Venice is to be protected from cruise ships by banning large vessels from entering the Venice lagoon.
The ban will be introduced immediately, with gradual increments until November next year at which time the largest vessels – more than 96,000 gross tonnes – will be diverted from the city’s historic centre.
Algarve hotel occupancy continued to rise in October with an overall rate of 60.9%, a full 7.9% above the 2012 figure for the Algarve’s battered hotel sector. This maintains the positive growth seen over recent months.
Hotels were 22% down on the September occupancy figure but this is predictable with staffing and stock levels adjusted accordingly.
By being late for an important meeting in Macau, Portugal’s deputy Prime Minister has been slated by the local press.
The Portuguese language newspaper Hoje Macau rated his two hour delay as "unspeakable" after a meeting with the Portuguese community alongside important Chinese political and business figures.
Remember the former Secretary of State for the Treasury, Joaquim Jorge Pais? He was the ex-Citigroup boss who had a severe and worrying memory lapse over whether he was, or was not, in key meetings with former Prime Minister Jose Socrates’ team when they discussed the concept and mechanics of ‘Swaps’ contracts that have bedevilled Portugal’s publically owned companies ever since.
The Justice Minister Paula Teixeira da Cruz claimed today that she could produce a 15% increase in the current number of judges and a 19% increase in state prosecutors.
The minister was in parliament today explaining her estimates which she claimed will mean an increase in the "stability of the judiciary."
The price of almonds worldwide is predicted to rocket because of a shortage of honey bees.
The largest producer of almonds, the US, is suffering a drop of between 30% and 40% in the honey bee population which has impacted on production in California, where 80% of the world’s crop grows.
The price of gold has been more temperamental than a thermometer over the course of the last year.
At the beginning of 2013, it was selling at around $1,700 an ounce, then tipped down to a low of about $1,200 in June.
Portugal had made significant progress in recent years in modernising its economy and improving the quality of life for its citizens, according to a new report's preamble, but the financial crisis has seen an end all of that happiness nonsense.
In its latest report, ‘How's Life?’ the OECD shows that Portugal is among the 10 countries with the lowest quality of life, behind fun-loving Korea, Slovakia and Poland.
