Faro slum catches fire

faroslumA fire that broke out on Monday night in the Horta da Areia area of Faro has left nine homeless, according to the mayor, Rogério Bacalhau.

Those affected by the fire are from three families who lived in the pre-fab wood and corrugated iron houses that were gutted by the flames.

Bacalhau said that the council works department will start to clear away the houses which he considers are "unrecoverable."

UK now a nation of coffee drinkers

coffeePeople in Britain are turning to coffee as their brew of choice.

Sales of tea dropped by 6% this year, after having fallen by 3% last year.

Low inflation in Portugal

algarveshoppingInflation in the eurozone was up by 0.9% in November. In October it had been 0.7%.

In November of last year, inflation was running at 2.2% on average in the region.

Privatisation of TAP - government still dithering

tapThe Secretary of State for Transport, Sérgio Monteiro, said today that the government is "creating the conditions" for the privatisation of TAP and will proceed "as soon as possible, perhaps in the first quarter of 2014.”

Monteiro said the government will only go ahead “when the conditions are right from the point of view of competitiveness in the market.”

Spain optimistic about Portugal’s economic improvements

spanishpmThe President of the Spanish Government, Mariano Rajoy, today expressed his optimism about recent Portuguese economic data, hailing the successes achieved by the coalition Government.

"I have followed closely the recent economic data from your country and the trend is positive," said Rajoy in an informal chat with press at his official residence Moncloa Palace, during a Christmas get together.

PM accused of hiding information

psdThe general secretary of the Socialist Party has accused the prime minister of hiding information from the Portuguese electorate.

In response, the vice president of the parliamentary group of the ruling Social Democrats, Teresa Leal Coelho, said today that there is no bargaining going on, whether hidden or not hidden, over the terms under which the country will exit the bailout programme in June.

Two million foreign owners of UK homes

cottageNew research has shown that more than two million foreign purchasers now own property in the UK.

The figures, which come from an analysis of HMRC data, show the increase in overseas landlords has been 39% in the last five years.

FCO sees “substantial problem” on illegal Spanish property

spanishluxuryhomeBritain’s Foreign Office has recognised that there is a “substantial problem” for Brits whose property in Spain is now threatened with demolition for violating local planning regulations.

At least 4,000 houses owned by Brits are involved in some kind of property dispute, according to Foreign Office estimates.