Live News From Spain As It Happens

CLOCKS go forward tonight in the whole of Spain – at 02.00hrs, the time will be moved forward one hour to 03.00hrs.

This will happen one hour later in the Canary Islands than on the mainland and in the Balearics, since the Canaries are an hour behind the rest of Spain.

Changing the clocks will lead to a five per cent saving in energy, which equates to around 300 million euros around the world.

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DESPITE rain and wind sweeping across the country and blighting the Easter celebrations, the Mediterranean coast and the Canary Islands have escaped the worst of the weather. 

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A WOMAN who is fully up to date with her mortgage payments has received a repossession order from her lender.

According to the national pressure group PAH – Plataforma de Afectados de la Hipoteca ('Mortgage Victims' Association'), the homeowner – who is separated from her husband and has two children – bought the apartment in Mallorca 10 years ago and has a mortgage of 40,000 euros left on it.

She originally owed 70,000 euros and, upon losing her job and her husband failing to pay maintenance for their children, went to Barclays Bank to renegotiate her payments, which comprised two loans.

Barclays agreed to a 100-euro discount and the homeowner agreed to increase her monthly payments once she started work again. 

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A PROFESSOR at a Valencia university has come under fire from politicians and students for allegedly preaching that women had a duty before God to stay with unfaithful or violent husbands, homosexuality was 'curable' and that abortion following rape was 'intolerable'.

Gloria Casanova allegedly told students during a class on Social Doctrine of the Church, part of third-year journalism studies at the Cardenal Herrera University, that becoming pregnant through rape was 'something good which comes out of bad' and was effectively God's way of compensating the woman for her ordeal.

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MADRID'S public transport is the most expensive in Spain, reveals a leading consumer organisation.

For a 50-journey ticket on the metro or bus, travellers pay 54.50 euros – compared to around 40 euros in Alicante, Valencia, Málaga, Oviedo, A Coruña, San Sebastián, Vigo and Huesca.

In Burgos, Zamora, Soria, Palencia, Ávila and Salamanca, the same type of ticket costs just 23 euros.

Consumer group OCU says urban transport has rocketed in price way beyond inflation with only 10 cities freezing their prices since 2010.

In most cases, prices have gone up by 8.1 per cent.

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SPAIN'S president Mariano Rajoy has described the actions of anti-repossession pressure group PAH as 'profoundly undemocratic' after 30 of them stormed the SAREB 'bad bank' headquarters and sprayed graffiti everywhere.

He has even likened their 'radical' protests to 'acts of terrorism'.

And he says 'at least eight' ministers have suffered 'hounding' by the protesters 'outside their own homes', which is 'not right, fair or democratic in a serious country'.

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FURTHER volcanic eruptions are feared on the island of El Hierro after an earthquake measuring 4.1 on the Richter scale was recorded yesterday (Monday).

Although the Official College of Geologists (ICOG) does not believe residents on the island are likely to be in danger, more earth tremors are expected which could be at least as intense, if not more so.

Between Friday and Monday, a total of 400 earthquakes were recorded on El Hierro, although very few of them were strong enough to be felt. 

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Spain secured a vital 1-0 win over France this evening, putting them top of the World Cup qualifying Group I with three games remaining. After being held to a draw by lowly Finland last week, Spain needed to make sure of a win in Paris tonight to have a chance of auomatic qualification for the final stage of the competition.

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BLOOD donors in Spain save up to 80 lives a day and help a further 375 back to health – but of all those who are able to give blood, just five per cent do so. And with Easter coming up, blood donations tend to plummet whilst with more traffic accidents due to a greater number of cars on the road, the need is even higher. The Spanish Federation of Blood Donors is urging all those who can to give blood, since all types of patients need regular transfusions. 

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OVER 2,000 visitors went along for the opening of Terra Mítica theme park in Benidorm for the start of the spring-summer 2013 season this weekend, where Alicante-born actress Vanesa Romero was the guest of honour. Numerous brand-new attractions have been added to the park, which already includes film theatres, sophisticated fairground rides, and areas themed on Classical Egypt, Greece and Rome...

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CHIEF Executive Officer of the company which owns Castellón's 'phantom' airport has resigned amid charges against him for money-laundering, corruption and power-dealing. Carlos Fabra had always claimed he would stand down as CEO of AEROCAS, which owns the terminal that has never as yet seen a flight take off from or land in it, but which has a statue of Fabra in the middle of it and has now become the scene for numerous illegal car-races, if legal action was started against him. 

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PROTESTERS were forced out of the 'bad bank' head office in Madrid yesterday after storming the building in support of a group of people about to have their homes repossessed. Some 40 members of the Plataforma de Afectados de la Hipoteca ('Mortgage Victims' Association') gathered outside the door of the SAREB building, which is where bank restructuring decisions are made and which has threatened to buy banks' stocks of repossessed homes off them at a fraction of their market price unless they are sold.

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DRIVERS will be spied upon from the air over the Easter holidays now that the traffic authorities plan to fly helicopters with speed cameras above Spain's most-frequented roads. The General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) has launched the first of these, Pegasus, which takes three images in a matter of nanoseconds, capturing speeding drivers on film, which are then examined before being sent to the car-owner's house. DGT sources say the flying radar costs about as much as a traditional speed camera – between 60,000 and 170,000 euros – but covers a much wider area. 

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HARD-PRESSED homeowners can heave a sigh of relief next month – electricity bills are set to go down by 6.7 per cent. The quarterly auction of electrical energy took place yesterday and brought prices of the commodity down by 15 per cent – but actual consumption is only about half of the average bill. Those whose supply comes directly from the State-run electricity boards Iberdrola, Endesa, Gas Natural Fenosa, E.On and HC will see their bills falling – a total of about 20 million consumers – but the 6.5 million who use suppliers in the open market will not benefit from the discount

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A NEAR-RIOT broke out in Valencia in front of one of the fallas yesterday which featured Hindu gods and goddesses that were about to be burnt down in accordance with the fiesta's tradition, upsetting the city's Indian community. And a 40-year-old Indian man was taken into police custody for attempting to set fire to himself next to the monument. Falleras fought back the crowds of Hindu follows shouting and screaming that the falla monument was going to be burnt whether they liked it or not.

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A HOMEOWNER got the fright of his life yesterday (Tuesday) when a bolt of lightning came into his house after entering via the television aerial. José Luis García, 41, who lives in Vélez-Málaga, says part of the roof and the lounge wall of his penthouse flat was seriously damaged, but that nobody was hurt.

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AS many as 40 schools in Spain have been in court for failing to tackle bullying, research shows. Nowadays, cruel playground taunts and insults, as well as school violence, are far more likely to end up in court and education lawyers say their telephones never stop ringing. Where the bullies are aged 14 or over, the parents of the affected child can and do turn their legal action towards the culprits, but at present in Spain, children of 13 years old or under are unable to be considered guilty of a criminal offence and the parents end up suing the school.

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A BRAND-NEW and totally free Wi-Fi network covering the whole of El Hierro has been unveiled, making it the first-ever 'Smart island' on the planet. With 26 Wi-Fi access points scattered across the island in residential areas, town and village centres and the main tourist attractions, it means holidaymakers can share their experiences in real time.

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THE European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) may overturn a law which could lead to up to 54 ETA prisoners being let out – as well as the man behind the 'Alcàsser Crime', which left the nation in shock 16 years ago. Miquel Ricart was sentenced to 170 years for the kidnapping, rape, torture and murder of three teenagers, a boy and two girls, from Alcàsser (Valencia). A region-wide search party eventually led to the discovery of the bodies of the youngsters, aged 14 and 15, in an abandoned hut in the country.

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THE Fallas festival has started with a bang in the Valencia region, where huge and colourful monuments fill the streets of numerous towns and villages before being burnt to the ground on Tuesday. Although Valencia city is the capital of the Fallas, other towns in the provinces of Valencia, Alicante and Castellón also celebrate it, with Gandia and Oliva (Valencia) and Dénia (Alicante) being among the most popular places outside the provincial capital to enjoy the fiestas. Massive papier mâché monuments in bright colours each feature various scenes with spoof cartoon-style figures of politicians and famous people. 

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A PENSION reform launched by the Spanish government means that 'early retirement age' has now risen to 65, and in order to do so, workers will have to have been paying into the system for 35 years rather than the previous 30. And 'paying into the system' only counts as a full year if the person has been working full-time – part-time work is calculated on a pro-rata basis. This means a person who has been working 20 hours a week instead of 40 will only be considered to have paid their stamp for six months in each year. 

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BANKIA has now told its customers on the island of Menorca that they will have to travel to Mallorca – their nearest branch – if they need assistance in person. The entity has sent out a circular to its account-holders to say that on April 26, all its branches in Menorca will shut down and be transferred to a new office in Mallorca. 

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EX-TREASURER of the PP Luis Bárcenas is suing the party for unfair dismissal to the tune of 905,000 euros. This represents 42 months' wages totalling 894,603 euros – based upon a salary of 21,300 euros a month - and a further 10,650 euros in interest. Bárcenas has taken the matter to court after his solicitors and those of the PP failed to settle the issue amicably, despite involving an arbitrator.

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A JUDGE has rejected the appeal by the King's son-in-law Iñaki Urdangarín and his former co-director Diego Torres against their 8.2-million-euro bail release. And the former's solicitor says the court has breached his client's right to a fair trial. They were given a deadline to come up with the money between them, but their solicitors lodged an objection on the grounds that this was excessive and they could not find the cash. When neither of the accused directors of the so-called 'non-profit-making' sports and cultural foundation under scrutiny was able to pay up, judge José Castro ordered an embargo on their assets. 

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INDEPENDENCE for the region of Catalunya would be 'disastrous' for its long-term future, says the Madrid-based Institute of Economic Studies (IEE). If Catalunya were to become a separate country from Spain, it would automatically leave the European Union and the euro, meaning it would not be entitled to any help from the Central European Bank (BCE) nor would its people be able to rely upon the protection from EU legislation where national law did not do so. 

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ZARA stores in Bilbao have been forced to close on Saturday afternoons in the summer by a court after a staff union took legal action against the firm. The Inditex chain, owned by Amancio Ortega – the richest man in Spain and the world's third-wealthiest, according to the Forbes List – began to stay open on Saturday afternoons and evenings in July and August 'due to the recession' in a bid to increase sales.

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SPAIN'S legislation covering mortgage foreclosure is illegal and abusive, according to the European Court of Justice (ECJ). The government has been ordered to change it forthwith and the existing law will be invalid from today (Thursday). According to the ECJ, Spanish mortgage repossession laws do not guarantee consumers sufficient protection against abusive clauses in home loans. 

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TEACHERS with excellent grades and limited or no experience are currently at the bottom of the list for getting jobs, but an about-turn in the system means thousands who got work based upon practical teaching will now have to face tough written exams in order to keep their positions. Until now, experience in supply teaching counted above everything else and applicants in this situation were chosen first. 

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ARGENTINA’S Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio has been elected as successor of Pope Benedict XVI. The first Latin American – in fact, non-European - Pope in more than 1,000 years and the first native Spanish-speaking pontiff in 510 years, 76-year-old Bergoglio addressed the crowds formed below the balcony of the Basilica di San Pietro in Rome, commenting on how his ‘brother cardinals’ had ‘chosen one from afar’, but ‘here I am’. He will be known as Pope Francisco I. 

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A MUM from Valencia who has been fighting to keep her children in the country for nearly three years has lost her case, and the three boys have now been sent to live with their dad in Mexico. Isabel Monrós is pictured here leaping onto bonnets of police cars in a desperate attempt to stop National Police officers from taking her children away, and has since been taken to hospital and treated for an anxiety attack. She was married to the father of the children and living with him in Mexico when the children were born, but when she divorced her husband and a régime of visits and maintenance payments were decided by the court, Isabel realised there was no way she would be able to support herself and her children as a single mother in Mexico and decided to go and live with her parents in Alboraya (Valencia).

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FOR every job that needs to be filled, there are 107 unemployed persons, research shows. It claims that a year on from the government's labour reform, economic activity in Spain has not improved and the jobless figures continue to rise. At present, there are six million people of working age on the dole and 16.1 million people registered on the Social Security system either as employed or self-employed, within a population of nearly 47 million people. In the meantime, though, over 20 trade fairs are travelling the country offering up to 1,000 jobs abroad, whilst Switzerland is actively seeking foreign doctors due to not having enough medically-qualified professionals in the country, and Panamá is looking for Spanish engineers. 

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AIRPORTS in Spain will start charging a euro for passengers to use luggage trolleys, according to AENA. They intend to start doing so in Madrid's Barajas airport and then gradually extend the move to six other airports. These will include Tenerife South, Alicante, Barcelona's El Prat airport, Palma de Mallorca, Málaga and Gran Canaria – all the major flight destinations for Spain's most popular holiday resort towns. 

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MINISTER for the economy Luis de Guindos says he 'hopes' the government will be able to reduce income tax 'if it is compatible with the reduction of the State deficit'. Income tax was increased dramatically in September last year and will remain at the same level for 2013....

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TRAFFIC police have launched a campaign targeting drivers travelling with babies and toddlers to ensure they are correctly strapped in. Between today (Monday) and Sunday, March 17, officers will be on the look-out for infants who have not been put in proper safety seats.

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AN airline meal for the president or King of Spain can cost up to 1,000 euros a time, recently-revealed figures show. The cost of a kilo of Iberian ham can range between 100 and 250 euros, and a litre of fruit juice at breakfast is eight euros. Even just a sliced-up portion of fruit comes in at a cool four euros. 

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HUNDREDS of thousands of people took to the streets today to voice their discontent over 'all that's wrong with Spain'. Unemployment, funding cuts in social welfare, the decline of the health service and education system, corruption and frittering away of the taxpayer's money whilst increasing taxes to pay for excesses and squandering were just a handful of reasons given by those who marched across most of the country's provincial capitals chanting and carrying banners. 

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A UNIVERSITY dean says Spain's 17 federal regions should be cut down to 13 due to the current 'fragmented' government system.Professor Tomás Ramón Fernández, head of the faculty of governmental law at Madrid's Complutense University, believes the country needs a geographical restructure but that this will not affect the 'peace and prosperity enjoyed in the last 35 years'.“It makes no sense having such small units with such a low population as some of the current autonomously-governed regions have at present,” Professor Fernández said

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RUMOURS that cashpoints were 'giving away' money saw queues stretching down the street all over Tenerife last night – but to the chagrin of those who had drawn their maximum permitted daily limit, the story turned out to be unfounded. Witnesses said it 'looked like a huge party' as hundreds of islanders took advantage of confusion caused by CajaCanarias and La Caixa banks merging and a message going out to customers to say withdrawals between Friday and Saturday would not be registered on their account details. 

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FORMER treasurer for the PP Luis Bárcenas reportedly paid his 'front man' 1.3 million euros to launder the contents of his bank accounts in Switzerland, a judge heard yesterday. Iván Yáñez, an employee of the PP who has been with the party for 30 years, told the court that the accused paid him to empty accounts held with two financial entities totalling 22 million euros once it came to light that Sr Bárcenas could be involved with the Gürtel corruption case.

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PARTY planners have told a judge that they were paid by the ringleader of the Gürtel corruption scandal for organising events for health minister Ana Mato and her ex-husband. Interglobo and El Zurdo say they were paid 1,720 euros in 2002 for a birthday party and 1,580 euros in 2005 for a communion party for one of the daughters of Sra Mato and the father of her children, Jesús Sepúlveda, ex-mayor of Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid).

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THE first-ever strike of Royal household staff in democratic history will take place on the last Thursday and Friday of March, involving workers from all the main heritage sites belonging to the Crown. These include Madrid's Royal Palace and the El Escorial Palace just outside the city – two major tourist attractions that draw in visitors from around the world – the 'Valley of the Fallen', dedicated to those who fought for their country; the Real Sitio ('Royal Place' or 'Royal Site') in El Pardo and Aranjuez, all within the autonomous region of Madrid. 

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SPEED limits on motorways could go up to 130 kilometres per hour – but on secondary roads, these could drop to 70 or even 50 kilometres per hour. And speed camera detectors could also be made illegal. Single-carriageway roads of 6.5 metres in width or more would have a speed limit of 90 kilometres per hour, but narrower ones between 70 – where there is an unbroken white line in the middle - and 50, where there are no markings. 

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DESPITE demands from the EU that Spain should increase IVA and fuel tax and up State retirement age yet again, economy minister Luis de Guindos stresses that this will not happen. Government vice-president Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría has travelled to Berlin where she will fight Spain's corner against pressure from Europe to impose measures that would cripple the country's economy even further. 

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VENEZUELAN president Hugo Chávez has died after an 18-month battle with cancer, reports his second-in-command Nicolás Maduro. Famously told to 'shut up' by the King of Spain five years ago, the 58-year-old, who had returned to Venezuela from Cuba on February 18 but never been out of hospital since, passed away at 16.25hrs local time on Tuesday (21.55hrs in Spain, which is five-and-a-half hours ahead) less than three months after his fourth operation on a malignant tumour in the pelvic area.

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AT least 300 residents managed to stop police from taking three children off their mother on Saturday after the courts ordered that they be sent to live with their father in Mexico. 

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INDITEX founder Amancio Ortega is now officially the third richest man on earth, according to the Forbes list. The owner of the high-street clothing empire has already been listed as the richest man in Europe, but is now only beaten by Bill Gates and Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim. He holds shares in his company valued at 43.8 billion euros, although he is no longer at the helm as he handed over the reins of managing Inditex a year and a half ago.

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FORMER treasurer for the PP Luis Bárcenas is appealing against a judge's decision to force him to hand in his passport and report to the court every two weeks. Pablo Ruz, handling the slush fund case, considered there was a real risk of the accused fleeing the country.

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GALE-FORCE winds and torrential rain have led to flights being cancelled and all schools closed in the Canary Islands today. Children on all the islands except for Lanzarote and Fuerteventura will have to stay at home as the regional government considers it will be too dangerous for them to go to school due to winds of more than 130 kilometres (about 80 miles) per hour measuring Force 7 on the Beaufort scale. 

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GAS bottles will go up from 16.10 euros to 17.50 euros in May, and prices will be reviewed every two months thereafter, announces the ministry of industry. They intend to impose a maximum price for the year of 17.50 euros, and where consumer purchases do not cover costs, the deficit can be dealt with later. 

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IBERIA staff have threatened another five-day strike right over Easter weekend unless some progress is made with the company's management. They say Iberia bosses have presented a new working conditions agreement which they consider to be 'taking the mickey'. 

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COMPANIES and self-employed persons will no longer have to pay the IVA associated with invoices they issue to customers until they themselves have been paid. A new law due to be passed, once it has been approved by the European Commission, states that if an invoice is never paid the IVA will not become payable by the issuer. The only condition is that the company's or self-employed person's turnover is less than two million euros a year.

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THE mayoress of La Línea de la Concepción (Cádiz) has taken disciplinary action against a Local Police officer for giving her a parking ticket. Gemma Araujo (pictured) had left her car in a bay reserved for council staff, but it did not have a sticker on it to show she was a member of the council – and in fact, the leader of it. The Local Police union for the town is incensed by her response and says the officer had no way of knowing that the car belonged to the mayoress, a member of the PSOE socialist party, as it did not have an official sticker on it. 

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A SUPREME Court ruling has abolished the burkha ban in Lleida which has been in force since 2010.The city council had forbidden Muslim women from entering public spaces with their faces completely covered, for safety reasons, but did not forbid them from wearing any other kind of veil, such as a headscarf or niqab. They said it was to protect the public – since a criminal could easily disguise behind a Burkha before holding up a shop, or if someone had to show their photo identity it could not be properly checked where the woman's face was covered – and also because they considered it a form of repressing women.

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