ARCHIVED - Murcia and Spanish news round-up week ending 26th October 2018
The Costa Cálida weather is in the spotlight again as uncertainty over flight schedules at Corvera airport continues
Once again much of the talk in Murcia this week has revolved around the weather, first when the Region was bypassed by the torrential rain which threatened the Mediterranean coastline last weekend and then by a dramatic drop in temperatures which is forecast all over Spain over the coming Saturday and Sunday.
Last weekend’s storm saw the setting of new Spanish rainfall records in the province of Málaga, where an on-duty fireman died when he was carried away by floodwater and widespread damage and travel disruption were caused by the flooding. An astonishing 399 millimetres of rain accumulated on Sunday in the mountain village of Alpandeire, including 289 millimetres in only 6 hours and 118.6 millimetres in the hour between 8.30 and 9.30 in the morning.
During Thursday the temperature in the city of Murcia reached 29.8 degrees, but after a month which has been full of meteorological surprises the meteorologists are warning that a twist in the tail is on the way over the weekend. As a mass of cold air drifts south from the Arctic circle, there will be a sharp drop in temperatures, described by Aemet as “generalized, notable or even extraordinary”.
The Costa Cálida, as is so often the case, will escape the worst of the conditions as a band of rain extends on Friday afternoon from the south-west to the north-east of the country, even so some light rain is likely during the weekend, perhaps even falling as snow on higher ground inland, and a yellow alert warning for the possibility of Force 7 winds has been issued for coastal areas of Murcia on Saturday. Temperatures in the Region will drop by around 12 degrees, while in the province of Soria the cool-down could amount to as much as 19 degrees!
The arrival of wintry weather coincides with the clocks going back an hour in the early hours of Sunday morning, possibly for the last time in this country, and with the start of the annual flu vaccination campaign next Monday, while at the same time the law has changed to allow nursing staff as well as doctors to prescribe vaccinations as of 24th October
But the week wouldn’t be complete without a mention of the new airport in Corvera, even if it is to report that the situation regarding the flights scheduled there after it opens on 15th January remains as it was when last reported. Contrary to information published in the Spanish language regional press this week, Ryanair is still unable to confirmed that it will be offering flights to and from Corvera (although seats are for sale on the airline’s website to "Murcia" for next summer), while Norwegian have joined Easyjet, Jet2 and Tui in offering flights to the new infrastructure (call sign RMU) as of next spring.
Tourism news: the Costa Cálida woos motor home tourists in Birmingham but some residents demand a “camper van ban”
The tourism authorities in the Region of Murcia are continuing their efforts to de-seasonalize activity in the sector, and as part of this campaign a delegation was present last week at the Motorhome and Caravan Show at the NEC in Birmingham.
There is little doubt that this is a market which could go a long way towards making Murcia more of a year-round destination, but not everyone in the Costa Cálida welcomes camper vans and motor homes, the most vociferous objectors being the owners of campsites who see people parking on empty ground as “lost revenue”. As recently as last week the European Federation of Campingsite Organisations and Holiday Park Associations reiterated its demands for restrictions on “free camping”, explaining that this practice is “not beneficial for anyone”, including residents, the campers (!) and, of course, themselves. “Little or no contribution is made to the local tourist economy”, they claim, the implication appearing to be that the visitors would be of value to the economy only if they were staying at a campsite owned by Federation member, and that when campers park on open ground they somehow eliminate the need to buy food, eat out or make any other purchases during their stay.
In many parts of Murcia it is hard for motorhome visitors to find specifically authorized parking areas, and if their presence is resented by local residents this is exacerbated by the anti-social behaviour of a few of them, including lifting up manhole covers to empty black water into the sewage pipes, but the root of the problem is that there is no real coordination in the policy regarding camper vans in Murcia. Town Halls make their own decisions: some set up caravan parks, others allow private enterprise to do so, others instruct the local police force to move vehicles on periodically and still others do very little.
In this context, the local Podemos party in Cartagena held a meeting in La Azohía on Tuesday to demand a ban on parking in the rambla and on other plots of open ground, after last week the potential danger of motorhome camping was highlighted when, in the light of the warnings of possible heavy rain, local police officers warned many of the campers that they were parked in inadvisable locations.
Mula castle restoration to cost 7 million euros over 10 years: part of the castle could be open to the public for the 500th anniversary of the castle in 2020, while steps are still be taken to recover an 11 per cent share in the fortress which is privately owned.
Environmental and agricultural issues
There was outrage in Murcia earlier this week over a national government water policy statement which seemed to hint at plans to close down the Tajo-Segura water supply canal, which brings water mainly for irrigation farming from central Spain to the Region of Murcia and parts of Alicante and Águilas, with the president of the regional government describing the Ministry of Ecological Transition as “illiterate” in terms of the water supply issue.
Speaking at the Fruit Attraction trade fair in Madrid, Fernando López Miras claimed that the government had “removed its mask and dealt a death blow to the Region” in terms of water and agriculture, adding that the most worrying thing is that the national government appears to believe that Murcia doesn’t need water, despite the fact that were it not for the extra supplies transported via the Tajo-Segura, most of the region’s farmers attending the fair in Madrid would simply not have been there.
However, later in the week a revised version of the document was presented, wherein specific references to the Tajo-Segura supply canal had been removed from the text. The new text does not include the word “re-size”, which in Murcia was interpreted with some justification as “downsize” in relation to the Tajo-Segura, but opposition PP representatives claim that the thrust of the document remains unchanged.
Eels with tracking devices released into the Mar Menor: information is being gathered on when eels begin their 6,000-kilometre migration back to the Sargasso Sea.
Murcia vulture population flourishes in the north and north-west: over 200 mating pairs are known to live in the mountains of northern Murcia and two have been re-released into the wild after being treated at the wildlife recovery centre in El Valle.
Researchers confirm that microplastics are already present in the human food chain: a study revealed plastics in the faeces of all eight patients from around the globe who took part in a study, according to results presented this week in Vienna.
Anti-tiger mosquito protection at Hacienda Riquelme, El Valle Golf Resort and La Tercia: 9 stormwater tanks are being sprayed with insecticide in the municipality of Murcia, including 2 in Corvera.
Jumilla wineries welcome bumper 2018 grape harvest: this year’s crop in the vineyards of Jumilla is excellent in terms of both quantity and quality.
Spanish honey producers have a bee in their bonnet: Chinese imports threaten the viability of native and EU honey production as apiculturalists demand stricter labelling laws at a conference in Murcia.
Migration
Once again the migratory flow of Africans heading north across the Mediterranean hit the headlines at the back end of this week, when 210 people were intercepted as they approached the Murcia coastline off Cartagena and Cabo de Palos. Those on board 14 small boats included a baby, a woman and a man who was clearly ill and was taken to hospital for treatment. In addition, it has been reported that four boats made it to land without being detected, and that neither the number of people on board nor their whereabouts has yet been established.
On the subject of immigrants, 7 people of Spanish, French, Colombian and Moroccan nationality have been arrested for falsely registering immigrants as resident in Mazarrón and Puerto de Mazarrón: in one case as many as 120 people had been registered as living at the same address in Mazarrón in the last few years!
Other items in the Murcia news
National postal strikes planned on Black Friday and over Christmas: householders in some parts of Murcia will be wondering how they are supposed to notice any difference!
Unbeaten Real Murcia footballers have not been paid for 3 months! Other staff at the club have not received their salaries since before the summer as the long-running financial problems continue despite a successful start to the 2018-19 season on the field.
Grenade forces evacuation of Lorca waste treatment plant: 20 employees left the building hurriedly when the mortar grenade was found in Barranco Hondo!
Spanish unemployment total down to 10-year low: the figure has dropped by 46 per cent since 2013 to 3.32 million, but in Murcia the third quarter saw a minimal increase.
Los Alcázares-Los Arcos hospital bus service restored after 5 years: 3 services per day between Los Alcázares and the hospital in the outskirts of San Javier as of 5th November.
Murcia exports to the UK up despite Brexit fears: a new record for exports from Murcia was set in the first 8 months of 2018 as sales to the UK rose by over 6 per cent.
Drama in Espinardo as 14th-floor suicide threat is averted: over two hours were needed to convince the young woman to take the conventional route down!
Murcia kindergartens giving classes in English to pre-school infants: native speakers take over for 2 hours a week but is it enough to ensure that future generations of Murcianos will have a higher level of English?
Controversy as Murcia government plans a law which views abortion as “a failure”: critics view the proposed new family law as a step backwards for Murcia after a draft law describes abortion as “a failure of the natural process of maternity, not a right”.
Over 7,500 people use the time-saving Murcia health service patients app: 15,000 more are using the Portal del Paciente website to manage their prescriptions and conduct primary health care consultations without visiting the doctor.
165 cubic metres of seaweed removed from the shore of the Mar Menor in 2 weeks: efforts to clean up the lagoon and the coastline continue in Los Nietos and Los Urrutias as water quality continues to improve.
Seven puppies rescued from water deposit in Las Torres de Cotillas: the search is on for the owner of the puppies, all of which are receiving care at an animal refuge centre.
San Javier makes it easier to pay local taxes: credit and debit card payments are now accepted, as are online transfers.
Murcia and Spanish property news
The property developers and promoters taking part this week in Reside’18, the largest real estate fair in the Region of Murcia, are attending in buoyant and optimistic mood on account of the state of the residential property market at present, it is reported in the regional press.
This is because there is ample evidence that the slump in residential construction has now been overcome at last due to a sharp increase in sales activity, with the Apirm regional promoters association stating that the number of new homes built in the first seven months of this year was 90 per cent higher than in the equivalent period in 2017. Official figures suggest that around 15,000 homes will be sold in Murcia this year, but they estimate that another 3,000 or so will be bought off-plan, and will therefore not be taken into account until they are completed in 18 months’ or two years’ time.
These assertions coincide with the figures of the ANEFA arids manufactures association, which reports that the increase in cement consumption in Murcia last year was higher than in any other region of Spain apart from Madrid and the Comunidad Valenciana.
But the main national property market news this week has continued to concern last week’s Supreme Court ruling that a tax on judicial acts which has been paid by buyers taking out a mortgage for the last 23 years ought to have been paid by the lending banks instead. This led to the expectation that hundreds of thousands of buyers could be entitled to a refund on 1.5 per cent of the purchase price paid, but it has since been announced that the decision is to be reconsidered by a general meeting of all 31 judges belonging to the relevant division of the court.
The confusion and uncertainty has caused a drastic slowdown in the number of new mortgages being signed, as the banks inevitably attempt to alter repayment interest rates in order to compensate for what may or may not be an additional outlay for them on future loans. The date set for the review to be concluded is 5th November, and in the meantime it is very possible that fewer sale and purchase agreements will be finalized than might otherwise have been expected.
Hansa Urbana demand the right to build the controversial Novo Carthago development: Hansa no longer owns the land on which the development was to be located, part of the land lies within a protected area and the granting of the initial licence to has been the focus of a prolonged investigation into suspected corruption. But in spite of all this, Hansa are threatening to claim 140 million euros in compensation for damages from the Town Hall of Cartagena if the project is not “unblocked” immediately.
Apart from the catastrophic flooding in Málaga (see above) and the seemingly endless debate over whether Spain is in the right time zone, which is in the spotlight again as the clocks go back, the week’s news has included items which prove that the system of justice in the country, despite being extremely slow at times, does eventually lead to punishments being administered for crimes.
One example of this is the case of Rodrigo Rato, the former vice-president of the Spanish government, president of Bankia and managing director of the IMF, who finally entered jail on Thursday to begin serving the four-and-a-half-year sentence which was confirmed earlier this month for his role in the “black credit card” scandal at Caja Madrid during his time as president of the bank. He was found guilty of being involved in management staff being issued with credit cards to pay expenses which were never declared, enabling them to effectively enjoy almost unlimited benefits without the knowledge of the taxman.
But it is now four years since the scandal came to light, and despite the evidence being fairly conclusive in most people’s eyes it has taken that time for Sr Rato (image below) to be imprisoned.
Another judicial issue which is likely to be extremely long-running concerns the Catalan separatist leaders who, it was decided by the Supreme Court on Thursday, will face charges of rebellion and others for their role in the partial holding of the outlawed independence referendum in Catalunya on 1st October 2017. Many of the 18 who will stand trial, including former regional vice-president Oriol Junqueras, have been in jail for most of the last 12 months as a precautionary measure to avoid them leaving the country, and it has taken almost exactly a year since the unilateral declaration of independence from Spain in the regional parliament of Catalunya for it to be decided that they do indeed have charges to face.
Meanwhile, another long-lasting saga which appeared to have ended last week with the ruling that Doctor Eduardo Vela was “incontrovertibly” guilty in Spain’s first stolen babies trial, but was then absolved of all responsibility and punishment, turns out not to have finished after all, as the doctor, despite being “too ill” to receive official notification of the verdict has announced that he will appeal against what he considers an unmerited slur on his reputation.
At the same time, the Constitutional Court produced an interesting sentence this week when it ruled that a man was not a victim of gender discrimination when the paternity leave he enjoyed was shorter than the maternity leave awarded to his wife after giving birth. However, only one judge mirrored the policy of the national government by ruling that in fact the case under scrutiny showed gender discrimination against the mother, because the granting of longer maternity leave leads to discrimination against women in Spain’s job market and reinforces the belief that looking after the children is the job of the mother!
Elsewhere there has been controversy over the design of a new commemorative 30-euro coin which is now in circulation and a huge haul of 6 tons of cocaine was confiscated from a Málaga warehouse after the drugs were found concealed in a shipment of bananas: for more details on these and other stories scroll down below…
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