The proposal by Lisbon’s mayor to charge a tax on inbound toruists may be illegal as European laws ban any national legislation that is discriminatory on the grounds of nationality.
Earlier this month, Portugal's national airports operator ANA surprised us all by stating that it will pay the ‘per head’ tax on tourists arriving at Lisbon airport and estimated that the cost for the next year would be between €3.6 million and €4.4 million.
The economy of France, the second largest in the euro region, remained in the doldrums in April with little sign of improvement.
This was against a backdrop of improved growth in the other large euro nations, although that registered in April was slightly weaker than in March.
The Secretary of State for Tourism gave a keynote speech in Faro yesterday at the 'Local Lodgings as an Asset to the Algarve Tourism Industry' seminar.
Adolfo Mesquita Nunes said that there are 140,000 private properties in the tourism rental market in Portugal and, far from discouraging them, he accepts that they are what tourists want and should be encouraged – and regulated.
The positive publicity surrounding all things Chinese continues as a report out today states that China’s tourists spend 3.2 times more in Portugal than those from Angola.
The data is from Global Blue, a company specialising in tourist shopping trends and will be used as further justification for the Golden Visa programme whose uptake has been almost exclusively from big-spending Chinese.
The President of the Civil Aviation Pilots' Union (SPAC) accuses the management of the state airline TAP of jeopardising the airline through years of mismanagement.
The pilots union has called a ten-day strike from May 1, and as the arguments spill over into the public domain, has accused TAP bosses of ‘ruinous management.’
Owners of buy-to-let properties in the UK are obliged to register their tenants’ deposits in one of three official protection scheme for all ‘assured shorthold tenancies’.
The Government in March started a 90-day amnesty for owners who have failed to do this. Investors have until 23 June to do this or face high fines.
Nigella Lawson is to begin a new TV series based on her new cookery book featuring recipes to de-stress.
It will be her first show since Nigellissima in 2012 following her high-profile divorce. Now with a new kitchen to inspire her, the BBC Two series will focus on light recipes with a “balance between lightness and lushness”.
Government debt in the eurozone is at its highest levels since the euro was introduced in 1999, reaching 92% of GDP last year.
According to Eurostat, only four of the 19 members of the single currency are within their debt limit of 60%. They are Denmark, Germany, Estonia and Luxembourg.
