In Spain Today, part of a major investigation into historic political corruption in the PP party in Valencia reaches court, meanwhile some historic taxation of the PP Government of Mariano Rajoy has been declared unconstitutional by the court, plus, an estate agent is on trial for pocketing the money for the purchase of a home given to him by an elderly woman, the devastating Murcia nightclub fire court case gets underway, and an airline is expanding the now confirmed successful use of facial recognition technology.
In a day without notable references in the macro field in Spain on the global stage, attention shifts to the eurozone, where consumer confidence for January will be known. Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, the season for presenting business results continues and it will be the turn of Johnson & Johnson, General Electric, P&G, Verizon, 3M and Netflix, among others. This Tuesday, in addition, the Bank of Japan holds its monetary policy meeting.
Back in Spain, San Ildefonso is celebrated today, with Toledo (see Video of the Day below showcasing Toledo) being the centre of activities. Spanish Catholics consider San Ildefonso as one of their greatest saints, second to Isidore of Saville. Ildefonso was the archbishop of Toledo and is attributed to being one of the great contributors to the union of the Church and State in Medieval Europe.
Use the contents menu below to jump ahead, or sit back and press the play button above and just let me tell you all about Spain Today.
Contents (click to jump ahead)
- Spanish News Headlines
- Things to Do Today
- Local Markets
- Traffic and Travel
- Weather
- On This Day
- Video of the Day
- Follow Mark Nolan’s Podcast
Spanish News Headlines
Starting this Tuesday, the Valencia Court judges part of the Imelsa case, where possible corruption of the closest collaborators of the then mayor of Valencia Rita Barberá has been investigated in connection with the illicit financing of the PP in the 2007 and 2011 elections. In this stage, amongst the accused, is the former vice mayor of Valencia, Alfonso Grau, now 83, accused of the crimes of embezzlement and bribery in its continuous form. The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office demands a sentence of nine years in prison for the man who was Barberá’s “right-hand man”. Grau was already sentenced for bribery to nine months and one day for accepting as a gift two luxury watches from a businessman who had signed sixteen contracts with the Valencian City Council between 2006 and 2015.
Whilst representatives of the PP party in Spain have unsuccessfully taken the current socialist plans for taxing the rich to court, some of their own taxation practices have been declared unconstitutional by the courts. Specifically, the Constitutional Court (TC) has unanimously agreed to declare as unconstitutional some measures of the royal decree-law approved in 2016 by the Government of Mariano Rajoy to increase collection through Corporate Tax, considering that this type of modification cannot be introduced via Royal decree law.
In a trial to be held on Tuesday in the Castellón Court, the Prosecutor is asking for eight years in prison for a continued crime for a real estate manager accused of keeping more than 300,400 euro that a client gave him to buy a home for herself and her sister in mid-2015, but no purchase took place. The Prosecutor’s Office maintains that the accused took advantage of the victim’s age and her limited knowledge to carry out complex businesses to keep the money and not make any purchases.
The statements of the case of the fire at the Atalayas nightclubs that occurred last October begin today. The first to testify before the judge of the Investigative Court number 3 of Murcia will be Alfonso Guirao, head of special effects at the nightclub, and Carlos Ruiz, DJ organiser of the party that took place that night when 13 people lost their lives. Last week, the Scientific Police report was released indicating that the “most likely” cause of the fire was the sparks caused by a cold fire machine located next to the false ceiling of the Sala Teatre.
Spanish airline Vueling deployed facial recognition technology, initially implementing the voluntary usage at airports in Barcelona, Madrid, Palma de Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza in a first phase, which started last November, and in the next few weeks is set to incorporate the system into the airports of Tenerife North and Gran Canaria. The facial recognition system allows Vueling passengers to complete the entire journey, from security control to the plane, ‘by face’. That is, without the need to show documentation or the boarding pass.
To read these articles in full, visit SpainToday.news
Things to Do Today
In the Casa de Cultura in Guardamar del Segura a collective exhibition featuring “new perspectives” is on in the same venue until February 4.
For more local events, pick up The Leader newspaper every Monday, and This is Torrevieja for Torrevieja events.
Local Markets
Local markets on a Tuesday can be found at Benijofar, Daya Nueva, La Marina (Elche), Orihuela, San Bartalome (Orihuela), and San Fulgencio.
The roads will of course be busy around those locations.
Traffic and Travel
Road wise, there´s nothing significant planned but remember that if you are venturing into the mountain areas, which in some cases might be less than an hour from the sunny coast, snow chains should be a consideration to avoid getting stranded.
The Guardia Civil are conducting checks on school buses all this week, so there´s nothing to be concerned about if you do witness police activity near school buses, it is all part of a routine check.
For information and updates about driving in Spain, visit N332.es
The wind is still expected to pose a problem in some parts of Europe, of particular note is Heathrow, so flights from the UK to Spain and back might be affected by that.
Industrial action has been called by some Air Traffic Controllers in Italy on Wednesday, which might have an impact tomorrow, and industrial action continues at Lanzarote from today.
Weather
Low Pressure with associated strong winds affecting the UK and northern France. By late evening it is also expected to affect Benelux, northern Germany and southern Scandinavia. Plus, low visibility in Finland and low pressure east of Cyprus bringing unsettled weather conditions over the region.
- Click here to visit AEMET for weather alerts and forecasts.
- Click here to visit the DGT for live traffic and road conditions.
On This Day
1931, Spain and Portugal sign an agreement that abolishes passports between both countries.
1937, followers of the military uprising shoot 19 people associated with the CNT (National Confederation of Labour).
1952, in Barcelona, the cuerpo de Mozos de Escuadra, the Catalan police, of the Provincial Council of Barcelona is reestablished.
1985, for the first time in the bleak history of the country, soldiers from the two armies fighting in the Spanish Civil War jointly participated in an act of tribute to the soldiers who died in the war.
1995, Partido Popular candidate for Mayor in San Sebastián, Gregorio Ordóñez, is murdered by the terrorist group ETA with a shot to the head.
Video of the Day
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The post Spain Today – Tuesday 23 January 2024 first appeared on Mark Nolan´s Podcast.
