Is this pessimistic or reality given the economic state of Greece, Portugal and Spain. At what cost is Germany prepared to support the Euro?
Read more: Euro given '20% chance of survival' - CEBR | This is Money
Friday, 31 December 2010
Wednesday, 29 December 2010
New Year crackdown on expat benefit fraud by DWP
We read in the Telegraph the announcement by the Department for Works and Pensions that there is to be a New Year crackdown on benefit fraud by UK expatriates.
Now don't get me wrong, as I abhor any form of theft, which benefit fraud is, but haven't we had several previous announcements by the DWP about stopping the expatriate fraudsters. I seem to recall that there have been reports that the current campaigns are not that successful in reducing the burden on the tax payer as the schemes campaigns cost more to administrate than the refund of illegal gains by the fraudsters.
On top of this, if the chat in the bars and restaraunts here in Spain is to be believed there is a considerable reluctance within the expatriate community to report suspected thieves to the confidential telephone hotline service. Having said this there are some residents like myself who have made reports to the hotline, even though we will never know if a benefit cheat has been stopped.
Read more: New Year crackdown on expat benefit fraud - Telegraph
Now don't get me wrong, as I abhor any form of theft, which benefit fraud is, but haven't we had several previous announcements by the DWP about stopping the expatriate fraudsters. I seem to recall that there have been reports that the current campaigns are not that successful in reducing the burden on the tax payer as the schemes campaigns cost more to administrate than the refund of illegal gains by the fraudsters.
On top of this, if the chat in the bars and restaraunts here in Spain is to be believed there is a considerable reluctance within the expatriate community to report suspected thieves to the confidential telephone hotline service. Having said this there are some residents like myself who have made reports to the hotline, even though we will never know if a benefit cheat has been stopped.
Read more: New Year crackdown on expat benefit fraud - Telegraph
Wednesday, 22 December 2010
United Kingdom Identity cards are to be scrapped.
The Identity Documents Bill received Royal Assent on the 21st December 2010 which means that United kingdom Identity Cards will be scrapped.
All ID cards will be cancelled within one month and the National Identity Register, the database which contains the biographic information and biometric fingerprint data of card holders, will be physically destroyed within two months.
Home Office Minister Damian Green commented that "The Identity Card Scheme represented the worst of government. It was intrusive, bullying, ineffective and expensive. The Government is committed to scaling back the power of the state and restoring civil liberties. This is just the first step in the process of restoring and maintaining our freedoms."
The Identity Card Scheme and associated work around biometrics has already cost the taxpayer £292 million. Cancelling identity cards will save the taxpayer around £86m over the next four years once one-off costs like decommissioning costs, contract termination and asset write-offs are taken into account. Planned future investment set out in the National Identity Service Cost Report 2009 of £835 million up to 2019 will be stopped.
All existing cardholders will be notified in writing and the Identity and Passport Service will now inform international border agencies, travel operators and customers of the change in law.
Read More: IPS - Identity cards consigned to history by the Coalition Government
All ID cards will be cancelled within one month and the National Identity Register, the database which contains the biographic information and biometric fingerprint data of card holders, will be physically destroyed within two months.
Home Office Minister Damian Green commented that "The Identity Card Scheme represented the worst of government. It was intrusive, bullying, ineffective and expensive. The Government is committed to scaling back the power of the state and restoring civil liberties. This is just the first step in the process of restoring and maintaining our freedoms."
The Identity Card Scheme and associated work around biometrics has already cost the taxpayer £292 million. Cancelling identity cards will save the taxpayer around £86m over the next four years once one-off costs like decommissioning costs, contract termination and asset write-offs are taken into account. Planned future investment set out in the National Identity Service Cost Report 2009 of £835 million up to 2019 will be stopped.
All existing cardholders will be notified in writing and the Identity and Passport Service will now inform international border agencies, travel operators and customers of the change in law.
Read More: IPS - Identity cards consigned to history by the Coalition Government
Another Most Wanted is captured in Spain
Crime-fighting charity Crimestoppers confirms the successful arrest of another of Britain’s most wanted individuals under Operation Captura.
Dennis Patrick O'BRIEN (DoB: 28/07/1949) was arrested on Saturday evening (18/12/2010) in the Trafalgar Bar, Calahonda in the Costa Del Sol. The arrest was part of an ongoing operation by the Spanish National Police and the UK’s Serious Organised Crime Agency targeting bars in the region which are known to be regular haunts of criminals.
As part of Operation Captura O'BRIEN was circulated as one of the UK's most wanted fugitives in December 2007. O'BRIEN is sought on an EAW originally issued in 2006 by Merseyside Police and faces prosecution for Conspiracy to Supply Cocaine with a street value of over £166 million.
Read more detail here: Another Most Wanted is captured in Spain
Dennis Patrick O'BRIEN (DoB: 28/07/1949) was arrested on Saturday evening (18/12/2010) in the Trafalgar Bar, Calahonda in the Costa Del Sol. The arrest was part of an ongoing operation by the Spanish National Police and the UK’s Serious Organised Crime Agency targeting bars in the region which are known to be regular haunts of criminals.
As part of Operation Captura O'BRIEN was circulated as one of the UK's most wanted fugitives in December 2007. O'BRIEN is sought on an EAW originally issued in 2006 by Merseyside Police and faces prosecution for Conspiracy to Supply Cocaine with a street value of over £166 million.
Read more detail here: Another Most Wanted is captured in Spain
Prime Minister Zapatero says Spain will take five years to correct imbalances
During his appearance in the Congress to report about the last EU summit, the Prime Minister, José Zapatero, has said that Spain will need five years to correct structural imbalances in the economy.
In his view, the task of correcting these imbalances will not be just for the government but it will be a joint effort which requires adopting a perspective that allows to join efforts and reach agreements. The future must see a series of reforms, efforts, productivity and covenants. He said "it should be a time of vision, scope, responsibility and ability to drive and commitment even though it is unpopular. And of course we are willing to do that".
Read more: Zapatero dice que España tardará cinco años en corregir los desequilibrios. europapress.es
In his view, the task of correcting these imbalances will not be just for the government but it will be a joint effort which requires adopting a perspective that allows to join efforts and reach agreements. The future must see a series of reforms, efforts, productivity and covenants. He said "it should be a time of vision, scope, responsibility and ability to drive and commitment even though it is unpopular. And of course we are willing to do that".
Read more: Zapatero dice que España tardará cinco años en corregir los desequilibrios. europapress.es
Monday, 20 December 2010
23 Municipalities in the Alicante region under investigation linked to Corruption
Corruption plagues the local governments within the Alicante region of Spain according to an article in the El País newspaper.
A total of 23 of the 141 municipalities of the province are involved in criminal justice investigation through illegal activities of its political leaders, linked primarily to the business of waste and urban planning. The bulk of crimes are in relation to alleged bribes by businessmen to public officers in exchange for contracts, and illegal use of land, mostly for illegal construction on rural land and unlicensed development. Of the 23 municipalities, 18 are in the hands of the Partido Popular party. The remaining 5 are governed by the PSPV.
In the case of Orihuela the municipality in which I live, which is currently and has been for the past 20 plus years subject to a Partido Popular controlled council there are two major cases before the courts. The first, the spearhead of municipal corruption rampant in Alicante towns, dating from 2006, known as the 'caso Orihuela' is for alleged crimes related to urban planning and illegal financial awards. The second is at the epicenter of Brugal case: the award of the contract for municipal waste, including the alleged crimes of bribery, fraud and influence peddling. The main defendants are the PP Mayor, Monica Lorente, and three of her councillors.
Corruption in local government is of no surprise whatsoever to the residents within not only Orihuela, the Alicante Province, or the Valencia Region, all controlled by the PP.
Read the full El País article here: La gestión de 23 Ayuntamientos de Alicante, bajo la lupa de los jueces · ELPAÍS.com
A total of 23 of the 141 municipalities of the province are involved in criminal justice investigation through illegal activities of its political leaders, linked primarily to the business of waste and urban planning. The bulk of crimes are in relation to alleged bribes by businessmen to public officers in exchange for contracts, and illegal use of land, mostly for illegal construction on rural land and unlicensed development. Of the 23 municipalities, 18 are in the hands of the Partido Popular party. The remaining 5 are governed by the PSPV.
In the case of Orihuela the municipality in which I live, which is currently and has been for the past 20 plus years subject to a Partido Popular controlled council there are two major cases before the courts. The first, the spearhead of municipal corruption rampant in Alicante towns, dating from 2006, known as the 'caso Orihuela' is for alleged crimes related to urban planning and illegal financial awards. The second is at the epicenter of Brugal case: the award of the contract for municipal waste, including the alleged crimes of bribery, fraud and influence peddling. The main defendants are the PP Mayor, Monica Lorente, and three of her councillors.
Corruption in local government is of no surprise whatsoever to the residents within not only Orihuela, the Alicante Province, or the Valencia Region, all controlled by the PP.
Read the full El País article here: La gestión de 23 Ayuntamientos de Alicante, bajo la lupa de los jueces · ELPAÍS.com
Wednesday, 15 December 2010
I've been 'Plagiarized' and I didn't feel a thing!
On the 1st December 2010 I published my article entitled Expatriate Residents Apathy to Voting : No Vote, No Right to Complain! and as I do often circulated a link to it to a few readers including some local newspaper editors and reporters
One of the local English papers (Not the Euro Weekly whose Editor kindly left a comment on the article) has published on the internet and in the printed publication an article about residents registering to vote in the forthcoming local elections. As I'm reading the article published over 10 days after mine I am thinking to myself several passages seem very familiar to me. Then two particular expressions stood out, 'no vote, no right to complain' and ' complain vociferously' so I decided to investigate this further.
What I've found is that several passages from my article have been sprinkled around the paper's article. None of them attributed as quotes from myself or reference made to my weblog as the original source.
These are the passages I found copied. Well I say copied as it could be pure coincidence that the writer came up with the same wording as me couldn't it?
My Blog Article: No Vote, No Right to Complain!
Local Paper's Article: No vote, no right to complain
Blog: Expatriate Residents Apathy to Voting
Paper: expatriate apathy to voting.
Blog: In the elections in May 2007 there were only 3500 Orihuela Costa residents registered to vote out of a population in the region of 27000; that was just less than 13%. It is a fact that since 2007 many expatriates have returned to their home countries so the meagre 3500 will have without doubt reduced in number.
Paper: in the elections in May 2007 there were only 3500 Orihuela Costa residents registered to vote out of a population in the region of 27000; that was just less than 13 percent. It is a fact that since 2007 many expatriates have returned to their home countries so the meagre 3500 will have without doubt reduced in number.
Blog: very ready to complain vociferously about the failings .... to do something about it and put their vote where their voice is!
Paper: very ready to complain vociferously about the failings ..... to do something about it and put their vote where their voice is.
Blog: If you don't vote, and don't get what you want, don't complain afterwards
Paper: if you don't vote, and then don't get what you want, then you can’t complain afterwards.
So, I think that I've been plagiarized, and I didn't feel a thing! Well my work really, not me physically.
What I cannot get right in my mind is whether I should be indignant or proud, or both. It's a compliment to be copied isn't it? Isn't it polite to ask before copying someone else's work? Isn't it the norm to give a link or reference to the source of material? Shouldn't those passages have been shown as quotes by me? Does it really matter?
I'm falling on the side of pride at this time, taking it as a compliment, but if it happens again perhaps I might become indignant.
If anyone reading this is a writer what do you think? Is plagiarism acceptable or are there boundaries?
One of the local English papers (Not the Euro Weekly whose Editor kindly left a comment on the article) has published on the internet and in the printed publication an article about residents registering to vote in the forthcoming local elections. As I'm reading the article published over 10 days after mine I am thinking to myself several passages seem very familiar to me. Then two particular expressions stood out, 'no vote, no right to complain' and ' complain vociferously' so I decided to investigate this further.
What I've found is that several passages from my article have been sprinkled around the paper's article. None of them attributed as quotes from myself or reference made to my weblog as the original source.
These are the passages I found copied. Well I say copied as it could be pure coincidence that the writer came up with the same wording as me couldn't it?
My Blog Article: No Vote, No Right to Complain!
Local Paper's Article: No vote, no right to complain
Blog: Expatriate Residents Apathy to Voting
Paper: expatriate apathy to voting.
Blog: In the elections in May 2007 there were only 3500 Orihuela Costa residents registered to vote out of a population in the region of 27000; that was just less than 13%. It is a fact that since 2007 many expatriates have returned to their home countries so the meagre 3500 will have without doubt reduced in number.
Paper: in the elections in May 2007 there were only 3500 Orihuela Costa residents registered to vote out of a population in the region of 27000; that was just less than 13 percent. It is a fact that since 2007 many expatriates have returned to their home countries so the meagre 3500 will have without doubt reduced in number.
Blog: very ready to complain vociferously about the failings .... to do something about it and put their vote where their voice is!
Paper: very ready to complain vociferously about the failings ..... to do something about it and put their vote where their voice is.
Blog: If you don't vote, and don't get what you want, don't complain afterwards
Paper: if you don't vote, and then don't get what you want, then you can’t complain afterwards.
So, I think that I've been plagiarized, and I didn't feel a thing! Well my work really, not me physically.
What I cannot get right in my mind is whether I should be indignant or proud, or both. It's a compliment to be copied isn't it? Isn't it polite to ask before copying someone else's work? Isn't it the norm to give a link or reference to the source of material? Shouldn't those passages have been shown as quotes by me? Does it really matter?
I'm falling on the side of pride at this time, taking it as a compliment, but if it happens again perhaps I might become indignant.
If anyone reading this is a writer what do you think? Is plagiarism acceptable or are there boundaries?
Tuesday, 14 December 2010
New job causes consternation
Mireille Toddington of the CoastRider newspaper has written an article, I like to think, as a result, partly, of reading my observations about the new appointment of Louise Clarke as Press Officer for Monica Lorente, Patido Popular Mayor of Orihuela. At least that's one newspaper prepared to comment on the actions of a fellow journalist.
It will be interesting to see if the other local English papers published this week will carry an article about Louise Clarke's new appointment.
CoastRider: New job causes consternation
It will be interesting to see if the other local English papers published this week will carry an article about Louise Clarke's new appointment.
CoastRider: New job causes consternation
Monday, 13 December 2010
Wikileaks protests in Spain over Julian Assange arrest
The BBC carries a report that "protests have taken place across Spain calling for the release of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who is facing extradition from the UK to Sweden for alleged sexual offences, and that "Hundreds of people gathered outside the British embassy in Madrid calling for him to be freed".
Read more:BBC News - Wikileaks protests in Spain over Julian Assange arrest
Read more:BBC News - Wikileaks protests in Spain over Julian Assange arrest
Tuesday, 7 December 2010
Opposition Parties Shocked by Mayor Lorente's New Press Officer Appointment in Orihuela Costa!
Thursday the 2nd December was a day that the Opposition parties, in Orihuela Costa, of the Orihuela Town Council, would never think they could experience in their wildest nightmares! As several of them explained to me it was a day of personal shock and consternation for the future of Orihuela Costa. Having heard what they had to say I have the same feelings.
What could have caused such surprise and disbelief amongst them?
It was the day they learnt that Louise Clarke, the reporter covering the southern area of the Costa Blanca for the Round Town News, the area in which the Orihuela municipal is situated, is to leave the paper at the end of December to take up a new position. During her time with the newspaper the Opposition parties have perceived her as an ally in their fight against the governing Partido Popular party in the Town Council. They feel that she has been the most vehement reporter of all the local area newspapers in bringing to the readers attention any failings of the PP Mayor, Monica Lorente, and her team, in providing the services and facilities to the residents of the Orihuela municipality and in particular the Orihuela Costa area. The Opposition parties believe that Louise Clarke has played a considerable part, up till now, in helping them to have a chance to get their criticisms of the governing PP into print and circulated to the public. They believed in her honesty and integrity in her writings, and that the readers of the RTN felt the same. They have attributed to her the role of a thorn in the side or a stone in the shoe of Mayor Lorente. Louise Clarke has always seemed to accept and relish this task.
It is not so much the departure from the paper that has caused such foreboding, it is to where she is going.
She informed the members of the Opposition that she had accepted the offer of the newly created position of Press Officer for Monica Lorente, Mayor of Orihuela and leader of the governing Partido Popular party.
Louise Clarke is joining the government team that she has been so critical about for the last four years at least!
Why has Monica Lorente offered her this job? The simple answer in the words of Louise Clarke when I discussed it with her is “My job is to get Monica Lorente more votes on the coast,..... I will be the voice of the PP within the Town Hall in Orihuela Costa”. The other probable answer from Monica Lorente's point of view is to remove the thorn and the stone and get Louise Clarke under her control to stop future criticism from that source.
Why has Louise Clarke accepted this role? I believe the simple answer is the money, as I understand it, a substantial increase in salary from that at the RTN newspaper. For mercenary reasons, not for Partido Popular ideological reasons!
There is also, I understand, the tempting promise that, after the May 2011 elections, of assuming the role of the European Residents Liaison Officer in the Orihuela Costa Town Hall, a position currently held by Mr Stefan Pokroppa, who, it is felt within the PP, has not connected with the United Kingdom and Ireland expatriate residents. However he is to be included in the PP's election candidate list and expected to become a PP Councillor in the May 2011 elections. A reward for not doing his job properly. What if he doesn't become a Councillor, will he stay in his current position?
When I spoke to Louise Clarke about her new, unprecedented, role she commented that she will be the “Andy Coulson of the Costa Blanca”. She went on to say that it will be a “hard and challenging job” working with Monica Lorente and the PP.
I suggested that in order to carry out the task successfully a person in her position would normally be a supporter of the PP ideology and member of the party and asked about her about this. She confirmed that she is not a member and does not intend at this time to join the PP party.
On the question of whether she would miss writing about, and trying to help solve, the problems of local residents suffering from the failings of the PP controlled Town Council, she made the point that she believes she can help the English speaking expatriate residents better from inside the PP government rather than from outside as in the past. She believes that she can help and influence the Mayor and her Councillors to change their attitude to Orihuela Costa and its residents; really!
Having been in contact with representatives of the three official Opposition parties and made aware of their views about Louise Clarke's new role, I was interested to hear that she is hopeful that she will be able to liaise and work with the parties in the same manner as in the past few years whilst being a non-partisan reporter. I think not, as their trust in her has been badly damaged, if not totally destroyed, by her unexpected decision to join the PP team. How much of what she learnt as a critic of Monica Lorente from the Opposition party representatives, perhaps about their plans to bring about the defeat of the PP in forthcoming elections, will be passed on to the Mayor.
From my perspective I can understand why Monica Lorente and the PP have taken the step of creating the role of a press officer to deal with English speaking residents in Orihuela Costa. With the May 2011 local elections getting closer they have to take some drastic actions to try to convince the electorate that the party is not as bad as people on the coast think; and know. The Mayor has probably realized that the infamous Stefan Pokroppa (European Residents Liaison Officer) has no respect amongst the majority of UK and Irish residents and she needs a face in the Town Hall who the people might trust. Monica Lorente obviously believes that Louise Clarke could be that person. The PP know that the party's future fortunes in government rest with the electorate on the coast and must do anything to gain votes.
In the case of why Louise Clarke has changed sides and joined the PP government team I’m still trying to fully understand her action but thoughts such as; 30 pieces of silver; selling one’s soul to the devil; sold out for gold; what cost principles; come to mind. Unlike Margaret Thatcher who said “You turn if you want to. The lady's not for turning.” obviously for the right price this lady is for turning!
We all want to provide for our family and for their future so it is understandable that she should look for a position that offers a better financial package but at what price to ones principles and conscience. What value does it put on the words she has written in the past when criticising the actions of the PP now we learn they are to be her employer!
Having listened to her explanation and reasoning for her accepting the new position I don’t believe that she believes some of the points she made to me, and to the Opposition parties on Thursday from what I've been told. I think they are excuses, justifications, for taking the 30 pieces of silver.
I consider that uncharacteristically she is being very naive if she believes she can change the way that the PP party machine in Orihuela headed by the 'Devil Incarnate' Mayor Monica Lorente works. She might be given a few token titbits at first to make her feel at home and of some small value, but ultimately the PP is a closed shop of Monica Lorente and her dubious close cohorts, the 'illuminanti' of the PP. They are only interested in achieving their own personal ambitions and the Orihuela Town Council is just a tool for them to use as is the cash from Orihuela Costa. As suggested to me, Monica Lorente's ultimate goal is to be President of the Valencia regional government and Orihuela is a mere stepping stone to be used on the way. That's the employer who Louise Clarke will be working for and promoting to the electorate as a public spirited Mayor; really!
I have no doubt in my mind that we the sensible electorate have to stop the PP and the ‘Devil Incarnate’ Lorente from continuing to be the government in the Town Council after the elections in May 2011, for the benefit of Orihuela as a whole and the Orihuela Costa residents in particular.
There will a battle royal between now and the 22nd May 2011 election for the Opposition parties to fight and win. The PP hunting season will need to begin with greater vigour. One thing is certain, by accepting her new role as press officer for the unpopular Monica Lorente, Louise Clarke has certainly, like any mercenary, put herself in the battlefield and the line of fire. I hope she has a very thick skin, suit of amour, and a guardian angel (although I don’t believe in such things). Unfortunately there will be casualties and if she is a victim of the fight for fair and honest government that is the way it has to be for the benefit of the residents of Orihuela Costa. She knows from her journalistic experience that politics can be a dirty game and she’s joined the dirtiest players.
I hope for Louise Clarke's sake that the financial rewards are really worth it! Once she steps over the threshold into the PP camp there will be no turning back. The good reputation she has personally built up in the past with the public will be lost. How long will it be before Monica Lorente decides that Louise Clarke has served her purpose, is of no more value to the PP and Ms Lorente's ambitions, and is thrown by the wayside. A substantial financial gain now may not lead to financial security in the long run!
It seems to me that two desperate women, one for more power and one for more money, have made a pact, an alliance, to try to mislead the electorate of Orihuela Costa into voting for four more years of the same selfish secretive government they have suffered for the last twenty or more years.
What could have caused such surprise and disbelief amongst them?
It was the day they learnt that Louise Clarke, the reporter covering the southern area of the Costa Blanca for the Round Town News, the area in which the Orihuela municipal is situated, is to leave the paper at the end of December to take up a new position. During her time with the newspaper the Opposition parties have perceived her as an ally in their fight against the governing Partido Popular party in the Town Council. They feel that she has been the most vehement reporter of all the local area newspapers in bringing to the readers attention any failings of the PP Mayor, Monica Lorente, and her team, in providing the services and facilities to the residents of the Orihuela municipality and in particular the Orihuela Costa area. The Opposition parties believe that Louise Clarke has played a considerable part, up till now, in helping them to have a chance to get their criticisms of the governing PP into print and circulated to the public. They believed in her honesty and integrity in her writings, and that the readers of the RTN felt the same. They have attributed to her the role of a thorn in the side or a stone in the shoe of Mayor Lorente. Louise Clarke has always seemed to accept and relish this task.
It is not so much the departure from the paper that has caused such foreboding, it is to where she is going.
She informed the members of the Opposition that she had accepted the offer of the newly created position of Press Officer for Monica Lorente, Mayor of Orihuela and leader of the governing Partido Popular party.
Louise Clarke is joining the government team that she has been so critical about for the last four years at least!
Why has Monica Lorente offered her this job? The simple answer in the words of Louise Clarke when I discussed it with her is “My job is to get Monica Lorente more votes on the coast,..... I will be the voice of the PP within the Town Hall in Orihuela Costa”. The other probable answer from Monica Lorente's point of view is to remove the thorn and the stone and get Louise Clarke under her control to stop future criticism from that source.
Why has Louise Clarke accepted this role? I believe the simple answer is the money, as I understand it, a substantial increase in salary from that at the RTN newspaper. For mercenary reasons, not for Partido Popular ideological reasons!
There is also, I understand, the tempting promise that, after the May 2011 elections, of assuming the role of the European Residents Liaison Officer in the Orihuela Costa Town Hall, a position currently held by Mr Stefan Pokroppa, who, it is felt within the PP, has not connected with the United Kingdom and Ireland expatriate residents. However he is to be included in the PP's election candidate list and expected to become a PP Councillor in the May 2011 elections. A reward for not doing his job properly. What if he doesn't become a Councillor, will he stay in his current position?
When I spoke to Louise Clarke about her new, unprecedented, role she commented that she will be the “Andy Coulson of the Costa Blanca”. She went on to say that it will be a “hard and challenging job” working with Monica Lorente and the PP.
I suggested that in order to carry out the task successfully a person in her position would normally be a supporter of the PP ideology and member of the party and asked about her about this. She confirmed that she is not a member and does not intend at this time to join the PP party.
On the question of whether she would miss writing about, and trying to help solve, the problems of local residents suffering from the failings of the PP controlled Town Council, she made the point that she believes she can help the English speaking expatriate residents better from inside the PP government rather than from outside as in the past. She believes that she can help and influence the Mayor and her Councillors to change their attitude to Orihuela Costa and its residents; really!
Having been in contact with representatives of the three official Opposition parties and made aware of their views about Louise Clarke's new role, I was interested to hear that she is hopeful that she will be able to liaise and work with the parties in the same manner as in the past few years whilst being a non-partisan reporter. I think not, as their trust in her has been badly damaged, if not totally destroyed, by her unexpected decision to join the PP team. How much of what she learnt as a critic of Monica Lorente from the Opposition party representatives, perhaps about their plans to bring about the defeat of the PP in forthcoming elections, will be passed on to the Mayor.
From my perspective I can understand why Monica Lorente and the PP have taken the step of creating the role of a press officer to deal with English speaking residents in Orihuela Costa. With the May 2011 local elections getting closer they have to take some drastic actions to try to convince the electorate that the party is not as bad as people on the coast think; and know. The Mayor has probably realized that the infamous Stefan Pokroppa (European Residents Liaison Officer) has no respect amongst the majority of UK and Irish residents and she needs a face in the Town Hall who the people might trust. Monica Lorente obviously believes that Louise Clarke could be that person. The PP know that the party's future fortunes in government rest with the electorate on the coast and must do anything to gain votes.
In the case of why Louise Clarke has changed sides and joined the PP government team I’m still trying to fully understand her action but thoughts such as; 30 pieces of silver; selling one’s soul to the devil; sold out for gold; what cost principles; come to mind. Unlike Margaret Thatcher who said “You turn if you want to. The lady's not for turning.” obviously for the right price this lady is for turning!
We all want to provide for our family and for their future so it is understandable that she should look for a position that offers a better financial package but at what price to ones principles and conscience. What value does it put on the words she has written in the past when criticising the actions of the PP now we learn they are to be her employer!
Having listened to her explanation and reasoning for her accepting the new position I don’t believe that she believes some of the points she made to me, and to the Opposition parties on Thursday from what I've been told. I think they are excuses, justifications, for taking the 30 pieces of silver.
I consider that uncharacteristically she is being very naive if she believes she can change the way that the PP party machine in Orihuela headed by the 'Devil Incarnate' Mayor Monica Lorente works. She might be given a few token titbits at first to make her feel at home and of some small value, but ultimately the PP is a closed shop of Monica Lorente and her dubious close cohorts, the 'illuminanti' of the PP. They are only interested in achieving their own personal ambitions and the Orihuela Town Council is just a tool for them to use as is the cash from Orihuela Costa. As suggested to me, Monica Lorente's ultimate goal is to be President of the Valencia regional government and Orihuela is a mere stepping stone to be used on the way. That's the employer who Louise Clarke will be working for and promoting to the electorate as a public spirited Mayor; really!
I have no doubt in my mind that we the sensible electorate have to stop the PP and the ‘Devil Incarnate’ Lorente from continuing to be the government in the Town Council after the elections in May 2011, for the benefit of Orihuela as a whole and the Orihuela Costa residents in particular.
There will a battle royal between now and the 22nd May 2011 election for the Opposition parties to fight and win. The PP hunting season will need to begin with greater vigour. One thing is certain, by accepting her new role as press officer for the unpopular Monica Lorente, Louise Clarke has certainly, like any mercenary, put herself in the battlefield and the line of fire. I hope she has a very thick skin, suit of amour, and a guardian angel (although I don’t believe in such things). Unfortunately there will be casualties and if she is a victim of the fight for fair and honest government that is the way it has to be for the benefit of the residents of Orihuela Costa. She knows from her journalistic experience that politics can be a dirty game and she’s joined the dirtiest players.
I hope for Louise Clarke's sake that the financial rewards are really worth it! Once she steps over the threshold into the PP camp there will be no turning back. The good reputation she has personally built up in the past with the public will be lost. How long will it be before Monica Lorente decides that Louise Clarke has served her purpose, is of no more value to the PP and Ms Lorente's ambitions, and is thrown by the wayside. A substantial financial gain now may not lead to financial security in the long run!
It seems to me that two desperate women, one for more power and one for more money, have made a pact, an alliance, to try to mislead the electorate of Orihuela Costa into voting for four more years of the same selfish secretive government they have suffered for the last twenty or more years.
Wednesday, 1 December 2010
Expatriate Residents Apathy to Voting :- No Vote, No Right to Complain!
Time and time again we hear in the local expatriate frequented bars and restaurants, and we read in the local English newspapers, of complaints from foreign residents in the Orihuela Municipality, and in particular in Orihuela Costa, about the Town Council's failures to look after the needs of the residents.
On the 22nd May 2011 the citizens of the municipality will have the opportunity to voice their opinions in the ultimate way by casting their vote in the local elections.
That is provided they have registered their intention to vote on the Electoral Register by the 31st December 2010!
To activate the foreign residents to register there is currently running various campaigns of encouragement under the title of 'No Vote, No Voice'. There currently is, and has been for several months, a plethora of information in newspapers and on government websites on how to, and the importance of, registering to vote in the May 2011, and future, local elections, aimed at non-Spanish residents.
Unfortunately from the information I have received, from different sources, the campaign 'No Vote, No Voice' in its various guises has at this point in time in Orihuela Costa failed to produce a substantial increase in the number of voter registrations.
Not because there has not been enough information available but because of expatriate residents apathy with regards voting!
Let me explain!
To be included on the Electoral Register a resident has first of all to be registered on the municipal civil register, the 'Padrón', a record of all residents within the council area. Unlike Spanish residents who when they register on the Padrón are automatically also included on the electoral list, peculiarly and unfairly, expatriate residents have not been offered this but have had to ask to be added. This was something they were not made aware of.
Because of this inequality the Censo Electoral office covering the Alicante province in which Orihuela is situated has, as a result of political pressure, sent out by post approximately 7500 electoral registration application forms to those foreign residents who have been added to the Padron since 2007 and not added to the electoral register. The completed forms can be posted back to the electoral office.
From information supplied from the 'Censo Electoral' office it would seem that as at the 31st October of the 7500 forms sent out only 450 have been returned completed, that is just 6% or 1 in 16 persons.
However of those returned 100 showed that the resident did not want the right to vote. That reduces the percentage of those saying they wish to vote to just 4.7% or less than 1 in 20 of the electorate.
The deadline for returning the form is the end of December so there could still be a chance of a few more being returned. Having said this there is also the facility to return them direct to the Town Hall. There are no firm numbers by this route. Being generous let's assume the same number as by post. That would still only give a figure of 700 positive registrations being just 9.4% of eligible new residents since 2007 wishing to have the right to vote!
In the elections in May 2007 there were only 3500 Orihuela Costa residents registered to vote out of a population in the region of 27000; that was just less than 13%. It is a fact that since 2007 many expatriates have returned to their home countries so the meagre 3500 will have without doubt reduced in number. The exact figure is not known but let's assume a conservative 10% reducing the figure to 3150. Now to this must be added the possible increase of 700 giving an estimated total of 3850 registered voters in Orihuela Costa; that is only 14.25% of the population.
As expatriate residents account for the substantial majority of the total population in Orihuela Costa that is why I believe that the majority of them are apathetic towards voting in the local elections for the Orihuela Town Council. They are very ready to complain vociferously about the failings of the incumbent council but not to do something about it and put their vote where their voice is!
What is the solution to get them to vote? I don't know. Perhaps there isn't a cure for apathy, unless it hits their wallets.
But it is hitting their pockets. They are paying taxes for services that they are not getting from the council. They are being conned out of their money by the council for inferior quality infrastructure, for inferior levels of policing, for inferior quality schooling for their children, inferior social amenities, inferior quality of environment, and many more failures that result in an inferior overall quality of life in Orihuela Costa.
I cannot see the logic of any resident not wishing to have the right to vote in local government elections where they live. I have no truck with the idea that foreign residents shouldn't get involved in local politics. The phrase 'No taxation without representation' springs to mind.
If only I could shout aloud to the electorate.
“Wake up citizens of Orihuela, act now so you can voice your opinion in the ballot box with your vote. Get your butts off the settee, or the bar stool, or the cafeteria bench, or the restaurant chair, and get your electoral register form completed and get it to the Town Hall or electoral censor office before the end of December, so you can vote in May 2011. The council that is elected then will control your environment and life as a resident of the municipality for the next four years. If you want change for the better then you must vote. If you don't vote, and don't get what you want, don't complain afterwards”!
Perhaps the campaign should be renamed to 'No Vote – No Right to Complain'.
On the 22nd May 2011 the citizens of the municipality will have the opportunity to voice their opinions in the ultimate way by casting their vote in the local elections.
That is provided they have registered their intention to vote on the Electoral Register by the 31st December 2010!
To activate the foreign residents to register there is currently running various campaigns of encouragement under the title of 'No Vote, No Voice'. There currently is, and has been for several months, a plethora of information in newspapers and on government websites on how to, and the importance of, registering to vote in the May 2011, and future, local elections, aimed at non-Spanish residents.
Unfortunately from the information I have received, from different sources, the campaign 'No Vote, No Voice' in its various guises has at this point in time in Orihuela Costa failed to produce a substantial increase in the number of voter registrations.
Not because there has not been enough information available but because of expatriate residents apathy with regards voting!
Let me explain!
To be included on the Electoral Register a resident has first of all to be registered on the municipal civil register, the 'Padrón', a record of all residents within the council area. Unlike Spanish residents who when they register on the Padrón are automatically also included on the electoral list, peculiarly and unfairly, expatriate residents have not been offered this but have had to ask to be added. This was something they were not made aware of.
Because of this inequality the Censo Electoral office covering the Alicante province in which Orihuela is situated has, as a result of political pressure, sent out by post approximately 7500 electoral registration application forms to those foreign residents who have been added to the Padron since 2007 and not added to the electoral register. The completed forms can be posted back to the electoral office.
From information supplied from the 'Censo Electoral' office it would seem that as at the 31st October of the 7500 forms sent out only 450 have been returned completed, that is just 6% or 1 in 16 persons.
However of those returned 100 showed that the resident did not want the right to vote. That reduces the percentage of those saying they wish to vote to just 4.7% or less than 1 in 20 of the electorate.
The deadline for returning the form is the end of December so there could still be a chance of a few more being returned. Having said this there is also the facility to return them direct to the Town Hall. There are no firm numbers by this route. Being generous let's assume the same number as by post. That would still only give a figure of 700 positive registrations being just 9.4% of eligible new residents since 2007 wishing to have the right to vote!
In the elections in May 2007 there were only 3500 Orihuela Costa residents registered to vote out of a population in the region of 27000; that was just less than 13%. It is a fact that since 2007 many expatriates have returned to their home countries so the meagre 3500 will have without doubt reduced in number. The exact figure is not known but let's assume a conservative 10% reducing the figure to 3150. Now to this must be added the possible increase of 700 giving an estimated total of 3850 registered voters in Orihuela Costa; that is only 14.25% of the population.
As expatriate residents account for the substantial majority of the total population in Orihuela Costa that is why I believe that the majority of them are apathetic towards voting in the local elections for the Orihuela Town Council. They are very ready to complain vociferously about the failings of the incumbent council but not to do something about it and put their vote where their voice is!
What is the solution to get them to vote? I don't know. Perhaps there isn't a cure for apathy, unless it hits their wallets.
But it is hitting their pockets. They are paying taxes for services that they are not getting from the council. They are being conned out of their money by the council for inferior quality infrastructure, for inferior levels of policing, for inferior quality schooling for their children, inferior social amenities, inferior quality of environment, and many more failures that result in an inferior overall quality of life in Orihuela Costa.
I cannot see the logic of any resident not wishing to have the right to vote in local government elections where they live. I have no truck with the idea that foreign residents shouldn't get involved in local politics. The phrase 'No taxation without representation' springs to mind.
If only I could shout aloud to the electorate.
“Wake up citizens of Orihuela, act now so you can voice your opinion in the ballot box with your vote. Get your butts off the settee, or the bar stool, or the cafeteria bench, or the restaurant chair, and get your electoral register form completed and get it to the Town Hall or electoral censor office before the end of December, so you can vote in May 2011. The council that is elected then will control your environment and life as a resident of the municipality for the next four years. If you want change for the better then you must vote. If you don't vote, and don't get what you want, don't complain afterwards”!
Perhaps the campaign should be renamed to 'No Vote – No Right to Complain'.
Parking an Elevator - will the wall survive?
Those of us who live in Spain know from experience the appalling quality of the parking of vehicles. Here we see an attempt to park an elevator without knocking a wall down. Will the driver do it or not?
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