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By m.p. - Mar 9, 2011 - 6:35 PM
Authorisation to prospect offshore between Valencia and Baleares was granted by central government.
A session of the Spanish Senate on Wednesday has voted against authorisation granted by central government for oil prospecting in the Mediterranean, in an extensive area of sea between the autonomous communities of Valencia and Baleares.
The vote in the upper chamber of the Spanish parliament on Wednesday approved an amendment presented by the Baleares Senator, Pere Sampol, to the Social Economy Law, calling for permission for the prospecting to be cancelled. The Senators consider that going ahead would cause damage to the environment and also to the two regions’ tourist industries.
Representatives from PSOE and the Catalan CiU party all voted against the amendment.
A vote in Congress will now decide whether or not to accept the amendment as part of the law.
Europa Press notes that a vote by the lower chamber’s environment commission on Tuesday also came out against the prospecting and approved calling on the government to withdraw the permission which has been granted. It’s understood that PSOE representatives on the commission abstained in the vote
Read more: http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publish/article_29552.shtml#ixzz1GBGmrwSN
Galicia trawler brings up deep sea monster in its nets
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By m.p. - Mar 9, 2011 - 5:15 PM
There are less than 100 goblin sharks known to exist in the world
An accidental catch made by a trawler recently fishing off the coast of Pontevedra, Galicia, is to be studied by the Galician Natural History Society to gain information about the little-known species.
It’s a sub-species of shark, Mitsukurina owstoni, which is known as the ‘goblin shark’, a creature which is found in the deep oceans and was only first discovered a little over a hundred years ago in Japan.
They are extremely rare and EFE notes that there are only 73 examples of this type of shark which have been registered in the world.
Its main characteristic is an elongated snout and a protrusible jaw which can be thrust outward to capture its prey.
The 1.61 metre male was caught at a depth of 400 metres in February, although an adult goblin shark can grow up to a length of 4 metres.
It’s the second goblin shark the ‘Gonzacove Uno’ has brought up in its nets. The trawler captured its first deep sea monster in 2003.
Read more: http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publish/article_29549.shtml#ixzz1GBHsQSk2
Young British boy dies after snowplough accident at Spanish ski resort
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By m.p. - Mar 9, 2011 - 4:22 PM
A five year old boy from the UK has died in a hospital in Toulouse after an accident at a ski resort in Lleida last month.
The child is named by the London Evening Standard as Federico Nicholls López from Islington. It’s understood that his mother is originally from Andalucía.
It happened at the Baqueira Beret resort on February 25, while Federico was playing near one of the ski lifts and was buried by a snow plough whose driver had failed to spot him. The boy was buried beneath the mountain of snow which was being pushed by the plough, and was trapped there for around a minute before he was rescued.
It was found that his heart had stopped beating when he was freed. He was stabilised at the scene and transferred by helicopter to the hospital in Vielha and, from there, to Toulouse.
He died on Tuesday, 11 days after the accident.
The plough’s driver has been questioned as a suspect in the case by the court in Vielha which is investigating the tragedy
Read more: http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publish/article_29548.shtml#ixzz1GBJYIpNr
Spain Business Brief - Wednesday March 9 2011
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By h.b. - Mar 9, 2011 - 2:58 PM
Unemployment is the main concern for 84 percent of the Spanish people.
Unemployment is now the main concern for 84% of the Spanish people, according to the CIS. It’s the highest number for the past ten years. In second place on the worry list are economic problems, according to the latest survey from the CIS, Centre for Sociological Investigation.
Nearly 80% of Spanish people consider the economic situation in Spain as ‘bad or very bad’ and only 20% think it will get better in 2012.
Most confidence is placed in the Guardia Civil as an institution, and nearly half those questioned think that the current laws favour the rich.
Meanwhile the Prime Minister has said ‘With all security, unemployment will improve from March’. José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero made the claim during the Government Control Session in Congress today. He said that the Government’s labour was to keep coverage for the unemployed, currently at 77%.
He said that the Spanish economy would grow by above the EU average over the next two years, claiming the problems had been caused by the explosion of the real estate bubble here which he said had affected both the financial system and employment.
House prices have fallen in Spain by nearly 20% since 2008 according to the Tinsa index. February saw the average house price fall by 4.5%, with the largest reductions seen along the Mediterranean coast and in metropolitan area.
It comes as experts agree that we are in for a time of high inflation and interest rates.
The Ministry for Development has announced an investment of 1.7 billion € between 2011 and 2012 as part of the State Housing Plan, to reform some 190,000 homes. It’s 30,000 more than for the years 2009 and 2010. Minister José Blanco said it was one of the priority axis of the Government as it ‘increases energy efficiency and generates stable employment’.
More irregularities in the Nueva Rumasa empire have come to light with the publication of letters sent by José María Ruiz-Mateos which show how the directors tried to cultivate relationships in financial circles. José María describes the Santander Chairman, Emilio Botín as ‘the best banker in the world’ but over time the letters show deterioration in the relationship between the two. The family often gave gifts of their products to companies, including their products and religious pictures of virgins.
The press considers that Ruiz-Mateos letters show that his company tricked investors.
Meanwhile the workers at one of the Nueva Rumasa companies, Dhul, have met with company managers in an attempt to get paid. The debt to the workforce at Dhul is put at 1.7 million €, and many workers say their personal situation is now dramatic.
Ex Defence Minister, Eduardo Sierra, has described the Government’s labour reform as ‘delayed and damaging’. The President of the Everis Foundation wants to see a change in the regulations which will allow companies to grow ‘without the terror of contracting’.
Business school Esade has noted that the best prediction for the GDP for the Spanish economy in 2010 came from the Government.
Only La Caixa,Ceprede and the Madrid Autonomous University had better predictions than the -0.3% made by the Government. The real figure was -0.1% for the year.
Wage data for the last quarter of 2010, published by the National Statistics Institute, show a rise of 0.1% compared to the same quarter in 2009. However if extraordinary extras are taken out of the calculations, wages continued to descend in the quarter albeit at a slower rate than in the third quarter.
Iberdrola Renovables saw an 8% jump in its share price in Madrid today on its return to trading. It had been suspended after the announcement that it is being absorbed into Iberdrola, although at half its value in 2007.
Portugal has placed 1 billion € debt on the markets today, in two year bonds. However they were forced to pay 5.99% interest, compared to 4.086 % at the last auction.
Vodafone has responded to Movistar and is now also offering two lines in the same mobile phone. Vodafone’s new service called Línea Libre is now available and costs 50 cents a week. It offers two numbers on the single SIM card and allows users to separate, for example, home and business numbers.
The Movistar service will be launched on March 15 and is free, although an activation charge is expected.
And finally,
A question for you – How much did Silvio Berlusconi spend on presents for his ‘chicas’ in 2010 – Answer 34 million €. The number comes from the investigation into allegations of prostitution.
Read more: http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publish/article_29545.shtml#ixzz1GBKh3Yt
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