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Albufeira flood made worse by unauthorised council work

rainThe list lengthens as the number of damaged cars, businesses and road surfaces becomes clear on day two of the great clear-up in downtown Albufeira.

So far, 500 vehicles and 500 buildings are known to have suffered serious damage to which must be added lost stock from shops and bars. Many more cars remain in flooded basements.

British health care slammed by OECD

stethascopeMedical doctors and nurses in Britain have “too little time to care” because there are fewer such staff in the NHS than in comparable developed nations.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said its findings were “really disturbing”.

Americans remain nearly as religious as ever

churchusaThe proportion of people in the US who profess to be “absolutely certain” of the existence of God has dropped steeply.

In the seven years from 2007 to 2014, the percentage has fallen from 71% to 63%.

"Gromit, that's it! Cheese! We'll go somewhere where there's cheese!"

wallaceandgrommitWhile luxury goods and tourist wallets tempt many, thieves in eastern France have made off with four tonnes of cheese.

On Monday morning a dairy in the town of Groux-les-Usiers discovered that one hundred large wheels of the local speciality, Comté, had disappeared overnight.

New routes for easyJet - 'le weekend' in Lyon now possible

easyjetFrom Faro to Lyon for le weekend will be possible from next April as easyJet announced another new route, one of three from the formerly 'low-cost' airline which aims to hit the ‘5 million passengers to Portugal’ milestone in 2016.

The Faro to Lyon option is but one new rote with Oporto-Funchal and Lisbon-Nantes soon to be added to the schedule.

Albufeira's flood - 'once in a hundred years' says government

albufeira2The flooding in the Algarve after the torrential rain last weekend affected Loulé, Portimão, Olhão, and Silves but most dramatically, Albufeira whose residents today started a massive clean-up operation in the face of official dithering.

Assessors have started to list the damage to the municipal infrastructure and insurance company representatives attended businesses where water damage has ruined stock, fittings and structures.

Switzerland remains most secretive country for banking

switzerlandSwitzerland remains the least financially transparent country in the world despite recent changes to its secrecy laws.

The verdict comes from the Tax Justice Network’s annual report which ranked Switzerland at the top of its Financial Secrecy Index 2015, ahead of Hong Kong, Singapore and the Cayman Islands.

Fishy deals in Brussels’ restaurants

tunaPeople in Brussels, including EU leaders and MEPs, are being swindled in some restaurants where cheap cuts of fish are billed as expensive ones.

An undercover investigation, conducted with DNA analysis by the University of Leuven, examined 280 orders from 150 restaurants, including some in and near the European Commission and Parliament as well as the tourist quarter.