Gibraltar Health Authority launches new website

GIBRALTAR (GoG Press release)The Gibraltar Health Authority has launched its new website at www.gha.gi. The website, which has been designed and developed completely in-house, provides information on all aspects of the healthcare services available to visitors, patients and health professionals in Gibraltar. It also offers a great deal of information to assist with enquiries and links to the latest health related news. The new GHA website contains general contact information, guides, forms, information leaflets, and other media content that patients, visitors and health service users will find both useful and informative.>>>

Spanish planes 'buzz' Gibraltar, Government demands action, MoD denies incursion

Matador aircraft

GIBRALTAR (GibChronicle / Brian Reyes) Britain and Spain faced another round of diplomatic tension last night after four Spanish jets “buzzed” the Rock yesterday, causing delay to a commercial flight. Eyewitnesses said the Matador jets flew in from behind Los Barrios and very close to the north end of the Rock. But Britain’s Ministry of Defence played down the incident and insisted there was no evidence to suggest the Spanish planes entered Gibraltar airspace. Either way, the planes flew close enough to generate alarm and prompt an angry response from the Gibraltar Government. “The Government of Gibraltar has called on the UK to take up the matter of this military incursion into the airspace of Gibraltar at the highest diplomatic and military levels,” No.6 Convent Place said in a statement. British officials in the Convent have already taken up the matter, but there are conflicting reports.>>>

British passports will no longer be processed in Spain

MADRID/LONDON As from Monday, May 13, British citizens needing a new passport will no longer have to send the application to the Madrid processing centre, but to the Identity and Passport Service (IPS) in Belfast instead. According to the head of the Madrid centre, Andy Hamilton, "All it means is a change of address." But it's more than that. The cost of sending an application to the UK is comparatively more costly, for a start. What is not clear is that, in order to receive a new pasport, charges for courier service (instead of the mail) will still apply - if so, those too are likely to be more expensive. While until recently phone calls to the passport helpline were charged at premium rates, from yesterday all it will require is>>>

'Listen to the Falkland Islanders: Drop Your Claim!’ says Chief Minister

Chief Minister Fabian Picardo

GIBRALTAR (Govertnment press release) "Following a referendum in which the people of the Falkland Islands voted overwhelmingly to remain British, Gibraltar’s Chief Minister, the Hon Fabian Picardo has shown his, and Gibraltar’s, unqualified support for the people of the Falkland Islands. ‘It is clear to the whole world that the people of the Falklands have made a powerful and  robust statement,’ said Mr Picardo. ‘The outcome of this referendum is proof, if any were  needed, of the unanimous desire of this Overseas Territory to remain British. ‘The Falklands Islanders have spoken loud and clear – and they are the only ones whose opinion matters. The United Nations guarantees that the people of self-governing  territories have an ‘Inalienable Right to Self-Determination’ and, for that reason, the world  must listen to the people of the Falklands in their fight against Argentina’s nationalism and sabre-rattling.  ‘The Argentinian Government must now realize – whatever it may say in public to save  face – that the Falklands will stay British for so long as its people desire. Argentina must  therefore now drop its claim to the Islands!  ‘As ever, we in Gibraltar stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of the Falklands as  they always have with us. Neither they, nor we, will ever surrender!’ "

When is your Mancomunidad due to disappear?

Campo Mancomunidad building,
Los Barrios

MADRID The truthful answer to this question is 'No idea'. With the recent PP victory in Galicia's local elections, Rajoy's government is getting ready to make adjustments (i.e. cutbacks) to the many-layered structure of government, and Galicia will be a guinea pig, apparently. There are 1,432 mancomunidades in Spain, groupings of municipalities of similar political hues, whose functions are questioned mainly because they appear to be mostly places to park dis-elected politicians and bureaucrats with nothing else to do (or who have several full-time salaries for part-time work). There are no figures yet as to how much will be saved by the elimination of these top heavy but several ministers and minions have confirmed that negotiations were started last year with unions, regional and local authorities, and political parties with a view to restructure the State within reforms to the Local Entities Law. (More detailed articles such as this, and many other subjects, will soon be available on SpainInformer.com)

Government cuts back on official vehicles

MADRID Following our item on the vast number of official vehicles in Spain, the government announced earlier this week that it would be cutting back 'significantly' on this expense. (We'd like to claim some credit, but don't.) The announcement came from the Vice-President Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, who said that the measure was passing committees at 'record speed' and is part of the general reforms to Public Administrations. No details were forthcoming but she said that it would principally affect senior officials. This, she added was 'a guideline as to the philosophy of what the Government is doing.' One objective, added the V-P, is for public entities and administrations to 're-examine' themselves so that they become more efficient and 'work within different parameters.' (See also: top of sidebar for Spain's in a mess. Here's Why)

Another reason Spain is in the mess it's in: Too many administrative layers

MADRID During and since the last General Elections  last year, there has been a rumble of opinion at different levels of the central government about the many layers of administration in the country, which many believe to be a contributory factor to the dire financial straits in which the country is immersed. Several proposals have emerged about reducing them to bring them to a sensible level, principally to save money.PLEASE BE AWARE THAT ITEMS SUCH AS THIS WILL SOON BE AVAILABLE BY SUBSCRIPTION ONLY. Subscription information will be available soon.

Tunnel contractor sues Government for £20 million

(Photo: ewms.gi)

GIBRALTAR (Government Press Release)  The Government has now been served with a claim from OHL, the company that was contracted by the previous administration to complete the tunnel project and whose

contract they terminated. The Particulars of Claim were served on 24th April 2012.OHL claims that it is entitled to approximately £20.1 million being the contract value of its works executed up to the date of termination (about £34.1 million) less the amount it has been paid already (about £14 million). The company has further claimed an entitlement to an extension of time under the contract amounting to 660 days in the aggregate and thus full relief from Delay Damages under the contract. OHL further claims>>>

VAT to go up next year, and alcohol and tobacco and fuel and ... you name it

De Guindos, de Santamaría and
Báñez, ministers various

SPAIN Friday used to be a good day. Not any more. It is the day of the Cabinet's weekly meeting, which now seems to bring nothing but bad news. Just some of it from today: unemployment is now up to 5.6 million, 24.55% of the working population; inflation has reached an official 2%, though anyone in the street will tell you it's more than that; VAT to go up next year, probably to 20% or more; all that, plus all kinds of other measures announced a week ago and about which we are trying to get a grip so we can tell you about them (Watch out for Adiós black money and No more cash under the counter coming soon to your favourite website - THIS ONE, DAMMIT!) 

Over half of union executives get paid by private and public companies

Cándido Méndez (l. CC.OO.)
and Fernández Toxo (UGT)

SPAIN The unions have called a General Strike for March 29th, which the centre-Right Government and business oppose almost as a matter of course. Perhaps some of the unions' executives should be counted among them. A recent study revealed that over half the top echelons of both the Comisiones Obreras (CC.OO.) and Unión General the Trabajadores (UGT), the country's two principal unions that house many smaller versions, are members of the Board of Directors of public and private companies. That, and they are present in public organizations as well as on the board of foundations that belong to them or others. Their mere presence on these boards allow them to receive interesting extra pay in the shape of expenses, monies for turning up at meetings and, in some cases, salaries that are supposed to go to the union coffers. The study points out that they are quite at ease working on both sides of the Us/Them fence, alternating their work for the unions and for their business paymasters.>>>

Government gives Town Halls one month to present overdue bills

Sáenz de Santamaría today

Councils must send unpaid bills dated before December 31, 2011

SPAIN (Agencies) The salient item that came out of today's Council of Ministers, according to the Government spokeswoman, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, is that those Ayuntamientos with bills due to be paid before December 31, 2011, in order that the small businesses that are owed money can be paid directly by a bank, with the State's backing. The bills must be sent in by the municipal corporations - not the businesses themselves - to the Ministry of the Treasury and Public Administrations before March 15. In addition,>>

OEM companies claim £7 million

Rosia Bay development project

Government has initiated a forensic audit of OEM dealings

GIBRALTAR (GibChronicle) Government revealed yesterday that the liquidators of OEM and the GSD Government appear to have agreed that the taxpayer would pay nearly £7 million to OEM as full and final settlement of all claims. In a statement from No 6, which has already initiated a forensic audit of the OEM dealings with the previous GSD government, said that even though this position was arrived at before the general election, nothing has been said in public until now. In their probe, No 6 says the Audit will look at payments made to both OEM and Haymills. No 6 says that the claim against the Government was made by several companies in the OEM group, OEM Rosia Developments Ltd, OEM Cumberland Developments Ltd and The Tower Building Ltd, in respect of the various low cost housing projects for which they acted as developer. It is in respect of the work done on the sites before the previous Government took them over.>>>

Government orders full forensic audit of OEM and Haymills payments

Bay View

GIBRALTAR (Press release) Government has formally requested that the Principal Auditor conducts a full forensic audit of the payments made to OEM and Haymills in respect of the south district housing developments. This is a manifesto commitment of the new GSLP Liberal Government. The audit will be published when it is ready. It will be recalled that the GSD Government awarded a contract to the OEM group of companies for the construction of three housing projects at what came to be known as Cumberland Terraces, Nelson’s View and Bay View. This raised eyebrows at the time for a number of reasons not least that some of the plots were not included in the original tender.>>>

Government to audit OEM payments

Rosia Bay, Gibraltar

GIBRALTAR (GibChronicle) Government is in the process of formalising terms of reference for a forensic audit of payments surrounding the closure of Haymills and other entities in the OEM “saga”, No 6 has confirmed to the Chronicle. OEM was originally involved in the affordable housing project in the Rosia district. (See OEM International collapses - Gibraltar affected, July 10, 2009)

December 'bridge' to be eliminated

SPAIN Business leaders and labor unions have reached an agreement that will do away with the December "macropuente," the several-day midweek mini-vacation traditionally enjoyed by Spaniards in the first week of December for Constitution Day on the 6th, followed by a holiday commemorating the religious Feast of the Immaculate Conception on the 8th, with a "bridge" day in between. This year's fell on Tuesday and Thursday respectively, which meant a whole week off for lots of employees, many of whom called in sick. Other holidays that come in the middle of the week are also in the sights of the Government to be moved to a Monday: these will be the August 15, November 1 and, of course, the one on December 8.

Government to freeze minimum wage, one of the lowest in Europe

'Pay peanuts, get monkeys'

SPAIN (Agencies) The new Government, in the shape of the new Ministry of Employment and Social Security, has informed the unions that it intends to freeze the minimum wage (Salario Mínimo Interprofesional, or SMI) for 2012. It will stay at its present €641,40 per month, or an annual €8,979.60. The minimum wage for domestic employees is to remain at €5.02 per hour worked. The reason: 'the present economic climate', according to union sources. The SMI was raised by 1.3% to its present level in 2011. The measure will affect some 183,000 workers, according to the country's two main unions, UGT and CCOO. In a letter to the new Minister of Employment, Fátima Báñez, the unions say that the present crisis "cannot be used as an excuse to desist in our objective of reaching a SMI of 60% of the median salary." This translates to some €1,026 a month, as is recommended by the European Social Charter signed by Spain. The country's SMI is one of the lowest in the EU-15, and has been losing purchasing power steadily since 2006. Below is a list of minimum wages as per Wikipedia:>>>

Rajoy invested as Spanish Prime Minister

Rajoy, bathing in applause, bottom r.

SPAIN (Agencies) Mariano Rajoy was elected as Prime Minister - or to use the official phrase, President of the Government, not the State - at the General Elections on November 20. He was invested by the Spanish Parliament as such this morning after what is called an Investiture Debate, whereby the political parties with representation state what they will be doing during this legislature. The main opposition will be the PSOE, which  has been in government for 16 years. Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba delivered the PSOE's message instead of the former President, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. 

New Chief Minister presents his Cabinet

(Photo: europasur.es)

GIBRALTAR (Agencies) The new Chief Minister of Gibraltar, Fabian Picardo, presented his ministerial team yesterday. Dr. Joseph García thus becomes Deputy Chief Minister, and Dr John Cortes is Minister of Health and Environment. Housing and the Elderly goes to Charles Bruzon and the only woman in the Cabinet, Samantha Sacramento, takes over as Minister for Equality and Social Services. Minister for Education, Financial Services,  Gaming, Telecommunications and Justice is Gilbert Licudi, and Joe Bossano, Minister for Enterprise, Training and Employment. Tourism, Transport and the Port are now in the hands of Neil Costa, while the Minister for Traffic, Health & Safety and Technical Services is Paul Balban. Steven Linares becomes Minister for Sports, Culture, Heritage and Youth.

Government kept high mercury content in fish report quiet for seven years

Shark for sale at pescadería

SPAIN (Agencies) What is not surprising is the fact that shark, as well as swordfish and the shortfin mako shark, contain high levels of mercury. What is alarming, however, is that the government kept quiet for seven years about a study carried out by the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO) which concluded there were mercury-concentration levels higher than permitted by law in these popular seafood dishes fished in the Atlantic and Indian oceans. After a three-year legal battle before the High Court, the environmental group Oceana won access to the report. In its refusal to make it public, the Environment Ministry argued that the study was an internal working document. On December 5, 2003, the IEO concluded a major study concerning the levels of arsenic and heavy metals in fish and shellfish sold to consumers.>>>

Is there light at the end of this tunnel?

GIBRALTAR (GibChronicle) Chief Minister Peter Caruana has declared that the Government cannot say when the contractor involved in the tunnel project underneath the runway – OHL – will be resuming works “in a meaningful way,” or when these will be completed. In reply to several questions from Opposition spokesman for Traffic Gilbert Licudi, Mr Caruana stated that works were halted back in January 2011 because the contractor said it was “reviewing and revising its method of construction.” It is understood oil contamination of the subsoil has become a significant obstacle to the works and the contractor is currently seeking engineering solutions to proceed.>>>