Rubbish Bin Scavenging in Orihuela Costa

This video is an example of the daily recycling ( scavenging) that happens from the street rubbish bins, for household waste, in the streets of Orihuela Costa in Spain.

More Unelected Lords!!!

I believe these appointments are an obscene act against democracy!

Peerages, honours and appointments | Number10.gov.uk

Spain's Credit Rating Reduced

BBC News - Fresh downgrade for Spanish debt

Guardian - Euro falls as Spain suffers rating downgrade

British Sociologist wins Prince of Asturias Award

Sociologist Zygmunt Bauman has been bestowed with the 2010 Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities together with French sociologist Alain Touraine

The decision was announced on 27 May by the Prince of Asturias Foundation.

Zygmunt Bauman is an acclaimed British sociologist that has analysed the deep transformations of contemporary social structures and has developed key concepts for the understanding many issues of our time.

The British Ambassador in Spain, Giles Paxman, said:

"I heartily congratulate Zygmunt Bauman on being given this prestigious award. Mr Bauman is a renowned sociologist and his works are fundamental to understanding some of the social and political developments of the 20th century and recent years. I am delighted to see that his outstanding work is being recognised here in Spain. Competition for these awards is intense and it is a source of great pride and pleasure to me that a distinguished British citizen has been honoured in this way"

David Lidington MP - My first two weeks as Minister for Europe

David Lidington MP was appointed Minister of State at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office on 14 May 2010 as part of the new coalition government. He was elected to Parliament in 1992 and is the Member of Parliament for Aylesbury. When in opposition he was Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, from July 2007.

He has now started his weblog  on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website, with his first article My first two weeks as Minister for Europe .

On the 26th May the Spanish Europe Minister, Diego Lopez Garrido, was in London and had an introductory breakfast meeting with David Lidington. They discussed a wide range of issues from the work of the EU over the next ten years to plans for an extra UK Member of the European Parliament. There is an interesting video posted within DL's article on his blog.

How long do you work for the tax man?

This video from the TaxPayers' Alliance shows how long each day an average worker in the UK spends working for the tax man. Adam works from 9am until 1.21pm to pay tax, and only gets from 1.22pm to 5pm to work for himself. Welcome to working in modern Britain.

Pensioners fear tax trap

Ian Cowie of the Daily Telegraph begins his interesting article entitled 'Pensioners fear tax trap'

Pensioners fear the coalition government plans to freeze their personal allowances, catching more of them in the clawback poverty trap, and accountants predict “impact on people of modest means”.

The Queen’s Speech set out government plans to raise the state retirement age to 66 and restore the link between the basic state pension and earnings inflation but was silent about older people’s personal allowances.

He quotes Norma Hudson, a pensioner in Lincolnshire, as making the point:

“The Lib Dems have made much of their plans to raise the personal allowance for everybody to £10,000 by the end of the current parliament.

“I believe they have also said that such rise will compensate pensioners for the planned extortionate capital gains tax (CGT) hike. But pensioners aged 65 and over already have a personal allowance of £9,490, and those 75 and over have £9,640 – subject to the age allowance clawback.

“So, do the Lib Dems intend to freeze the personal allowances of pensioners for the next four years to bring us in line with everybody else in five years? That would be pretty despicable, since such a freeze – plus the CGT hike – would make pensioners far worse off.”

The article raises points which may affect myself, my wife Natalie, and many pensioners like us. It is well worth a read.

The International Monetary Fund has expressed fresh concerns about Spains ecomony,

The International Monetary Fund has expressed fresh concerns about Spains ecomony, saying that it (the ecomomy)  

"needs far-reaching and comprehensive reforms The challenges are severe: a dysfunctional labor market, the deflating property bubble, a large fiscal deficit, heavy private sector and external indebtedness, anemic productivity growth, weak competitiveness, and a banking sector with pockets of weakness"

The IMF sees an outlook of a weak and fragile recovery which the policy agenda being based on rebalancing the economy and boosting confidence. The point is made that a radical overhaul of the labor market is urgently needed as it is not working with an excessively high umemployment figure.

The IMF notes that an ambitious fiscal consolidation is underway to reach the three percent of GDP deficit target by 2013. To achieve the 10 percent improvement of the GDP from 2009 to 2013, the Spanish government has taken a wide range of measures, including the fiscal package approved by the Cabinet last week. The IMF supports the package.

Spain faces strong spending pressures over the longer term due to aging and slower population growth, therefore bold pension reforms should also be implemented soon. The IMF notes that the government has outlined possible reforms, including raising the retirement age to 67.

It is reported that the banking sector is sound but remains under pressure, with a need to accelerate a programme of consolidation and reform to reduce overcapacity and produce more robust institutions.

The full IMF mission statement can be read here.

Join the NLA Campaign on Capital Gains Tax

The National Landlords Association is calling on the Treasury to recognise letting as a legitimate business and therefore include capital gains from the sale of residential property in the wide-ranging “generous exemptions” which have been hinted at by Government.

The NLA is asking landlords to show support for the campaign against the proposed changes in CGT by writting to their MPs. To make the task easier the NLA has provided a draft letter and email facilities to the respective local MP HERE

For more information about what the NLA is calling for, please watch the video clip below.



I have already given my support to the campaign and received a confirmation of receipt of the email written. It only took a couple of minutes of my time! A good investment of my time.

Facebook is answering privacy concerns with new settings.

Mark Zuckerberg, founder and chief executive of Facebook, lays out Facebook’s plans to simplify the privacy settings, available to users of the social network, over the next few weeks in today’s Washington Post

In the article he makes the point that

"Facebook has been growing quickly. It has become a community of more than 400 million people in just a few years. It's a challenge to keep that many people satisfied over time, so we move quickly to serve that community with new ways to connect with the social Web and each other. Sometimes we move too fast -- and after listening to recent concerns, we're responding".

He goes on to say

"The biggest message we have heard recently is that people want easier control over their information. Simply put, many of you thought our controls were too complex. Our intention was to give you lots of granular controls; but that may not have been what many of you wanted. We just missed the mark"

Click on the link above for the full article.

The Coalition: Our Programme for Government

The Coalition Government has published its key policy plans, covering areas like political reform, public health, schools and education, Home Information Packs, tackling the deficit and reform of the banking system.

The new programme is the result of discussions between the two parties that form the government – the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats.

Read the document in full by following the link below:

The Coalition: our programme for government

BHA welcomes new GMC guidance on end-of life care

The British Humanist Association (BHA) has welcomed new guidance by the General Medical Council (GMC) on end-of-life care. The guidelines make clear that providing life-prolonging treatment that is “excessively burdensome” or “disproportionate in relation to the expected benefits” when a patient is nearing the end of life may not be in the best interests of the patient and thus not always the best course of action. The guidance also makes clear that “doctors have an ethical obligation to show respect for human life; protect the health of their patients; and to make their patients' best interests their first concern

Full Notice: BHA welcomes new GMC guidance on end-of life care

Further information is available in the General Medical Council's guidlines for doctors on Withholding and Withdrawing treatment

Olympic mascots Wenlock and Mandeville branded 'patronising rubbish' - Telegraph

Hear hear!

Olympic mascots Wenlock and Mandeville branded 'patronising rubbish' - Telegraph

What are my postal voting rights?

Having said previously that I'm an angry expat because I haven't received my vote, it is 11 days after the date of the UK General Election (6th May 2010) and still neither my wife or I have received our postal vote ballot papers.

Two seperate emails ( 30th April & 7th May) have been sent to the Electoral Registration Officer of the North Kesteven District Council pointing out the fact that we have not received the voting papers, and to seek clarification and proof that the papers were actually sent. The Council Officer has failed to reply to either of the two emails. The conclusion that must be reached is that the gentleman doesn't give a dam!

Having read the article What are my postal voting rights? by Corinna Ferguson of the Guardian it would seem there is no further action that can be taken. She writes

Under regulation 76, returning officers may use royal mail, commercial postal services or they can deliver ballot packs by hand. The court of appeal found in a case in 2004 that the returning officer's obligations are discharged by handing the ballots to the royal mail or other carrier, and that he or she cannot be held liable for delays in the postal system. This was partly because regulation 78 provides a safety net for when the ballot papers are not received.

It will interesting to see, if the ballot papers ever arrive, whether or not the full and correct address was used for the posting. Does an incorrect address put the liability back in the hands of the electoral registration officer?

Of course there is always the wonder - were the voting papers ever sent!

Men urinating in public are no better than animals!

Those men, and I use the term loosely, who urinate in public on the waste land opposite our house are no better than male dogs cocking their legs anywhere at every opportunity.

It seems to be an accepted habit amongst a certain social class of Spanish men that they have the right to relieve themselves wherever they want and infront of whoever they want. In the majority of cases I believe they're Spanish because when I shout at them to go away they normally shout abuse back in Spanish, even though it's obvious to them I'm British. It doesn't make any difference as to what country it takes place in,or the nationality of the offender,  - it's a disgusting habit!

There are circumstances when anyone can get caught out and need toilet facilities in an emergency but at the least it is just common good manners to be discreet, but not those animals I refer to.

I am seriously considering photographing them, ensuring they can be identified, and then posting the picture on the internet. Perhaps they or their friends might see them and cause them some embarrassment. I doubt if it would but it would make me feel better.

On the 17th Day the Rubbish was Collected!

At 07.15 hrs on the 17th day (14th May) the rubbish was collected.

Unfortunately it will not be many days before a pile of garden rubbish dumped opposite my home will begin to grow again. The reason being because the facilities provided for the disposal of garden waste, by the Orihuela Town Council, available to local residents is non-existant, so they dump it infront of my home.

There is no permanent household waste disposal site available in Orihuela Costa. A mobile disposal point system has been recently instigated but that only visits selected locations in O.C. once a month.

What is the outlook for the future? More rubbish dumped in the street and left there to rot and more emails being sent to the Council reminding them of their duty to collect the rubbish, to keep the environment clean for healthy habitation of the residents.

Coalition Cabinet and Ministerial appointments

David Cameron, the leader of the Conservative Party, has been appointed as the new Prime Minister. He has now formed a new government, in coalition with the Liberal Democrats. The Cabinet has now been appointed and major ministerial positions announced.

See full list HERE

New British Consul for Alicante

The British Ambassador to Spain, Giles Paxman, has announced the appointment of the new British Consul for Alicante, Paul Rodwell, who is due to begin in August.

More details Here

Conservative Liberal Democrat coalition agreements.

Here is a link to the Agreements between the Liberal Democrats and the Conservative Party in forming the coalition government.

Orihuela Council leaves rubbish in street for 13 Days!

As a direct result of the failure of the Orihuela, Partido Popular controlled, Town Council, the rubbish shown in the photograph has been in Calle Ontario, at the corner with Calle Baikal in Orihuela Costa since the 28th April (13 days).

The reason is because the Council's refuse cleaning contractors have failed to carry out  their task to collect it. During the period the rubbish has been dumped, several of the company's lorries have driven past, but instead of collecting it, or even part of it, they just drove past.

Having notified the Council of this problem by email last evening (11th May) I wait to see how many more days it will still be there.

This is not the first time I have had to request the Council to clear longterm dumped rubbish and I'm sure it will not be the last. It's a continual failure of the basic service of refuse collection.

King Juan Carlos is doing well

It has been confirmed by Ramon Iribarren, spokesman for the Spanish Royal House, that King Juan Carlos has spent a very good night following his operation yesterday (Saturday 9th May, in the Clinic de Barcelona, to remove a benign nodule from the top of his left lung.

The Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, visited the Monarch in hospital today for about an hour. Mr Zapatero said that the King has been able to get out of bed and has had a long conversation, in which they talked about the visit of U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, the meeting of Eurogroup and the market system.

He announced that the King will attend the Summit of the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean heads of state on May 18 in Madrid.

King Juan Carlos is expected to leave hospital in two or three days time.

World record in current intensity achieved with distribution cables

Science Daily reports that researchers in Spain have developed the most advanced and powerful conductivity cable in the world. This prototype measures 30 metres and was made using superconducting material. The new cable surpasses the record in current intensity (3200 Ampers RMS) and can transport an electrical charge five times greater than a conventional copper cable of the same dimensions, thus reducing energy loss by half.

It is estimated that some 60% of the electricity produced is lost by the current cables used for transmission. The use of the superconductive cables would enable less energy to be used to produce the electricity needed, without a reduction in the amount available to the end user. There would be benefits to the environment because there would be a reduction in the levels of CO2 emissions.

Read the full article here

Unearthing the truth about volcanic ash: Spain has been spared for 40,000 years, and other facts

Science Daily reports that research from scientists in the UK shows Spain has been spared volcanic ash falls for the past 40,000 years and so could serve as an emergency flight hub in the event of future eruptions.

Dr Simon Blockley, from the Department of Geography and Earth Science of Royal Holloway University of London, says: "One interesting point that emerges from our database is the common transport patterns of the Icelandic ash falls and, more importantly, the apparent absence of volcanic ash from sites in Spain". He went on to say "So far the number of sites investigated in Spain for these tiny volcanic glass particles is relatively low, and there is therefore urgent need for further research, but the evidence uncovered thus far lends support to the proposal to view Spain as a potential emergency international air travel hub during times of Icelandic ash dispersal over Europe."

Read the full article Here

Voting problems on the 6th May 2010

For anyone who experienced voting problems at the polling stations on the 6th May this is the webpage on the Electoral Commission's site for reporting details'

Voting problems - Electoral Commission

I'm an angry expat: where's my vote?

Having written and sent a complaint to the North Kesteven District Council, responsible for the area in which I've registered as a postal voter, they only sent the final ballot papers out on the 28th April, I was going to write a blog posting about the fiasco of postal votes.

Having read the following blog by Anna Nicholas I don't need to as her article says it all. I'm an angry expat: where's my vote? – Telegraph Blogs
Except for her last comment!

Why no Asbo for the Pope?

Anthony C Grayling is a British philosopher and author. In his article in 'The Independent on Sunday' entitled Why no Asbo for the Pope? he draws the readers attention to the situation where Joseph Ratzinger, otherwise Pope Benedict XVI,and Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman Sachs chairman, would seem to be above the law, unlike Harry Taylor, an unemployed 59-year-old.

The article begins:

Why is it that large, rich, influential organisations and those who run them get away with big crimes and misdemeanours, when ordinary folk are punished for their miniature versions of them? It's an old story, of course, but no more pleasant or right for being so.

Compare the circumstances of two men whose occupations and avocations have brought them to pubic notice recently. One is Harry Taylor, an unemployed 59-year-old, who was found guilty last week in a Liverpool court of putting "offensive religious images" in the prayer room of the city's John Lennon airport (which he did on the grounds that having such a room in an airport named after John Lennon would, he said, have offended John Lennon). The jury of 10 women and two men had all sworn to consider his case fairly – on the Bible.

Mr Taylor received a five-year Asbo forbidding him from carrying religiously offensive images in public, and sentencing him to six months' imprisonment suspended for two years, but with 100 hours of unpaid work and £250 costs to make him feel the sting of the judge's disapproval.

The other man is Joseph Ratzinger, otherwise Pope Benedict XVI, right, current head of the Roman Catholic church. To appreciate the contrast between the Pope and Mr Taylor, we need to remind ourselves of the following simple facts. Child sex abuse is a serious crime. Concealing crimes is a serious crime. Systematic, decades-long deliberate concealment of many thousands of crimes in many countries is a very large-scale criminal conspiracy. It is a matter of public record that the Catholic church is guilty of just such a conspiracy. The Pope, as head of the church, is accountable for the its actions. It is also on public record that he personally protected abusers and covered up cases of child abuse before becoming Pope.

Is the Pope in any danger of receiving 100 hours of community service for hiding hundreds of paedophiles from the law all round the world? Is he likely to get an Asbo? Or has he been invited to the United Kingdom as an official visitor who will meet the Queen and be feted and courted, secure in the knowledge that efforts to arrest him and put him on trial for heading a huge criminal conspiracy will fail?

The full article continues:

More trouble ahead from volcanic ash?

Iceland's Eyjafjallajokull volcano continues to be active, but the full effects of volcanic ash on the aviation industry have yet to be seen, according to an aviation expert from the UK who believes the impact of ash on airplane air-conditioning systems could be serious and will build over the next few weeks as planes begin to 'hoover up' the additional ash in the atmosphere.

The air-conditioning systems on aircraft provide fresh air to pressurise the cabin as well as the warming the internal temperature of the plane. Once clogged with dirt, they can overheat, forcing the pilot to shut the system down and make an unscheduled or emergency landing.

Those of us who have air-conditioning systems in our homes know how necessary it is to clean the filters within the units, and how much dust which we don't see in our homes is collected.

Read the article in Science Daily: More trouble ahead from volcanic ash?

Interesting newscast from the BBC: Volcanic ash fact-finding mission takes to the skies