Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin March 5
CLICK HERE FOR THE FEATURE ARTICLES "Ukraine invasion will cause an expensive energy crisis and hit pockets in Spain and the UK" and "Here's how the Russian airspace ban will affect holidays to Spain"
For nearly ten days now, the world has looked on in horror as Vladimir Putin takes ever more unhinged steps to repress the Ukrainian people, bombing civilians indiscriminately and sending unwitting Russian boys into battle with a neighbouring country under threat of social stigma if they refuse.
The world is doing what it can. The Spanish government has agreed to send humanitarian aid to help the Ukrainians to survive and weapons to help them fight, while refugees are being welcomed in several autonomous communities. Many local town halls, from Águilas to Benidorm, have been collecting donations of clothes, non-perishable foodstuffs and medicines to send to the civilian population, who are in desperate need.
At the same time, life goes on as normal for many on the other side of Europe and the world, with minds turning to beach holidays in the sun. Tourism numbers are up now that international travel restrictions are being lifted at an ever-increasing rate thanks to the improving Covid-19 situation, and there’s even talk of being able to take off our facemasks indoors and on aeroplanes.
Here goes our first Editor’s Roundup Weekly Bulletin for the month of March, focusing on affairs at home and away.
Ukraine crisis…
The Russia-Ukraine conflict is already making its effects felt closer to home. Oil has reached its highest ever price per barrel, affecting the cost of diesel and petrol, and other consumer goods in the supermarkets may follow suit soon. While everything possible is being done to support Ukrainians, the economic effects of the crisis can’t be ignored, and inflation in Spain has already shot up to a 30-year high as a result.
While experts agree that Spain is one of the “less exposed” countries thanks to its relative freedom from dependence on Russian gas and oil, the country is not totally isolated from the impact of the invasion, and the sanctions placed on Russia by the international community “will have a cost”. The conflict in Eastern Europe has completely changed the economic outlook, with analysts warning that Russia’s actions could create a “brutal energy crisis” with inflation remaining at its current high level.
In terms of the closure of Spanish airspace to Russia, which Spain announced last Sunday, with Putin retaliating a day later by banning Spanish planes from Russian skies, the impact on Spain’s tourism sector will be minimal, since air traffic between the two countries barely represents 1% of the total. No, the real cost will be the resulting rise in fuel prices, which will drive up the price of air travel.
Many Russian expats who have lived in Spain for years are also feeling the effects of the sanctions.
Seven Russian banks have now been blocked from Swift to try and avert Putin’s war fund, but this has unwittingly left the 1,524 Russian expats in Murcia in dire straits – their cards no longer work in ATMs and some are scrambling to make mortgage and rent payments. They cannot transfer money from their banks in Russia or claim their pensions that are paid into banks in their homeland. This is the point of sanctions, of course, to put pressure on a country’s citizens so that they turn against their government’s abhorrent policies, but all signs point towards Putin not giving two hoots about such people. It is always the innocents who suffer, and provisions should be made for those who no longer live in Russia and who quite possibly don’t support either the war or the regime in general.
Meanwhile, for business owners in the Region of Murcia who have to resort to financing in order to overcome the breakdown of the supply chain as a result of the conflict, a line of subsidies, guarantees and interest rate regulations has already been given the green light. Industry leaders and ministers in the Region have launched the ‘Commission for the assessment of the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on companies in the Region of Murcia’ and the authorities are already trying to source new suppliers of cereal, sunflower oil and other raw materials in South America to make up for the shortfall generated by the war. Imports aren’t the only area of concern, though, as more than 70 companies in Murcia export to Ukraine and Russia, representing an income of 47 million euros for the Region, and they will have to find new buyers for their products to make up the shortfall or get compensation from the government.
In addition, more than 2,000 hospital beds will be made available in the Valencia region for Ukrainians wounded in the invasion. The regional government has activated an emergency action plan with measures to turn the region into a “humanitarian corridor” to help address the crisis, and as part of the plan, 146 hospital beds have been made available at the Vega Baja Hospital in Orihuela and Torrevieja Hospital.
Other measures include an extension of the 112 emergency hotline launched exclusively to assist refugees and the 30,000 Ukrainians currently estimated to be living in the Valencia region. Meanwhile, a shipment of medical supplies worth 300,000 euros has already been shipped from the region to the conflict zone.
On the Costa Blanca, it has been estimated that the conflict could cost the area 400 million euros in tourism and real estate turnover. Russia is not one of the largest tourist markets on the Costa Blanca, representing just 2% of the total number of overseas visitors. That said, in 2019, 200,000 Russians holidayed in Alicante province, and they have a high purchasing power, spending an average of 124 euros per days when they holiday in Spain, the highest of all tourists.
Ukrainian holidaymakers in Alicante, meanwhile, numbered 35,000 last year – and that was in the middle of a full-blown pandemic. Now these people will see their prospects for foreign travel severely limited, and are more concerned with just getting out of the country to save their skin.
…and the refugee crisis
Many regions of Spain have organised to take in Ukrainian refugees, especially children, who are desperately fleeing the country in droves. In Cartagena, Murcia, five people from the same family are being taken in by the city’s Ukrainian community, having been smuggled away from the danger zones in Ukraine, while Andalucía is promising to enrol all Ukrainian refugee children in schools “immediately”.
At the same time, hundreds of African migrants have illegally jumped the fence from Morocco onto Spanish territory in Melilla in what is the border’s largest ever mass crossing event. In many cases, these migrants had made long and arduous journeys from other parts of Africa like Guinea, Cameroon and Yemen to escape unstable, violent regimes.
In this case, though, unlike with the Ukrainians who are being welcomed with open arms, the Spanish and Moroccan border police and the Guardia Civil were waiting armed with batons to repel the irregular migrants and stop them from entering EU land. Violent clashes ensued, with the authorities in Spain condemning the migrants for throwing stones and doing anything to push their way through. Of the more than 4,000 people who made the crossing attempt, almost 850 made it into Spain and are being held at temporary migrant camps in Melilla.
Why do Spain and the EU accept some refugees from war-torn and troubled places – the white ones – while refusing entry to black, male immigrants from Africa? These people are turned away ostensibly because they are crossing from Morocco, which is not deemed to be a repressive dictatorship worthy of seeking refuge from. But the vast majority of those who try to cross into Europe are not Moroccan.They come from further afield, from places where they cannot flee directly to a European country. And by refusing to regularise these immigrants as registered refugees, the authorities are effectively turning them into undocumented criminals living in vulnerable circumstances who must turn to fraudulent and underhand tactics just to survive, such as buying fake employment contracts in order to regularise their residency situation.
While the West is to be lauded for its quick and resolute reaction to the humanitarian disaster in Ukraine, the hypocrisy of its stance on those of sub-Saharan descent seeking refuge should be a point of shame for European politicians.
Life’s a beach
Elsewhere in Europe, a new TripAdvisor ranking has revealed the top 10 best beaches to visit, and Spain graces the list not once but twice in 2022. For those searching for an idyllic bathing spot, look no further than Spain, as this ranking of Travellers’ Choice Beaches has placed the Playa de Muro beach in Mallorca in third place, while Playa de Sotavento in Fuerteventura was ranked ninth.
Also in the top 10 are two Italian beaches, two Portuguese, two British, two Greek and one each from Cyprus and Portugal.
On beaches in Cartagena and around the Mar Menor, there’s a new law on the table to let people get married right on the sand in the open air, a move that is expected to bring in additional tourism revenue of 5 million euros. Specifically, beaches in La Manga, the Mar Menor, La Azohía and Cala Cortina have been put forward as potential sites where loving couples can tie the knot in style on the sandy shores of the Mar Menor, with the waves lapping at the hem of their wedding dresses… that is, if anyone’s actually interested.
They put the proposal out to a public consultation to get the feel of the public pulse on this. Do local people think this is a good idea? Where do they think weddings should be held? Are there any restrictions that should be in place? Only one reply came back, and that was to ask for more dog beaches in the area.
This proposal has duly been added into the draft law.
Business owners serving the tourist sector on the area’s beaches are probably more concerned with the fact that licences to open the chiringuitos – the beach bars – have still not been granted. The deadline for granting these permits is usually March 1, and the bars are traditionally up and running in time for Easter, but for the last couple of years they have come through late.
The blame seems to lie at the feet of the ‘Costas’ Coastal Demarcation authority, who have the final say on anything that happens along the coast. As yet, they have given no explanation as to why they are taking so long, but it seems that the marriages and the mutts may come to Cartagena’s beaches before the mojitos do.
Coronavirus
After two and a half months above the high-risk threshold of 500 cases, Spain’s cumulative incidence rate has finally dipped out of this category, signalling that the country is on the cusp of leaving the sixth wave behind.
The biggest encouragement is that the number of intensive care beds occupied by coronavirus patients has finally dipped below 10%, moving healthcare into the low-risk category. This was a vital milestone for the country as the Ministry of Health confirmed earlier this week that once this threshold was reached, Spain could move from the “acute phase” of the pandemic to one of “surveillance and control”, putting the peninsula on the path to its new normal.
With the encouraging data, the Ministry has ruled that close contacts of Covid cases no longer need to self-isolate, and has planned a meeting in Zaragoza for March 10 to hash out the details of further de-escalation, which will focus on monitoring people over 60 years of age and other vulnerable groups rather than the general population as a whole. It doesn’t look like the issue of wearing masks indoors in Spain will be discussed at this conference, but President Sánchez has hinted on more than one occasion that the days of this restriction are numbered.
In Murcia, the regional health authorities have announced that, given the positive evolution of the pandemic, which now sees the incidence rate drop to 626 cases per 100,000 inhabitants and fast approaching the national average, they will stop reporting on Covid data at the weekends and on holidays. In a similar vein, Spain’s central government has also confirmed its intention to stop reporting on the number of daily infections and Covid-related fatalities in the near future.
Covid indicators also continue to improve in the Valencia region. The week kicked off with data showing hospital admissions had plunged by a quarter in seven days, and the downward trajectory has continued over the last few days. On Thursday, the region exited the very high risk category as the 14-day cumulative incidence fell below the 500 per 100,000 bar, dropping to 442.6 cases.
Andalucía, meanwhile, still has one of the lowest incidence rates of any Spanish region, standing at 208.8 at the end of this week. Incredibly, there was even one day this week (Wednesday) when Andalucía had fewer than 1,000 new cases, a mighty undertaking considering it is one of the country’s largest and most populous autonomous communities. However, this hasn’t lasted, and all the other days there have been over 2,000 new infections, one of whom was the regional Minister for Health himself, who normally doles out the stats every day. He is said to only have minor symptoms thanks to the fact that he is triple vaccinated, and he will continue working while self-isolating at home.
When it comes to Covid, the better informed everyone is about the latest fast-changing developments, the more protected we all are. That’s why we endeavour to bring you all the most up-to-date coronavirus news as it comes out, which you can always consult using the link above.
Murcia
A new and more circuitous train route connecting Murcia with Madrid was premiered this week which has left travellers less than impressed. Improvement works that may last up to three years mean that bus replacement services are in place between Archena and Cartagena, and between Murcia city and Alcantarilla. And in their first week, these services have been decidedly empty.
The first bus chartered by Renfe to take passengers from Cartagena to the Archena station on Monday morning, February 28, had just one traveller, while another lone passenger joined at Archena for the intercity train to Albacete to be able to take the high-speed AVE train to Madrid. The level of contentment with the new bus replacement service is palpable.
In Alhama de Murcia, the local government has decided to direct spending elsewhere – into a new 1.3-million-euro fairground to host concerts and fairs with bars and commercial marquees around the edge. There will be improved access with a 16-metre-wide central pedestrian boulevard lined with trees and state-of-the-art LED lighting, plus a large Ferris wheel in the middle, a play area for children and a zone for tapas and drinks for the adults.
The Espacio Mediterraneo shopping centre has also seen a new addition this week with the opening of an IKEA design and planning shop. It’s not a full-blown IKEA megastore where you can buy furniture, but rather a place to go where they’ll help you with the interior design of any room in your house, guiding you to choose the perfect IKEA products to refurbish and refit your home. The staff there can also help with online purchases, which can be collected from the pick-up point just down the road on Calle Bratislava.
Cabo de Palos isn’t being left out, as planning permission is due to be granted for the building of a new hotel worth 1.7 million euros in the town centre. It’s not yet known who will own and run the three-storey hotel, 45-room hotel, but it should be another boon for the area along with the regeneration of the rundown Las Dunas shopping centre.
Another, already established hotel isn’t having such a good time of it as the Príncipe Felipe hotel in La Manga Club is embroiled in an employment dispute with cleaning staff. The 60 hotel cleaners, some of whom have worked there for almost 20 years, are on strike as they were due to see their contracts come to an abrupt end at the beginning of this month. They have been given a brief reprieve of two weeks while La Manga Club continues talks with the employment agency Samsic to renew the long-standing contract. Hopes are high but expectations are low as they have already been trying to hash out the terms of a new agreement for weeks. In around ten days’ time, the hotel may find itself becoming increasingly messy with unmade beds if the situation is not resolved soon.
Finally, good news for wine lovers in Murcia as the ever-popular Wine Bus is back. Every other Saturday from now until June, chartered coaches from Cartagena and Murcia city will take anyone who buys one of the 59-euro tickets on a wine tour of the Region’s most famous wineries in Jumilla, Bullas and Yecla. The ticket price includes transport, travel insurance, guided tours of the bodegas, food and, of course, wine tasting. Cheers!
For more info on what is going on in your area, from Carnival to Semana Santa and more, see our EVENTS DIARY!
Spain
As we bound towards March, the weather has taken a turn for the worse and a polar air mass has swept across the country this week, bringing rain, night frosts and daytime temperatures between 5 and 10 degrees lower than what we have been experiencing.
But as we all know, bad weather is ever but a temporary glitch in Spain, and it won’t be long before we’re packing off to the seaside once again. And if you’re planning a trip to sample Spain’s turquoise waters, travel just became a whole lot easier for Brits, as the government has significantly eased restrictions this week. From March 1, holidaymakers from the UK and other countries outside of the European Union can freely travel to Spain once they have been fully vaccinated with one of the World Health Organisation (WHO) approved coronavirus vaccines, which includes jabs developed in China and India.
Furthermore, Spain will now accept travellers from the UK who have recovered from coronavirus.
If this isn’t enough to convince you to pull out the suitcase, maybe Jet2 can convince you, as they have promised that flying is about to get a whole lot more comfortable. From now on, passengers travelling on Jet2 planes from England and Northern Ireland will no longer have to wear facemasks, but holidaymakers from Scotland will, unfortunately, still be subject to the restriction. In response, Ryanair has said their passengers will also be able to ditch facemasks on its flights as of next month. While it will no longer be a requirement to wear a mask on these planes, both airlines have underscored that it is advisable.
The passing of the new Animal Rights Law has been making headlines this week for all the right reasons, as Spain toughens up on animal abuse and introduces a series of measures that affect everyone who deals with animals.
One major change has been welcomed by those of us with a soft spot for the bull breeds and other dogs traditionally labelled as ‘potentially dangerous’ for no other reason than their genetic makeup. Under the new legislation, the list will essentially be scrapped and animals will only be considered as potentially dangerous “after carrying out an individualised sociability study”. If, after this, a dog is labelled as potentially dangerous, its owner will have to obtain a special licence to keep it and follow the corresponding regulations, which include keeping them on a short leash and using a muzzle.
But most importantly, from now on dogs won’t be stigmatised because of their breed but rather will be categorised based on their behaviour, which means that Spain could have a fair few ‘dangerous’ poodles and labradors in the near future!
Of course, owners of all dogs, regardless of the breed, will soon have to take a mandatory training course so that they fully understand the responsibility that ownership entails. This shouldn’t put people off, however, as the minister of Social Rights and Agenda has assured that the course will be short, free, and relatively simple. It is available online but can also be taken as a face-to-face class by those not comfortable with the digital version, so that “older people or those with fewer resources” can also have their desired pet.
One of the more celebrated changes brought about by the new Law relates to a ban on selling any animals, apart from fish, in pet stores, an issue which has been debated for many years. When the law comes into force later this year, the common sight of rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters and even puppies in cramped cages and enclosures in shops will be no more; anyone wanting a new pet will have to go through a registered breeder or adopt from an animal shelter.
Spain has one of the worst records in all of Europe for animal abandonment, and the Association for the Protection of Small Animals claims that the new rules will make miniature pets such as hamsters and gerbils “more valuable” and less disposable than they are now.
Alicante
In Alicante, plans to move the AVE railway station that connects Alicante, Elche and Orihuela with Madrid from the Atocha station to Chamartín in the capital has sparked outrage from the tourism and other sectors. Several local officials in Alicante have demanded an immediate meeting with the Administrator of Railway Infrastructures (Adif) to request it reverse the decision, stressing the extra half hour travel time will do untold damage to the vital rail service. It’s also feared that if the plans go ahead, the Valencia AVE will also be moved to the Chamartín station in the future.
On a similar but positive track, a train line linking Denia with Alicante is expected to resume by the end of this year, or at the latest the beginning of 2023, following an investment of 700,000 euros by the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat Valenciana (FGV) and Department of Territorial Policy.
Elsewhere in Alicante province, Torrevieja has unveiled an innovative way to stop people walking out into traffic whilst looking at their mobile phones. The town is the first in Europe to install the “new and pioneering system to help pedestrians”, erecting traffic lights on Avenida de la Libertad that project the image of the walking man onto the ground below, corresponding with a red or green light to warn people who aren’t looking up when it is safe or unsafe to cross the road.The weather has taken a turn for the worse at the end of this week in Alicante, as it has in much of the rest of mainland Spain, and the University of Alicante’s Climatology Lab has warned of “the most serious storm of the last few months”. Strong winds, widespread rain and even snow at higher altitudes has meteorologists “on tenterhooks”, and it’s hoped that the sudden downpour will not bring a repeat of the kind of flash floods that the province has seen in the past.
Andalucía
It has been a good week for tourism in Andalucía and in Spain in general, as it was revealed that tourist numbers from overseas jumped up by 500% this January compared to last year. 2.4 million international tourists entered Spain in January 2022, and 363,150 of them were from the UK, an increase of 1.46%. This means that Brits have reclaimed their spot at the top after losing out to the French in 2021.
Of these, 13% visited Andalucía, but the Canary Islands were the most popular destination with nearly a third of all foreign tourists heading there for a winter break.
More surprisingly, non-hotel overnight stays in Andalucía – those in Airbnb flats, campsites and hostels rather than in hotels – were also up 221% in January to a total of 757,636. This rise is considerably more than the growth in the number of hotel bookings, which goes to show that that camping and other, non-traditional, forms of accommodation outside of hotels are quickly becoming more popular.
Once again, most of this growth is down to visitors to Spain from other countries – mainly Britain, Germany and Poland – although Spaniards on their staycations are also beginning to prefer staying the night in a tourist apartment or on a campsite.
These figures are perhaps not surprising in the light of an announcement by Malaga-Costa del Sol airport that they are scheduling a 16.5 million seats this summer – a number very close to the pre-pandemic levels of 2019. Fifty airlines have already expressed an interest in flying to Malaga this summer, which would connect the Costa del Sol with more than 120 cities and 34 countries worldwide.
Airport management is confident that they will soon reach the 20 million passengers they had before the pandemic, and even be able to reinstate the popular US Delta flight connecting Malaga with New York.
One thing’s for sure – Spain is definitely back on the list as a top holiday destination this year!
You may have missed…
The Region of Murcia was literally rocked by seismic activity on Wednesday night and on early Thursday morning with earthquakes in Totana, Mazarrón and Albanilla.
Local Police in the Alicante town of Petrer are on high alert after several thefts of valuable catalytic converters by an organised criminal gang have been reported in recent weeks.
Jumilla City Council has this week adopted the VIOPET Project developed by the Ministry of Social Rights and Agenda 2030, which aims to protect the pets of women who are victims of domestic violence.
The alleged fraudster detained in the Vega Baja town faces six years in prison in Russia
The seized product had a market value of 3 million euros and was destined for Spain and northern Europe.
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