ARCHIVED - Murcian and Spanish news round-up, week ending 15th December 2017
Christmas is coming, the streets are alight with seasonal cheer, but not everyone is in a festive mood as rain refuses to fall
Over the last few days the atmosphere in the Region of Murcia has become a good deal more festive, with Christmas lights being switched on, nativity scenes being opened and even a little wintry weather adding to the sense that we really are in winter at last. The snow is hardly lying deep and crisp and even in the Costa Cálida, of course, but earlier in the week the temperatures dipped below zero in many parts of Murcia, and strong winds brought trees down in Cartagena and washed up a 6-metre pilot whale on the beach of La Azohía in the Bay of Mazarrón.
The colder air is good news for retailers as people finally start to contemplate purchasing warmer clothing in the pre-Christmas shopping frenzy, but unfortunately not all is Christmas cheer. The much-needed rain is still largely staying away from Murcia, and the water shortage and the on-going drought were very much in the news this week. Thousands of farmers were joined by members of the regional government in a march in the regional capital to demand solutions from the national government, and Town Halls were officially instructed to reduce their consumption by 15 per cent.
Water-related issues are also present in the news in relation to the Mar Menor, where, while measures are gradually implemented to regenerate and protect the marine environment, the prosecution service has requested that former high-ranking government officials and large agricultural concerns be placed under judicial investigation for allowing the lagoon to become contaminated in the first place.
And while preparing for Christmas dinner, roasting chestnuts on an open fire and wrapping presents this week, spare a thought for the unhappy residents in Camposol whose homes are coming up for auction over the festive season: there are plenty of reasons to be cheerful in the Costa Cálida at this time of year, but not for everyone is it the “season to be jolly”!
Water in Murcia: the drought, the Mar Menor and other environmental issues
Apart from the issues mentioned above, other topics in the regional news this week include the following:
Partial dredging announced in the Golas between the Mar Menor and the Mediterranean: the regional government of Murcia has announced, after weighing up advice offered by scientists, that limited dredging is to be undertaken in order to maintain the flow of water between the lagoon and the Mediterranean. The government’s explanation is that this is needed in order to avoid the Mar Menor becoming “isolated”, but the proposal to dredge the the channels which run between the two seas has been a hotly debated one since it was first put forward, and seven members of the Mar Menor scientific committee were caught by surprise by this announcement, expressing the view that insufficient data have been gathered to guarantee that the planned dredging and clearing will do less harm than good. As a result they have publicly expressed their disagreement with the decision, although the regional government maintains the measure is necessary and that it will be non-aggressive, helping to ensure the lagoon is supported further in its recovery.
Town Halls ready to reduce water consumption as domestic supplies depend on desalination: the reduction of 15 per cent met with agreement during a meeting where it was confirmed that 60 per cent of the population of the Segura basin are now using desalinated water, and that one of the main problems in the short term is to improve the distribution of this water. In the past, of course, water supply networks have basically tended to run southwards and downhill, using gravity, but now, with desalination plants located on the coast, the task is to send water in the other direction, i.e. northwards and uphill.
25 ecological mooring points being installed close to Isla Grosa: the environmentally friendly buoys are anchored 300 metres from the island off the Mediterranean coast of La Manga.
Portmán regeneration project progressing well: the man who pressed for the contaminated bay to be cleaned up is now the central government delegate to Murcia, and he reports that satisfactory progress is being made in the 32-million-euro regeneration of an area which was systematically polluted by mining companies for decades.
Tourism news
San Javier airport passenger numbers up for the 14th consecutive month: the start of the winter 
flight schedules in November saw passenger numbers at Murcia-San Javier airport rise in comparison to the year before again, and the year-to-date total is already 5 per cent up on the figure for the whole of 2016. At the same time, the first month of winter scheduling also saw a continuation of the dominance of UK and Republic of Ireland flights at San Javier, with 86.4 per cent of passengers on board services to and from the British Isles.
Meanwhile, at Alicante-Elche airport the November figures confirmed a new annual record, a 3.7-per-cent year-on-year monthly increase taking the total up to almost 13 million passengers in 2017.
Roman Theatre in Cartagena sets new record for visitor numbers and plans to expand: excavation of the portico behind the stage is expected to start in 2021, following a year in which over 211,000 people have already visited the 2,000-year-old theatre in the centre of Cartagena.
Monumental Belén in San Javier renovated to celebrate 50th anniversary: the nativity scene which is set up every Christmas in the main square of San Javier is reputedly the largest in Spain, and this year its 1,200 figures, numerous buildings and dozens of moving parts have been given a general overhaul and re-painting. There are also various new additions including typical Murciano “barracas” and a section representing the embalming and funeral cortège of an Egyptian Pharaoh, adding even more colour and exoticism to proceedings!
Ryanair ground staff in Spain threaten strike on 30th December: the threat came shortly after Ryanair pilots in Ireland, Germany, Italy and Portugal announced a 24-hour strike on 20th December, and in response the airline has announced that it will recognize trades unions for the first time in its 32-year history.
Christmas is coming!
Snow in Águilas as Carnival characters switch on energy efficient Christmas lights: more lights but a lower electricity bill for the Town Hall of Águilas this Christmas!
Cartagena Christmas toy collection under way: all are welcome to contribute by buying and donating a new toy (preferably neither sexist nor warlike in nature, according to the Town Hall), depositing it unwrapped in the toy bank provided in Calle San Miguel.
Monumental nativity scene on display in Águilas shopping mall: the Belén de Muebles San José is on view at Águilas Plaza, complete with almost 800 figures.
Christmas brings sales boost for the poinsettia growers of Murcia: the south-west of Murcia provides a fifth of the poinsettias sold over Christmas in Spain, where it has become a symbol of the festive season over the last 40 years.
Camposol charity lunch raises 1,100 euros for families in need in Mazarrón: the Ecumenical Association’s charity event was attended by the Mayoress of Mazarrón, among others.
Murcia and Spanish property news
In a week when there was a glut of statistics bringing positive news regarding the property market both in Murcia and in Spain as a whole, perhaps the most interesting report was one which attempted to 
gauge the overall health of the sector in terms not only of prices but also of the viability of business, and the conclusions were certainly encouraging.
After a 14-year roller-coaster ride, the country’s property registrars have compiled a market health index which shows that after rising by 39.9 per cent in four years from 2003 to 2007 the health of the market fell by an alarming 51.4 per cent over the course of the next six years, before rising again by 44.5 per cent to its current level, which is close to where it was in 2003. In other words, the climate is right for stability and consistent growth at long last!
This positive impression was confirmed on Tuesday by the Ministry of Development’s latest data, which showed that during the third quarter of 2017 the number of property sales registered showed an increase of 16.7 per cent over the same period last year. Even better, in the Region of Murcia the rise was the third highest in the country at 25.6 per cent, and both in the Costa Cálida and in the whole of the country the figures were the highest in the third quarter of any year for almost a decade!
The only regions with sharper increases were La Rioja and Cantabria, and in general terms the data appear to indicate that the bounce-back effect, which until now has been felt most strongly in Madrid, Catalunya and the Balearics, is now becoming contagious and spreading to all parts of the country.
At the same time, the Ministry’s data reflect the degree to which the current buoyancy of the market is fuelled by non-Spanish buyers: in Spain as a whole these accounted for as much as 17.4 per cent of the sales total – that’s more than one in six! - and unsurprisingly in Murcia the proportion was even higher at 27 per cent.
However, in this respect the province of Alicante takes the biscuit, with foreign buyers so numerous that fewer than half of the third quarter sales were to Spaniards!
More sales figures, meanwhile, showed that the number of transactions in Spain during October was a whopping 25.7 per cent higher than in the same month last year, an increase which was almost matched in Murcia, where the last five months’ data have all shown very healthy rises indeed.
Data were also released this week showing an overall property value rise of 6.7 per cent in Spain in the third quarter of 2017, the steepest rise for a decade, and equally encouraging is the fact that the upward trend was mirrored to a certain extent in all 17 regions of the country, including a 1.8 per cent increase in Murcia.
This trend was then underlined by valuation firm Tinsa, who estimate the increase in prices over the last year to be only 4 per cent but also identify numerous reasons to suppose that the upward movement will continue in the foreseeable future.
Other items in the Murcia news
San Javier rescue turtle recovering in the Oceanogràfic in Valencia: the injured loggerhead will eventually be re-released into the Mediterranean.
Lack of maintenance at Monteagudo castle to be investigated: the national ombudsman’s office of Spain is to investigate the state of disrepair into which the 11th or 12th century castle of Monteagudo has been allowed to fall: this is where the iconic Rio de Janeiro-style statue of Christ stands looking out over Murcia, but many are not even aware that the figure is installed right on top of the 11th-century castle built by the Wolf King!
Cartagena council coalition in danger of collapsing: the complexities of local politics in the city of Cartagena continue to make the news this week, following the announcement that former Mayor José López has been removed from all institutional posts in the council by his successor Ana Belén Castejón. Sr López’s response to the latest development was characteristically forthright, accusing his successor as head of the council of “treachery”.
Mortgage-related evictions still common in Murcia despite decrease across Spain: the Murcia figure even exceeded that of the region of Madrid during the third quarter of the year.
Yecla Town Hall issues detention order to capture nuisance goat: the 80-kilo billy-goat has caused damage and scared visitors on the Cerro del Castillo in Yecla.
Spanish national news: Christmas and Catalunya compete for attention over the next week
By this time next week the vast majority of Spaniards will have failed once again to win the El Gordo Christmas lottery, and while the media focus their attention on the lucky few who provide the exception to this general rule, they will also doubtless be analysing the results of the regional election in Catalunya, where the campaigning is now in its last few days prior to the vote next Thursday 21st December.
At present the opinion polls suggest a closely fought contest between the separatist parties and those in favour of remaining a part of Spain, with the most popular among the Spanish national parties being Ciudadanos, whose leader Albert Rivera is a native of Barcelona (the image above shows Sr Rivera on the campaign trail). However, such is the division of opinion among the voters of Catalunya that in order to form a government Ciudadanos would need to form a coalition with at least three other parties, a task which may prove beyond them.
During this last week separatist feelings were once again sparked by the return of 44 works of medieval religious art from Catalunya to the monastery of Sijena in Aragón, an event which prompted former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, campaigning for the election from Brussels in order to avoid arrest in Spain for alleged rebellion and misuse of public funds, to comment that the national parties of Spain had “as usual” acted furtively and with the support of the “military police” to “pillage Catalunya with complete impunity”.
Brexit has also been in the Spanish news this week: on Monday the news broke that the Spanish government is advocating a three-year transitional period after Brexit takes effect in order for the rights of 200,000 Spaniards living in the UK and 300,000 British people living in Spain to be safeguarded, and on Tuesday Alfonso Dastis, the Minister for Foreign Affairs in the Spanish government, met spokesmen of two groups representing EU nationals in the UK and two more representing UK nationals in the rest of the EU to hear some of the uncertainties which are most worrying them.
This coincided with the news that during the first half of this year Spain lost 4,000 British residents, with the majority of this downward movement being due to the number of emigrants exceeding the figure for those who came to live in this country. In the Region of Murcia the number lost was 500, and although it is tempting to hold Brexit entirely to blame a historical analysis of the figures suggests that this is not entirely the case.
Elsewhere, there was good news for animal lovers with the passing in parliament on Tuesday of new legislation by which pets are no longer to be treated by the law as mere “objects”, one of the implications being that in cases where their owners divorce or separate the animals can be the subject of a shared custody agreement.
Murcia zoonosis centres fear overcrowding due to new pets law: the ban on putting animals down unless absolutely necessary could lead to problems due to the sheer number of abandoned dogs and cats arriving at the premises.
The wintry weather experienced in Murcia was far more extreme in other parts of the country, providing snow in Madrid as 7,000 Santas raced through the streets in full costume in what has become an annual fund-raising event for charity and causing the cancellation of numerous flights due to strong winds, and air travel was also in the news due to the spate of strikes being faced by Ryanair over Christmas (see above).
Other stories to catch the eye include a man who was decapitated by a car park gate in the region of Madrid, the murder in Zaragoza of a motorcycling fan who upset his attackers by wearing braces featuring the red and yellow stripes of the Spanish flag, yet another example of the desperate lengths to which some African migrants will go in order to enter Spanish and EU territory as a 12-year-old boy from Guinea was found crammed behind the dashboard of a car in Melilla and the news that in order to celebrate King Felipe VI’s 50th birthday early next year multi-coloured 30-euro coins are to be minted.
But as Spain prepares for Christmas, cross your fingers for rather less Scrooge-like attitude on the part of the management of the Hospital Puerta del Mar in Cádiz, who have banned Spiderman from the 
premises. 39-year-old Manuel Márquez has been voluntarily dressing up as the superhero and surprising sick children with inspirational visits for over a decade, but the hospital has decided to put an end to his wonderful gesture by declaring him to be in breach of security and posing a potential threat to the safety of the youngsters receiving treatment.
Unfortunately, Sr Márquez confesses that in order to lift the spirits of the patients he was obliged by his lack of superpowers to take the lift rather than climbing up the walls and entering via windows, and despite this setback is hoping to acquire a Captain America outfit and continue his good deeds elsewhere.
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