Report looks at source of U.S. jet fuel - UPI.com

Report looks at source of U.S. jet fuel - UPI.com: "A company based in Gibraltar used false end-user certificates while supplying jet fuel for U.S. military planes in Afghanistan, Congressional investigators say.

The House Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs plans to release a report Tuesday, The New York Times reported. The panel looked into how the U.S. obtains fuel for its military operations, much of it coming from Russia.

The subcommittee chairman, Rep. John F. Tierney, D-Mass., said the United States should be careful to avoid becoming dependent on Russia for fuel. He said he was troubled by the use of false certificates to evade Russian export restrictions."

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Rock of wages: online gaming keeps Gibraltar's residents at work | World news | The Guardian

Rock of wages: online gaming keeps Gibraltar's residents at work | World news | The Guardian: "Gibraltar's gambler-friendly laws and tax regimes are turning it into a virtual Las Vegas. The Rock has always had an eye for business that is not entirely mainstream, whether smuggling cigarettes or serving as a tax haven, but in online gambling it has hit the jackpot.

The industry employs 2,000 people , or 12% of the workforce, and has helped to insulate the local economy against Spain's harsh economic climate. Of 30,000 residents, only 600 people are unemployed. Across the border in La Línea de la Concepción, some 10,000 of the 65,000 inhabitants are out of work.

The low-tax regime attracts the industry but even so last year the government pocketed €12.4m (£10.5m) in online gambling taxes. Next year the Rock will receive 10 times as much when the gaming concerns are brought into the same tax regime as other businesses."

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Spanish Airports Authority, AENA, will continue to meet with the air traffic controllers every day until an agreement is reached

The Spanish Airports Authority, AENA, will continue to meet with the air traffic controllers every day until an agreement is reached.

Both sides have described the resumption of talks, following the wildcat action by the controllers at the start of the month, on Monday as positive. Despite some reports to the contrary, the fact that the State of Alarm and militarisation of airspace remains in place, this does not stop the negotiations from continuing.

During Monday’s meeting a calendar of talks was established, with AENA expressing a desire to solve the conflict as soon as possible, and the USCA controllers union sharing that target. The controllers said they wanted to see the labour conflict solved as soon as possible, as that is all it is.
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National Police operation against a real estate scam for the sale of fictitious properties in Turkey which were sold through offices in Alicante and the Costa del Sol.

Their victims paid over money to invest in fictitious properties in Turkey

The Interior Ministry has released details of a National Police operation against a real estate scam for the sale of fictitious properties in Turkey which were sold through offices in Alicante and the Costa del Sol.

The only arrest so far in the case is a suspect from New Zealand, who was taken into custody in Calpe, but it’s understood that other suspects from the UK have been identified and that the organisation worked with British real estate companies.

The Ministry said 400,000 € was defrauded from unsuspecting foreigners resident in Spain who thought they were investing in luxury tourist resorts to be built in Turkey. They were even shown plans of the properties which were drawn up by another victim of the scam, a Belgian architect who was never paid for his work.

Other victims included the owners of the premises where the organisation set up offices to run the scam in Spain, but left without paying the rent once they had obtained enough money from their supposed investors.
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Abusos Urbanisticos Lliber - NO! (AULN) action group

Abusos Urbanisticos Lliber - NO! (AULN) action group, made up of expats who bought 298 family homes in the upmarket, inland village of Lliber on the Costa Blanca more than ten years ago.
The area has been blighted as a consequence of the arrangements made between former town hall officials and builders to build with building licences granted by the town hall but without authority from regional government.
Wholesale construction continued from 1999-2004, by which time an estimated £60 million was handed over to developers by unsuspecting expat families and retired couples.
One of the victims, who wishes to remain anonymous, said: "In 2004 the local environment agency, the college of architects and the guardia civil decided the homes were illegally built so building stopped.
"I took early retirement and with my wife, through an agency in Cheltenham, bought a three bedroom, three bathroom villa with swimming pool and views over the hills but we have no mains water, no electricity and we can't sell because it is illegally built. We are in limbo. The embassy has been great with advice but their hands are tied. The Spanish just don't want to know. It is a dirty, dirty business."
Thanks to the action group and its members' persistence, 2.4 million euros were recovered last year when police arrested the town hall architect and found the money in a private Andorran bank account.
A further 18 people are currently awaiting trial for corruption and fraud relating to the illegal building of homes in Lliber including the ex-mayor José Mas Avellá, British builder Trevor Bourne and agent Miguel Muntaner who had accumulated 100,000 sq of land in the Marina Alta as well as 16 houses and seven cars.
Only this week the Telegraph reported on the 300 Britons who lost an estimated £34 million after paying deposits on off-the-plan apartments in a proposed development called Estepona Beach and Country Club, 20 miles from Marbella.
In some cases, the prospective owners - many of whom were from Northern Ireland - put down an £85,000 deposit. However, the land still belonged to its original owner and the complex was never built.
As the overseas advisor continues to do her best to advise distraught expats and direct them to competent authorities and organisations which may be of assistance, the question has to be asked: why have scams been so prevalent in Spain?
Charles Svoboda, vice president of the Valencian action group Abusos Urbanisticos - No (AUN), who has been advising distraught British expats year after year, tole Telegraph Expat that it is simply because: "The laws are too lax and full of loopholes that tend to favour the scammers.
"There have been too many unscrupulous promoters, developers, estate agents, lawyers, notaries, town halls, etc involved in the process, whose main aim has been to make as much money as fast as possible.
"Their attitude has no concern about the lack of morality, let alone legality or corruption in all this. The sentiment that buyers are suckers who don't understand anything here and can't see past the beaches and bars when they buy is widespread.
"Some expats are naive enough to believe that things should work here as they do in the UK or northern Europe, when that is a pipe dream.
"And finally, the courts are slow and there are very few other recourses or ways to put things right here.":Text may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder.

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Something to declare: Morocco’s Kasbah du Toubkal; partying overseas; London to Scotland for 2p a mile; Rome to Rio de Janeiro - News & Advice, Travel - The Independent

Destination of the week: Morocco's Kasbah du Toubkal, with a cause
The luxurious mountain refuge of Kasbah du Toubkal – close to Marrakech and in shadow of North Africa's highest mountain, Toubkal – is a treat at any time of the year. But on two trips in 2011 its founder, Mike McHugo, is offering it as an element in fund-raising for educational projects.
From 26 March to 2 April, a charity bike ride starts by exploring Marrakech then builds up to some more vigorous cycling routes in the foothills of the High Atlas Mountains. The trip includes lunch on the terrace of the Kasbah."

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six-man team to row from Morocco to Barbados

INDEPENDENT online: "Thomas Cremona is aiming to become the first maltese person to row across the atlantic when he sets off with a six-man team to row from Morocco to Barbados in January 2011. Thomas is a cancer survivor and will be taking on the challenge to prove there is life beyond cancer as well as raising money for Puttinu Cares.

As part of his preparation, Thomas is taking on a world record challenge to row for 24 hours on the Concept 2 Rowing machine. Additional rowing machines will be provided for those who wish to row with Thomas for part of his challenge, and there will be collection tins for Puttinu Cares Foundation.

The current record Thomas is attempting to break is known as the Concept2 ‘Longest Continual Row’ and the category he is challenging is the ‘Individual Men 20-29 Heavyweight’ category. The current world record is held by Vincent Brunning, Plymouth, Great Britain, and was established on the 22-23 October 2009 and currently stands at 20 hours.

Thomas will be at Bay Street, St. Julians today and tomorrow from noon to noon (24 hours). Everyone is invited to visit him during his attempt. Kunsill Malti għall-iSport (KMS) is backing him in his attempt to break this world record."

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BA to launch Faro and Malaga flights from London City Airport - Cheapflights.co.uk

BA to launch Faro and Malaga flights from London City Airport - Cheapflights.co.uk: "British Airways (BA) has announced that it will fly to Malaga and Faro from London City Airport next summer.
BA will fly to Malaga, gateway to the Costa del Sol, four times per week, and Faro, gateway to the Algarve, three times per week.
Flights commence on 7 June 2011 and fares start at £75 one way, including taxes and charges. BA CityFlyer, a wholly owned subsidiary of British Airways, will fly the routes.
The airline is also upping the number of flights it offers to Amsterdam, Glasgow and Edinburgh. Flights to Amsterdam will operate six times per day, Glasgow, five times per day and Edinburgh eight times per day.
In a statement, Luke Hayhoe, commercial manager of BA CityFlyer, said: 'We have responded to customer demand adding additional frequency and improving departure times to our existing Amsterdam, Edinburgh and Glasgow routes.
'In addition to this the Palma and Ibiza routes launched this year have proved so popular that we decided to venture further into the summer sun market.'
Book via www.ba.com.
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Málaga court throws out all the defence objections in the Malaya corruption case

Málaga court throws out all the defence objections in the Malaya corruption case: "The hearings restart in the Málaga Provincial Court in the Malaya case on Monday, after the break for the chamber to discuss the preliminary questions from the lawyers defending the 95 accused in the Marbella corruption case.

The court has now resolved all the questions, one by one, and dismissed the defence claims that the first judge to instruct the case, Miguel Ángel Torres, broke the rights of the accused.

In a 198 page note released on Friday, the court validated the instruction of the case in its entirety, and is a severe setback to the accused who had asked for evidence or the even the entire case to be declared null and void. The court does allow for future changes of opinion regarding phone taps and house searches carried out, but nevertheless expresses the ‘firm conviction’ that rights were not violated"

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GCP Course for Spain Now Accredited - PR.com

GCP Course for Spain Now Accredited - PR.com: "Infonetica Ltd.’s recently launched Spanish GCP training online has been accredited by The Commission on Continuing Education (Comision de Formacion Continuada), National Health System in Spain.

The accreditation provides 1.5 credits and is another important step by the company in providing high quality education for clinical research professionals worldwide. The new course gives the ability to obtain expertise in the international principles of ICH Good Clinical Practice, while focusing on regulatory requirements, as established by the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Medical Devices, AEMPS.

The Spanish GCP training course is developed in collaboration with Dr. Lola Briones, PhD, MBA, Regulatory and Training Senior Consultant in Madrid, who has an extensive expertise in international clinical research industry for the last 15 years. It contains not only regulations but also useful documents and practical case studies, which give trainees both theoretical and practical knowledge. The exam provides a certificate, which is officially accepted by The Ministry of Health (Ministerio de Sanidad, Politica Social e Igualdad) in Spain."

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