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Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin Apr 30
CLICK HERE FOR THE FEATURE ARTICLES "Europe wants Spain to change 10-year passport expiry rule for UK travellers" and "Brits scammed in Spanish property fraud to get justice 17 years later"
Sunday May 1, 2022 is a national holiday in Spain, as it is in many other parts of the world, because it is Mayday, also known as Labour Day or International Workers’ Day. In some regions of Spain, including Murcia, Madrid and Andalucía, the bank holiday is being transferred to Monday May 2, so it will be a day off work and school for many people.
While this bank holiday weekend will be grey and cloudy in the UK and much of northern Europe, the weather in Spain will be sunny and clear, leading many who don’t live in these sunny Mediterranean climes to dream of buying a place in the sun. But that dream has turned into a nightmare for more than one intrepid buyer, with testimonies of property scams, financing troubles and legal loopholes putting some people off the idea.
Good news this week then, as the first shall be last and the last shall be first when those who were scammed in Spanish property schemes get their money back and the rascals responsible face jail time.
And even if you’re not keen on buying, it’s still looking up for those travelling to Spain on holiday thanks to revised passport control recommendations and summer flights to Spain being snapped up fast. ¡Olé!
A Place in the Scam
Living and buying a home in Spain is a top life goal for many people from Britain and other countries, but the experience isn’t always straightforward for everyone. Some builders and property developers have been known to take advantage of foreigners who don’t know the language and the Spanish legal system by trying to pull the wool over their eyes and sell them homes that aren’t 100% kosher.
This happened 17 years ago with the promising new Murcia urbanisation El Valle del Sol. What happened was that three men began building the residential development on some rural land in 2005 and 2006 not far from El Valle Golf Resort, but the land actually belonged to someone else. This didn’t stop the brigands from selling the properties as holiday homes and permanent residences to British buyers, but of course these poor, unsuspecting victims of fraud weren’t able to move into their dream homes and most of the homes were torn down.
Now, the three men are in court and face six years in prison apiece for their role in the dastardly scam.
It was a similar story in Moratalla in 2007, when homes were sold to buyers on the planned El Balcón de Moratalla urbanisation which were then never built because the developer went bankrupt, though authorities are currently investigating whether there was a scam of some sort behind the failed project.
The would-be home owners borrowed sums of money between November 2007 and May 2008 to pay the deposits on the houses but, since no first occupation licence had been granted, the sums of money paid by the customers were not advances of the purchase price, but rather penitential deposits. As such, the Spanish bank who provided many of the loans, CaixaBank, has been ordered to refund more than 38,500 euros to several of the frustrated buyers, a full 15 years after the dispute originated.
Now, a new 15,652m2 plot of land has come up for grabs in the Camposol urbanisation, and is being sold of by the state in a “secret auction”, where bidders can place their bids anonymously. This ground, which is located on Camposol Sector B between Calle Tamariz and the Social Centre roundabout, has previously been approved for use as a car park, sports facilities, a school and housing. It remains to be seen who will buy up the land and what they will use it for, but if it is going to be for more urbanisation houses, the local authorities would do well to double and triple check their backgrounds to make sure they do not have nefarious deeds in mind.
Spain travel news
As Spain races towards summer there’s good news for British travellers after the European Commission has made yet another dramatic U-turn and announced that UK holidaymakers shouldn’t be prevented from boarding flights to EU countries if their passport was issued within the previous 10 years at the time of entry.
Up until now, since British passport holders are considered non-EU nationals, some countries are insisting that passports be no more than 10 years old from the date of issue. In addition, they must be valid for at least three months after the intended departure date. Now however, the EC has seen the chaos and confusion caused, with many tourists being turned away from flights, and they have opted for “a more generous interpretation of the rules.”
And that’s not all: Spanish tourism leaders are coming under pressure to follow the lead of Portugal by allowing British tourists to pass through passport control as though they were still part of the EU, in an attempt to ease the queues and delays experienced at airports. Portugal has become the first EU country to give fast access to arriving Brits, and allowing them to avoid lengthy physical controls by using the automatic eGates on arrival, which greatly speeds up the passport control process.
It’s worth being aware, though (and many people aren’t), that travellers arriving in Spain from third countries – those outside the EU – must have funds to cover 100 euros per day for the duration of their trip, which is equivalent to 10% of the Spanish national minimum wage. Of course, Spanish border guards can’t possibly check every traveller passing into the country and many UK citizens may never have been checked, but British travellers should be aware that they do in fact have the right to select random passengers and check their documentation.It is for this very reason that British Airways has opened a new cabin crew base in Madrid, from which it aims to hire local staff in a bid to fight the personnel shortages due to Covid and a painfully long recruitment process, which have led to the cancellation of more than 1,400 flights since the beginning of April.
Where BA and other airlines are cancelling left, right and centre, Irish budget carrier Ryanair is planning to up its presence in Spain, vowing to be the leading airline in Spanish recovery by ferrying 50 million passengers this fiscal year. This would be a big increase on pre-pandemic 2019 figures and what’s more, the company has already purchased 80% of its fuel at cut-prices rates, something Michael O’Leary promises will keep ticket prices low.
Even with all the Brexit confusion, Brits are certainly back on top and airlines have scheduled three times as many seats from the UK to Spain than for its nearest competitor, Italy. While Google data shows that Spain accounts for 25% of all searches by British travellers, it appears that this tourist group may not be as lucrative as before, since spending by UK visitors last year fell by a considerable 73.2% compared to pre-pandemic levels, when it exceeded 16,000 million euros.
Cost of living
It’s a fairly mixed bag this week when it comes to our wallets, as there’s good news and bad news. On the plus side, Spain and Portugal have finally signed an agreement with Brussels to cap the price of gas at 50 euros/MWh for a year, which will take us over the winter hump and have a knock-on effect of reducing electricity bills by quite a bit.
However, the savings are a far cry from the 30 euros limit the Spanish government originally wanted to set and the Organisation of Consumers and Users (OCU) thinks the measures are insufficient since many customers will still be paying 15 euros more each month than they were last year.
These factors, along with the government’s 20 cent per litre discount on fuel implemented earlier this month, have reduced inflation slightly, but costs are still scarily high compared to last year, especially when it comes to groceries. Food costs have risen far higher than in April last year and well above core inflation, which itself has reached the highest level since 1995, and consumer experts believe shoppers in Spain will now be spending around 500 euros more on their groceries over the course of the year.
With all these changes, it’s easy to be caught out, and the vigilant folk of the OCU have warned shoppers this week against the phenomenon of ‘shrinkflation’, whereby supermarkets downsize their packaging, shrink the size of the product or reduce its quality, resulting in “products that apparently have not increased in price, when in fact they have”.
The organisation recently carried out a study of some of the major supermarkets in Spain and found shrinkflation in evidence across brands such a Cola-Cao and Activia, who are selling products that weigh less for the same price. Another sneaky trick of the trade is splashing packaging with enticing slogans like ‘offer’, ‘discount’ and ‘promotion’, which the OCU has warned is usually nothing more than a ruse.
While we’re on the topic, you may want to check out our quick guide to which supermarkets in Spain are open this May Bank Holiday weekend 2022.
Coronavirus
Since the Ministry of Health decided to stop counting Covid cases among the general population, the evolution of the pandemic has been focused on two vital factors: the incidence in the over 60s age group and hospital occupation. Both indicators have been rising steadily since Easter and the percentage of coronavirus patients admitted to hospital has gone from ‘low’ to ‘medium’ risk this week.
This upward trend is not unexpected: since quarantine for mild cases was scrapped at the end of last month and masks are no longer mandatory indoors, it was almost inevitable that infections would increase, but the experts are nevertheless keeping an eagle eye on the Covid data, particularly hospital numbers, to gauge whether or not Spain is headed for a seventh wave.
For all the latest coronavirus news and updates in Spain, use the link above
Murcia
The earthquakes that frequently take place in and around the Murcia Region gave no respite this week, with the strongest measuring 3.5 on the Richter scale. It took place in Águilas on Friday morning, April 29, and could be felt in Lorca, Cartagena and even places over the Andalusian border in Almeria. It was almost twice as strong as the earthquake that originated in the Mediterranean Sea last Sunday, which was also strong enough to be felt by people living in Cabo de Palos. These earthquakes are rarely serious enough to cause any damage, though, and they are accepted as part and parcel of living on this stretch of sunny Spanish coastline.Also out on the ocean, it has been announced that the law in Spain has changed to allow the ashes of cremated people to be scattered at sea and, as of this summer, this option will be available off the Murcia coastline. While the practice will be strictly regulated to protect the delicate ecosystem of the Murcia Region’s waters, it is expected to be a popular new initiative as requests to ‘bury’ family members at sea along the peaceful and idyllic Murcia coast have been increasing in recent years.
The company Cenizas en el Mar (‘Ashes in the Sea’) hopes to begin small, offering funeral services off the coast of Águilas and Mazarrón, before branching out into the Valencian Community, Andalucía and the Balearic Islands. From this summer, people can choose a sailboat or a yacht to take their remains out to sea, with prices for this maritime funeral service starting at 340 euros. Anyone interested in having their ashes buried at sea in Spain should talk to a solicitor specialising in local law and drawing up wills.
In Cartagena, the popular open-air street markets will remain open this Bank Holiday Monday, as well as on the next three public holidays, which will be on August 15 and September 23. In San Javier, meanwhile, it has been decided that the Ribera de San Javier market (Cenit) will be held on Saturdays in December, and a new street market is being proposed to open in the El Albujón area of Cartagena, which should be ready to open in a couple of months. All these changes and developments to the markets in towns around the Mar Menor are being welcomed as a positive step for local tourism and commerce.
Also new is the signage on the path up to Peñas Blancas, which has been made easier to follow by the Town Hall in Cartagena so that it is more accessible and easier to enjoy one of the lesser-known but most spectacular country walks the Murcia Region has to offer, up to the top of Peñas Blancas, which is the highest point in the municipality.
Wooden posts have been installed along with information boards on the mountain which stands behind Isla Plana and La Azohía, alongside the E-22 road between Isla Plana and Mazarrón. Unfortunately the road is closed at present following a landslide during the heavy rain in March, but when it reopens (the latest official estimate is that this will happen in June) the new markings will make it easier for visitors to climb to the peak and admire the staggering views over the Bay of Mazarrón.For news on all the events coming up soon in the Murcia and Alicante area, be sure to CHECK OUT OUR EVENTS DIARY!
Spain
Spain is famed for its delicious cuisine and tapas culture that makes it the perfect place to go out for a meal or some relaxing drinks. One popular past time is that of the lunchtime ‘Menú de Día’, or three-course set menu including drink, often for between 10 and 15 euros.
However, diners may be in for a shock as the Cardiovascular Health Strategy published this week has suggested that restaurants should remove the alcohol option from their Menús del Día, and instead push the consumption of water. The document also proposed limiting alcoholic beverages in cafeterias, vending machines and snack dispensers in public administration buildings and educational facilities in a bid to improve heart health throughout Spain.After uproarious protest from bar and restaurant owners the country over, the Spanish government pedalled back on their plans, claiming they had never tried to limit alcohol being served on Spain’s set menus. But they promised to change the wording of the Strategy document anyway.
One person who doesn’t have to worry about price increases, or having a tipple whenever he fancies it, I shouldn’t wonder, is the King of Spain, Felipe VI, who this week revealed his personal wealth for the first time ever. However, the relatively paltry amount has left many surprised and it turns out King Felipe is one of the poorest monarchs in Europe, with a supposed wealth of just 2,573,392 euros.
Of course, this is by no means a small sum of money, but it pales in comparison with the estimated £500-600 million owned by Queen Elizabeth II, the 1 billion euros possessed by the Prince of Monaco and the 40 billion that belong to the world’s richest monarch, the King of Thailand.The unprecedented move to publish the Head of State’s personal wealth is part of His Majesty’s personal push to bring more transparency to the royal institution, mainly in response to the fiscal corruption of his father, the former King, and the rest of the royal family. However, the revelation of this wealth does not extend to the King’s wife or other family members, and some observers have noted that in reality the King is untouchable by law and it is impossible to know by any legal means whether the amount he has declared is real.
Alicante
As the war rages on in Ukraine, the media is awash with heartbreaking images of devastation and horror, and satellite pictures showing ever more mass graves in Mariupol. That’s why the latest batch of awesome spectacles and landscapes from space shared by NASA has been hugely welcomed by the agency’s 75.6 million followers on social media desperate for some good news.
Included in the incredible collection of stunning shots is Alicante’s very own unique panorama, the Torrevieja salt and pink lakes. The coastal town, hugely popular with tourists, is renowned for its magical pink lakes at the Natural Park Lagoons of La Mata, and now spectacular images of the remarkable environment taken from the International Space Station have been shared with millions of social network users around the world to download as wallpaper images.
The photographs share the limelight on NASA's Instagram account with the Malaspina glacier in Alaska, Jau National Park in Brazil and the Anti-Atlas Mountains in Morocco, amongst others.
Torrevieja’s lagoons are also proving a huge crowd-puller with mating flamingos, and hundreds of amorous pairs have flocked to the Natural Park over the last few weeks. At the beginning of April, the Friends of the Wetlands society recorded around 2,000 flamingos, and this figure has more than doubled following heavy rains with as many as 5,000 of the unique birds currently at Torrevieja’s pink lagoon alone – the highest figure ever recorded at the Natural Park.
Whilst the heavy downpours that have lashed Alicante over the last few weeks have wreaked havoc with the coastline, caused chaos on the roads and dumped mud across the province, they have created a much more attractive environment for flamingos in Torrevieja. The spring rain has diluted salt levels at the lagoon leading to an explosion of the population of artemia salina, a staple diet for the birds. This is the third consecutive year that the lagoon has become a breeding area for flamingos and there are high hopes it could be one of the most successful with three breeding nuclei capable of housing more than 2,000 nests.
Staying in Torrevieja, a court has ruled that the devastated family of a two-and-a-half-year-old boy who died following “repeated medical errors” at Torrevieja Hospital be awarded 250,000 euros.
A judge in Madrid found that “the medical care given to the child at Torrevieja Hospital was not in accordance with good practice” and that “the delay in assessing the symptoms... and in treating [his condition] were the cause of the child’s death [on November 27 2018, from encephalitis, inflammation of the active tissues of the brain] which could have been avoided with good medical action”. The judge listed a catalogue of doctor’s appointments and different diagnoses and found in favour of a previous ruling ordering the hospital’s insurer MAPFRE to compensate the family.
Tragedy struck for another family this week following the drowning of two cousins in Calpe, deaths which have shocked the town where the local authority decreed three days of official mourning. The young men, aged 18 and 24, disappeared and perished after jumping off Peñón de Ifach into the sea in Calpe on Sunday April 24, sparking a 24-hour search for their bodies.
The younger of the two, whose body was recovered a few hours later, reportedly jumped in first and was quickly engulfed in high waves and caught up in strong currents, so his cousin dived in to help him. Sadly, he too was pulled under and dragged out to sea. Rescuers found his lifeless body on Monday morning, April 25. Calpe Town Hall decreed three days of official mourning with flags flown at half-mast and all public events suspended.
On a jollier note, it’s certainly not everyone’s cup of tea, but the Eurovision Song Contest continues to draw TV crowds in the millions, and this year, Benidorm will host a Eurovision party for 4,000 people with live acts and giant screens that will stream the final in Turin, Italy on May 14, in what the mayor has hailed “an important moment for the promotion of Benidorm” globally. Indeed, the Spanish jury’s decision will be broadcast from Benidorm, so in some ways, all eyes will be on the town.
Andalucía
In Andalucía this week, the details were revealed of a crime that was committed on March 12 when a 40-year-old homeless Irishman was kicked to death on the Playa La Malagueta beach in Malaga. The man was sleeping on the beach, which during the day is a busy tourist area and at night is a gathering point for the city’s homeless, when another man tried to steal his belongings. The two got into a scuffle when the Irishman, who hasn’t been named, tried to protect his stuff and stop it from being stolen, and the thief had punched and kicked him until he died.
The suspect was arrested that same evening, while Malaga police are now attempting to contact relatives of the deceased in Cork to be able to repatriate his remains.
US citizens are having trouble of their own on the other side of the Andalusian community, specifically naval cadets and staff from the US Naval Station in Rota, Cádiz who are having difficulty crossing the Gibraltar-Spain border. There have been unpredictable delays when these Americans have tried to enter Gibraltar or vice versa, and some people have even been turned away or made to wait several days before they can make the simple crossing.
The Commanding Officer of the Naval Station has advised anyone who absolutely has to travel to Gibraltar to take their TIE Spanish Foreigner identity card and a passport with a valid entry stamp for Spain, along with enough money to sustain them for several nights in a hotel just in case there is a delay.
The Brits in Andalucía, meanwhile, are having more success, especially expat Mark Vernon, who runs the Elements bar in Fuengirola with Chilean woman Carolina Perry. A sign in the cocktail bar’s ladies’ bathroom has gone viral for its novel approach to tackling the problem of sexual assault. Women in dire straits are prompted to go to the bar and ask for a ‘Double Diana’ drink if they are in trouble, which will the trained staff will take as a cue to know they have to intervene in some way, doing anything necessary from ordering a taxi to calling the police.“Uncomfortable? Do you feel harassed or in danger? Is your date not going as you thought?” the sign asks. “Our staff is trained to help you and will do everything possible to get you home safely. Remember that you are not alone and there is someone who will help you.”
Thankfully, no customers have yet had to resort to ordering the secret drink to ask for help, but the owners of Elements believe that it is a “very necessary” measure which other establishments should imitate.
It is also a British initiative behind the six-monthly granting of ‘MOTs’ to the tourist donkeys in Mijas to ensure the animals’ wellbeing. Mijas donkey taxi service has been a tourist attraction in the Andalusian town for decades, but in recent years animal rights groups have put the spotlight on the plight of many of these animals who they argue are forced to work for hours without rest, sufficient shelter or water.
That’s why the British foundation Mijas Donkey Movement, an independent non-profit organisation, carries out health checks twice a year to check that the donkeys are of the correct weight, have no wounds and that their hooves are in good condition. They also visit the stables to give recommendations on what should be changed to improve animal welfare.
Despite these efforts and new regulations to limiting the weight of people allowed to ride the donkey and providing a minimum standard of rest periods, Animal rights party PACMA has once again condemned the “exploitation and mistreatment suffered by these donkeys used to transport tourists”.
Similarly, Seville’s horses which pull the popular carriages that lead tours around the Andalusian capital have made headlines this week. One of the horse’s drivers was thrown to the ground when he lost control of his horse earlier this week and badly injured his leg, requiring hospitalisation. But once again, many will have more sympathy for the poor horses, who are forced to pull heavy loads all day long on the city’s paved streets, in all sorts of weather and dodging around traffic. Another example of Spain’s grisly fascination with taking advantage of animals for the purposes of entertainment.
You may have missed…
- Murcia tax advisor fakes own death on Costa Blanca.
The search has been called off for missing a Murcian tax advisor whose car was found driven off the rocks in the Punta Prima area of the Costa Blanca on February 17 as it was concluded he had faked his own death and stolen €600,000 after falling heavily into debt. - 6 free walking tours to get to know Benidorm better.
Benidorm has put together six free walking tours to allow locals and visitors to get to know what is widely regarded as the tourist capital of the Costa Blanca, with an innovative technological system of informative signs and augmented reality. - High-speed AVE train from Murcia to Orihuela could be up and running by the end of the year.
Spanish railway construction administrator Adif is to begin testing its new high-speed AVE train between Murcia and Orihuela this spring, ahead of schedule and hopefully ready for the service to begin transporting passengers before the end of this year. - Shipwreck discovered in Levante Bay, Águilas.
The prolonged storms of March have uncovered an exciting find in Levante Bay in Águilas: the skeletal remains of a 10-metre-long ship on the sand bed, buried around three metres deep. - Loverboy scam swindles lonely singles out of thousands in Spain.
The Guardia Civil in Spain is investigating 13 Nigerian men who posed as “virtual boyfriends” to swindle more than 250,000 euros from their unsuspecting victims. Officials confirm that the majority of the fraudsters reside in Spain and have connections to countries such as the United Kingdom, Italy and Nigeria.
And that’s it for another week. If you’ve enjoyed reading this weekly bulletin and think one of your mates might like getting this in their inbox every wee too, go ahead and send them this link to sign up: https://murciatoday.com/weekly_bulletin.html
See you next week!
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