ISSUE NO. 1597 11 - 17 February 2016 YOUR PAPER, YOUR VOICE, YOUR OPINION WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COMMALLORCA

Bullfighting hasnow been banned

The Balearic Parliament votedon Tuesday (February 9) toamend the animal protectionlaw to include a ban on allforms of bullfighting in theBalearic Islands.

The proposal was presented

by the political parties PSOE,MES of Mallorca and Menorca,Podemos and Gent Per Fo-mentera. The amendment willalso prohibit any event whichcauses suffering to an animaland pressures the State Govern-ment to eliminate public

By Sandra Galo

Turn to Page 5

A WALSALL woman planning to passthrough Mallorca to join the jihadist fa-ther of her children was detained by po-lice in Britain.

Lorna Moore was planning to travelwith her three young children via Palmato be reunited with their father in Syria.Prosecutor Julian Christopher QC ex-plained her intention to jurors: “The planwas for Miss Moore to take the childrenvia an innocuous destination to be re-united with their father.” Ms Moore wasallegedly part of a group planning totravel to Syria to join Daesh.

She has been accused of not informingauthorities of her husband’s plan to jointhe Daesh. Jurors were told that SajidAslam, who travelled to Syria in Augustof 2014, had been in contact with MsMoore via Skype. Ms Moore, a 33-year-old trainee maths teacher from Walsall,denies the terror-related offence.

NEWS11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN2

ONE HUNDRED ANDTHIRTY FOUR companieshave relocated to the BalearicIslands from Cataluña, Valen-cia, Madrid, the Canary Is-lands and Andalucia according

to Spanish credit ratingAgency Axesor. The majoritycame from Cataluña, and rea-sons given for relocating in-cluded increases in income,property and inheritance taxes.

Companies move

PRINCESS Crist ina isback in court and will testi-fy later in the month in thehigh-profi le Noos CourtCase.

Questioning of witnessesis scheduled to take place

in March and Apri l .Charges against MiguelTejeiro (ex-secretary of theInst i tuto Noos) weredropped recently bringingthe number on trial downto 17.

Princess Cristinais to testify later

LOCAL NEWS Wife of jihadistdetained in UKWOMAN was planning to pass through Palma on her way to Syria

By Sandra Galo

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ASPIRING Mallorcan filmmakers attended this year’sGoya Awards with their film ‘I am your father,’ one offour films nominated in the Best Documentary category.The film tells the story of David Prowse, the British actorwho gave life to the most famous masked villain in cine-matic history: Darth Vader.

Nominated for award

HOLIDAY STOPS: May be used to reach onward destinations.

3NEWS 11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorcawww.euroweeklynews.com EWN

FEATURED NEWS

The writing is on the wallDEATH knell rings for unregistered tourist properties

THE Euro Weekly News recently re-vealed to readers how the authoritiesare cracking down on people whorent out their homes in Spain totourists.

A new law has been passed withsignificant consequences for thosein Andalucia, bringing the region in-to a wider regulatory frameworkthat includes the Valencian andBalearic provinces.

Put simply, it requires landlordswho rent their properties to touriststo officially register with the localgovernment. They will then be com-pelled to make any necessary adap-tations to their home to be in fullcompliance, or face severe fines.

Harsher in its scope and putative-ly stricter in its enforcement, the de-cree approved in Andalucia on Feb-ruary 2 has acute implications forproperty owners who rent totourists.

This encompasses those in re-gions, including Murcia, which re-main tentatively untouched by anever-tightening legal apparatus.

As ever, the devil lies in the de-tails, therefore all readers who areconcerned that they may incur thewrath of the authorities would dowell to consult with local represen-tatives, property experts and lawyersto ensure that they are well pre-pared.

Different regulatory systems arenow in force across separate au-tonomous communities, but the situ-ation in Andalucia serves as a usefulillustration of where the future of

property regulation is headed acrossthe country.

While many in Valencia and theBalearics may have adapted to thenew system of registering touristproperties, the draconian penaltiesallowed for in the Andalucian statuteshould be a warning to those whohaven’t yet registered, and feel thebark of the law is worse than its bite.

Those in Murcia should preparefor similar regulations to take effectin the near future.

The incentive for the crack downon tourist rents is a combination ofpressure from the hotel industry, adesire to harmonise systems, and thelure of more taxes over an, untilnow, underground economy.

With the weight of the nationalCitizen Security law behind the newstrategy in Andalucia, it appearsclear that a concerted effort toclamp down on tourist rentals willnow persist with added vigour.

Make sure you stay ahead of thecurve by seeking legal advice if youare uncertain where you stand, andby joining the debate and discussiononline among fellow expatriates onthe Euro Weekly News website.

By Matthew Elliott

Francisco Javier Fernandez Hernandez, councillor of Tourism and Sports for the Junta de Andalucia.

400,000is the number of touristrental beds estimated bythe Junta of Andalucia

currently undeclared fortax purposes.

Non-resident tax

IT has always been assumed thatnon-residents who own property inSpain would let their properties out,and many of them would overlookthe obligation to declare the incometo the tax authorities.

For this reason, the governmentintroduced a non-residents tax,which is calculated at up to two percent of the cadastral (rateable) valueof the property on which for 2016there is a 19 per cent tax payable.

APPLIED to all

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We decided to reach a consensus on this

because the sector needed regulating

Andalucian Head of Tourism, JavierFernández on discussions with thetourist industry before drafting the

final bill.

Quote of the Week

Our readers discussed thisstory at length on the EWNwebsite, these being a fewkey points.

Do you rent a property totourists? To take part in thediscussion go to www.euroweeklynews.com.

Your papers,your views

Aiming higherI THINK all apartments andvillas should be run to a cer-tain standard and registered.This would have certainlyhelped with the variousscams that happened lastyear, which in turn is badfor all. The standards haveto be raised. Geoff

Why us?IF such stupid illogical per-secution by the Junta de An-dalucia spreads further i tcould affect us all - not justseasonal renters on the Cos-ta Del Sol. Time to write tothem en masse in an attemptto get this decision reversed.Brian

No exceptionsI RENT out a flat in northLondon and as a landlordI have to be registered andensure the property fullymeets legal requirements,this protects both myselfand my tenant. All incomehas to be declared. Whyshould it be any differenthere? Leonardo

Nonsensical lawSPAIN always seems toomit the common sense fac-tor and clearly this is in thatvein. No reasonable personobjects to sensible legisla-tion with regard to safetyand tax control in any sec-tor, but this is ridiculous andheavy handed. Paul

Detrimental movePEOPLE are sold propertyin Spain based on the as-sumption that renting it outwill help cover their mort-gage costs. The outcomecould be that property inSpain will have less chanceof sell ing, which wouldhave a negative, effect onSpain’s economy. David

Shrinking marketI REALLY despair at Span-ish politicians for doing this.There are a lot of peoplethat come here because theycan rent a property ratherthan go to a hotel, these reg-ulations will probably take alot of property off the mar-ket. Mike

www.euroweeklynews.com NEWSEWN4

INDEXNews 1 - 18

Featured News 3

Finance 21 - 26

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Leapy Lee 27

Letters 28

Daily TV 30

Vicki McLeod 33

Time Out 34 - 35

Our View 36

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Property 44 - 45

Legally Speaking 46

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Classifieds 48 - 49

Pets 50

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Motoring 52

Sport 54, 56

11 - 17 Februrary 2016 / Mallorca

LAST year participants collected 640 kilos of rubbish

Tourists join ecologicalinitiative in Calvia

CALVIA’S town hall hasmade an agreement with thehotelier’s association in Pa-guera and Cala Fornells toraise environmental aware-ness among tourists visitingthe area.

The agreement is part of pi-lot urban ecology initiativeand will include ecologicalact ivi t ies including beach

cleaning and reforestation.Promoting winter tourism andnatural heritage conservationare also part of the plan.

The project has started thismonth with a reforestation ef-fort in Paguera’s Talaia areawhere 12 hectares of the for-est were destroyed by fire in2011.

The effort involved thehotel ier ’s associat ion, theBalearic government and

tourists under the EuropeanWinter programme. Anotherobjective of the agreement isto maintain the beauty of thelandscape in the area.

Tourists receive informa-tion on acceptable methodsfor carrying out protectiveand reforestation work andfor the best methods of con-serving natural heritage andpreventing the erosion of soil.

Beach cleaning has been a

way of promoting conserva-t ion and environmentalawareness of coastal areasamong tourists, tour opera-tors, local residents and busi-nesses for more than eightyears.

Last year, participants col-lected 640 kilos of rubbish.In total, more than 12,600 ki-los have been removed frombeaches since the project be-gan in 2007.

By Sandra Galo

BEACH CLEAN-UP: Tourists have been encouraged to help.

5NEWS 11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorcawww.euroweeklynews.com EWN

funding of bullfighting.The campaign Mallorca

Sense Sang (Mallorca WithoutBlood) has been lobbying forthe past two years to stop thispractice which they consider tobe animal torture and ‘death forfun’. Thirty-three of Mallorca’s53 municipalities as well as theCouncil of Mallorca have de-clared their support for the ban.

Campaign spokespersonGuillermo Amengual predictedthe decision would be historicand that thanks to the efforts ofmany people and the support ofthe governing political partiesin the Balearics, in a few weeksbullfighting will just be a badmemory.

More than 146,000 peoplesigned the petition against bull-fighting which included somewell-known names from theworlds of fashion, sport, andculture.

Some villages have not de-clared support for the ban in-cluding Muro which supportsthe practice and Fornalutxwhich hosts an annual bull-runthat is expected to be banned.

No morebullfighting

MINISTER of Health PatriciaGomez defended the impor-tance of patients being able tocommunicate in the languagethey are most comfortablewith.

She stated that it is an oblig-ation of the administration toput attention on communica-tion. Her comment was madeafter IB-Salut’s General Direc-tor Juli Fuster remarked thatthe government wants verygood professionals to comethat understand Mallorcan agri-culture but who can barelyspeak Spanish.

Minister Gomez also ex-pressed concern over the pre-sent situation of the hospitals’overloaded emergency servicessaying that the government hasimplemented a contingencyplan to help with the increaseof work. She assured the par-liament that health is a priorityfor the current administration.

THE Business Plan for 2016 approved by theCouncil of Administration of the BalearicPort Authority (APB) anticipates an invest-ment of €52 million for five ports on the is-lands. Of that amount, €38.3 million corre-sponds to a direct investment by APB and

€14 million will come from the private sec-tor.

An upturn of economic activity is expectedfor this year which will positively affect seatransport and subsequent revenue.

The APB in Palma will invest a total of€13.3 million in 2016 and plans are to extendthe north boardwalk of the Poniente docks.

THE National Police have shut down a gambling den in thetown of Manacor.

After different investigations made by Local and NationalPolice from the Service for Control of Gambling, sources con-firmed an influx of people going to the establishment from vari-ous villages in the Llevant area. The establishment which ap-peared to be a bar, was a front for illegal gambling. Betting forthe card games could reach up to €2,000 just at one table.

Police identified 32 people including the owner of the proper-ty, the organisers, the bank, and the gamblers.

A GROUP of secondary students from the first year baccalaure-ate course (Primero de bachillerato) in Sant Josep Obrer de Pal-ma spent the first week of February visiting Sheffield, Englandas part of a linguistic exchange programme involving threeschools in the Sheffield area.

Not only were students able to improve their English, they al-so attended classes at the three schools and visited places of in-terest in the surrounding area.

Patientsshould speakin their ownlanguage

Gambling dendiscovered in Manacor

Mallorcan students inSheffield for a week

MALLORCA PORTS: Will receive funding through the 2016 Business Plan.

By Sandra Galo

€52m for the portsPLANS are to extend the boardwalk at Poniente docks

From Front page

PARENTS of children atBendinat’s public nurseryschool issued complaints ofinadequate heating systems

in the classrooms.The parents said that al-

though their children weresent to school wearing extra

clothes, many of them havebecome ill. They have takentheir complaints to the Min-istry of Education and to thetown hall of Calvia which isin charge of the maintenanceof the facilities.

The IMEB (Municipal In-stitute for Education and Li-braries) said that the onlysolution is to install an inde-pendent heating system inthe building.

Since it is not consideredmaintenance work, the jobwill be given to Ibisec (theInstitute of Infrastructuresand Educational and Cultur-al Services).

In the meantime, IMEBhas bought heaters for theclassrooms as a temporarysolution.

Parents, however, say thatthe system is inefficient be-cause the building doesn’thave enough power to runthe heaters and the electrici-ty goes off when they areturned on.

Son Servera fighton caterpillars

NEWS11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN6

PRESENT a danger to children and animals

Parents complain aboutfreezing classrooms

BA offersnew flightsto StanstedBRITISH AIRWAYS an-nounced that it will offer aweekly flight service fromLondon Stansted airport toPalma starting in May.

The new service will alsoinclude weekly flights toIbiza, Malaga and Faro(Portugal). Flights will beoperated by British Airwayssubsidiary BA CityFlyerwith 98-seat Embraer 190jets.

Andrew Harrison, Man-aging Director of London’sStansted Airport said that hewas delighted to welcomeBritish Airways to the air-port and is looking forwardto the launch of their newflight service commentingthat these new services toFaro, Malaga, Palma andIbiza are ‘strong additions’to their route network whichcovers 170 destinationsacross Europe and NorthAmerica.

SON SERVERA’S city council has taken stepsagainst the dangerous pine processionary caterpil-lar whose numbers have been on the rise due tohigh temperatures and lack of rainfall.

Councillor for the Environment Miquel Espas-es explained that the pest control effort is beingaccomplished by shooting down nests in pinetrees with help from volunteers from the La Veda

hunting association working together with themunicipal gardening service and Local Police.

The pine processionary caterpillar can be dan-gerous to humans and other mammals. Whentouched or poked, the hairs of the caterpillarscause a nasty rash and dust given off by the crea-tures can cause respiratory problems.

They present a special danger to children andanimals whose reactions to the pest can result indeath.

By Sandra Galo

PINE TREES: Nests are being shot down with help from volunteers.

7NEWS 11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorcawww.euroweeklynews.com EWN

POLICE have arrested a 33-year-oldman in Palma for drug-related offencesin their continuing fight against drug

trafficking on the island.The arrest was part of an operation

known as Petit in which police havespent months investigating the drug net-work operating on the island.

The man was carrying 200 grammesof cocaine at the time of the arrest. Po-lice then searched two properties inLlucmajor and one in Can Pastilla wherethey found two kilograms of cocaine, 30

grammes of ecstasy and one and a halfkilograms of a cutting agent used to di-lute the drugs. Police also discoveredmore than €30,000 and two weapons inmint condition along with ammunition.

SchoolsshouldintroduceEnglishin stagesTEACHERS associationPLIS is proposing that theonly way to effectivelyteach English as a vehicu-lar language is to intro-duce it in steps.

PLIS insists that imple-menting a foreign lan-guage is neither difficultnor particularly expensiveand that the key is to beprudent and use long-termplanning.

It argues that the Eng-lish language should beintroduced in the first yearof a student’s primaryschool education and thenin stages each year after,throughout the primaryand secondary schoolyears.

PLIS which stands forProfesores Libres de Inge-nieria Social (Teachersfree of Social Engineer-ing) is an association ofteachers advocating foropen, pluralistic, trilingualeducation free from ideo-logical exploitation.

PLIS said that excessivelegislation should beavoided and that the previ-ous legislature passedlaws that were ‘excessiveand short-sighted’ and re-sulted in the collapse ofthe system.

On the other hand, theystated that the current gov-ernment passes laws by‘default and with long-sightedness’ allowingschools to decide forthemselves how to imple-ment laws which will re-sult in another failure ofthe public education sys-tem.

The association ex-plained that centres haveto rely on their own re-sources and the TeachersAssembly and unionsdon’t know how to see be-yond immersion in Cata-lan and the governmentdoesn’t want to take awayhours from Catalan.

Drug related arrest in Palma POLICE spent months investigating the network which was operating on the island

By Sandra Galo

NEWS11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN8

Association dissolvedTHERE were more than 55,000 members in their heydey

THE seventh annual general meeting forEuropeos Por España (EPORE) was heldon February 5 at the OD Hotel in Portals.This was a particularly important AGM forEPORE which was formed in October 2008as some very serious decisions were takenduring the meeting.

President Kate Mentink reflected on thepast 25 years of her service to the commu-nity, firstly forming The Institute of Foreign

Property Owners, then Ciudadanos Eu-ropeos and finally Europeos por España.

Over the years these various organisa-tions, formed with the intention of dissemi-nating and sharing information about livingin Spain, have led Kate to attending officialdinners and giving presentations to hun-dreds of people, and making trips to Brus-sels and Strasbourg to represent associationmembers.

There is more access to information thanbefore, meaning the need for and member-ship of the organisation has lessened con-siderably. This has led to the associationhaving expenses but not enough income,which led Mentink and the EPORE Com-mittee to propose the dissolution of the as-sociation. There will be an ExtraordinaryAGM held within the next 30 days wherethe association will be officially closed.

IMPORTANT AGM: Where some very serious decisions were taken.

NEWS11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN10

Full steam aheadfor Soller train

Dispute over seniors’holiday packagesTHE Costa del Sol Hotelier’s Association criticised theactions of Imserso regarding holiday packages beingdiverted to the Balearics.

The hotel association has filed a written complaintwith Imserso, a branch of Spain’s Social Services de-partment dealing with the elderly, for the actions of thetravel agency Mundiplan. The agency which had beenawarded the holiday packages of the Senior Pro-gramme for the Canary and Balearic islands planned ondiverting packages that could not be marketed in theCanary Islands to the Balearics.

The association said that this would put hotels on themainland at a disadvantage. The hoteliers advocatethat if similar situations arise in the future, packagesshould be distributed proportionally to the other partic-ipating areas.

THE Soller train and tramservice started up again onFebruary 1 after a two-monthrenovation.

The service which connectsPalma to Soller and the Portof Soller had been suspendedfor the last two months due tomaintenance and improve-ment work on the stations and

tracks. Around 600 metres ofrail and tram track has beenrenovated. Work also includ-ed carpentry maintenance anda complete electrical andelectronic overhaul of all ofthe existing wiring. The com-pany also completely renovat-ed the traction, braking,wiring, controlling, drivingand management systems.

WORKS included renovation of the track and carpentry maintenanceBy Sandra Galo

IMPROVEMENT WORKS: To train and tram service.

It is important to review your taxplanning from time to time, to check thatit is up to date and that you are using allthe opportunities available in Spain toreduce tax liabilities for yourself and yourheirs.

While the state did not introducemany tax changes for 2016, the local IslasBaleares government has made changesto income, wealth and succession taxes.

Income taxesThe general state income tax rates for

2016 are –

However these rates are made up ofequal part state rates and regional rates,and each Autonomous Communitycan amend their local rates. Here inIslas Baleares, the income tax rates

range over 13 income tax bandsfrom 19% to 47.5%. The top rateis for income over €175,000.

The above rates only apply togeneral income (employment,pension, rental income, etc).Savings income (interest,dividends, income derived from lifeassurance contracts, purchasedannuity income and capital gainson the sale or transfer of assets) istaxed at different rates. The 2016rates are –

With effect from 2015, all capitalgains are taxed at the savings tax rates,even those arising on assets held for lessthan a year. The depreciation reliefwas removed, but on assets acquiredbefore 31st December 1994 taxpayersmay be entitled to a reductionprovided the sales proceeds do notexceed €400,000.

For those residents who benefitfrom the ‘special tax regime’ forinbound assignees (‘Beckham law’),the tax rates for 2016 are 24% forincome up to €600,000 and 45% afterthat.

Non-residents who earn Spanishincome will pay tax at fixed rates of19% for EU residents and 24% foreveryone else.

Wealth taxWealth tax keeps being extended

and remains in place for fiscal year

2016. Spanish residents pay tax on the

value of their worldwide assets as at31st December. Generally, rates riseprogressively from 0.2% to 2.5%(from 0.28% to 3.45% in IslasBaleares). There are reductionsavailable, ranging from €700,000 to€2m, depending on whether you ownyour home and if you are single or acouple. Islas Baleares had increasedthe individual allowance from€700,000 to €800,000 last year, butfrom 1st January 2016 it is back downto €700,000.

This is a tough tax for wealthyresidents, but steps can be taken tolimit it.

Succession taxThe Islas Baleares government has

removed the regional allowance forspouses and children over 21 (the 99%reduction for children under 21remains in place). With effect fromJanuary 2016 there are two new sets oftax rates for succession tax purposes inthis region. The one for group I and II

beneficiaries (spouses and children)range from 1% to 20%, whereas in theone applicable for everyone else (groupIII and IV beneficiaries) the rates rangefrom 7.65% to 34%.

UK nationals need estate planningto cover both Spanish succession taxand UK inheritance tax.

Tax planning With specialist advice you can often

use compliant arrangements to reducetax on your savings, investments,pensions and assets - with the right taxplanning Spain can be very taxefficient for retired expatriates.

Tax rates, scope and reliefs maychange. Any statements concerningtaxation are based upon ourunderstanding of current taxation lawsand practices which are subject to change.Tax information has been summarised;an individual is advised to seekpersonalised advice.

To keep in touch with the latestdevelopments in the offshore world,check out the latest news on ourwebsite www.blevinsfranks.com.

11FINANCE 11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorcawww.euroweeklynews.com EWN

By Peter Worthington,Senior Partner, Blevins Franks

Balearics Taxation In 2016Income € Tax rate0 – 6,000 19%6,000 – 50,000 21%Over 50,000 23%

Income € Tax rate0 – 12,450 19%12,450 – 20,200 24%20,200 – 35,200 30%35,200 – 60,000 37%Over 60,000 45%

FLORISTS are anticipatingbetween a 10 and 20 percent drop in sales for Valen-tine’s Day this year due tothe fact that i t fa l ls on aSunday, the Federation ofSmall and Medium Busi-

nesses of Mallorca (Pimem)has said.

Pimem explained thatwhenever St Valent ine’sDay coincides with a bankholiday, sales drop around15 per cent.

Cati Capella, spokesper-son for the florists, said she

hoped that the drop will nothappen. As for the clients,Capella said they are mostlymen with 90 per cent ofpurchases being red roses.

Saturday 13 is expectedto bring in the most sales,although most florists willbe open on Sunday.

SECURITY cameras havebeen used without permissionin Son Servera since 2008.

Permission for the use ofsurveillance must be obtainedby the national government’sdelegation to the Balearics asexpressed in a law dating backto 1997 which regulates the useof security cameras by security

forces in public areas.The independent opposition

party known as On SonServera (On SS) condemnedthe use of the cameras andcalled for the administration toremove them immediately.

The party is also demand-ing to know who the personresponsible for having them

installed was.Son Servera’s mayor Natalia

Troya said that up until recent-ly she was unaware of theproblem. She stressed she hasordered that the use of the cam-eras be suspended and the townhall is looking into the situa-tion. An additional camera lo-cated in Costa de los Pinos hasalso been removed.

Antoni Canovas, spokesper-son for On SS, pointed outthree cameras installed in 2008at the Parc Verd and four othersput up in the Plaça Mallorca inCala Millor in 2010.

Canovas stressed the seri-ousness of the matter sayingthat recordings have been madefor the past eight years withoutauthorisation and are, there-fore, totally illegal.

NEWS11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN12

Florists expect StValentine’s Daysales to be down

Illegal security camerasin use in Son Servera

By Sandra Galo

MOST florists will be open on the Sunday

RED ROSES: Popular with the men.

13NEWS 11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorcawww.euroweeklynews.com EWN

BUSINESSES of the Balearic nightlife are high-ly concerned about a decision made recently bythe Balearic High Court to annul a civil ordi-

nance regulating open-air drinking and other re-lated activities.

Jesus Sanchez, president of the Balearic asso-ciation of party halls (ABONE) affirmed thatbusinesses have taken measures to resolve the

situation as they see the high season approachingwithout any regulations in place. These issues, heexplained, have been a concern for years now,especially for businesses in Platja de Palma area.

Mayor of Palma Jose Hila and councillor for

Tourism Joana Maria Adrover, have assured thebusinessmen that they are working to resolve thesituation. In the meantime, ABONE has request-ed an urgent meeting with the Playa de PalmaSecurity Committee and the National Police.

EL CORTE INGLES has ex-panded its service in Palma toinclude online shopping withthe option of having items de-livered in just two hours.

The new service is also be-ing offered in seven othercities including Zaragoza,Murcia, Alicante, Valladolid,Vigo, Santander and Marbel-la. This brings the total num-ber up to 14. Clients in thecities of Madrid, Barcelona,Valencia, Sevilla, Bilbao andMalaga were the first to tryout the service launched justbefore Christmas of last year.

The online service withtwo-hour delivery time islinked to a real-time geoloca-tion system so that clients canfind out exactly where theirorders are. The website offersmore than 100,000 itemswhich clients can have conve-niently delivered to theirdoor.

THE Balearic and Valenciangoverments have recentlyjoined forces to break thecurrent status quo that bothregions receive the worstfunding per capita from theState.

The bilateral agreementwhich was signed on Monday(February 8) in Palma byBalearic President FrancincaArmengol and ValencianPresident Ximo Puig propos-es a ‘fair and transparent’model of funding for all au-tonomous communities inSpain by promoting changesto the State’s allocation offunds.

By Sandra Galo

No regulations against open-air drinkingLOCAL businesses have taken measures to resolve the situation as the high season is rapidly approaching

El CorteIngles’ 2-hourdelivery service

Joiningforces overfunding issue

NEWS11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN14

TOURISTS spent over €11 billion last year in theBalearic Islands.

This number represents a 6 per cent increasefrom the previous year. According to the latestEgatur report from the national tourism ministry,the Balearics were just below the national averageof 6.8 per cent. The islands ranked number twounder Andalucia which registered an unusuallyhigh increase of 10.7 per cent.

Tourist spending throughout Spain rose tomore than €67 billion, a rise from €63 billion in2014. Topping the list were British tourists whospent over €14 billion representing an increase ofmore than 10 per cent. Next were the Germanswho spent just under €10 billion. French touristsfollowed in third position spending more than €7billion. Scandinavian countries spent more than€5.5 billion followed by Italians who spent morethan €3 billion. The overall number of touristsvisiting the country has also been on the rise.

EFFECTIVE this year, users of the publichealth system will no longer be required to paythe €8.43 fee for their IB-Salut health cards.

According to the government, the measurewill save the population more than €189,000.Councillor for Health Patricia Gomez expressedthat this decision means a citizens’ right thatshould never have been lost has now been re-turned. She stressed that the Balearic govern-

ment is committed to offering free quality pub-lic health service to all citizens of the BalearicIslands.

The health card allows access to health ser-vices offered by the national health system andadditional benefits guaranteed by the local gov-ernment. The process to renew the card can bedone by making an appointment by phone orregistering in person at your local health centre.

IB-Salut Health cards free

By Sandra Galo

Balearics secondfor tourist spending REPRESENTS a 6 per cent increase from last year

THE Balearic governmentplans on reducing the numberof beach stands and other ac-tivities in protected areas ofMallorca.

It is not clear yet how thiswill be accomplished. Thestands may be required to oc-

cupy less space or operate forfewer hours each day or forfewer days of the week.

The government will studythe impact of these small busi-nesses and other activitieswhich include bars and restau-rants, jet-ski rentals and sport-ing events to see how they areimpacting the environment and

whether they are in line withthe directives outlined by theEU’s Natura 2000 initiative.

According to an ordersigned by Vincenç Vidal, Min-ister of Environment, both newand established installationswill be required to inform thegovernment of their businessactivity.

HOLDERS of Palma’s Tarjeta Ciudadana (Citizens card) buscard will now pay less to use lines 1 and 21 (the airport andPort buses).

This means that card holders will now pay €1 instead of€1.50 and those with special discounts (students and pen-sioners) will only pay 67 cents. This represents a 33 per centdecrease in the rate of these two bus lines. Single tickets,however, will actually increase in price from €3 to €5. Around-trip ticket costing €8 will also be implemented allow-ing bus users to transfer to any other line.

NEWS11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN16

RESIDENTS in the SonGotleu area of Palma havereported a sudden increaseof satanic rituals and blackmagic in their area.

Neighbours of the streetsof Tomas Rullan, Pico Mul-hacen and Veleta say theyhave recently discoveredmakeshift altars where ani-mal sacrifices have takenplace. Beheaded chickensand rabbits were foundalong with candles and rem-nants of foreign clothing.

Gines Quiñonero, presi-dent of the Orson WellesNeighbours’ Association ofSon Gotleu, said they arenot giving it much impor-tance.

Sacrifices inSon Gotleu

By Sandra Galo

Lower fare for card holders

BEACH STANDS: It is planned to reduce the number and also other activities in protected areas.

Reduction of stands

THE weather on the island hastaken a very different turn fromconditions at this time last year.

In February of 2015, snowcovered the Tramuntana areacausing roads to be closed andrescue missions to be undertak-en. This year, the island is ex-periencing a very different sce-nario with temperatures in

some parts of the island reach-ing up to 20ºC (68ºF).

Maria Jose Guerrero, directorof the Balearic branch ofAEMET (the national meteoro-logical agency), explained thatthe tremendous weather varia-tion is being caused by the in-fluence of high pressure over aperiod of months. She alsopointed out the unusual dry pe-riod that Mallorca has been ex-

periencing since October of lastyear with the highest averagetemperatures recorded and arainfall deficit of 77 per cent.

Last month was the secondwarmest January on record,with both maximum and mini-mum temperatures higher thannormal. On January 8, PuertoPollensa registered tempera-tures reaching up to 25 degreesCelsius (77ºF).

NEWS11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN18

Eternal springin MallorcaLAST month was the second warmest January on record

By Sandra Galo

SUNNY WEATHER: Mallorca’s unusually warm winter.

Two arrestedin drugs raidTWO men were arrested in adrug raid in the village of SonServera last week.

Armed officers of theGuardia Civil’s narcotics andserious crime fighting divisionsused a battering ram to gain en-trance to the property located inCalle Creus. They arrested aman, aged 58, and his 19-year-old son for drug dealing.

Guardia Civil officers in Artahad been receiving an increas-ing number of complaints re-garding suspicious activity atthe property of people (includ-ing minors) visiting to allegedlybuy drugs.

Officers found €3,000 alongwith 60 grammes of marihuanaand 40 grammes of hashish.

By John Smith

THE market must be bad when aSwiss bank announces that it is tocut jobs, which is exactly whatCredit Suisse has done followingthe publication of its 2015 figures,

which show a loss of €2.3 billion,its first since 2008.

The bank blames substant ia lcharges which have arisen, includ-ing an enormous wri te off con-nected with a company i t tookover in 2000. Following the an-

nouncement, shares have fallen by9 per cent to their lowest levelsince 1992.

The biggest problem for theSwiss bank appears to be in its in-vestment banking business, whichit may withdraw from.

ZICA: To be renamed due to its similarity to the zika virus.

LONDON - FTSE 100 DOW JONES NASDAQ-0.12% -1.29% -3.44%CLOSING PRICES FEBRUARY 8

IBEX 35 -0.63%

WITH Abengoa debts of more than€5 billion, a number of smaller com-panies owed money by the companyare badly affected as their cash flow iscausing short term difficulties.

They have banded together to re-quest that payment be made quicklyalthough a positive result is unlikely.

In the meantime, the company hasrequested that their subsidiaries in Ar-gentina be protected against debtclaims, whilst they negotiate termswith their bankers.

IT must be incredibly frus-trating for the teams of ex-perts, who spend weeks try-ing to decide a name for anew car which will appeal toall and not insult anyone.

This is probably best ex-emplified by the embarrass-ingly named Mitsubishi Pa-jero, which was fine in mostareas but didn’t appeal to theSpanish market.

Now Indian car manufac-

turer Tata find themselveswith a ‘double whammy’,where their Tata ambassadorLionel Messi is to appear incourt charged with tax eva-sion, and their latest car theZica is going to have to berenamed because of its simi-larity to the Zika virus.

There will be a cost to therenaming, but the companyobviously feels that it will becommercially sensible.

Tata Motors latest carthe Zica will be renamed

Interestingtimes ahead AS the various parties meetwith PSOE leader PedroSanchez to thrash out termsfor their support, he is goingto inherit a difficult financialposition if he forms a gov-ernment.

Podemos have alreadysaid that they want to see apostponement of debt reduc-tion, whilst he has to remem-ber that the national deficit isalmost 100 per cent and theEuropean Commission be-lieves that the deficit is dueto get worse.

Yahoo cuts FAILING household nameand internet pioneer Ya-hoo is to lose 1,600 work-ers around the world.

It will close offices in anumber of cities includingMadrid, in an effort tohalt its colossal losseswhich amounted to justover €4 billion in 2015.

THE financial crisis has had a rather unex-pected effect on the quality of the food thatSpanish families have been purchasing.

Although some luxury markets are seeing a

steady growth, the cost of healthy foods suchas fish, oil and milk has generally increased,partly fueled by the fact that consumption hasfallen.

The cost of healthy foodshas increased in Spain

is the amount that Credit Suisseexpected to save by losing

4,000 staff and reviewing itsLondon operation.

Quote of the WeekThe important thing for the new government is to be realisticabout expectations and not to believe in utopia. Francisco

Gonzalez president of BBVA on the new Spanish government.

CLOSING PRICES FEBRUARY 8CLOSING PRICES FEBRUARY 8CLOSING PRICES FEBRUARY 8

€800M

Abengoaupdate

PUBLICATION of the bank’s 2015 figures show a €2.3 billion loss

Credit Suisse to cut 4,000 jobs

BUSINESS EXTRA

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FINANCEbusiness & legal

21Mallorca EWN11 - 17 February 2016

A EURO WEEKLY NEWS 6 PAGE SPECIAL SECTION // WWW.EWNBUSINESS.COMSTAT OF WEEK €1.5 billion is the profit that Gas Natural Fenosa made in 2015, which is an increase of 2.7 per cent

over 2014 profits.

MMM 3M 153.47 +0.03 +0.02% 3.4MAXP American Express 53.98 -0.40 -0.74% 9.2MAAPL Apple 94.02 -2.58 -2.67% 46.4MBA Boeing 122.56 -1.05 -0.85% 6.2MCAT Caterpillar 66.12 +0.16 +0.24% 7.5MCVX Chevron 82.88 -1.91 -2.25% 15.1MCSCO Cisco 22.89 -0.65 -2.76% 32.6MKO Coca-Cola 42.44 -0.09 -0.21% 17.3MDIS Disney 93.90 -1.53 -1.60% 8.9MDD E I du Pont de Nemours and Co 58.89 -0.21 -0.36% 5.3MXOM Exxon Mobil 80.08 +0.25 +0.31% 26.7MGE General Electric 28.54 -0.64 -2.19% 52.0MGS Goldman Sachs 156.47 -0.02 -0.01% 4.6MHD Home Depot 116.43 -4.68 -3.86% 8.1MIBM IBM 128.57 +0.92 +0.72% 7.2MINTC Intel 29.04 -0.73 -2.45% 28.0MJNJ Johnson & Johnson 100.54 -3.36 -3.23% 15.5MJPM JPMorgan Chase 57.75 -0.65 -1.11% 22.0MMCD McDonald's 115.40 -5.26 -4.36% 13.3MMRK Merck 49.38 +0.79 +1.63% 16.9MMSFT Microsoft 50.16 -1.84 -3.54% 62.0MNKE Nike 57.17 -3.00 -4.99% 14.4MPFE Pfizer 29.03 +0.03 +0.10% 38.9MPG Procter & Gamble 81.20 +0.50 +0.62% 10.0MTRV Travelers Companies Inc 106.29 -1.20 -1.12% 2.8MUTX United Technologies 87.84 -0.28 -0.32% 5.2MUNH UnitedHealth 111.72 -2.48 -2.17% 3.3MVZ Verizon 50.97 +0.54 +1.07% 25.8MV Visa 71.54 -2.14 -2.90% 12.9MWMT Wal-Mart 67.00 +0.58 +0.87% 14.2M

Kleinwort Benson Elite PCC Ltd

Johnson Matthey 2,330.50 -1.50 -0.06 4,781.76Kingfisher 322.45 -1.05 -0.32 7,560.37Land Securities Group 1,066.00 0.00 0.00 8,423.24Legal & General Group 213.25 1.35 0.64 12,625.03Lloyds Banking Group ORD 62.20 0.40 0.65 44,166.07London Stock Exchange Grp 2,304.00 -15.00 -0.65 8,046.49Merlin Entertainments 401.20 -1.00 -0.25 4,070.70Marks & Spencer Group 417.00 1.70 0.41 6,848.53Mondi 1,160.00 -6.00 -0.51 5,666.41National Grid 960.80 1.80 0.19 35,893.21Next 6,617.50 -2.50 -0.04 10,112.59Old Mutual 161.75 0.45 0.28 7,953.28Provident Financial 2,848.50 -12.50 -0.44 4,210.96Prudential 1,233.25 5.25 0.43 31,592.28Persimmon 1,955.00 -10.00 -0.51 6,040.41Pearson 784.00 5.50 0.71 6,377.74Reckitt Benckiser Group 6,082.00 14.00 0.23 43,366.09Royal Bank of Scotland Group 242.30 0.40 0.17 15,575.26Royal Dutch Shell 1,546.50 11.50 0.75 59,918.19Royal Dutch Shell 1,547.50 11.00 0.72 37,504.23RELX 1,164.50 -5.50 -0.47 13,130.87Rio Tinto 1,871.00 53.00 2.92 25,602.44Royal Mail 432.45 -2.85 -0.65 4,345.00Rolls-Royce Group 519.25 -9.75 -1.84 9,716.97Randgold Resources 5,465.00 165.00 3.11 4,917.26RSA Insurance Group 394.55 0.05 0.01 4,007.55SABMiller 4,159.00 24.00 0.58 66,914.94Sainsbury (J) 251.95 1.05 0.42 4,825.36Schroders 2,534.50 -9.50 -0.37 5,761.31Sage Group (The) 601.50 0.50 0.08 6,488.63Shire 3,626.00 -45.00 -1.23 21,722.49Sky 1,021.50 -6.50 -0.63 17,705.88Standard Life 358.15 4.65 1.32 6,957.14Smiths Group 931.50 -6.00 -0.64 3,703.01Smith & Nephew 1,086.00 -7.00 -0.64 9,789.12Sports Direct International 393.15 -0.85 -0.22 2,355.26SSE 1,394.50 2.50 0.18 13,823.48Standard Chartered 462.48 9.43 2.08 11,528.86St James's Place 879.00 6.50 0.74 4,555.76Severn Trent 2,129.00 -11.00 -0.51 5,083.05Travis Perkins 1,751.50 -0.50 -0.03 4,357.05Tesco 176.48 1.88 1.08 14,202.26TUI AG 1,136.50 -7.50 -0.66 6,704.88Taylor Wimpey 181.05 -1.75 -0.96 5,968.48Unilever 2,972.00 4.50 0.15 38,058.42United Utilities Group 918.50 -4.50 -0.49 6,297.24Vodafone Group 208.45 1.45 0.70 54,822.97Wolseley 3,325.50 8.50 0.26 8,627.39Worldpay Group Ord 3p Wi 300.15 -1.65 -0.55 6,033.00WPP Group 1,395.50 -21.50 -1.52 18,521.28Whitbread 3,757.50 -27.50 -0.73 6,875.19

Most AdvancedMulti-Fineline Electronix, Inc. $ 22.59 6.16 ▲ 37.49%TTM Technologies, Inc. $ 6.55 1.21 ▲ 22.66%Control4 Corporation $ 8.08 1.48 ▲ 22.42%Immunomedics, Inc. $ 2.20 0.38 ▲ 20.88%Supernus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $ 12.13 2 ▲ 19.74%SPI Energy Co., Ltd. $ 7.28 1.0048 ▲ 16.01%Saia, Inc. $ 25.46 2.93 ▲ 13.00%BeiGene, Ltd. $ 33.91 3.41 ▲ 11.18%Silver Standard Resources Inc. $ 5.41 0.52 ▲ 10.63%ProShares UltraPro Short QQQ $ 26.36 2.48 ▲ 10.39%ProShares UltraPro Short NASDAQ Biotech $ 42.50 3.83 ▲ 9.90%

Most DeclinedUnited Development Funding IV $ 7.08 3.12 ▼ 30.59%YRC Worldwide, Inc. $ 7.46 3.25 ▼ 30.35%Quotient Limited $ 7.48 2.82 ▼ 27.38%Elizabeth Arden, Inc. $ 5.95 2.07 ▼ 25.81%Sierra Wireless, Inc. $ 10.93 3.76 ▼ 25.60%Splunk Inc. $ 36.23 10.86 ▼ 23.06%Starz $ 24.30 6.93 ▼ 22.19%Five9, Inc. $ 7.06 1.65 ▼ 18.94%Outerwall Inc. $ 27.04 5.65 ▼ 17.28%ePlus inc. $ 75.51 15.64 ▼ 17.16%Hortonworks, Inc. $ 8.48 1.74 ▼ 17.03%

CCOMPANYOMPANY PPRICERICE((PP)) CCHANGEHANGE((PP)) % C% CHGHG.. NNETET VVOLOL

DOW JONESCLOSING PRICES FEBRUARY 8

Anglo American 367.90 4.55 1.25 5,058.95Associated British Foods 3,092.00 -5.00 -0.16 24,498.36Admiral Group 1,712.50 10.50 0.62 4,761.59Aberdeen Asset Management 242.45 -0.05 -0.02 3,216.32Ashtead Group 885.00 -11.00 -1.23 4,504.93Antofagasta 453.55 7.25 1.62 4,413.19ARM Holdings 955.50 -27.50 -2.80 13,875.44Aviva 433.30 1.70 0.39 17,465.50AstraZeneca 4,072.25 -37.25 -0.91 51,901.55BAE Systems 477.90 -1.10 -0.23 15,131.83Babcock International Group 904.00 1.50 0.17 4,562.98Barclays 174.25 1.10 0.64 28,900.56British American Tobacco 3,739.75 13.25 0.36 69,468.83Barratt Developments 583.50 -5.00 -0.85 5,868.19BG Group 1,067.00 7.00 0.66 36,279.55Berkeley Group Holdings 3,347.50 -42.50 -1.25 4,637.46British Land Co 715.25 -0.25 -0.03 7,302.98BHP Billiton 722.50 13.30 1.88 14,962.97Bunzl 1,836.00 -4.00 -0.22 6,158.72BP 349.05 -1.60 -0.46 64,166.99Burberry Group 1,229.50 11.50 0.94 5,424.74BT Group 472.65 -3.25 -0.68 39,747.82Coca-Cola HBC 1,310.50 -2.50 -0.19 4,784.48Carnival 3,104.00 -24.00 -0.77 6,767.76Centrica 195.50 -0.80 -0.41 9,745.11Compass Group 1,221.50 1.50 0.12 20,232.41Capita Group (The) 1,090.50 -7.50 -0.68 7,311.69CRH 1,751.00 -19.00 -1.07 14,528.80Dixons Carphone 441.95 1.85 0.42 5,084.28DCC 5,065.00 -20.00 -0.39 4,483.69Diageo 1,807.00 10.50 0.58 45,210.56Direct Line Insurance Group 363.55 1.55 0.43 5,447.25Experian 1,156.00 -6.00 -0.52 11,465.75easyJet 1,530.50 9.50 0.62 6,057.42Fresnillo 803.25 15.25 1.94 5,832.51GKN 269.55 -0.35 -0.13 4,451.40Glencore 105.58 3.43 3.36 14,863.34GlaxoSmithKline 1,404.75 3.75 0.27 68,141.51Hikma Pharmaceuticals 2,105.50 -5.50 -0.26 4,198.36Hargreaves Lansdown 1,210.00 -10.00 -0.82 5,808.03Hammerson 567.00 0.50 0.09 4,443.12HSBC Holdings 454.68 -3.17 -0.69 89,321.74International Consolidated Air 503.75 -2.75 -0.54 10,339.43InterContinental Hotels Group 2,279.00 -5.00 -0.22 5,382.293i Group 423.65 1.65 0.39 4,116.43IMPERIAL BRANDS PLC 3,505.50 3,505.50 0.14 N/AIntu Properties 288.30 -0.30 -0.10 3,821.17Inmarsat 1,019.50 -0.50 -0.05 4,592.41Intertek Group 2,785.00 3.00 0.11 4,482.63ITV 253.15 -2.35 -0.92 10,323.16

CCOMPANYOMPANY PPRICERICE((PP)) CCHANGEHANGE((PP)) % C% CHGHG.. NNETET VVOLOL

COMPANY PRICE CHANGE NET / %

US dollar......................................................................1.11528Japan yen ................................................................130.637Switzerland franc ..................................................1.10785Denmark kroner...................................................7.46283Norway kroner ....................................................9.53304

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currenciesdirect.com/mallorca • Tel: +34 687 906 226

FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN22

EWN24 FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.com

DESPITE the weakness ofthe Chinese economy, theworld’s largest luxury goodscompany LVMH announcedrecord sales, which rose by16 per cent in 2015 to€35.67 billion.

The company, whichowns a number of theworld’s most prest igiousbrands including LouisVuitton and Christian Dior,said that trading in Francewas almost back to normal

after the attacks in Novem-ber.

Despi te the increase inrevenue, net profit at €3.57billion was just short of ex-pected target, but this didnot have an adverse effect

on its shares, which contin-ue to rise.

The company reportedstrong progress in Europe,the United States and Japan,which helped compensatefor lower sales in China.

Luxury goods company LVMHannounce record sales in 2015

LVMH: Own prestigious brands including Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior.

Ofgem to investigate Age Uk’sgas and electricity promotions

By John Smith

A SHOCKING report by The Sunnewspaper in the UK suggests that acharity specifically set up to supportthose who are elderly, has been ben-efitting by promoting expensive gasand electricity tariffs in return forpayment by E.ON, and this is nowto be investigated by official bodyOfgem.

It appears that on its website thecharity recommends a particular tar-iff, but investigators suggest thiswas not the cheapest tariff offeredby the company, and those who fol-lowed the charity’s advice couldhave been £245 (€343) worse off in2015 than if they had taken E.ON’scheapest rate.

Both par t ies have rejected theclaim although it does appear thatAge UK has received about £6 mil-

l ion (€7.8 mil l ion) f rom thearrangement in commission.

E.ON, whilst admitting there wasa cheaper deal, explained that onewas a two-year deal, whilst the oth-er was a one-year deal only. Thecompany also said some people pre-ferred to fix the price for as long aspossible and that consumers couldalways switch deals at no additionalcost.

The fact remains, however, thatthe charity did appear to be recom-mending a deal that was not thecheapest to pensioners in return fora financial advantage, and this iswhy Ofgem will undertake an inves-tigation into their activities.

DUE to the amount ofnegative reaction com-ing from the generalpublic in Spain, the om-budsman has decided tolook at the actions beingtaken by banks to intro-duce charges for the useof ATM machines bynon-customers.

According to a royaldecree which becamelaw at the start of 2016,banks may pass oncharges they receivefrom the bank holdingthe account of a non-customer who uses oneof their machines.

Due to loose wordingin the law, some banksappear to be profi t ingfrom the charges andthis is what is to be in-vestigated with the pos-sibility of the law beingamended.

New bankchargeswill belooked into

CHARITY appeared to be recommending a deal that was not the cheapest

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25FINANCE, BUSINESS & LEGAL EWN11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorcawww.euroweeklynews.com

By John Smith

THERE is no question that oil is pushingeconomies almost to breaking point at themoment, with the massive fall in wholesaleprices caused by the slowdown of the Chineseeconomy in particular.

Fears that Iran will flood the market has meantthat the mega rich economies, such as SaudiArabia and global oil companies are losingincome and shares continue to fall.

Even though petrol pump prices in Spainhaven’t really reflected the real fall in price,unlike the UK where prices have plummeted, theoil giants such as Repsol are writing off hugeamounts on their accounts, and this is alsoreflected in the number of job losses beingexperienced within the industry.

BP has suffered its worst losses in 20 years andis to cut 3,000 employees directly, plus a further4,000 people in third party jobs, and with anegative result for 2015 of €6 billion, there isdownturn of nearly €10 billion on the previousyear.

Royal Dutch Shell has confirmed it is cutting10,000 jobs amid its steepest fall in annual profits

for 13 years, although it still managed to make aprofit of €3.4 billion down from €17 billion theprevious year.

It is still pushing forward with the takeover ofthe BG exploration group at a cost of €47 billion,which it intends to fund in part by the sale of

assets. However, investors are now questioningwhether this is a prudent investment with the all-time low in oil prices.

Fall in oil prices continues to pusheconomies closer to breaking point

ROYAL DUTCH SHELL: Company has confirmed they will cut 10,000 jobs after a steep fall in profit.

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HOW refreshing it was to tune into Sky newsthis week and be confronted by the two bubblyblack presenters, Philip Butah and GillianJoseph.

These two young people, at the top of theirchosen profession, are both articulate and en-tertaining. What a wonderful example to thehordes of other young blacks, who constantlyblame the reason for their lack of success orfailures in life on the colour of their skin.

Well, I’m sorry, but ‘cause I’m black’ simplydoesn’t hack it any more. Even when manyblack people actually are successful, they stillcomplain about racist bias.

Prime examples of this antiquated attitudewere the actors involved in the recent Oscars.Whinging and moaning, these extremelywealthy and spoiled divas queued up to com-plain that there weren’t enough black actors in-cluded in the nominations this year. They

blamed the Academy and its members of os-tracising black people on purpose. What a loadof complete codswallop. For heaven’s sake thepresident of the Academy is himself black!

The true problem this year was there wereno black performers or movies that merited anaward. You can’t base an award on the colourof someone’s skin.

This is the type of reverse racism that stirsup all the trouble in the first place. If, as wassuggested, there were not enough scripts avail-able for black performers, for goodness sakeget your heads down and write some.

There are a whole multitude of talentedblack script writers and authors out there. It’sup to them to even up the balance, if indeed anunbalance even exists.

For God’s sake grow up all of you. Just castyour mind over the black success rate of thepast few generations. The finest athletes in theworld. The world top racing driver. The highestpaid TV personality in history. The finest fe-male tennis players. A golfing number one.The list goes on and on, right up to the presi-dent of the USA himself.

Talent, perseverance and luck are the differ-

ences between failure andsuccess, not the patheticexcuse of colour.

Keep the faithLove Leapy

leapylee2002@gmail.com

How refreshing

LEAPY LEE SAYS IT

OTHERS THINK IT

YOU can’t blame a lack of success on skin colour

BARACK OBAMA: The list goes on, right up to the president of the USA himself.

OPINION & COMMENT EWN11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca 27www.euroweeklynews.com

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GOOD morning Leapy,Having just read your article on

immigration I couldn’t agree more. Imoved to Benalmadena Pueblo near-ly a year ago to escape the constantbarrage of immigration horror sto-ries we are inundated with, murder,Daesh, and God knows what.

It plays on your mind and is veryunsettling. Our government havecompletely underestimated the hugeinflux of foreign migration and thebreeding they also produce. Anarchyon the streets of the UK is coming,sooner rather than later tensions willbreak.

I am more than happy to now bein my own world in Spain, I feelsafe. As a former commuter to Lon-don from Brighton I certainlywouldn’t now, it’s terrible to feelthat way.

In some parts of London ‘sharialaw’ signs adorn lamp posts. Why isthat allowed??? I ran a Bentleygarage in Kensington. We put an ad-vertisement up and were written toand made to remove it by Kensing-ton Council with an enforcement no-tice.

Our idiotic government are tooscared to oppose these people. Andnow it’s way too late to save it. Ifear for the UK now, it is already aMuslim state. The only people thatdon’t see it are the ones in power intheir millionaire world.

Keep up the good work, morepeople should say what they think.

Russ,Benalmadena.

Referenduminformation

DEAR team,First may I say how much I enjoy

your newspaper. It is very well writ-ten, with lots of news and views. I al-ways look forward to its arrival herein Arboleas.

I have a question. Have you everwritten about how an OUT of Europeresult from the referendum would af-fect all of us expats? If not, I wouldgreatly appreciate some informationabout it. I am particularly concernedabout the health aspect. I am sure thatthis information will be very useful to

many of your readers.If you are not planning any editori-

al coverage in the near future, canyou advise me where I should go todiscover this information for myself?

Many thanks and keep up the ster-ling work.

With kind regards,Adrienne Winmill, Arboleas.

EWN says: Please see this week’sOur View column for our thoughtson this matter. We will continue toinvestigate and keep our readersinformed as and when more infor-mation becomes available.

Fear for thefuture

DEAR Leapy,I have read your articles many

times and always enjoy them. Youtalk so much common sense and saywhat so many people feel. You arereally honest and clearly could neverbecome a politician.

I reckon you would get a littlefrustrated if you worked in parlia-ment every day.

Like so many others I feel so frus-

trated about the way things are andfear for the future, not for myself butfor my children and grandchildren.

I am a member of UKIP and be-lieve the expat newspapers andpoliticians will try to make expatsfeel they must vote to stay in theEU.

There will be a scare campaign toconvince pensioners they will losetheir healthcare and all will losetheir rights to stay here.

Surely Spain will not wish to losetheir British expats who contributeso much financially. And Britainwill not want hundreds of thousands

of pensioners returning to the UK,with dire consequences for thehealth service.

I do hope that you can givecounter arguments if a scare cam-paign develops.

I know you will give a fair andbalanced argument.

Yours sincerely,Brian Egan,

between Orihuela and Torrevieja.

Little ArrowsDEAR Mr Lee,I am sure that I am not the only

one who loves (and still do) yoursong Little Arrows. It has specialmeaning to me.

My Dad would play your song onour record player as he worked onremodelling my sister’s bedroomand mine.

My Dad passed away in 1999, andI still hear your song whenever I gointo my room. I now live in my par-ents’ home and the song still ringsout.

Thank you for a most memorablesong and may God continue to blessyou.

Yours very truly,Bob Kious

Mattoon, IL.

Cyclist menaceDEAR Sir,I wish to congratulate Mrs Linda

Hall for her article last week on thecyclists on the road who are training.

It is a real scandal the way theyput the traffic in danger.

My experience is on the roadMoraira-Benitachell.

Kind regards,Permeke,

Benitachell.

The views expressed and opinions given in Letters are not necessarily those of the EWN publishers. They accept no responsibility for accuracy of information, errors, omissions or statements, and reject claimsarising out of any action that a company or individual may take on the basis of information contained therein.

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WHEN YOU WRITE

YOUR PAPER - YOUR VOICE - YOUR OPINION

Leapy, having just read yourarticle I couldn’t agree more

A horrifying find

OPINION & COMMENTEWN28 www.euroweeklynews.com11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca

MY partner and I often walk our dogs along the banks of the Guadalmansa River, a local beautyspot popular with hikers and cyclists near Cancelada, Estepona.

On Saturday we were dismayed and horrified to discover that a large pile of rubbish and unwantedhousehold items including a child’s pushchair and a sofa, had been dumped at the popular picnic and barbecuearea.

I searched the rubbish in vain to find anything that could identify the culprits. Fly-tipping is a problem in manylocal scenic spots and I hope the public will help identify and track down people who behave in such an anti-socialway.

There are many ways in which people can dispose of unwanted items within the law, and without spoiling peo-ples’ enjoyment of the countryside. They can contact their town hall for information.

Mary Page, Estepona

DID you know St Valentine’s Day didn’t start offlinked with romance? Far from it. It began as acelebration of one or more (the exact number’svague) early Christian saints named Valentinus.

According to one of the most popular stories,Saint Valentine was imprisoned for ministering toChristians persecuted under the Roman Empire.During his imprisonment, he’s said to have healedthe daughter of his jailer Asterius and, legend hasit, before his execution wrote “from your Valen-tine” as a farewell to her.

It wasn’t until the Middle Ages that the dayfirst became associated with romance. And by the15th century, it’d developed into a full-blown af-fair with flowers, chocolates and the exchange of

greetings cards (known as ‘Valentines’). Thesedays it’s the second most celebrated event aroundthe whole world after New Year’s Eve.

Now, apart from keeping florists, confectionersand card makers in business, it also seems to helpprop up the economy in these challenging times.

In the USA for instance, Valentine’s Day 2016is estimated to be worth $20 billion. From a nightout on the town to flowers and jewellery, Ameri-cans are planning to spoil their loved ones bigtime this Valentine’s Day.

Which reminds me of that old joke: A marriedcouple’s already spent several hours at a shoppingcentre on the eve of St Valentine’s. Suddenly, thewife realises her husband’s gone AWOL.

Angrily she phones him, demanding: “Whereare you, eh?”

Husband: “Darling, remember that jewellerystore where you saw that gorgeous diamond eter-nity ring but I didn’t have the money that timeand said, ‘Darling, it’ll be yours one day, reallysoon?’” Wife, trying to stop blushing and sudden-ly contrite, gushes: “Yes, I remember…darling!”

Husband: “Well, I’m in the wine bar next tothat store.” Romantic, eh? Have a nice day!

Nora Johnson’s thrillers ‘Landscape of Lies,’‘Retribution,’ ‘Soul Stealer,’ ‘The De ClerambaultCode’ (www.nora-johnson.com). All profits toCudeca charity.

OPINION & COMMENT EWN11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca 29www.euroweeklynews.com

Nora JohnsonBreaking ViewsNora is the author of popular psychological suspense and crimethrillers and a freelance journalist. To comment on any of the issues raised in her column, go towww.euroweeklynews.com/3.0.15/nora-johnson

IT wasn’t until the Middle Ages that the day first became associated with romance and is now the second most celebrated event

All the ways to say I loveyou on Valentine’s Day

VALENTINE’S GIFTS: Helps prop up the economy in these challenging times.

11FEBRUARY

12FEBRUARY

13FEBRUARY

14FEBRUARY

15FEBRUARY

16FEBRUARY

17FEBRUARY

7:00pm BBC News at Six7:30pm BBC London News8:00pm The One Show8:30pm EastEnders9:00pm Dickensian9:30pm Room 10110:00pm Death in Paradise11:00pm BBC News at Ten11:30pm BBC London News11:45pm Question Time12:45am This Week

7:30pm BBC London News8:00pm The One Show8:30pm A Question of Sport9:00pm EastEnders9:30pm Dickensian10:00pm Shetland11:00pm BBC News at Ten11:25pm BBC London News11:35pm The Graham Norton

Show12:25am Would I Lie to You?

7:00pm Eggheads7:30pm Great American Railroad

Journeys8:00pm Sea Cities9:00pm Cats v Dogs: Which is Best?10:00pm The Story of China11:00pm The Clare Balding

Show11:30pm Newsnight12:15am James May's Cars of

the People

7:30pm ITV Evening News8:00pm Emmerdale8:30pm Tonight9:00pm Emmerdale9:30pm Birds of a Feather10:00pm Jericho11:00pm ITV News at Ten

and Weather11:40pm Car Crash Britain

Caught on Camera12:40am Murder, She Wrote

TV LISTING11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN30

FRIDAY

THURSDAY

7:00pm Eggheads7:30pm Great American

Railroad Journeys8:00pm Sea Cities9:00pm Mastermind9:30pm What to Buy and Why10:00pm Earth's Greatest

Spectacles11:00pm QI11:30pm Newsnight12:00am Artsnight

7:00pm The Simpsons7:30pm Hollyoaks8:00pm Channel 4 News9:00pm Jamie and Jimmy's

Friday Night Feast10:00pm First Dates11:00pm The Last Leg12:05am Virtually Famous12:55am Rude Tube1:50am Boomerang

6:30pm Neighbours7:00pm Home and Away7:30pm 5 News Tonight8:00pm Fail Army8:30pm That's So 19899:30pm Bankrupt and Broke:

When Celebs Go Bust11:00pm Lip Sync Battle UK11:30pm The Best of Bad TV:

The 90s1:00am Super Casino

2:50pm Cricket6:30pm Football Gold6:45pm Football Gold7:00pm Barclays Premier

League World7:30pm The Fantasy Football Club8:30pm Rugby League11:15pm A League of Their

Own12:15am The Fantasy Football

Club

7:30pm ITV Evening News8:00pm Emmerdale8:30pm Coronation Street9:00pm The Martin Lewis

Money Show9:30pm Coronation Street10:00pm Mr Selfridge11:00pm ITV News at Ten and

Weather11:45pm Birds of a Feather12:15am Evil Under the Sun

7:55pm BBC News8:05pm Regional News8:10pm Weather8:15pm The Voice UK9:30pm The National

Lottery10:20pm Casualty11:10pm BBC News11:25pm Weather11:30pm Match of the Day12:55am Meet the Parents

SATURDAY7:30pm Back in Time for the

Weekend8:30pm Henry VII: The Winter

King9:30pm Dad's Army10:00pm The Real Marigold

Hotel11:00pm Live at the Apollo11:45pm Insert Name Here12:15am There Will be Blood

5:00pm Come Dine with Me5:25pm Come Dine with Me6:00pm Come Dine with Me6:25pm Come Dine with Me7:00pm Come Dine with Me7:30pm Channel 4 News8:00pm Great Canal Journeys9:00pm Penelope Keith's

Hidden Villages10:00pm RoboCop12:20am Apocalypto

7:55pm 5 News8:00pm World War II in

Colour9:00pm Nazi Quest for the

Holy Grail10:00pm The Championship11:00pm Goal Rush11:30pm Law and Order:

Special Victims Unit12:25am Law and Order:

Special Victims Unit

4:00pm Ellery Hanley Interviews Frank Bruno

5:00pm Boxing Gold5:30pm Boxing Gold6:00pm Ford Saturday Night

Football9:00pm SNF: Game of the

Day11:00pm SNF: Match Choice12:30am SNF: Match Choice2:00am SNF: Match Choice

7:15pm ITV News and Weather

7:30pm You've Been Framed!8:00pm Ninja Warrior UK9:00pm Take Me Out10:20pm The Jonathan Ross

Show11:20pm ITV News and

Weather11:35pm Twins1:30am Jackpot 247

6:35pm Nature's Miracle Orphans

7:35pm BBC News7:50pm Regional News7:55pm Weather8:00pm Countryfile9:00pm Call the Midwife10:00pm BAFTA Film Awards

201612:00am BBC News12:20am Regional News

SUNDAY6:30pm Flog It!7:15pm Ski Sunday8:00pm Six Nations Rugby

Special9:00pm Greece with Simon

Reeve10:00pm Chinese New Year:

The Biggest Celebration on Earth

11:00pm Match of the Day 212:10am Tron Legacy

3:35pm The Harry Hill Movie5:20pm The Simpsons5:50pm The Simpsons6:20pm Channel 4 News6:45pm Mr. Popper's

Penguins8:30pm The Jump10:00pm Deutschland 8311:45pm Predator1:45am Embarrassing Bodies2:40am Come Dine with Me

3:00pm James and the Giant Peach

4:30pm Alvin and the Chipmunks

6:15pm What a Girl Wants8:25pm 5 News8:30pm Jumper10:00pm Homefront11:55pm Armoured2:10am Super Casino

10:30am Goals on Sunday12:30pm Ford Super Sunday3:00pm Ford Super Sunday5:00pm Ford Super Sunday7:55pm The Gloves are Off8:25pm Football10:30pm The Gloves are Off11:00pm Ford Football Special12:30am The Sunday

Supplement2:00am Goals on Sunday

7:15pm ITV News and Weather

7:30pm Planet's Got Talent8:00pm Beowulf: Return to

the Shieldlands9:00pm Vera11:00pm ITV News and

Weather11:15pm Rookie Cops12:15am Aviva Premiership

Rugby Highlights

9:00pm EastEnders9:30pm Panorama10:00pm The Not So Secret

Life of the Manic Depressive: 10 Years on

11:00pm BBC News11:30pm Regional News11:40pm Weather11:45pm Tracey Ullman's Show12:15am Have I Got News for

You

MONDAY7:30pm Great American

Railroad Journeys8:00pm Great Interior Design

Challenge9:00pm Chinese New Year:10:00pm The People v O.J.

Simpson - American Crime Story

11:00pm Mock the Week11:30pm Newsnight12:10am Weather

6:00pm Come Dine Champion of Champions

7:00pm The Simpsons7:30pm Hollyoaks8:00pm Channel 4 News9:00pm Dispatches9:30pm Supershoppers10:00pm Royal Navy School11:00pm Crashing11:35pm Tattoo Fixers

6:00pm 5 News6:30pm Neighbours7:00pm Home and Away7:30pm 5 News8:00pm FIA World Rally

Championship Highlights

9:00pm Ice Road Truckers10:00pm The X Files11:00pm Gotham12:00am Trespass

6:00pm Fantasy Football Club Highlights

6:30pm Soccer A.M. - The Best Bits

7:30pm Football League Goals

8:30pm Football11:00pm Football League

Goals12:00am Fantasy Football

Club Highlights

7:30pm ITV Evening News8:00pm Emmerdale8:30pm Coronation Street9:00pm Griff's Great Britain9:30pm Coronation Street10:00pm Benidorm11:00pm ITV News at Ten and

Weather11:45pm The Jonathan Ross Show12:50am Car Crash Britain

Caught on Camera

7:30pm Regional News8:00pm The One Show8:30pm EastEnders9:00pm Holby City10:00pm Happy Valley11:00pm BBC News11:30pm Regional News11:40pm Weather11:45pm My Baby, Psychosis

and Me12:45am Animals

TUESDAY8:00pm Great Interior Design

Challenge9:00pm Back in Time for the

Weekend10:00pm Chinese New Year:

The Biggest Celebration on Earth

11:00pm Phone Shop Idol11:30pm Newsnight12:10am Weather

7:00pm The Simpsons7:30pm Hollyoaks8:00pm Channel 4 News9:00pm The Secret Life of the

Zoo10:00pm The Supervet11:00pm First Dates12:00am Britain's Weirdest

Council Houses1:05am 16 Kids and

Counting

6:30pm Neighbours7:00pm Home and Away7:30pm 5 News8:00pm The Dog Rescuers9:00pm Bargain Loving Brits

in the Sun10:00pm The Great British

Benefits Handout11:00pm Milly's Killer: How

Many More?12:00am The X Files

5:00pm Football Gold5:15pm Football Gold5:30pm Boxing Gold7:00pm Fantasy Football

Club Highlights7:30pm Football Gold7:45pm Football Gold8:00pm ATP 500 Masters-

Rio1:30am One2eleven1:45am One2eleven

7:30pm ITV Evening News8:00pm Emmerdale8:30pm The Kyle Files9:00pm It's Not Rocket Science10:00pm Heroes and Villains:

Caught on Camera11:00pm ITV News at Ten and

Weather11:40pm School Swap12:45am Double Decker

Driving School

6:15pm Pointless7:00pm BBC News7:30pm Regional News8:00pm The One Show9:00pm The Great Sport Relief

Bake Off10:00pm DIY SOS The Big Build11:00pm BBC News11:30pm Regional News11:40pm Weather11:45pm Life After Suicide12:45am Film 2016

WEDNESDAY6:15pm Antiques Road Trip7:00pm Eggheads7:30pm Great American

Railroad Journeys8:00pm Great Interior Design

Challenge9:00pm £100k House: Tricks

of the Trade10:00pm One Child11:00pm The Great Chinese

Crash? With Robert Peston11:30pm Newsnight

3:10pm Deal or No Deal4:10pm Countdown5:00pm A Place in the Sun6:00pm Come Dine Champion of

Champions7:00pm The Simpsons7:30pm Hollyoaks8:00pm Channel 4 News9:00pm Posh Pawn10:00pm 24 Hours in A and E11:00pm Bodyshockers12:05am Royal Navy School

4:15pm The J.K. Rowling Story6:00pm 5 News6:30pm Neighbours7:00pm Home and Away7:30pm 5 News8:00pm The Nightmare Neighbour

Next Door9:00pm GPs: Behind Closed Doors10:00pm Violent Child, Desperate

Parents11:00pm The Boy with Giant Hands12:00am 10,000 BC

1:30pm Fantasy Football Club Highlights

2:00pm The Premier League Years

4:00pm Boxing Gold4:30pm Boxing Gold5:00pm Boxing Gold5:30pm Boxing Gold6:00pm The Premier League

Years8:00pm ATP 500 Masters- Rio1:30am One2eleven

6:00pm The Chase7:00pm Local News and

Weather7:30pm ITV Evening News8:00pm Emmerdale8:30pm Coronation Street9:00pm Midsomer Murders11:00pm ITV News at Ten

and Weather11:45pm UEFA Champions

League Highlights12:45am The Kyle Files

6:30pm Barclays Premier League World

7:00pm BPL Legends7:30pm BPL Legends8:00pm Premier League

Darts 2016 11.02 Castle

11:30pm The Mavericks12:00am La Liga Show 201512:30am Barclays Premier

League World

7:00pm Home and Away7:30pm 5 News Tonight8:00pm Ben Fogle: New

Lives in the Wild9:00pm Winter Road Rescue10:00pm Inside the World's

Toughest Prisons11:00pm 10,000 BC: Two

Tribes12:00am The Great British

Benefits Handout

7:00pm The Simpsons7:30pm Hollyoaks8:00pm Channel 4 News9:00pm Location, Location,

Location10:00pm Keeping Up with the

Khans11:00pm Britain's Weirdest

Council Houses12:05am 24 Hours in A and E

WE’VE had Blue Monday back inJanuary, supposedly the saddest day ofthe year, when we’re all broke and thesun isn’t shining. But now we’ve got tofight our way through February whichapparently is the least favourite monthof the year.

Poor February, it has so many thingsgoing for it: Pancake Day, Carnival,Valentines, and every four years an ex-tra day, just to throw you off the scent.But if you are struggling to get throughthen I have some tips for you to getyour happy face back on.

Although happiness can be largelydictated by our genes, there are scien-tifically proven ways to get and stayhappy. So try these out:

Meditate: focusing on the presenthelps lessen depression and anxiety.(You could sign up for a meditationclass at Bodhana in Portals or checkout your local yoga studio, or down-load ‘Headspace’ on your phone).

Go outside: a study was done on a

group of students who were separated,some were sent to stay in the forest andsome in the city for two nights. Thegroup who spent time in the forestwere found to have lower levels of cor-tisol, a hormone which marks stress.

(Check out Walk and Talk who organ-ise country walks. Get in touch withChris Bate at walk-and-talk@hotmail.com).

Get involved in cultural activities:out of 5,000 adults examined in Nor-

way, those involved in cultural activi-ties reported lower levels of anxietyand depression, and a higher satisfac-tion for quality of life. (Check out yourlocal associations and see what theyare doing, get out and about and join a

social group, or come along to nextweek’s Supper Club on Thursday Feb-ruary 18 at Mood Beach at 7pm andmake some new friends. Reserve oninfo@moodbeach.com).

Spend money on others: 46 volun-teers were given envelopes of money.Half of the group were told to spend iton themselves, and the other half weretold to spend it on a gift or make a do-nation. Those that spent their moneyon others had a higher level of happi-ness. (Make a small monthly donationto a charity and make a difference:Mediterranea or Castra y Donar for ex-ample both ask for a small regular do-nation which will not break the bank).

Volunteer: 40 studies over 20 yearsshow that volunteering lowers the riskof depression and increases overall sat-isfaction. (Or get out there and physi-cally help out, I know the Cancer Sup-port Group are looking for volunteersfor ad hoc visits and translation. Socontact Krista Hyer on 659 887 455).

Failing that, an exercise session, achat with a friend, a nice glass of wine,or some chocolate will do it, in my ex-perience! Okay February, let’s be hav-ing you! www.mallorcamatters.com

Vicki McLeod

Family Matters

Getting exercise and staying happyHAVE a chat with a friend, a nice glass of wine or some chocolate and get yourself through February

FEBRUARY: Has so many things going for it including Valentine’s Day.

OPINION & COMMENT EWN11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca 33www.euroweeklynews.com

PISCES(February 20 - March 20)Satisfaction with your love life isparamount this week, and the opinion ofothers seems important to you. Perhapsyou are looking for an excuse to make achange. It is possible, however, that achange is not required so much as adifferent approach. It is not essential toput all your eggs in one basket.

ARIES(March 21 - April 20)A conversation with a colleague bringsinsights into how others live and it is quitean eye-opener. Friendships are particularlyimportant this week. You have beendashing around and maybe not enoughthought has gone into how you spend yourleisure time.

TAURUS(April 21 - May 21)There is something in you that needs acreative outlet. Perhaps you would like towrite a book: memoirs, for instance, takeup a craft or paint. Learning a newlanguage would also be satisfying.

Certainly, food for the brain and soul arewhat you should be seeking now.

GEMINI (May 22 - June 21)Being very much in demand for yourtalents this week means less time tospend socially, so it’s important to maketime for loved ones at the weekend.Someone seeking your advice maysimply be seeking your approval for anaction they are going to take anyway.

CANCER(June 22 - July 23)There may be some opposition to yourideas as Pluto turns this week. Perhapsyour natural charm just doesn’t seem tobe working. As you have helped othersin the past, make it clear that you expecta bit of co-operation. It is not throughlack of will that some people do notoffer help.

LEO(July 24 - August 23)This is a week when progress is fast andplans run ahead. Try new ideas and seek

information to hone your knowledge.An organisation that is new to youoffers insight and social involvement.An offer that thrusts you into thelimelight might be avoided at first butwould be to your advantage.

VIRGO(August 24 - September 23)Although you have perhaps beenlooking to money-making ideas toprogress finances, think also ofalternatives. Perhaps there are areas ofyour lifestyle where money could besaved. Items that are not used could besold for a profit and rid you ofclutter.

LIBRA(September 24 - October 23)Having suffered a bit of a setback lastweek, you may be feeling lessconfident.

Revving up your social life willcertainly help to bring spirits up again.Be with people who liven or inspire youin some way and avoid boring ormoaning folk.

1. FOOL’S GOLD, 2. PENN & TELLER, 3. ROCI-NANTE (ROSINANTE, ROZINANTE), 4. SCOUT, 5.ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 6. 18, 7. FESTE, 8. OS-MONDS, 9. WAR HORSE, 10. NEW SEEKERS

Average: 12Good: 16

Very good: 23Excellent: 30

TARGET:

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION

TIMEEURO WEEKLY’S SPACE FOR YOU TO TAKE A BREA

34 11 - 17 February 2016 / MallorcaEWN www.euroweeklynews.com

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE SPONSOR GO TO WWW.LINEADIRECTA.COM SPONSORED BY

10-Star Quiz ONLY FOOLS ANDHORSES

Nonagram

Spirituality seepsright through the

week. As you are feeling particularly sensuous, invite someone specialto dinner or on a trip. Visit garden centres and plan ahead. The coloursand perfumes will be particularly pleasing.

YOURSTARS

AQUARIUS (January 21 - February 19)

IRISH LOTTO EURO MILLIONS LA PRIMITIVA EL GORDO DE LA PRIMITIVA

UK NATIONALLOTTERY

BONUS BALL LUCKY STARS REINTEGRO REINTEGRO

S Sun, Cl Clear, F Fog, C Cloudy,

Sh Showers, Sn Snow, Th Thunder

Fri -Sat -Sun -

21 14 C22 13 C21 9 C

MAX MIN

Mon -Tues -Wed -

16 8 C16 8 C16 9 Sh

MAX MIN

MAX MIN MAX MIN

Fri -Sat -Sun -

20 13 C22 13 C20 11 C

Mon -Tues -Wed -

16 8 Cl16 9 C17 10 Sh

MAX MIN MAX MIN

Fri -Sat -Sun -

19 13 C21 14 C18 9 C

Mon -Tues -Wed -

16 9 Cl15 9 S16 9 C

MAX MIN MAX MIN

Fri -Sat -Sun -

13 9 Sh15 8 C12 3 Sh

Mon -Tues -Wed -

10 1 C12 2 C13 3 S

MAX MIN MAX MIN

Fri -Sat -Sun -

20 14 C20 14 C19 9 C

Mon -Tues -Wed -

16 8 C17 8 S19 9 Cl

MAX MIN MAX MIN

Fri -Sat -Sun -

18 11 C20 11 C18 8 Sh

Mon -Tues -Wed -

14 6 C15 6 C16 7 Sh

Mallorcaweather

Saturday February 6

10

for next 7 days

Fill the grid so thatevery row, everycolumn and every 3X3box contains the digits1-9. There’s no mathsinvolved. You solvethe puzzle withreasoning and logic.

Sudoku

BACK

Move from thestart word (JUDO)to the end word(TIPS) in the samenumber of stepsas there are rungson the Word Lad-der. You must on-ly change one let-ter at a time.

JUDOLUDOLIDOLIDSLIPSTIPS

JUDO

TIPS

Word Ladder

MAX MIN MAX MIN

Fri -Sat -Sun -

21 13 C21 12 C20 8 C

Mon -Tues -Wed -

16 7 C15 8 C16 9 Sh

MAX MIN MAX MIN

Fri -Sat -Sun -

24 14 C26 13 C23 11 C

Mon -Tues -Wed -

16 9 C18 8 C19 8 Sh

Alicante TODAY: SHOWERS MAX 21C, MIN 12C

MadridTODAY: SHOWERS MAX 15C, MIN 7C

AlmeriaTODAY: SHOWERS MAX 19C, MIN 12C

MalagaTODAY: SHOWERS MAX 20C, MIN 13C

Barcelona TODAY: CLOUDY MAX 17C, MIN 11C

Mallorca TODAY: SHOWERS MAX 17C, MIN 8C

BenidormTODAY: SHOWERS MAX 19C, MIN 11C

MurciaTODAY: SHOWERS MAX 23C, MIN 12C

12 18

34 52 56

17 4 8 7

Saturday February 6 Friday February 5 Saturday February 6 Sunday February 7

6 3 4 14

25 42 45

3 27 32

41 46

6

26

3 14 40

49 51

SCORPIO(October 24 - November 22)Thoughts come to you, perhaps indreams, that are creative and energyboosting. Someone who recently movedout of your sphere is sadly missed but isin some ways still a part of you. A personat work who has been causing youconcern needs investigation, but the factsmay be less alarming than you suspect.

SAGITTARIUS(November 23 - December 21)A strong and exciting romantic feelingflows through the week, which is fittingas Valentine’s Day comes round againnext month. Someone returning from atrip makes you smile and boosts yourspirit. People who have been a littlebossy of late finally realise that you willnot rise to the bait.

CAPRICORN(December 22 - January 20)It’s a better week for travel with lesslikelihood of delays. Should you befeeling a little lethargic and sorry aboutrecent events, just count your blessings.Consider raising some money andhaving fun at the same time by indulgingin a garage or car boot sale. Doingsomething entirely different can boostyour mind and activity levels, whichcan’t be bad. Working with others is agiggle and spills over into your sociallife.

MADDOCKS’ VIEW ON LIFE

LAST

WEE

K’S

SO

LUTI

ON

UK THUNDERBALL

Saturday February 6

THUNDERBALLBONUS BALL

50 8

12 18

3121

into iron nett noir note oven rein rent tent terntine tint tone torn vein vent vine vino envoiinert inter intro niter nitre nitro noter ovineriven tenor toner trine invert ironer orientrotten tinter tonier triton torrent tritoneINTROVERT

How many Englishwords of four letters

or more can you makefrom the nine letters inour Nonagram puzzle?

Each letter may beused only once

(unless the letterappears twice). Eachword MUST CONTAINTHE CENTRE LETTER

(in this case G) andthere must be ATLEAST ONE NINELETTER WORD.

Plurals, vulgarities orproper nouns are not

allowed.

LOTT

ERY

1. Because of its metallic lustre and pale brass-yellow hue,by what other name is the mineral pyrite or iron pyrite alsoknown? 2. Fool Us is the title of a British-American television pro-gramme in which magicians perform tricks in front of whichAmerican magician-comedian duo?3. In the novel Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes, whatis the name of the title character’s horse? 4. In the television Western series The Lone Ranger, whatwas the name of the title character’s companion, Tonto’shorse? 5. The famous saying: “You may fool all the people someof the time; you can even fool some of the people all thetime; but you can’t fool all of the people all the time” is of-ten attributed to which 19th century US president? 6. The names of British racehorses are limited to how manycharacters, including signs or spaces? 7. What is the name of the fool in Twelfth Night who claims‘fools are as like husbands as pilchards are to herrings, thehusband is the bigger’? 8. Which American family music group reached numbertwo in the UK singles chart in 1972 with Crazy Horses? 9. Which children’s novel by Michael Morpurgo, first pub-lished in 1982, recounts the experiences of Joey, a horse pur-chased by the Army for service in World War I France andthe attempts of young Albert, his previous owner, to bringhim safely home? 10. Which group topped the UK singles chart in 1973 withYou Won’t Find Another Fool Like Me?

weather

11 20

38 46

21 6

‘MUST GO MOTHER - IT’S MISTER RIGHT MYVALENTINE ARRIVING!’

POLLENÇA

CALA MILLOR INCACALVIA

ANDRATXPALMA

MAGALLUFLLUCMAJOR

CALA d’OR

ALCUDIA

TODAY

POLLENÇA

CALA MILLOR INCACALVIA

ANDRATXPALMA

MAGALLUFLLUCMAJOR

CALA d’OR

ALCUDIA

TOMORROW

Across1 Strange (8)4 Very light coloured (4)7 Looks at a book (5)9 Spiral shelled mollusc (5)11 Encounters (5)12 Sailing vessels (5)13 Delicate (6)15 Selected (6)19 Discovers (5)21 Very large marine mammal (5)23 Dependable (5)24 Cause fear in (5)25 Fifty per cent (4)26 Protects (8)Down1 Maybe (7)2 Attraction (5)3 Help (6)5 Departures (5)6 Young sheep (4)8 Make off with (5)

10 Jumps over (5)14 Additional payment (5)16 Cures (5)17 Central mass (7)

18 Exchange (6)19 Recently made (5)20 Shortly (4)22 Rub out (5)

English - Spanish

3511 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca EWNwww.euroweeklynews.comOUT FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE SPONSOR GO TO WWW.LINEADIRECTA.COM

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Crossword Enjoy filling in the following puzzlesand check the answers in next week’s edition

LAST WEEK’SSOLUTIONS

Cryptic

Quick

The clues are mixed, some cluesare in Spanish and some are inEnglish.

page

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION

CRYPTIC

1 Sea dog, 4 Aspens, 9 Groat,10 Alabama, 11 Estrange,12 Dame, 14 System, 16 Deters,19 Deal, 20 Lacrosse,23 Dragons, 24 Exact, 25 Eyelet,26 Better.

1 Signets, 2 About, 3 Outdated,5 Scat, 6 Emanate, 7 Shame,8 Barge, 13 Retrieve,15 Swanage, 17 Shelter,18 Balsa, 19 Dodge,21 Scant, 22 Robe

7 Treated, 9 Alike, 10 Apt,11 Messenger, 12 Gains,14 Instant, 16 Testing,18 Piece, 19 Selection,20 Tub, 21 Dream,22 Hostile.

1 Straight, 2 Beat, 3 Stamps,4 Labels, 5 Disgrace, 6 Beer,8 Distinguish, 13 Insulted,15 Trembled, 17 Income,18 Punish, 19 Side,20 Thin.

1 Calles, 3 Arms, 7 Toe,9 Channel, 10 Apple-tree,13 Londres, 14 Sea,15 Team, 16 Casado.

1 Cita, 2 Escalera, 4 Runners,5 Silk, 6 Fantasma,8 Esponja, 11 Flat, 12 Sano.

Across:

Down:

Across:

Down:

Across:

Down:

QUICK

ENGLISH-SPANISHAcross1 Consejos (6)3 Celery (4)7 Labio (anatómico) (3)9 Banana (7)10 Fig (4)11 Artículo (4)14 Ill (7)15 Grape (3)16 Búhos (4)17 Playing cards (6)

Down1 Classroom (4)2 Armario (de cocina) (8)4 Meseta (geografía) (7)5 Smell (odour) (4)6 Butterfly (8)8 Doloroso (7)12 Kiss (4)13 Sombreros (4)

ASSERTBEACON(10)BUTANECASEINCHEERYCONFERFECUNDINBREDINFIRM

INSIDEMARROWMENTORMORBIDNETTLEPRESTORECALLTEASELTHEISMTHENCE

The purpose of the Hexagram puzzle is to place the 19 six-letter words into the 19 cells. The letters at the edges of

interlocking cells MUST BE THE SAME. The letters in the wordsmust be written CLOCKWISE. The word in cell 10 (BEACON)

and one letter in four other cells are given as clues.

Hexagram

LAST WEEK’S SOLUTION

Across1 Capital in the bank a raffle provides (6)4 Figures lacking energy but standing (6)7 Describing elegant dressers or liars

at a reunion? (9)9 Prefers new style post (4)

10 Bunk and a roll (4)11 Seaside feature is a cover for

illegal activities (5)13 Metal fastener for pleats, perhaps

(6)14 Intelligent leader embraces a tender

nature (6)15 A psychotic motel owner lets up (6)17 So, ‘Cars’ gets film awards (6)19 Georgia, for example, in poor taste

(5)20 Meet back at stream (4)22 Part of the Burma-Siam landmass

(4)23 People going to Silver Lake to find

animal collection (9)24 They are cold-blooded and

calculating! (6)25 Naughty kids find saints around

tents (6)

Down1 Rearranging cast or parts for

players (6)

2 Expression of regret for a girl notfinishing (4)

3 Put on treat I arranged (6)4 Well before summer (6)5 A container that’s slightly open (4)6 Composed - composed at each

part (6)7 Plan game anew after false start (9)8 Make sauce, lots, or it’s a pointless

endeavour (4,5)11 Escapes from parasites, one hears

(5)

12 Anxious for aimless teens (5)15 He attacked the Romans but

turned tail at first (6)16 Purloins duck between beginning

and end of shifts (6)17 Animals prepared to rest (6)18 He’s sad, possibly, in sunglasses

(6)21 Nothing but a lake (4)22 Help with a Verdi opera (4)

Code Breaker

1 Saloon 2 Senior 3 Loaves4 Auntie 5 Linden 6 Sortie7 Render 8 Raisin 9 Uproar10 Enable 11 Intone 12 Laurel13 Bridle 14 Sparky 15 Bullet16 Depute 17 Lumber 18 Beetle19 Member

Each number in the Code Breaker grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. Inthis week’s puzzle, 14 represents Q and 20 represents L, so fill in Q every time thefigure 14 appears and L every time the figure 20 appears. Now, using your knowledge ofthe English language, work out which letters should go in the missing squares. As youdiscover the letters, fill in other squares with the same number in the main grid and thecontrol grid.

JANUARY has been a particularly im-portant month for women and the debateconcerning the transition of payment ofpensions so that women qualify at thesame age as men.

In theory, with the call for overallequality this does not appear to be totallyunreasonable and with the governmentdesperate to save as much money aspossible, the £30 billion due to be savedis certainly not to be ignored.

The difficulty, however, as has beenhighlighted in two debates in the Houseof Commons and in a public meeting, isthat of fairness.

It was as early as 1995 that the thenLabour government decided to look tobring retirement ages for men andwomen in line but - and this is a veryimportant but - it was explained thatthere should be a transition period of 15years in order to allow women to makeprovisions so they were aware that they

would not receive a pension at 60, butwould either have to work longer ormake additional private arrangements.

This also seems perfectly reasonable,except that critics have argued the 1995decision was not properly explained tothe women affected and it was only asrecently as 2010 that some (but not all)

women were written to and advised thattheir retirement age had increased.

Thus, they may only have had a fewyears notice which would be insufficientto allow them to buy additional pen-sions, even if they could afford them andeven by working longer, they may nothave paid sufficient national insurance

contributions to qualify for the fullamount in any case.

This particularly affects women bornbetween October 6, 1953 and April 5,1955 who have seen their retirementages shoot up.

I speak with some bias as my wifewas born on October 10 1953 and there-fore won’t be able to claim a pension un-til she is 64 and eight months, but to addto her problem, she worked for a num-ber of years for the government inGibraltar where their pension age is 60.However because she worked for moreyears in the UK than Gibraltar, they arewithholding her pension until she reach-es retirement age in Britain.

One of the often used arguments formoving pension ages is that women livelonger than men, but recent figures haveshown the opposite with the average agefor men catching up with women.

This is a very complicated yet impor-tant matter which the British govern-ment appears disinclined to doing any-thing about, but for those who areinterested on how it may affect you,then there is a very strong pres-sure group, Women Against StatePension Inequality (WASPI) whichhas its own Facebook page.

I HAVE just been readingabout England’s most haunt-ed houses, but I can neverreally make up my mindabout ghoulies and ghostiesand all that hobgoblinystuff.

The only thing that goesbump in the night at myhouse is me trying to get tothe bathroom and walkinginto the door.

You hear of spooky ac-counts and watch TV docu-mentaries, and it’s certainlyenough to get you thinking,but it’s like UFOs - loads ofrespectable witnesses andgrainy pictures, but nothingthat quite leaves you con-vinced.

Surely there should havebeen at least one profession-al photographer armed with

the latest Pentax who hadmanaged to whirr off a loadof world class snaps by now.

This would leave nobodyin any doubt whatsoeverthat there are spectral fig-ures whooo-hoooing up dark

corridors or little grey men(they used to be green)whizzing around up there,but doing a darn good job ofavoiding us.

There are always excusesfor those iffy pics - ghosts

have no substance so cannotbe photographed; UFO’s arepowered electromagnetical-ly and so interfere with . . .stuff.

Well whatever. Nevertheless a school

friend and I did actually seea genuine UFO many yearsago. It wasn’t so much aflying saucer than a flyingellipsoid, and an ellipse aswe all know is a closedsymmetric curve that seemsto cut the surface of a coneby an oblique plane to thesymmetry axis angle,greater than the curve withrespect to the axis of revolu-tion.

Wikipedia’s great isn’t it. But okay it was cigar-

shaped.The thing is we both got a

good look at the object, al-though our parents did notbelieve a word of it becausewe were only 11 at the time.

“Mum, Dad, we’ve justseen a space ship!”

“That’s nice dear, nowclean your teeth and get tobed, it’s school tomorrow.”

“But Muuum...”“Bed!”Perhaps they have walked

among us for years dis-guised as our mothers? Itwould explain the curlers.

Is there anybody out there?LOADS of witnesses and grainy pictures, but nothing that leaves you convinced

Women’s pensions are in the newsONE often used argument for moving pension ages is that women live longer than men

HAUNTED HOUSES: Surely someone should have taken a decent photo of theghosts by now?

OPINION & COMMENTEWN36

IT’S all rather a lot to takein, especially as anythoughts about what wouldhappen if Britain leaves theEU can only be speculation.

Football teams don’t gen-erally turn up for a matchassuming they are going tolose (unless perhaps theyare David Cameron’s teamAston Villa), and the sameis true for politicians.

We don’t even know ifthe concepts agreed be-tween the prime ministerand Donald Tusk will be ac-cepted by the other mem-bers of the Union, whichmeans in turn there is noguarantee that he or theconservative party will berecommending a ‘yes’ vote.

The latest opinion pollsstate that 45 per cent ofthose asked are in favour ofleaving, but it has to be re-membered that they got theforecast completely wrongat the last elections, andhave recently revealed thereason for this was that theyhad asked the wrong peo-ple. In the infamous wordsof Homer Simpson, ‘Doh!’

The reality is that whilstwe may all have opinionson what could happen, noone can definitively statewhat the result will be. Onething which is fairly certain,however, is that it’s not go-ing to be the end of theworld and is likely to occurmore with a whimper than abang.

There may be 28 mem-bers of the EU at the mo-ment, but countries such asNorway and Switzerlandseem to get along relativelywell outside of the Union,without having to queue upat borders as third world cit-izens.

www.euroweeklynews.com

YOUR PAPER - YOUR VOICE - YOUR OPINION

Now we want to

hear your views.

What willthe result be?

OUR VIEW

www.euroweeklynews.com11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca

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IAIN DUNCAN SMITH: Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

John SmithRandomthoughts...

EU: Leaving will not bethe end of the world.

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Colin BirdA weekly look

Each week, Colin brings his slightly off-the-wall view of the world to the pages of EWNin his own irreverent style.

SALES of crisps are falling assnackers are choosing the

healthier option of popcornwhich has seen sales rise 169per cent in the last five years.

However, the nutrition pan-

els on the packets suggest thereis little difference between pop-corn and crisps.

For example, looking at a

packet of Tyrells brand of light-ly sea salted crisps, there are501 calories per 100g com-pared to the 487 in its lightlysea salted popcorn. The pop-corn also had slightly more fatand saturated fat than the crisps.

It also has more than doublethe salt per 100g at 1.3g versus0.5g. Some 7 per cent of snackproducts launched in the UKlast year were popcorn prod-ucts, up from just 3 per cent in2010.

Retail analysts Mintel saidpopcorn’s perceived health cre-dentials and ‘flavour innova-

tions have helped boost the seg-ment, along with its popularityamong younger consumers,who are more likely to snack.’

Health experts still say pop-corn is healthy, but now manycompanies are making it morecommercially attractive and areadding flavours and preserva-tives. To fully benefit from thelow fat snack you need to eat itin its original natural form assoon as it has popped, with nooils, fats or sugars added to it.In this form it is shown to holdnumerous antioxidants and vit-amins.

38 MallorcaEWN 11 - 17 February 2016

TO READ MOREV I S I T O U R W E B S I T E W W W . E W N L I F E S T Y L E . C O MHEALTH B E A U T Y &

A STUDY has found thatpeople who went to bed ear-lier and got up earlier in themorning, tended to be thin-ner than those who go tobed later.

The results came from astudy that analysed theDNA of self-professed‘night owls’ and ‘morninglarks’. It also discoveredthat those who woke earlierwere less prone to depres-sion and less likely to sufferfrom insomnia.

Almost 90,000 peoplewere asked if they were nat-urally a morning or a nightperson, and had their DNAanalysed, which revealed 15genes that were linked to aperson being a ‘lark’ or an‘owl’.

A preference for morn-ings increased the oldersomeone was.

Early risingcan makeyou slimmerBy Gemma Quinn

Snackers now choosing popcornBUT is it really a healthier choice as companies make it more commercially attractive?

POPCORN: Now with added flavours and preservatives.

WHAT happens when youhave been in a relationship fora long time, and the personthat stole your heart 15 or 20years ago no longer looks likethe package you married?Sound harsh?

Well not really, it just hap-pens to be another one of thosesubjects that people don’t liketo discuss.

How do you feel when theperson you married is nolonger the slim, healthy fit per-son that you fell in love withall of those years ago?

Whilst you on the otherhand are consistently takingthe effort and care to maintainyour early 20’s weight. Youcould say that I am being shal-low and that love is not justabout appearance, after all whocares about the love handlesand few extra fat rolls right?

However, the way I see it isthis. When I met my partner,he was handsome, fit, strong,healthy and generally in greatshape. This of course was im-portant to me on many levels,yes of course I loved him formany reasons, but being withsomeone that took care of theirhealth was of great impor-tance.

Some 15 years later, notmuch has changed. He likes togo out on his mountain bikeand attend the gym regularly.He enjoys big meals, as do I.

At weekends he often likesto try a few of the differentbeers that the supermarketshave to offer. He knows whenhe has overindulged or packedon a few kilos, as do I.

However, we have an un-written agreement to maintaina healthy, attractive body forourselves and for each other.

So my question is, if yourpartner asked you one day,does my stomach look big inthis? What would you say?Would you l ie to them toavoid hurting their feelings,or would you be honest and

tell it like it is? My next question to you is,

how do you feel? Do you feelconned that your goods nolonger match the descriptionon the package that you oncesigned up to? Sometimes honesty really is

the best policy, tact of course isvery important, but I havefound that often people need tohear the harsh stuff, and this inturn, shunts them into action.

There has been many a storyabout the woman that saw apretty awful photograph orvideo footage of herself anddecided to make a drastic lifestyle change, or the man thatlost 30kgs after being too fat tofit into his seat on the aircraft,

That is great news for thesepeople, however how muchbetter it would have been ifsomeone had cared about themenough to help them make adecision earlier.

Sizing up yourpartner… Is honestythe best policy?

FitFoxyLooking Good, Staying Trim

HEALTH & BEAUTY EWN11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca 39www.euroweeklynews.com

Informationabout antibiotics

Brought to you by Helicopteros Sanitarios.

Ask TheDoctor

The Coast’s Home GP service - wherever you are - athome - in the office - in the car - on the golf course -

your GP will get to see you any time, anywhere.A priceless service at an affordable price.

- I’ve been prescribed an-tibiotics for a throat infec-tion but am a bit worriedabout taking them. Itseems in Spain antibioticsare prescribed for justabout everything, and Ihave heard that this is notgood as excessive usecauses immunity meaningthey’re no good when re-ally needed. Is this true?

- Most infections of thistype are caused by viruses,meaning antibiotics are notrequired and treatmentconsists of targeting thesymptoms with medicationfor pain, fever, etc.

Occasionally doctorswill prescribe antibiotics toprevent a bacterial infec-tion or because we believethe initial infection wascaused by bacteria, whichneed antibiotic treatment.

It is true that sometimesdoctors prescribe morethan are necessary. Thiscan lead to bacteria devel-

oping resistance to certainantibiotics, but this occursthrough repeated use overlong periods of time, ratherthan occasional use.

- I’m also worriedabout side effects. Lasttime I took them they up-set my stomach.

- Stomach upsets andnausea are the most com-mon side effects.

Generally symptoms arebearable and patients areadvised to adapt their dietto avoid aggravating stom-ach problems. More seriousside effects can sometimeslead to the medication hav-ing to be suspended.

- Do I have to takethem all or can I stoponce the pain and fevergo?

- Once you start a courseof antibiotics, unless yousuffer very severe side ef-fects you should completeit, even if symptoms disap-pear within 24 hours.

SPECIALIST: Doctor Luis Perez Belmonte.

This week we have asked the GP for more information about antibiotics, prescriptions andthe possible side effects.

PEDRO SANCHEZ accepted theking’s challenge of forming agovernment, and looks increas-ingly like a survivor.

Not of the political situationbut the PSOE hierarchy, whichstill resents that party memberschose Sanchez, not the grandees.

If he can survive that, he mighteven survive an investiture.

Setting a royalexampleTHE Infanta Cristina, daughter ofKing Juan Carlos, sister of KingFelipe and wife of the no-longerDuke of Palma de Mallorca, might

or might not have known abouther husband’s business interests.

She might or might not haveknown that he was siphoning offpublic money to Aizoon, the com-pany which she co-owned withhim.

But Cristina and her defenceteam are 100 per cent correct aboutone thing: she is in her current sit-uation because of who she is.

Even staunch republicans ap-preciate that there are many pub-lic, political and sporting figures,heaven forbid we should mentionMessi or Neymar, alleged to havecommitted worse fiscal crimes.

Spain’s judicial system mightbe demonstrating that it is impar-tial in pursuing Cristina, but ithas also revealed itself as selec-tive.

Cassandra NashA weekly look- and not entirely impartial reaction - to the Spanish political scene

Waving, not drowning PEDRO SANCHEZ has accepted the king’s challenge of forming a new government

Workers’ satisfactionIT came as no surprise that unemployment rose in January, becauseit always does once the December feeding and shopping frenzy sub-sides.

If the worst comes to the worst, and there is another election be-cause Pedro Sanchez can’t form a government, Mariano Rajoy willstill bang on about the employment his government created, seasonalsetbacks notwithstanding.

But as workers on temporary contracts or those working full-timeon ostensibly part-time contracts know, those jobs look good on pa-per, but amount to precious little in their pockets.

PSOE LEADER: Has the task of forming a new government.

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OPINION & COMMENTEWN40 www.euroweeklynews.com11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca

CALANOVA Cancer Carecharity shop in Palma is hav-ing a half-price sale.

The shop offers items forboth men and women includ-ing coats, jackets, ski wear,shoes, bags, lingerie withsome new and nearly new

pieces. There are many gor-geous pieces of costume jew-ellery and accessories to helpyou celebrate Valentine’s Dayin style.

The shop is open from10am to 6pm weekdays and10am to 2pm on Saturdays. Itis situated in front of theCalanova Sailing School,Joan Miro 358, San Agustin.Palma, 07015.

In March, Calanova CancerCare will be celebrating thedecades of the 60s and 70s ina special evening charityevent at Mood Beach.

If anyone would like tohelp out by sharing their tal-ents with songs of the era orimitations related to thosetwo decades, please get intouch with Angela on 609 848622.

O C I A LC E N ES42 MallorcaEWN 11 - 17 February 2016

TO READ MOREVISIT WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM/FEATURES/RESTAURANTS

Calanova Cancer Care shop sale andupcoming 60s and 70s charity event

Blessing ofthe throatSANT BLAI (Saint Blaise)patron saint and protectoragainst throat diseases wascelebrated in the village ofCampos on February 3, 6and 7. The tradition is towalk from the village to thechapel of Saint Blaise forMass where the necks of thefaithful are anointed withblessed oil for protectionagainst throat problems.

‘Panetets de Sant Blai,’typical bread rolls of thecelebration, are sold after-wards in stalls in the garden.

By Sandra Galo

SHOP has both men and womens fashions, shoes, bags, costume jewellery and accessories for sale

CHARITY EVENT: In March there will be a special evening celebrating the 60s and 70s.

www.euroweeklynews.com 43EWN11 - 17 February 2016 / MallorcaSOCIAL SCENE

NOMADS theatre group inAlcudia is putting on a two-day-only production entitledThe Sound of Nomadswhich is sure to delight au-diences.

After the great success ofOver The Rainbow lastyear, the group is now tak-ing on another musicalfavourite in The Sound OfNomads.

The show, packed withmusic and a touch of hu-mour, is sure to delight au-diences of all ages.

The Sound of Nomads

will be held at the Casa deCultura in Alcudia (OldTown) in Calle Hostal 9 onFriday February 19 at7.30pm and again on Satur-day February 20 at 2.30pmand 7.30pm.

Tickets are available atHornblower Embroideryand Little Britain in Pto Al-cudia , Pol lensa Care andESRA Thursday Club at Ve-cino’s in Puerto Pollensa.

For more information,call 627 293 273.

All profits will go to localor national charities.

The Soundof Nomads

www.euroweeklynews.com44 MallorcaEWN 11 - 17 February 2016

V I S I T O U R W E B S I T E W W W . E U R O W E E K L Y N E W S . C O M www.euroweeklynews.comPROPERTYTO READ MORE

THE Spanish banks have released the lat-est official figures on the number of mort-gages granted, and the statistics confirmthat mortgages have increased for the18th consecutive month, matching the in-crease in property sales throughout Spain.

These figures are also good news forthose of you selling your property thisyear. The figures show that more andmore banks are offering mortgages againafter many years of non-availability, andthis will help drive more property sales inSpain this year.

Actually, foreign buyers looking for amortgage have the additional option oftaking out an extra mortgage on theirproperty in their own country, for theirnew home in Spain.

It is also good news for buyers that in-terest rates will continue at a historic lowin 2016, and this will keep mortgage costsvery low indeed, which again will help todrive property sales in Spain.

Developers selling their new propertiesusually have an agreement with their bankand can offer a mortgage with each prop-erty, which makes it easier for the devel-oper to sell their properties and is conve-nient for the buyer.

Properties owned and sold by the banksalways include the option of a mortgage,which can be a high percentage of theproperty’s costs, which is proving to beattractive to buyers who only need to paya small deposit.

On resale properties the seller canarrange for the owners existing mortgageto be taken over by the buyer, but normal-ly the buyer finds their own new bankmortgage, which will base the mortgageamount on a bank valuation of the proper-ty.

What is important is that mortgages inSpain are again readily available at verylow interest rates, making 2016 the idealtime to buy, especially for buyers whohave been saving their deposits.

If you are buying or selling your prop-erty please contact me for further profes-sional information and advice.

John Graham Fellow of The Architecture & Surveyors

Institute.  Email gk.ipad@me.com

John Graham

The property expert

More good newsfor buyers STATISTICS released this week confirm thatmortgages have increased for the 18th consecu-tive month

THIS YEAR: Is the ideal time to buy for those who have been saving.

MORTGAGES: Readily available.

THE National Institute ofStatistics calculates that theaverage yearly salary inSpain is €22,697. Havingthis data as a point of refer-ence, the property websitepisos.com claims that a sec-ond-hand home can bebought for less than thatamount.

That means that eventhough a recent study has in-dicated that it is currentlynecessary to devote six yearsworth of salary to the pur-chase of a residence, it canin fact be done in less than ayear. If one isn’t too picky,that is.

Of course in reality, flatsthis cheap are few and farbetween. Only 0.39 per centof the offers on pisos.comare featured for less than thisprice, although the percent-age is sl ightly higher insome provinces, with a hefty2 per cent of the propertiesin Teruel fall ing into thisrange.

It goes without saying thatflats or residences on themarket might require morethan their fair share of fixingup. But for DIY lovers look-ing for a project or a bit ofpeace and quiet , some ofthese places could be justwhat the doctor ordered.

A second-hand homecan be asteal

45PROPERTY 11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorcawww.euroweeklynews.com EWN

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The property services includeselling your property, completeproperty project management ofyour new home in Mallorca, andproperty reform services from astudio apartment to prestigiousfrontline villa.

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SAD news this week, my carrier bag for lifehas passed on after a very short but happy ex-istence.

It was partly my fault because I continuallyoverloaded it. That’s because for some oddreason, I, like hundreds of others I have ob-served, totally begrudge paying for a carrierbag at the supermarket checkout.

I have often witnessed people coming outlike they are competing in that old TV showfrom the 50s/60s called Crackerjack.

Did you know that not all shops have tocharge for the carrier bags? For instance, allthe little supermarkets don’t have to charge.It’s only places with 250 employees or moreso there’s a few that are nicking a bit of profit.

Here’s a good one. I decided to buy a newTV so I went and had a look at one in one ofthe very big electrical stores here. I found oneI liked and did the deal and had to buy someextra cables and some other bits. I get to thecheckout and pay for the TV and arrange de-

livery. Now this was a 55 inch curved screen,so it was a nice few quid, well euros actually.

The girl on the checkout asks if I want abag for the other items. Of course I do. Howelse am I going to get the stuff to the car as Iexplain that my juggling skills aren’t thatgood? She says, “That will be 5 cents.”“What?” I’ve just spent all this money on thisTV and the cables and they want to chargeme for a carrier bag! Surely it’s not only me.

Well I know it’s not, because I observenearly every person at the different tills aregoing out with unbagged goods. Just give mea bag, hide the cost any way you like butdon’t tell me it’s an extra. I know it’s all aboutsaving the planet and the money is meant togo to charities, but on both counts I’vechecked and neither is entirely true.

There are some peculiar rules too. Did youknow, for example, they are not required tocharge for a bag containing an unwrappedblade and unwrapped loose seeds? But if youadd a box of cornflakes then they would haveto charge. Uncooked fish and fish products,uncooked meat, poultry and their productsdon’t get charged for.

So next time I go shopping I’m going tobuy a flick knife, a fish and some animalbody parts… and get a free carrier bag!!

Mike SenkerIn my opinionViews of a Grumpy Old Man

I begrudge payingfor a carrier bag

ALL traffic rules and laws are aimed at mak-ing the roads a safer place. The penalties as-sociated with infractions are mostly intendedto be a deterrent, which is why repeat of-fenders may face harsher penalties.

Here are a few of the most common trafficoffences, and the fines and sanctions forcommitting them.

Offence: Programming your GPS whendriving.

It is perfectly legal to use GPS navigationdevices in your vehicle, but you are not al-lowed to touch them when you are drivingbecause it distracts you. Set your journey be-fore you leave. If you go wrong, most de-vices will recalculate the route, so leave italone until you are stopped safely.

Fine: €200 plus the loss of three points.

Offence: Failing to maintain the properposition in the vehicle.

This can refer to passengers with their feeton the dashboard, drivers with their arms outthe window, or any other situation whereproper posture is not maintained. This is be-cause in the event of impact, the injuries sus-tained are considerably worse.

Fine: €80. Offence: Using radar detectors.Some GPS devices have information

which tells you where fixed radars and cam-eras are located, as this information is pro-vided freely by the DGT with the intentionof slowing traffic in these areas, and there-fore devices which give this sort of fixed da-ta information are permitted.

Fine: €200 and the loss of three points.

Let’s define ourterms. Properly,

when a community of prop-erty owners is constituted,each property is assigned a‘cuota de participación’ ac-cording to its size.

If they are not all thesame size, some will pay

more than others. Itsounds like the garagesought to pay more because

they have more. Now, it is not really ‘ille-

gal’ for a community tovote that all units pay thesame.

However, if even oneowner protests, then thecommunity will be orderedto pay by ‘cuotas’.

OUR urbanisation was formed 12years ago. At our first community

meeting we agreed that every house or apart-ment would pay the same urbanisation fee re-gardless of the size of the property.

For 10 years every dwelling continued topay the same amount. Some have a basementgarage with a separate entrance for cars.

A year ago we appointed new administra-tors, and they have informed the AGM that itis illegal for those with a garage to pay thesame rate as those who do not. This extracost will be €75 each year.

Is it correct that Spanish law requires anydwelling with a garage to pay separately?

PB (Costa Blanca)

LEGALLY SPEAKING

GPS while driving

For more news and articles visit www.n332.es or search N332 on Facebook.

David SearlYou and the Law in Spain

Can properties pay the same?

Send your questions for David Searl through lawyers Ubeda-Retana & Associates inFuengirola at Ask@lawtaxspain.com, or call 952 667 090.

AS part of a new series, we answer some common driving questions, kindly pro-vided by members of the Guardia Civil based in Torrevieja, Costa Blanca, whoset up the N332 website and Facebook page to help break down barriers.

RULES and laws aim to make the roads a safer place

OPINION & COMMENTEWN46 www.euroweeklynews.com11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca

DRIVERS: Are not allowed to touch GPS while driving.

SO far the early winterweather has been ideal, ex-cept for a couple of chillyhours some mornings, fornot only progressing speedi-ly with the annual wintercutback, but also to sit out inthe garden for breakfast andlunch, to take an occasionalrest with a refreshing bever-age.

So what can a good gardencontribute to your enjoymentof your life in Spain? In viewof the limits on size of arti-cle, I do this as a checklist.

1. All round interest fromplants and features, and thepresence of birdlife.

2. Sensible exercise, if youdelegate the heaviest jobs toa gardener or odd-job man asyou age.

3. Gets you outdoors to re-establish contact with natureafter, in many cases, an of-fice or car driven lifestyle.

4. Summer shade and shel-ter from scorching winds.

5. Winter sun and shelterfrom chilly winds. Recentlyit has been possible to strip

off and sunbathe in the gar-den to build up vitamin D re-serves.

6. Natural aromatherapyfrom the leaves and flowersof a variety of plants.

7. Attractive colour all theyear round, a kaleidoscopeof greens being the predomi-nant year-round colour ef-fect.

8. Comfortable seats withgood views, where it be-

comes natural to rest andswitch off from the rush ofmodern lives.

9. Productive offering sea-sonal fruits, vegetables,herbs and edible flowers andleaves throughout the year.Each being ecologicallygrown and providing a rangeof beneficial natural vita-mins, minerals and fibres.

With respect to this, mybook ‘Living well from the

garden Mediterranean Style’,will help you decide what isbest to plant, harvest and eator drink, as healthy alterna-tives to imported tea or cof-fee and some so-called ener-gy drinks.

When I checked this morn-ing it was £4.99 from Ama-zon Books UK, and €6.59from The Book Depository.

10. To maximise the bene-fit of eating and drinking

anything that you grow inthe garden, do ensure thatyou use no chemical prod-ucts. Use either nothing orjust natural sprays and dust-ings to solve any insecticideor fungal problems that oc-cur.

If you still have problemslocally in obtaining ecoproducts, have a look at thewebsites of Trabe or Neudorfand buy by mail order.

11. By going or stayingeco, educating neighbours ifnecessary, and having thickhedges one can enjoy cleanunpolluted air, one of the im-portant ingredients of a tradi-tional pre-expat Mediter-ranean diet.

12. A garden that givesyou a sense of wellness whenout in it for work or leisure.

Happy and healthygardening to all readers. Ifany gardening or social clubwould like a talk along theselines during the next year, doget in contact early to discusspossible locations and dates.

Contact is best via yourgardeninspain@hotmail.com.

© Dick Handscombewww.gardenspain.com Facebook –‘Gardening inspain – Handscombe’

February 2016.

4711 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca EWNwww.euroweeklynews.comHOMESGARDENS

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE SPONSOR GO TO WWW.LINEADIRECTA.COMSPONSORED BY&

Our good life gardens Dick Handscombe

Gardening CornerBy Spain’s best known expatriate garden-ing author living in Spain for 25 years.

WHAT can a garden contribute to your enjoyment of your life in Spain?

OUTDOORS: Re-establish contact with nature.

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XXX RELAXATION

ANIMAL intelligence is a no-toriously tricky concept for hu-mans to get their heads around,it’s difficult enough sometimesputting yourself in the shoes ofyour next door neighbour, nev-

ermind a creature from anotherspecies.

There are, however, basic in-dicators which make for someinteresting reading.

While there is of course a

huge variety within a species,and across breeds and personal-ities, scientists now considerthe average dog to have aroughly similar level of intelli-gence to a human toddler.

With the capacity to deceiveother dogs and understandmore than 150 words, dogs caneasily solve basic spatial aware-ness problems, and can betrained to a very high level.

When it comes to cat versusdog intelligence, the science isabout as settled as the opinionsacross pet owners.

Dogs have larger brains butcats have more neurons and ahigher information processingcapacity.

Throughout thousands ofyears of human interaction,dogs are clearly the more socialanimal and their brain evo-lution reflects this, while cat

brains have hardly changed inmillennia.

However, some point to-wards a ‘dumbing down’of dogs, as they come to

rely too much on humans,while cats have re-

tained a moreprimal intel-

l i g e n c ebased on in-

dependenceand caution.

Can you tell how intelligent your pet is?

50 MallorcaEWN 11 - 17 February 2016

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PAGE

IT can be a problem for largedogs and their owners whenpeople assume that the biggerthe dog the more ferocious theyare.

Any large dog owner will tellyou that while some breeds aredeveloped for their protectiveand fighting instincts, not allcarry this trait.

Stella was born in the moun-tains of Wales, and lived next toopen countryside. She’s used toroaming the fields with herowner Simon, taking in a lot ofwild terrain.

Since moving to the foothillsof the Sierra Nevada, theirwalks are still expansive. Butwhen in town the people arerather more fearful of Stella,

and she doesn’t understand. When house-sitters come to

care for Stella, Simon alwaysreassures them she is gentle andhardly even barks.

In order to help the sitters getused to being with a dog of hersize Simon always arranges forthe sitters to come a couple ofdays early for an extended‘meet and greet’ with Stella.

After two days in her compa-ny the pet-sitters realise thatwhen she gets close and evenleaps up she just wants affec-tion.

Although it can still be a sur-prise to new sitters that 50kg ofdog might run up to you, orlean heavily against your leg,they really only want a hug!

IDEAS to make it easier for you and your pet

Keeping cats indoors Stella thefriendly giant

Having a housesitter can be a win win for pet owners andthe sitters. To find a pet-sitter go to www.HousesitMatch.com

or call Lamia on +44 (0)1865521508WINDOW SEAT: Make sure your cat has a view of the outdoors and a sunny place to lie.

Stell

a –

by F

loria

n Sc

hum

ann

STELLA: Is very a friendly dog despite her size.

IF your cat was previously an out-door cat and you plan to keep her in-side, then good for you! Here aresome suggestions to help make thetransition easier for both of you.

- Spay or neuter: Spaying or neu-tering will rid your cat of those hor-monal urges to go out and seek amate. This will result in a calmer,friendlier cat.

- Play schedule: Schedule playtimes during the t imes your catwould normally be outside. This willdistract her from her normal routineand establish another safer routine.

- Window seat: Make sure yourcat has a view of the outdoors and asunny place to lie. Cats like to watchbirds, so putting a bird feeder out-side this window is likely to make ita favourite spot for your cat.

- Scavenger hunt: Give your cat agame to play by hiding bits of dryfood around the house. Hide the

food in paper bags, boxes and be-hind open doors.

This will give her exercise andkeep her busy so she doesn’t thinkof going outside. This is especiallygood to do right before the familyleaves the house for the day.

- Attention: Try to give your catextra love and attention during thisdifficult transition.

- Aversive: If your cat still won’tgive up meowing by the door, try anaversive. Leave strong citrus scentsby the door or hide behind a walland shake a pop can f i l led withcoins to interrupt the behaviour.

When she is quiet, walk out andgive her a food treat and encourageher to play or cuddle.

Listen to David on TRE every Saturday 10am to 11amCosta del Sol (Gibraltar/Sotogrande) 98.7fm(San Roque to Calahonda) 91.9fm (Calahonda to Motril) 88.9, Costa Calida 92.7fmCosta Blanca (Torrevieja to Elche) 105.1fm (Elche to Calpe) 88.2fm, (Calpe to Gandia & Ibiza) 104.6fm,(Denia to Valencia) 95.3fm Mallorca 103.9fm

David THE Dogman

Cats versusdogs.

THERE are always inno-vations and developmentin marine sports and theRS:X class has only beenin exis tence for a fewyears, yet has attracted asteady fol lowing s inceNeilPryde Windsurf ingwon the award to supplyone design of windsurfingequipment for the 2008Olympic Games in China.

The RS:X design fea-tures a high technologyrig, with carbon mast andboom, a ‘wide-style’board that merges modernwindsurf board designwith a centreboard, thusenabling competitions to

be held in vir tual ly anycondition from three to 30knots.

The 2016 RS:X WorldChampionships wil l beheld in Ei la t , Israel , onFebruary 22 to 27 andwith five days of racingfor both men and womenfrom around the world, itpromises to be an excitingand interesting champi-onship. The Rio 2016Olympic Games are justaround the corner andthere are still opportuni-t ies for a thletes f romsome of the 23 competingcountries to be picked fortheir national teams.

51BOATS 11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorcawww.euroweeklynews.com EWN

ANTHEM OF THE SEAS: One of the world’s newest and biggest cruise ships.

ONE of the world’s newest and biggestcruise ships was caught in a such a pow-erful storm on February 7 that the captainhad to order passengers to stay in theircabins for safety reasons, although somepassengers reported that there was somuch broken glass in the bathrooms thatit was more dangerous than the public ar-eas.

According to Royal Caribbean, ownersof Anthem of the Seas, the weather wasso wild with extreme wind and powerfulseas that because of the damage, it had nooption other than to terminate the cruiseand have the vessel return to port in NewJersey for repairs.

Costing $940 million (€835 million)and weighing 167,800 tons, the vessel isthe third largest cruise ship to be built butthe owners never envisaged the sort ofweather it encountered during the voyage.

Despite the fact that there was a greatdeal of damage done to the vessel inter-nally, only a very few of the 4,529 pas-sengers or 1,616 members of the crew re-ceived anything other than minor injuriesalthough one member of the US Senatehas called for an investigation as to whythe vessel was allowed to leave port inthe first place.

Disappointed passengers are due to re-ceive a full refund as well as discountsfor any future booking.

By John Smith

Not quite the Titanic, butcruise had to be stopped

2016 RS:Xclass World Championships

DISAPPOINTED passengers are due to receive a full refund

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Ein

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Damage onboard thevessel.

FORGET helicopters, on boardcars, motor bikes and speedboats, the ultimate gift for theowner of a superyacht has justbeen unveiled at the Consumerelectronics Show in Las Vegas,the world’s first passenger-car-rying drone which can deliver apassenger from ship to shorewithout a pilot.

The Chinese developedEhang 184 drone is 1.4 metreshigh, and uses eight propellerson four arms that can be foldedinto the vehicle’s body for stor-age and although there is no pi-lot, instructions can be enteredinto a touch screen on board sothat the drone’s computer cancalculate the quickest and safestroute to the destination.

Supposedly fail safe, it doeshave some limitations as the100 kilometre per hour dronewhich can fly at over 3,000 me-tres if required only has a 23

minute window before a fullycharged battery will run down.

Whilst you won’t be able tofly across the Atlantic, it couldwell be an ideal addition toyour superyacht to allow you a

safe and comfortable journeyfrom ship to shore and back,provided that you don’t mindpaying the expected price of be-tween £140,000 (€180,000)and £200,000 (€257,000) and

can find somewhere whichdoesn’t have laws prohibitingdrones.

On the plus side, the batteryrecharges within four hours andyou won’t need a chauffeur.

The ultimate yacht accessory

EHANG 184 DRONE: Will calculate the quickest and safest route to your destination.

Phot

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Alex

flick

r

Spanish competitor in 2015 race in Oman.

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ail

THE Club de Mar, organiser of the Illes Balears Clas-sic regatta, has created a new award called ‘Legendsof the Sea’ which will be awarded to ‘the participatingship that most embodies the spirit of classic sailing’according to Manuel Nadal, commodore of the club.

The trophy will be awarded by a jury of experts andwill be incorporated into the 2016 regatta which is dueto take place in the Bay of Palma from August 10 to13.

New Legends ofthe Sea award

ONE of the interesting events of the Dusseldorf Boat Showwhich closed on January 31 was the competition for bestmotorboat. Judges from eight of Europe’s top magazines in-cluding the editor of Spanish publication Nautica y Yateschose winners in five categories based on boat size whichtook into account space, value for money, performance andinnovation.

Spanish editorjudges boat showin Dusseldorf

www.euroweeklynews.com

MOTORING52 EWN Mallorca

SPONSORED BYFOR BEST RATES IN MOTOR INSURANCE CALL: 952 89 33 80

11 - 17 February 2016

THE smart-looking RenaultCaptur, albeit built on the un-derpinnings of the popularClio, has been given a machomakeover so it stands taller inthe urban jungle.

Its striking styling has gonedown well with the suburbandweller, who needs a practicalrun-around but craves a touchof the wide outdoors, and yet,is far too sensible for a crazylooking Cactus.

Is the Captur then not justanother of the so-called‘crossovers’ I hear you ask?Well apparently not.

Cars like the NissanQashqai, which started the cur-rent craze of crossovers, mean-ing cars that have the looksand beefy stature of a 4x4 withthe more economical runninggear of a family hatch, (a pre-tend off-roader in other words)do just that, pretend. Howeverthe Captur makes no suchclaims, nor does it want to gooff road.

Its non-pretentiousness is itsappeal, and it appears to havecreated a market for this typeof car, where the sales are rac-ing ahead.

The Captur won’t venturefar off the tarmac but it looksas though it might, and it has apractical spin-off in a higherthan normal driving position,

and easier entry for those ofmore mature years.

Maybe that is a clue to itspopularity? Couple this withthe car's potential for a muddyfamily life with seat coversthat can be unzipped andpopped in the washing ma-chine, not to mention lots ofspace in the rear, makes it an

ideal choice for... well every-one really!

As if that wasn’t reasonenough for Granny, Mr Momor the local Rugby team torush out and buy one; it comeswith a choice of two petrol ortwo diesel engines includingsome with the option of auto-matic gearboxes.

Prices start at around£14,000 in the UK and€12,800 in Spain, but cannearly double if you want allthe bells and whistles. Howev-er, with four trim levels that allinclude cruise control, air con-ditioning, electric windows allround and a trip computer, youwon't have to spend a fortuneto stand out in your urban jun-gle.

ClarksonQuote of theWeek

... and although the W came along in the 10th century, modern Germans still seem to manage per-fectly well by using a V instead. Except when the German managing director of Aston Martin triesto say ‘vanquish’.” Some might say...

Renault Captur: Notjust another crossoverITS non-pretentiousness is its appeal

THE RENAULTCAPTUR: Its strikingstyling has gonedown well with thesuburban dweller,who needs apractical run-around.

SPAIN’S Movistar TeamYamaha assembled to kickoff the new season.

The race saw teammatesJorge Lorenzo and Valenti-no Rossi make their inten-tions clear, whilst testingtheir YZR-M1s at the Sepa-ng Internat ional Circui tduring the first official Mo-toGP test of the year, takingfirst and second place re-spectively.

Movistarteam

Motoring shorts

FIVA, the international fed-eration of historic vehicles,has named 2016 as WorldMotoring Heri tage Year,both in recognition of mo-toring history, and to cele-brate a new dawn for thehistoric vehicle movementthroughout the world.

This year also marks the50th anniversary of FIVA,the Federat ion Interna-tionale des Vehicules An-ciens.

“This is the perfect timeto launch World MotoringHeri tage Year, as we’removing towards a brightnew age of classic motor-ing,” says Patrick Rollet ,President of FIVA, which isa non-profit-making enter-prise.

FIVA 2016

JAGUAR’S new flagship F-type SVR has been confirmed tomake its debut at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show on March 1,and will go on sale in the summer.

Both coupe and convertible versions will be up for grabs withboth versions benefitting from more power than a standard F-type, as well as SVR-specific suspension, a titanium exhaustsystem, and an aggressive aero kit.

The SVR’s supercharged 5.0-litre V8 will produce567bhp and 516lb,which will propeleither of thesebig cats from0-62mph in3.7sec, and incoupe form,the F-typeSVR will hit

200mph. The convertible won’t be far behind, though, toppingout at 194mph.

John Edwards, MD of Jaguar Special Vehicle Operationscentre, said: “The new F-TYPE SVR is the first series produc-tion Jaguar to be developed by Special Vehicle Operations. Theresult is a 200mph, all-weather supercar.”

Full details, including pricing and technical specification, willbe available on February 17. Previously, pictures and details

of the SVR had been leaked to the public reputedly bythe publishing of an embargoed brochure by

a German importer, bless him!

The Jaguar F-type SVR

DEBUT: At theGeneva Motor

Show on March1.

RUGBY UNION• England and France be-

gan the 2016 Six NationsTournament with respectivevictories over Scotland 15-9and Italy 23-21, while Ire-land and Wales drew 16-16.The second series of match-es this weekend featureFrance-Ireland and Wales-Scotland on Saturday, fol-lowed by Italy-England onSunday.

• Saracens, Exeter, Leices-ter, Harlequins and Waspsare the top five clubs in thatorder in the Aviva Premier-ship, while Ulster, Scarlets,Connacht, Leinster and Ed-inburgh stand 1-2-3-4-5 inthe Pro12 League. The bigAviva PL game this weekendis Saracens v Wasps.

FOOTBALL• Leicester City are now

firm favourites to win thePremiership after beatingManchester City 3-1 before arecord 54,000 crowd at theEtihad last weekend. Chasingthe Foxes are Tottenham (sec-ond, 1-0 victors over Wat-ford), Arsenal (third, 2-0 win-ners at Bournemouth) and ofcourse Manchester City, whonext season will be managedby Spaniard Pep Guardiola.

• At the foot of the PL,there were wins for base-ment club Aston Villa (3-0

over Norwich) and Newcas-tle (1-0 v WBA), while Sun-derland came back from twodown to share four goals atLiverpool, Everton whippedout-of-sorts Stoke 3-0, and10-man Southampton edgedpast West Ham 1-0. Thegames between Chelsea andManchester United, andSwansea and Crystal Palaceboth ended in 1-1 draws.

• Six points cover the topsix teams in the Champi-onship. Hull City lead Mid-dlesbrough on goal-differ-ence with Burnley 3rd,Brighton 4th, Derby 5th and

in-form Sheffield Wednes-day 6th.

• Burton Albion (56 pointsto 50) lead Walsall in FL1.Northampton (61-56) headPlymouth in FL2 andBarcelona (recent 2-0 winnersat Levante), Atletico Madridand Real Madrid (who won 2-1 at Granada) lie first, secondand third in La Liga. GaryNeville’s Valencia, aftercrashing 7-0 to Barcelona inthe first leg of their Copa DelRey semi-final, lost again, 1-0 at Real Betis.

• Celtic (who k’od part-timers East Kilbride 2-0),Dundee United, Inverness,Morton and Ross County arethrough to the fifth round ofthe Scottish Cup. Rangers-Kilmarnock and Hearts-Hibsface replays.

• There have been twofourth round FA Cup replaysthis week (Peterborough-WBA and West Ham-Liver-pool) while this weekend,the top PL matches are Arse-nal-Leicester, Aston Villa-Liverpool, Chelsea-Newcas-

tle, Manchester City-Spursand Sunderland-ManchesterUnited.

• Jose Mourinho has statedhe wants to return to the PLas manager as soon as possi-ble.

• Former Tottenham rightback Peter Baker, whostarred in the club’s 1960-61double-winning team hasdied, aged 84.

GOLF• A record crowd in golf-

ing history of 201,003 at-tended the third day’s play atthe Phoenix Open in Ari-zona. The four-day tourna-ment, watched by over700,000 spectators overall,was eventually won byHideki Matsuyama, who de-feated Rickie Fowler at thefourth extra hole in a play-off.

• A few thousand milesaway, Sheffield’s DannyWillett won the OmegaDubai Desert Classic by onestroke from fellow Brit AndySullivan and Spain’s Rafa

Bello-Cabrera.• Jordan Speith, Rory

McIlroy and Jason Day are1-2-3 in the current Worldrankings.

CRICKET• England won the first

two One Day Internationalsagainst South Africa inBloemfontein by 39 runs(via the D/L rule), and byfive wickets in Port Eliza-beth.

Wicket-keeper Joss But-tler hit a quick-fire centuryin the first game and AlexHales struck 99 in the sec-ond. The third ODI of fivetook place yesterday in Cen-turion, the fourth is in Jo-hannesburg on Friday andthe last in Cape Town onValentine’s Day.

• England’s women started

their ODI series also with avictory over South Africa.

TENNIS• Kat ie Swan, GB’s

youngest Federat ion Cupplayer a t the age of 16,helped her team to a 3-0victory over South Africa inIsrael . The Bris tol-bornteenager, ranked 524th inthe world, defeated I lzeHatt ingh 6-3 6-0 beforeHeather Watson and thedoubles duo of Jocelyn Raeand Anna Smith wrappedthings up for Judy Murray’steam.

AMERICAN FOOT-BALL

• Denver Broncos causedan upset by beating CarolinaPanthers 24-10 in SuperBowl 50.

Tony MatthewsInternational SportsA former player and now the world’s mostprolific author of football books with al-most 150 published since 1975, Tony is al-so the sports correspondent for SpectrumRadio and lives on La Pilica in the SierraCabrera Mountains overlooking Turre.

Costa de Almeria

DID YOU KNOW? Leicester City’s boss Claudio Ranieri has been in footballfor 28 years and has managed eight top-line clubs but hasnever won a League title anywhere.

Six Nations is underway asthe Foxes head for glory

OWEN FARRELL: Played in England’s 15-9 win over Scotland.

SPORT11 - 17 February 2016 / Mallorca www.euroweeklynews.comEWN54

ENGLAND and France both won, while Ireland and Wales drew

THE Balearic Rugby Federation,thanks to the efforts of their U16 andU18 representative teams werecrowned champions this weekend inMerida.

The finals saw the U16 pittedagainst Asturias, while Navarra weretasked with trying to stop the high fly-ing Balearic U18s. Asturias put up thebest challenge in a fitting final. Withthe final whistle came a hard foughtbut well deserved 20-13 victory, withthe expected celebrations both a mix-ture of joy and relief.

In the U18 final it was all one waytraffic. The Balearic selection scoredtheir first try after just 50 seconds andnever took their foot off the throttle,finishing the campaign with a resound-ing and all encompassing 49 - 0 pointsdifference. All eyes will be on the pro-motion matches to see if the Balearicscan break into the big time.

Win for El Toro RC against Ibiza

RC in the Baleares Senior LeagueA hesitant start and silly penalty by

the home team gave Ibiza RC the

chance to score early points in thematch against El Toro RC. Throughoutthe first half of the match neither team

was able to gain the upper hand. To-wards the last few minutes of the firsthalf El Toro RC was able to initiate a

series of passes that freed the ball for atry to be scored. Three tries were putpast the Ibiza RC players who becameincreasingly annoyed and eventuallylost one player to a yellow card penaltyand another who left the pitch. Thisgave El Toro RC an advantage whichthey took in the form of a final seriesof passes resulting in a try in the lastminutes taking their winning score to32 points to three.

El Toro RC Girls win in the nextleg of the Baleares Seven’s League

In an effort to catch up with Leagueleaders Bahia RC, El Toro RC girlsneeded to win all of their matches inthe next leg of the seven’s league.They managed to beat Bahia RC by 19points to five and then had a toughmatch against the Shamrock girls, fi-nally winning by 15 points to five.They still need to win their remainingmatches to emulate last year’s success.

56 MallorcaEWN SPORTTO READ MOREM a l l o r c a ’ s b e s t g u i d e t o l o c a l s p o r t www.euroweeklynews.com

11 - 17 February 2016

Baleares U18 and U16 teamsare crowned the champions

SENIOR LEAGUE: El Toro RC win over Ibiza RC with a final score of 32 points to three.

SUPER BOWL 50: The Denver Broncos’ victory was overshadowed by aprovocative performance from Beyonce.