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Olhão without sardines as ban starts tomorrow

sardinepoorAs from next week the famous Olhão fish market will be devoid of sardines, for centuries the staple diet of Portuguese communities, an emblematic fish that has helped shape coastal economies for generations.

The fishermen will set sail on Friday to hunt for sardine shoals but after midnight, that’s it, the national quota has been filled and further sardine fishing is banned.

Gay community picks Spain for best holidays

holdinghandsSpain has been declared the top destination in Europe for gay tourists.

Worldwide, the US is remains the most desirable place for gay visitors.

German household spending goes up

germanyRenters in Germany are finding it harder to meet their payments as the costs reach more than a-third of their normal household budgets.

The average household spends some €2,448 each month, according to official agency Destatis.

Costa vs Coelho - the TV debate was watched by over a third of Portugal's population

scalesMore than 3 million people watched the TV debate between António Costa and Pedro Passos Coelho last night as the two party leaders went at it head-to-head, live on air.

The programme was shown on RTP1, SIC and TVI so with little else to watch, over a third of Portugal’s citizens 'turned on, tuned in and dropped out' as the debate raged covering diverse topics.

Brazil’s recession-hit economy downgraded

brazil2Brazil, once one of the poster countries for burgeoning emerging economies, has had its rating cut to ‘junk’ by Standard & Poor’s.

Its new rating of BB+ means there is substantial credit risk for investors.

Zoomarine dinosaur exhibition destroyed by fire

dinosaurFire has destroyed the new dinosaur exhibition area at Zoomarine near Guia, Albufeira as 30 replicas went up in flames.

The fire broke out on Thursday 10th September at a time when 3,000 people were in the park but none in the Dinosaur exhibition area which was closed to the public at the time.

Lufthansa pilots strike grounds dozens of aircraft on Portuguese routes

lufthansaFlights between Lisbon, Oporto, Faro and several German destinations have been cancelled today due to the continuing pilots’ strike which began on Tuesday.

The first day of strike action caused the cancellation of 84 long-haul flights.

Customers paying millions for water and electricity thieves

water2Law abiding electricity and water customers are having to stump up over €80 million a year to pay for those who fiddle the system.

The theft of water, and something euphemistically called ’measurement errors’ account for losses of around €32 million a year. Add to this the cost of the one in five litres of water lost nationally from leaks* and the consumer is being grossly overcharged.