Xàbia Democrática were our guests at the meeting in Peri Pera last night. The team, led by Oscar Anton, joined local expatriate businesses to discuss local issues and to exchange information. Our thanks to Oscar, Marie, Georgina and Norman for joining in our discussions. The photo was taken by Georgina Rodriguez.
Just received this – thought it might be of interest:-
This afternoon I delivered my second Budget. I wanted to write to you immediately to explain our plans and set out some of the key measures.
Last year’s Emergency Budget was about rescuing the nation’s finances and paying for Labour’s mistakes. Today’s Budget sticks to the plan, and focuses on reforming the economy to ensure jobs and growth for the future. I am also doing what I can help to families with the cost of living – including an immediate cut to fuel duty.
I know times aren’t easy for families at the moment, so this Budget announced help, including:
• An immediate cut in fuel duty by 1 pence per litre and a delay of April’s inflation rise in duty to next January. This means fuel duty is 6 pence lower than it would be under Labour. We are paying for this by putting up taxes on the oil companies while the oil price is high to create a Fair Fuel Stabiliser.
• An increase in the personal allowance from £6,500 to £8,100 over the next two years. This will mean £326 extra for working people and it will lift over a million low paid people out of tax altogether.
• £250 million to help 10,000 first time buyers get on the housing ladder.
• A freeze in Air Passenger Duty this year.
• Money for councils so virtually every council in England will freeze council tax next month.
• A new scheme to allow Gift Aid to be claimed on the contents of charities’ collecting tins and street buckets, and support for largest donations with radical reforms to Inheritance Tax – if you leave 10 per cent or more of your estate to charity, then the Government will take 10 per cent off your inheritance tax bill.
As well as helping in the short term we need to reform our economy to create growth and jobs in the future. The hard truth is that Britain has lost ground in the world economy.
Under Labour manufacturing halved, and growth depended on unsustainable public spending, debt and financial services. We need a new model of growth based on investment, manufacturing and exports – a Britain that makes things again. This Budget started that process, with measures that include:
• An additional 1p cut in corporation tax. In April this year corporation tax will fall from 28% to 26%. It will continue to fall by 1% in each of the following three years reaching 23%. Britain will be competitive again.
• Doubling Entrepreneurs Relief to £10m and sweeping changes to the generosity, simplicity and reach of the Enterprise Investment Scheme, with an increase in the income tax relief available from 20% to 30%.
• An extension of the small business rate relief holiday for another year.
• An additional £100m for new science facilities and more generous tax credits for small business research and development.
• 21 new Enterprise Zones with business rate cuts and new broadband to promote growth across the country.
• A review of the revenue raised by the temporary 50p rate of income tax.
• 50,000 additional apprenticeships and 100,000 work placements for young people.
• £3bn for a Green Investment Bank, which will generate an additional £15 billion in private sector investment in green projects and low carbon energy.
The Confederation of British Industry has already endorsed our approach saying: “This Budget will help businesses grow and create jobs.”
So this is our plan – reforming the economy to create jobs and supporting families. This Budget will put fuel back in the tank of Britain’s economy.
George Osborne
Chancellor of the Exchequer
Nueva Javea……”We need a complete reorganization of the Urban Bus Services in Javea”.
At a Press conference yesterday 21st April, Nueva Javea councilor Juan Planelles outlined a sweeping and bold plan to modernize and vastly improve the urban bus service for Javea.
Using Electric Microbuses, which have a seating capacity of 27 persons, and by reorganizing the Routes, and increasing timetable frequency, the new bus services would encourage people to leave their cars at home, increase urban mobility for the elderly and young people. A good bus service would also help regenerate the commercial sector in the old town, which was devastated by bungled planning and years of construction delays.
The pioneering (in this area) plan to use the Microbuses, would also have obvious environmental benefits, but also, in Nueva Javea´s opinion, display a positive modern `green image´ to tourists and possible investors coming to Javea. Studies have proved that this form of transport has stimulated economic and social mobility , and the Microbuses are already operating successfully all over Europe, including Madrid, Leon, Dusseldorf among others.
The councilor added that the bus transport service, currently operating in Javea, is patently inadequate in both timetabling frequency and in routes, as the urbanisations have no, or virtually no service coverage. The present buses are too large, designed for large urban areas, and cannot negotiate much of the old town or urbanizations and the frequency of one every 30minutes, with no service on Sundays or fiestas completely unacceptable.
Ana Vasbinder, president of NJ, pointed out that funds for this project should be available from European Agencies, as this scheme falls under the regeneration of the Old Town project, and under National and Regional infrastructure schemes. A round table meeting should be convened by the council, incorporating members from the interested and participating parties to discuss, plan and implement the scheme.
Surprise move in Benidorm motion of censure - The candidate as the town’s new Mayor says it will be withdrawn if three Partido Popular Mayors in Alicante province promise to resign according to the Typically Spanish website – http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publish/article_23062.shtml
The motion of censure presented against the Partido Popular Mayor of Benidorm, Manuel Pérez Fenolls, by a former party colleague and 12 Socialist councillors at the Town Hall is set for debate at a council meeting on 22nd September.
But the man who aspires to become the new Mayor of Benidorm says the motion will be withdrawn if three Partido Popular Mayors in Alicante province resign from the positions they gained through censure motions at their own Town Halls with the support of turncoat councillors.
Agustín Navarro has given the Mayors of Dénia, Villajoyosa and La Vall de Laguar two days to decide and has called each of them to the Town Hall at 12 noon on Wednesday, where he wants the three Mayors to sign a written guarantee that they will return the Mayor’s office at their respective councils to the party previously ousted by the Partido Popular in motions of censure – the Socialists.
The PSOE councillors in Benidorm were refused permission from party leadership to go ahead with the move to oust Pérez Fenoll, and applied to cancel their party membership after presenting the motion of censure.