"Debate: Should all foreigners in France have vote in local elections?", The Conexion, 7 | 09 | 2022 - Entrevista (Louis Boyard, Diputado de la República Francesa y Arnaud Robinet, Alcalde de Reims)

A French MP for the governing Renaissance (formerly LREM) party tabled a draft bill before parliament broke up for the summer calling on all foreigners in France to have the right to vote in the municipal elections... To understand the debate more, we spoke to two politicians with opposing views.

 

"BREXIT: What does Liz Truss becoming UK PM mean for Brit expats in Spain?", Euronews Source, 6 | 09 | 2022 - Opinión (Euro News)

...for the thousands of British expats living in Spain, Truss’s decidedly inward-looking stance appealing to voters back home will more likely mean her main priority will not be the welfare of Brits abroad. Since Brexit, UK citizens living in Europe have had significant trouble with driving licences and residency issues, to name but two of the main problems, and there is a strong feeling among many of having been abandoned by the UK government, as have UK citizens in Gibraltar. ... the Bremain in Spain group will take part in the National Rejoin March in London on Saturday September 10 to “deliver a warning to the new PM about the impact of Brexit on the spiralling cost of living crisis in the UK”, to express a “clear and loud message” that “Brexit has failed” and to promote “Rejoin the EU” as a “mainstream” call to action.

 

"Liz Truss: What does the new UK PM mean for Brits in Spain?", The Local, 6 | 09 | 2022  - Reportaje (Conor Faulkner)

...Truss’s conversion to Euroscepticism came after she had voted Remain in the EU in the June 2016 referendum. ... Truss’s dependence on the Eurosceptic wing of the Conservative parliamentary party during her leadership campaign suggests she may be kneecapped in her ability to strike compromises with the EU. ... Going off her tenure in the Foreign Office, it seems Truss may view relations with Spain more positively than perhaps with other EU member states or the block as a whole. ... Yet, Truss has also strongly hinted that she would be willing to overhaul Article 16 and put the Northern Ireland protocol at risk. If she is willing to jeopardise peace and potentially break international law to appease her political base in England, particularly within her own parliamentary party, one must wonder about the seriousness with which a few hundred thousand Brits up and down Spain’s costas will be taken. ... With its fourth leader in six years and the third to take the helm of Britain in the post-Brexit world, for Brits abroad Truss’ rise to Downing Street has prolonged ... uncertainty. With her apparent willingness to simply tear up internationally binding agreements, many will worry if the situation in Spain will be taken back to square one. One would hope that her previously positive interactions with the Spanish state could mean that she lends a hand in resolving some of these lingering administrative issues affecting Britons in Spain, but the propensity to change her politics when it suits her make this unpredictable, and her reliance on Eurosceptic forces within her party make it unlikely.

 

"'Nightmare' as elderly British expats in Spain stung with with crippling housing fees", Express, 5 | 09 | 2022 - Reportaje (Charlie Smith)

The group of up to 200 homeowners live in ... Murcia. The expats claim they are facing demands from Murcia Town Hall to come up with money to complete the urbanisation where they live. It comes after the development was abandoned by the builder part way through construction. Consequently, roads have been left unfinished and proper water and electricity mains were never installed. ... “We can’t pay. We paid for an illegal house. We can’t pay again. We’re all pensioners.” The Town Hall says it is trying to fix the problem by adapting the urban plan to give the expats greater legal security. ... the developer did not have planning permission, meaning that the properties are technically illegal.

 

"British expats face nightmare bills to link up services to illegally built homes in Murcia area of Spain", The Olive Press,  5 | 09 | 2022 - Reportaje (Alex Trelinski)

...locked in a battle over unforeseen payment demands of up to €15,000 to finish off roads and link them up to basic utilities. ... the constructor went under having not obtained planning permission, meaning the properties were illegal. Most of the mainly British home owners never got a deed to their new houses – some of which were built in 2002- due to their lack of legal status, despite assurances from Murcia City Council and solicitors that they were ‘legally sound’. Solicitor ... said: ”People bought their houses in good faith without knowing what was coming at them with a minimal supply of services”. “Some of them have died without seeing this problem resolved”... Resident Tony Malpass said fellow ex-pats, especially elderly people in Gea y Truyois ‘cannot support themselves’ and are caught in a trap as not having deeds means they will not get a lot of money for their properties if they decided to sell them and return to the UK. Around 140 home owners are being supported by action group AUN Murcia formed over two years ago, as a branch of the successful AUN group in Andalucia.

 

"El embajador británico personifica en De la Torre las relaciones «más fuertes de la historia» entre Málaga y el Reino Unido", SUR, 5 | 09 | 2022 - Noticia (Pilar R. Quirós)

...imposición de la distinción de oficial honorario de la Orden del Imperio Británico al alcalde de Málaga, Francisco de la Torre...

 

"Ambassador presents Malaga mayor with his honorary OBE for the city's "strongest relations ever" with the UK"

SUR in English, 5 | 09 | 2022 - Noticia (Pilar R. Quirós)

The British Ambassador to Spain ... who had already included a visit to the Cudeca hospice in Benalmádena ... on his day's agenda, presented De la Torre with his medal, awarded in recognition of his support for the local British community and the city's relations with the UK.