,600 metres above sea-level using 30 prism-shaped 'traps', allowing them to siphon 20,000 litres of clean water every month from the mist gathered.

It is bottled and sold under the brand name Alisios, since this is the name given to the damp and chilly tropical winds that give the Canary Islands their typical climate at high altitudes.

This cool, steamy air has been captured and 'melted' to sell as 'Canarian mist water' without using any fuel-based energy or leaving waste or emissions behind, and does not need to be purified as it is effectively rainwater trapped at source, meaning the process is kind to the environment.

Similar techniques have been used in prehistoric times in the Canary Islands – the mythical Holy Tree on the island of El Hierro, known as the Garoé, was literally 'milked' and provided drinking water for the indigenous population in an area with no rivers.

The Garoé tree was mentioned by Pliny the Elder 2,000 years ago and, although it was blown down by a hurricane in 1610, another one has grown in its place and fills man-made ponds designed in the style of prehistoric reservoirs.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A TOTAL of 20 million people in Spain suffer chronic health conditions – nearly half the population, medics revealed at a conference in Logroño (La Rioja) this week.

The session, attended by doctors, nurses and social workers from all over the country, revealed that 70% of the over-65s have an average of four conditions running concurrently.

Partly powered by Fresenius Medical Care and international drug companies Pfizer and Novartis, the conference explained the importance of ensuring all levels of patient care were completely up to date with each person's clinical history so that those with chronic health problems could be treated effectively by their local GP surgery, any hospital department, social services, and any other organisation involved.

And the seminar leaders explained the importance of helping patients to manage their own conditions with supervision from doctors, by encouraging communication, coordination between professionals and listening to patients rather than simply giving them advice or instructions.

Chronic conditions cover a huge range of greater or lesser severity – including heart problems, brain damage following strokes or haemorrhages, kidney or liver problems, diabetes, arthritis, asthma, psoriasis, multiple sclerosis, COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, sometimes referred to in the vernacular as 'being broken-winded').

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A BRITISH councillor living in Spain has gone to the European Commission Petitions' Committee to call for all EU citizens to be able to vote in their country of residence.

Jacqui Cotterill, from Parcent (inland Alicante province) is campaigning to change voting laws on two counts.

At present, any British national who has lived outside the UK for a continuous 15 years is not entitled to vote in general elections in their native country, making Britain one of the few EU member States whose citizens do not have a universal voice wherever they are in the world.

And as nobody in the world is allowed to vote in a country they are not a citizen of, this effectively means Britons have no voice at all – a situation which is anti-democratic.

Harry Schindler, 92, who lives in Italy, has been campaigning for some time to get the UK government to lift the 15-year rule.

Indeed, should current Prime Minister David Cameron decide to call a referendum in 2017, as planned, on whether or not Britain should pull out of the European Union, anyone who has not lived in the UK since 2002 will be unable to vote – even though those Brits who emigrated to EU countries are far more likely to be affected by such a referendum than any native still living in the UK.

read more at thinkSPAIN.com

SPAIN'S Rafael Nadal is about to undergo a five-week course of treatment using stem cells in an attempt to heal his back injury which began to make itself felt during the Australian Open final in January.

The 28-year-old from Manacor, Mallorca, has just come out of the Quirón Teknon hospital in Barcelona where he was operated on for appendicitis, a condition that was not diagnosed straight away when he was examined in Shanghai.

By the time he got to hospital in Spain and tests confirmed it was indeed his appendix, Rafa had to wait another day until the large quantities of antibiotics he had taken were out of his system – but once surgeons had opened him up, they found that his condition had reached a very serious stage.

They admitted that they had literally caught it in time and, had the operation been delayed much longer, the situation would have been very touch-and-go.

This was the latest episode in a turbulent year for the former ATP number one, who has won 14 Grand Slam titles.

Rafa believed his back pain in Australia was merely a passing phenomenon, but it continued to drag him down for another six months – and just weeks later, he injured his right wrist.

He had already been told that the 'miracle' stem-cell treatment for his back would require several weeks of total rest, but did not start it in summer when he was off with his wrist injury as he had been confident of playing in the US Open and the treatment would not have been finished in time.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

OF THE 2.2 million residents in Catalunya who voted yesterday (Sunday), 80% want the region to become independent, figures released today show. 

Only 37.7% of residents of all nationalities aged 16 and over cast their ballots, compared to 47.63% in the European elections which did not include anyone under 18 or from outside the EU, and to the previous regional elections when 69.56% of Spanish citizens aged 18 and over voted.

But with the consultation being considered 'unofficial' and doubts over whether it was legal - given that there was no electoral census as the central government had blocked plans to run 'proper' polls - many decided not to bother, some on principle and some because they were afraid of disturbances and confrontations with the 450 riot police officers on duty. 

Yet with 2.2 million out of 5.4 million registered residents turning out to vote, regional president Artur Mas called the day 'a success'.

He says the fact that over 1,806,000 had voted in favour of independence was a clear sign that the central government should allow a full referendum. 

Unlike in Scotland, where a referendum did indeed go ahead amid campaigns declaring the United Kingdom was 'better together' and the majority voted to stay put, president Mariano Rajoy's refusal to even address the matter and his attempts to prevent a non-binding public opinion poll have left a sour taste in the mouths of many people in Catalunya, meaning the consultation yesterday was seen as a protest by a number of them. 

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

THE world's largest mosaic made of postage stamps may have made it to the Guinness Book of Records – but the 3,100 people in Málaga who helped to create it are now waiting with bated breath to see whether they have reached their goal.

A total of 230,000 original postage stamps were stuck down by adults and children in the Costa del Sol capital's José María Martín Carpena sports centre on Saturday on a strip of paper 220 square metres in size.

The entire process took 22 hours, spread over two days, with the average participant – two-thirds of whom were school children – laying 74.2 stamps.

Now it is completed, the mosaic depicts the letter 'Ñ', in upper case – a letter which is unique to the Spanish-language alphabet and considered to be a symbol of Spain and its former colonies.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

SPAIN'S Álex Márquez's third place in the Moto3 in Cheste (Valencia province) has made him world champion – and he and his elder brother Marc have become the first siblings to net the top title in the same season.

Whilst Marc, 21, scooped up his 13^th victory of the year in MotoGP, beating the hitherto unbroken record of 12 in one year set by Australia's Mick Doohan in 1997, his little brother Álex, 18, survived a hair-raising race yesterday (Sunday) in which he had to fight hard to finish at least third in order to guarantee his championship.

With up to nine riders at one point bunched together and vying for the lead, the race was fast-paced and hazardous with several looking as though they may bite the dust at any moment – although Álex (pictured left) kept his cool and stayed in control without compromising on speed.

The younger Márquez knew he was world champion before his elder brother set off, although Marc (pictured right) already knew last week that irrespective of his placings over the rest of the season, the title was in the bag for him.

Marc pulled himself up from fifth off the grid – a lower than usual position, because of a smash during Saturday's qualifier – zooming up behind Italy's Valentino Rossi who had achieved his first pole of the season, and Rossi's compatriot Andrea Iannone.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

AN ESTIMATED two million residents in Catalunya voted yesterday (Sunday) in an unofficial 'public consultation' on independence, according to regional president Artur Mas.

It is not yet known whether the majority voted 'yes' or 'no', but the central government of Spain has already said it will not pay any attention to the results as the polling is 'not official' and is 'a farce' with 'no electoral census' and 'no proper State control'.

Despite considering the consultation 'invalid' and 'pointless', the central government has still been trying to stop it going ahead right up until the last minute.

Police were ordered to identify the volunteers manning the polling stations and 'who was responsible' for the election taking place, although Artur Mas, who cast his 'yes' vote, held up his hand and said he was the only person who could be held accountable for the consultation being held.

Judges refused to issue a court order forcing the polling stations to shut, as they were asked to do by centre-right party Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD).

Mas says attempts to stop what is little more than a non-binding public opinion poll are 'anti-democratic', but that he will continue to push for a full referendum.

As many as two-thirds of Catalunya's residents failed to vote, but yesterday was not the end of the story since, from today (Monday) for 15 days, postal votes will be accepted.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

THE controversial 'blue double tick' on WhatsApp messages which has appeared since the network was bought out by Facebook is causing problems in more ways than one - 'breaking up relationships and friendships', as some users claim, and opening the floodgates to phishing attempts.

A group of Valencians, male and female in their 20s and 30s were interviewed and said they felt it was 'an attack on privacy' and could 'lead to misunderstandings'.

"If I get a message and I'm watching the football, I might just read it and decide to reply later, but then the sender has seen I've read it and thinks I'm being 'off'," one young man said.

"It's more likely to cause problems between couples than friends, if you're in the middle of something and your partner gets jealous thinking you're with someone else because you haven't answered their message even though you've read it, but then, that depends upon the type of partner you have and whether they're the jealous sort," said a young woman.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

KING Felipe VI's younger sister, the Infanta Cristina has been absolved of charges of money-laundering but those of tax evasion against her have been upheld.

They carry a prison sentence of up to five years, whilst the charges against her dropped would have meant a maximum of six.

Whilst not out of the woods yet, the Infanta – also known as the Duchess of Palma – is said to be relieved that the 'more serious' of the two has not been applied.

This said, the fines applicable for tax evasion, at up to six times the amount defrauded, are higher than for money-laundering where sanctions are capped at three times the sum swindled.

Ever since the notorious 'Nóos case' came to light nearly three years ago, charges against the Infanta Cristina have been applied and then dropped several times, but yesterday (Friday) would see judge José Castro make a final and binding decision ahead of the ultimate trial.

The Duke of Palma, Iñaki Urdangarín – the Infanta's husband – could still face up to 20 years behind bars for his part in a complex system of public fund embezzlement along with his business partner, Diego Torres.

They had set up what they claimed to be a charitable organisation to promote culture and sports, known as the Nóos Institute, and its non-profit status meant it was able to receive cash from regional and central governments to finance its events.

But the Institute was in fact very much a business, and by inflating costs, Torres and Urdangarín were able to make a very healthy profit which they pocketed for themselves.

Urdangarín laundered these funds through the 'front' company Aizoon, S.L., a firm set up in 2003 owned 50-50 by the Duke and his wife, which never paid dividends and apparently had no commercial activity.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A NON-BINDING referendum on Catalunya's independence is under way today (Sunday) as planned, even though nobody knew almost until the last minute whether the region would be going to the polls or not and under what guise.

With a full referendum having been banned by the central government via the Constitutional Court, and even a public consultation blocked, the voting today is little more than a public opinion poll with official electoral census and nobody obliged to man the booths.

Even then, Spain's president Mariano Rajoy and the rest of his PP cabinet has appealed against it and the court has refused to throw this appeal out.

Regional president of Catalunya, Artur Mas (pictured below right), says not even letting residents take part in an opinion-gathering exercise is 'anti-democratic'.

He says he is not pushing for independence in the same way as Scottish prime minister Alex Salmond did earlier this year, but at this stage only wants to know what the people of Catalunya think and what proportion of them would be in favour of, or against a secession.

Rajoy has taken steps to stop this happening, even on these non-onerous grounds, but Mas has defied him and gone ahead.

It is not clear whether he could face political or civil consequences as a result.

A total of 40,000 volunteers and members of regional political parties in favour of the public consultation will be on duty at the polling stations.

The ballots will ask the question, “do you want Catalunya to become a State?” with the option of 'yes' or 'no', and in the event of a 'yes' answer, asks, “do you want this State to be independent?” Again, with a 'yes' or 'no' option.

The 'election' is an 'open process' for 'everyone', Mas stresses, and suggestions that differ from the 'yes/no' questions on the ballot will be accepted and and read – in fact, the voting slip contains a box for these.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

CRIMINAL offences in Spain have fallen this year across the board – particularly violent or aggravated robberies, which have gone down by nearly a fifth.

According to figures released this week by the country's police forces, crime as a whole in the first nine months of 2014 decreased by 4.3%, and theft involving physical assaults by 18.4%.

Statistically, violent crime has historically been very low in Spain, with most murders and cases of attacks causing serious injury being of a domestic nature – perpetrated by partners and ex-partners, and more recently, by children against their parents, including minors has been seen far more often.

But random rape, murder and assaults, even on the street at the dead of night, is rare in most parts of the country and expatriates from elsewhere in Europe often comment on how much safer they feel in Spain walking around in the dark than they did even in daylight in their countries of origin.

Although much less common than in other countries in the EU, crime – even violent – still exists, as it does everywhere in the world, although in Spain it is more likely to involve bag-snatching than knife attacks.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

SPANISH scientists have embarked on pioneering clinical trials to find out whether HIV can be cured with stem cells from umbilical cords.

Only 1% of umbilical cords have the right genetic mutation to enable blood extracted from them to wipe out HIV – a mutation known as the CCR5 Delta 32, according to the National Transplant Organisation (ONT) and the Spanish Haematology and Haemotherapy Society.

Blood transfusions will be given to patients with leukaemia and HIV at the same time at first to see whether the treatment works.

An HIV-positive patient who had developed lymphoma was successfully treated last year at the Oncology Institute of Catalunya, and the immune deficiency virus wiped out, which spurred scientists on to investigate further.

Until then, the only trial with conclusive evidence was in Berlin in 2008, when an HIV-positive patient also suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) was given a bone-marrow transplant from a donor who was not a relative but whose stem cells turned out to contain the CCR5 Delta 32 gene.

This genetic variation appears to be resistant to the HIV virus and blocks its spread, say researchers.

Six years on from the Berlin patient's transplant, during which time he had not taken any antirretroviral drugs – given to positive patients to keep HIV in check – he continues to be virus-free.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

FORMER deputy president of Madrid Francisco Granados and his close business associate David Marjaliza are living on 80 euros a week in jail, can only make 10 phone calls a week, and have to ask permission to take a shower, reports claim.

And to add insult to injury, Granados (pictured) has been sent to the prison in Estremera in the outskirts of the capital – the very centre he cut the red tape on during the official opening ceremony in July 2008.

Marjaliza, said to have 'adapted better' to being behind bars than his political sidekick, is in the prison in Aranjuez just to the south of the city, whilst the leader of the provincial council, or Diputación of León, Marcos Martínez, is in the one in Navalcarnero, also in the Greater Madrid region.

They are among a total of 53 people arrested in a massive nationwide corruption swoop, who include business owners and politicians – mainly on the right-wing PP, but with members of all parties involved – accused of giving or taking back-handers in undeclared cash in exchange for lucrative public works contracts.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

NURSE Teresa Romero has been sent home after a month in the Carlos III hospital in Madrid, of which 25 days were spent in isolation, and says Spain has 'the best healthcare system in the world'.

During a brief press conference upon being discharged, the 44-year-old from Alcorcón (Madrid), who caught the deadly Ebola virus whilst treating missionary doctor Manuel García Viejo, 69, after his repatriation from Sierra Leone, said: “Despite the nefarious political management, here in Spain we have the best healthcare in the world, capable of working miracles. And I'm one of those.”

Teresa survived against the odds after a touch-and-go 48 hours when her work colleagues at the Carlos III, who were treating her, thought they were going to lose her.

Sitting in a wheelchair and still very weak, but completely free from Ebola and with her organs working properly now, Teresa profusely thanked each and every staff member by name, from cleaners and porters through to nurses and doctors.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

MORE and more women in Spain are choosing to freeze their eggs to put off having children - but numbers are still low because few are aware the procedure exists, and the cost can be prohibitive, says an IVF specialist at a Spanish hospital.

Dr Carlos Simón from Madrid's Quirón hospital says he sees between two and three women a day in his surgery who are considering egg-freezing, and stresses that it is an option women 'really should think about' if they have not had children by the age of 30.

"It's a way of disassociating biological age and reproductive age," he explains.

A very 'easy and simple' procedure with few risks which lasts around two weeks, the only 'invasive' part is the operation to extract the eggs - carried out under sedation, rather than anaesthetic, and requiring just a one-night stay in hospital for observation purposes, Dr Simón says.

Firstly, women undergo an ultrasound and a gynaecological examination before being given a tailored hormone treatment to stimulate egg production.

This involves daily injections for between seven and nine days, which are given under the skin rather than intravenously or into the muscle, meaning the woman can do these herself easily at home.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A RAGING inferno at the Bank of Spain in Madrid has left three people injured, two of whom are fighting for their lives in hospital.

A 35-year-old man suffered minor bruising and smoke inhalation, whilst two others, aged 46 and 51, suffered second- and third-degree burns in both cases, affecting 30% and 40% of their bodies respectively.

They were all carrying out repairs and renovations inside the building, which is in the central square surrounding the roundabout with the statue of the Roman goddess Cibeles.

According to witnesses, the injured men were working on the electricity junction boxes and soldering wiring, which may have led to the blaze breaking out at around 12.30hrs.

Medics say the eldest of the three workmen is on a life support machine with a ventilation tube in the burns unit at Getafe hospital out of town, whilst the other two have been admitted to the La Paz hospital in Madrid itself.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A COMMEMORATIVE coin marking the coronation of King Felipe VI on June 19 this year is set to be launched over the next few weeks.

The National Mint has produced a two-euro piece with a crown on the front showing the portraits of both King Felipe VI and his abdicated father, King Juan Carlos I, and the date when the former was crowned.

A maximum of 12 million of these coins will be minted by the State, after which they will be produced by the Bank of Spain.

AN EARTHQUAKE measuring 4.7 on the Richter scale has struck in Andalucía and was felt in the provinces of Málaga, Sevilla and Córdoba, according to the National Geographical Institute.

At present, the extent of the damage - if any - is not known, but the epicentre is said to be at least 64 kilometres below the surface to the west of the island of Alborán, just off the coast of the Spanish-owned city-province of Ceuta on the northern shores of Morocco.

Although the intensity was reasonably high, the fact it was so far below ground means it is likely to have caused limited destruction.

Earthquakes are common in the south and south-east of Spain, but usually so mild that little more than a temporary 'push' from ground level is felt and damage, if any, is limited to the occasional ornament falling off a shelf or a small crack in a window - much the same as would happen if a heavy lorry was driven past at speed.

A massive quake in Lorca, Murcia on May 11, 2011 caused buildings to crumble and claimed several lives, and many of the hundreds of homeowners affected are still waiting for the government to carry out the repairs.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

A RECENT poll in the Spanish media shows newly-formed independent party Podemos comes out top and would win if general elections were carried out right now.

Started by Madrid Complutense University politics professor Pablo Iglesias, 35, who lives in a rented flat with his dog on a salary of 900 euros a month, Podemos went from a group of like-minded activists meeting in a garage to earning three seats in the European Parliament in May this year.

They are unlikely to run for the local elections in May 2015, as they plan to save themselves for the general elections in November next year.

The public opinion poll showed Podemos would net 27% of the votes, whilst 26.2% would go to the socialists (PSOE) and 20.7% to the right-wing PP, which is currently in power.

According to the survey carried out by Metroscopia for daily broadsheet El País, the PP still came out on top a week ago with 30.2% saying they would vote them back in at the next elections, but with the massive corruption scandal that has led to the arrest of at least 51 people - including politicians, most of whom are on the PP - their popularity has plummeted.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

REPRESENTATIVES from Andalucía regional tourism board will be at the World Travel Market in London next week – one of the largest holiday industry trade fairs in Europe.

British tourists in southern Spain increased this year by 1.5%, and the region is keen to cash in on this and keep them coming.

Holidaymakers from the UK travelled to Andalucía in record numbers in 2013, and an even greater influx was seen this year between January and September.

This is even more positive when considering that since 2009, far fewer Britons have been going abroad on holiday – five years ago, 69 million foreign holidays were taken in 12 monts, compared to 56 million in 2013.

Andalucía wants to keep forging ahead with the northern European market, given that the number of visitors from other parts of Spain have begun to peter out due to the financial crisis, or at best, remain stagnant.

Every year, the World Travel Market (WTM) fair brings in 45,000 tourism representatives from 190 countries, and this will be an ideal opportunity for Andalucía to set up meetings with tour operators and travel agencies.

The region will attempt to sell itself based upon its sports activities – for spectators or participants – and cuisine.

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

VALENCIA cemetery has set up a live streaming system so that those who cannot attend their loved ones' funerals can watch them online.

Given that funerals in Spain tend to take place between 24 and 48 hours after death, relatives who are further afield may not be able to make it in time – but with the new Despedida OnLine service, the family is given a URL free of charge so they can forward it on to anyone who cannot be there.

The system will be up and running from November 17 and will enable relatives to follow the service in the crematorium or funeral parlour chapel at a distance.

Two fixed cameras in the city crematorium and the city funeral parlour will be set up to record the services, whether they are religious – including faiths other than Catholicism – or secular.

The city cemetery will soon also cater for Jewish and Muslim funerals and burials.

Confidentiality and data protection is guaranteed to ensure the live film of the funeral does not go viral.

The cemetery website will also include a virtual 'visitors' book' where people who cannot go to the funeral can leave messages of condolences. 

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com

CATALUNYA'S residents are being urged to go to the polls as planned on November 9 – whether the central government blocks a public consultation or not.

Carme Forcadell, head of the National Catalunya Assembly, has threatened to take legal action against the Spanish State for curtailing the region's right to freedom of speech.

Given that a referendum would be illegal without the backing of the central government, Catalunya wants to hold a 'common vote' – effectively, a public opinion poll – to find out what residents there and natives living elsewhere want in terms of independence.

But various central government bodies have blocked even this, saying it is illegal.

It is still not known officially what will happen, if anything, on November 9.

Sra Forcadell is confident, however, that she does know what will happen.

“Whatever happens, we're all going to vote,” the ANC leader stated.

“They appeal against it? Everyone, go and vote. They don't appeal? Everyone, go and vote, ballot in hand. We're going to take legal action against the State, because they're curtailing our freedom of expression.”

The aim, says Sra Forcadell, is for long queues to form at the polling stations to show the central government that 'in the face of their attacks on democracy', the people will respond with 'even more democracy' by casting their ballots.

“We're holding a public consultation against the wishes of the State, but that's because what they want is for the people of Catalunya not to be allowed to have an opinion – going out to vote is a public protest against an oppressive, dictatorial régime where speaking out is limited or even forbidden,” Sra Forcadell continues. 

Read more at thinkSPAIN.com