Gibraltar Deal
Spain and Britain yesterday signed a fiscal treaty on Gibraltar as Brexit nears to fight tax fraud and money laundering.
Hailed as “massively significant” by Gibraltar’s leader, it was signed separately by Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell and David Lidington, Prime Minister Theresa May’s effective deputy.
It must now be approved by the Spanish cabinet and ratified by the parliaments of both countries.
The treaty was part of a deal sealed in November between London and the European Union on Brexit, as were four other bilateral deals on the overseas British territory.
For Madrid, it is “essential” that Gibraltar’s departure from the EU, planned for March 29 with Britain, takes place “in an orderly way and in keeping with Spanish interests in terms of fighting fraud and tax evasion.”
Election
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has been given a much needed boost after polls showed a commanding lead ahead of the crucial election next month.
The Socialist leader is set to remain in power after voters appear to shun the populist far- right movements. Mr Sanchez who came to power last June faced severe criticism, with Pablo Casado, leader of the centre-right opposition People’s party labeling him a “traitor” and a “felon”. However, the attacks on his minority Government do not appear to have transpired into a drop in support from voters
Experts believe Mr Sanchez, has a “very high probability” of winning the election but there is doubt over whether he will be able to form a majority Government.
Wild Fires
Spain has been struck by more than 120 wildfires in the northern regions of Asturias and Cantabria, where warm temperatures and strong overnight winds have fanned flames, and investigators believed many might have been ignited deliberately.
Firefighters worked all night to try and extinguish 97 fires in Asturias where temperatures have been unusually high, while emergency services were trying to extinguish some 21 outbreaks in Cantabria.
Prescriptions
Prescriptions can be purchased from any pharmacy in Spain from this week and are no longer just limited to the region in which the patient lives.
This system had already gone live in the Greater Madrid region, but has now been extended to the other 16 plus the Spanish-owned city-provinces of Ceuta and Melilla on the northern Moroccan coast.
Additionally, doctors anywhere in the country can access a patient’s medical history, meaning national travel no longer means being ‘cut off’ in terms of healthcare.
Already, the new-style red SIP cards allow for treatment anywhere in the country, rather than solely in the patient’s own region, but it is not compulsory to replace existing, earlier SIP cards unless and until these become lost or damaged, or suffer wear and tear that does not allow them to be ‘swiped’.