More houses under the Spanish hammer

demolishDemolition orders have been issued on 17 homes in Cantoria, in the Almeria region of Andalusia. Twelve of the properties are owned by British expats.

The orders were the result of a court decision which ruled that the properties were built unlawfully on rural land without planning permission.

Duoro Azul sells off its bargain ferry

shipyardThe Douro Azul group has decided to cash in and sell off its recently acquired ship Atlântida, the company announced today.

Azul boss Mario Ferreira said that the board has "decided to give a new direction to the vessel" after he received ‘numerous requests’ from international operators to buy the vessel.

Évora’s prisoners complain of overcrowding

prisoninteriorÉvora prison has received another visitor, this time it was the turn of union man António Ramos (SPP/PSP) who emerged with a litany of complaints about overcrowding and the lack of services.

Ramos reported that Évora prison is overcrowded because at present it has 49 detainees, which is “more than it should have."

Lagos among the most sustainable tourist destinations in Europe

lagos2Lagos now is firmly planted on the green map of Europe for sustainable holiday destinations according to an exhaustive study carried out by greendestinations.info

The western Algarve’s council area now is rubbing shoulders with the Azores, Cascais/Estoril, Oeste Zone*, Serra do Socorro Archeira, and Sintra which all reached the top 100 ranking of Europe’s best green destinations.

Welfare of Portuguese households is below average

fish2“Actual individual consumption” in Portugal in 2013 was 16% lower than the average consumption among the EU’s 28 member states.

The measurement, provided by Eurostat, is one way to gauge the material welfare of households.

Google News ends coverage of Spain

googleGoogle News has decided to end its News in Spain because of a new tax imposed in that country.

This means there will be no more News in Spain but also that there will be no news about Spain from any Spanish news publisher in any of Google News output.

International removals company goes bust

lorryThe international removals company, GMS Ltd, has gone into liquidation, leaving many customers without their personal belongings.

The Facebook page for Global Moving Systems Ltd shows a string of clients trying to locate their items but not able to reach the company by email or telephone.

SEF boss 'has no money' for a lawyer in Golden Visa case

PALOSThe former Director of the Aliens and Borders Service (SEF) has asked for the financial help of the SEF union as he claims to have insufficient funds with which to pay a lawyer to defend himself.

Manuel Palos is charged with two counts of accepting bribes for illegal acts in the Golden Visa corruption scandal and has been under house arrest since November 18, awaiting a trial date.