VIP Taxpayers List - Secretary of State 'incompetent'

nuncioThe tax workers’ union president has hit back at plans to limit access to taxpayers’ data, saying that a recently announced plan merely is an attempt to "cover up the incompetence" of the Government.

Secretary of State for Fiscal Affairs Paulo Núncio (pictured) is accused of trying to "change the subject" of the VIP Taxpayers List, according to Paulo Ralha.

Private sector outstrips the Algarve's hotels

vilavita‘There is increasing supply of local rentals to satisfy the market in the Algarve’ trumpeted the misleading headlines this weekend.

The fact is that more owners of illegally rented villas and apartments have signed up for the new Alojamento Local regime so the private sector now has outstripped the number of beds available in the region’s hotels.

UK - first conviction for hogging motorway middle lane

a22A motorist in Britain has become the first person to be convicted of driving for too long in the middle lane of a motorway.

A van driver received a fine of nearly £1,000 along with five penalty points.

Taxpayer funds €170,000 'cost savings' party

drinkPortugal’s former railway authority REFER and road company Estradas de Portugal have merged in a move widely heralded by the government and management as being based on the huge cost savings that will be achieved.

To celebrate this new period of cost reductions and a concentration on analysing every part of the merged business to see where further savings can be made to the taxpayers' benefit, a party costing a conservative €130,000 has been thrown for at least 1,300 guests.

UK - protective gear issued to energy employees

stabbedTwo of the largest energy companies in the UK have issued anti-stab vests to hundreds of their employees.

Nearly 400 workers at British Gas and EDF Energy have been given the protective gear to use when they investigate energy theft or forcibly install pre-payment meters in households which are in arrears.

Tax Authority shambles - €5 million needed for basic data safeguards

financasIn the aftermath of "VIP Taxpayers List" scandal the Tax Authority is to implement a set of data protection measures that will end up costing €5 million by 2017.

In an astounding admission of poor practice and outmoded systems, half of this sum is for a ‘computerised method of monitor workers’ access to data,’ which most assumed existed, until the VIP Taxpayers' List scandal erupted.

New low for Brazil’s leader

brazilpresidentBrazil’s president, Dilma Rousseff, has seen her popularity dip to a new low with just 10% of voters approving of her government.

Brazilians who rate her administration as “bad” or “very bad” went up to 65%, according to a Datafolha poll.

Worker crushed to death by military antenna in Sagres

bombeirosA maintenance worker attending to one of the military antennas near Sagres in the western Algarve has been crushed to death.

The 38-year-old worker was on the structure used for Air Force communications when the antenna buckled and the top section swung down, crushing the man who died at the scene.