VinceTracy Podcasts

The regional premier of Catalonia, Quim Torra, is facing a criminal prosecution that could see him barred from office over his refusal to remove pro-independence symbols from public buildings ahead of the upcoming national, regional and local elections in Spain. Spanish police have arrested five members of a criminal organization accused of illegally selling access to pay-TV over the internet. Police were alerted to the organization in 2015 after Premier League, . Last week, a video went viral of a young man sharpening a large carving knife on a Metro train in Madrid. The video alarmed social media users, with many concerned the young man was dangerous and worried about his reasons for bringing a large knife onto public transport. But the mystery has now been resolved. The young man is in fact a 27-year-old professional ham cutter who was on his way to work. Fashion retailer Zara has sparked a heated debate over the representation of children within the fashion industry, after their latest campaign was labelled 'inappropriate' by many social media users. The Home Office secretly channelled £30,000 in grant money to a controversial organisation campaigning to legalise paedophilia in the late 1970s, a former civil servant has claimed. A woman in her 60s narrowly avoided being run over by a bus after being shoved into the path of the vehicle by a 'mother with child' (right) in Pimlico, British Airways passengers have spoken of their shock after boarding a plane to Dusseldorf - that ended up in Edinburgh. The flight, BA3271, set off from London City airport at 7.47am and was supposed to head east to Germany. John McDonnell will order Treasury officials to be retrained in Left-wing ‘economic theories and approaches’ if Labour wins power, it emerged ......

SPAIN needs to double the resources it puts into tourism if it wants to keep the sector growing in the face of a slowdown from the major travel markets like the UK and Germany. IRISH budget airline Ryanair has announced extra summer flights to Alicante on Spain’s Costa Blanca during the peak holiday season. ”During the run-up to the last general election in Spain, political parties used Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to spread their messages. This year,with a snap general election called for April 28 and local, regional and. European elections set for May 26, it appears they are turning to WhatsApp, the most popular social network in Spain. ….. The Spanish city of Barcelona is preparing to implement restrictions that would, from 2020 onward, prohibit the most-polluting vehicles from entering into its so-called “ZBE” low-emissions zone. More than 60,700 people turned out to see a soccer game between Atlético Madrid and Barcelona at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid on Sunday – John Bercow was accused of sabotaging Theresa May's Brexit deal after telling MPs she cannot force them to vote on it again without changing it 'substantially'. …..which seems fair enough. A devout Catholic mother who said sex education for five-year-olds is 'abuse' has been questioned under caution by police for incorrectly labelling someone's daughter with the wrong gender. A vegan mother-to-be has vented her fury over suggestions from her husband that she should eat meat during pregnancy. The woman, who has followed a vegan lifestyle since birth, took to British parenting site Mumsnet to ask others how they would respond if a partner suggested they suddenly change their diet.

Former Catalan premier Carles Puigdemont twice disregarded requests by the regional police force to call off the unauthorized referendum of October 1, 2017 despite the “climate of tension” in Catalonia..........The pro-independence movement sees the trial as politically motivated and defines the defendants as “political prisoners.” Fifteen years after the 2004 Madrid terrorist attacks that killed 193 people andleft around 1,700 injured, eight of the 18 men sentenced by the Spanish Supreme Court for the massacre remain in prison. In the last six months, the Civil Guard and National Police have broken up two networks that were operating inside Spanish prisons, where their job was to radicalize Muslim prisoners in jail for ordinary crimes. With four elections coming up in April and May, the Spanish government has set up a special unit to fight “hybrid threats” including cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns. SPAIN has become one of the world’s largest fashion exporters, according to new figures. The country outperformed both France and the United Kingdom to take tenth position. In the uk.......Last night's hammering of the Brexit deal will unlock a wave of unpredictable consequences that could delay or even cancel Brexit, trigger a new referendum or election, and even lead to Mrs May's resignation. Paul Mitchell, 27, admitted assaulting Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish, 23,at Birmingham Magistrates' Court today after invading the pitch during the Birmingham derby yesterday . Despite an earlier report the lessons had been scrapped the school has insisted the 470-pupils at Parkfield Community School learn about same-sex relationships in classrooms after Easter. They just need to learn their letters and numbers and be taught to be nice to everyone no matter who they are. Michael Jackson impersonators are 'busier than ever' since an investigative documentary aimed to expose the 'King of Pop' as a paedophile was released.

....The European Commission (EC) has forecast a 1.3 per cent growth for this year, followed by 1.6 per cent in 2020. The Spanish government will work to make things easier for British residents in Spain, even those without permanent residency status, in the event of a no-deal Brexit. SPAIN spends 23.7 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on its state school system, the 10th highest level in the world according to a new ranking. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s report showed Spain came ahead of Britain, the Netherlands, the US and New Zealand. NEW figures show Spain invested 0.25 per cent of GDP on public aid in 2017, making it the third lowest-spending country in the European Union. SPAIN has the highest proportion of people employed for six months or less compared with 18 European countries, according to the UN’s work agency which said such contracts harm workers. The tourism boom continues unabated in Spain. The month of January set a new historical record for both tourist arrivals and spending: nearly 4.2 million visitors came to Spain, a 2.2% rise from the same month last year, and they spent a total €4.7 billion, 3.6% more than in January 2018. A 17-year-old girl scout stabbed to death on Friday was killed in cold blood astwo men walked straight up to her and one of them knifed her in the back, police have revealed. Muslim children have been withdrawn from a school in protest against lessons about homosexuality and gender equality. ......... Ten sailors are facing serious disciplinary action after carrying out sickening sexacts in a country pub in full view of members of the public........... Radio 2 hasn't played a solo Jackson track since last Saturday, when they broadcasthis 1979 hit Rock With You.

With an unemployment rate of 3.5%, the Netherlands has become a European laboratory for the creation of flexible jobs for young workers. But the shadow of exploitation looms over its ability to attract temporary foreign workers, especially the unskilled ones. Spain is the healthiest country in the world, according to a study of 169 nations by Bloomberg. After climbing six rungs from 2017 and pushing Italy from first spot, Spain now ranks at the top of the Bloomberg Healthiest Country Index, which considers several factors that contribute to overall health, such as life expectancy at birth, sanitation and health services Voz agreed to support the Popular Party (PP)’s Juan Manuel Moreno as the new regional premier in exchange for concessions on education, family and cultural issues. ”The number of people who fell ill after eating at the Michelin-starred restaurant RiFF in Valencia has risen to 29, according to the regional health department. This figure includes the 46-year-old woman who died on Sunday morning after dining at the gourmet restaurant the previous night. Her husband and 12-year-old son also suffered from food poisoning. ….. .... ...... can hear termites scuttling around her home in Tacoronte, a municipality on Spain’s largest Canary Island Tenerife. She keeps a box of sedatives in her kitchen to help her cope with the stress. The evil killer worried there was a 'price on his head' and that publishing his name could make the situation worse in prison........But the judge said it would be 'naive' to think that inmates in prison would not already be aware of his conviction after his name had already appeared on Facebook, Twitter andGoogle searches. A student who claimed the NHS should not be free to immigrants and lamented about the 'Islamisation' of Britain has been kicked out of his university. ..... expressed his controversial opinions during class seminars and the University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN) decided to suspend him after they received several complaints about his behaviour. 'The wife of ......s who killed a motorcyclist when she failed to stop her Land Rover at a dangerous junction has been spared jail. Acourt heard d dropped her children off at school and was heading back to the family's £1million home when she pulled across a dual carriageway in her £47,000 Land Rover Discovery. Hair follicles could in the future be 'banked', cloned and used later in life to treat balding by a British company. Millions of adults will be able to have follicles taken from their scalp and put into storage, with procedures starting within the next year, the experts hope.

Terry Whitehead joins Vince for today's podcast... Officials at Spain’s conservative Popular Party (PP) are criticizing the prime minister’s choice of date for the snap general election, saying it shows little sensitivity for religious observance. The European Union, just like the markets, is ruling out a financial or budget meltdown as a result of the snap election announced in Spain for April 28. The risk of seeing Spain follow in Italy’s footsteps is creating apprehension among EU institutions, which view Spain as one of the few member states that supports European integration and remains free of extremist parties. The EU remained relatively calm, and was even relieved to a certain extent, when the previous government of Mariano Rajoy, of the conservative Popular Party (PP), was brought down by a no-confidence vote led by Sánchez. Rajoy’s administration had been marked by an unprecedented territorial crisis in Catalonia Of all the foreigners who live in Spain, the British community is one of the most closed off. Britons tend to recreate on Spain’s Mediterranean coast the life they had in the United Kingdom before they retired – complete with the same traditions, language, restaurants and pubs, and little relationship with the Spanish community. Barcelona has entered the New Year without resolving one of its most pressing issues: rising crime rates. According to the Spanish Interior Ministry, criminal infractions increased by 17.2% in 2018, making the Catalan capital Spain’s leader in rising crime rates. The European Parliament's 'grand coalition' of centre left and centre right parties could lose its majority for the first time in 40 years, it has been reported. The UK Parliament has seen resignations from both Labour and Conservative ranks. Is this the start of a new centre party? Home Secretary Sajid Javid has revoked the British citizenship of 19-year-old ISIS bride Shamima Begum, according to a letter from the Home Office to her family today. The UK Business Secretary warned the car industry needs MPs to vote for the Brexitdeal today as he scrambled to respond to Honda planning to close its Swindon plant.

The leaders of three of Spain’s right-wing parties managed to bring out tens of thousands of people on Sunday to Madrid’s central Colón square, to protest against Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and demand that the Socialist Party (PSOE) politician call elections as soon as possible. The latest plan to control immigration comes from Berlin and Paris involves a temporary solution, based on a mechanism for sharing out the migrants arriving from Libya. AN EMERGENCY plan to deal with accidents involving the transport of dangerous goods has swung into action in Andalucia on Monday after a tanker carrying around 30,000 litres of butane gas overturned. Accident and Incident Investigation Commission has published its final report after an incident involving a Ryanair aircraft over the Canary Islands last year left two people injured. TWO groups in Almeria and Axarquia have joined forces to push the Junta de Andalucia for changes to laws affecting homeowners. Both AUAN in Almeria and SOHA (Save Our Homes Axarquia) are working to resolve the issue of ‘irregular’ homes, often bought in good faith in and which face legal uncertainty. A nationwide school strike over climate change has been 'applauded' by the head teachers' union, leaving many furious. The mass walkout called UK Youth Strike 4 Climate currently has students in 38 cities and towns across the country planning to join them on Friday's protest. xceptional circumstances, and where this has been authorised by the headteacher. A young mother is calling for tougher sentences after learning her baby's killer could be released from prison after less than two years...........Harris, from Plymouth, Devon, has now launched a campaign to set a minimum 15 year tariff in cases where the offender kills a child through shaking. A businessman has been jailed after he tried and failed to trick a speed camera by attaching a jamming device to the front of his BMW. ...tried to outsmart a police safety camera van parked on the side of the A658 in Harrogate, North Yorkshire with his laser jamming device last February. London Zoo has insisted keepers could not have foreseen or stopped a fatal attack by a male tiger on its potential mate which unfolded 'in a split second'.

European member states have been trying to hammer out a temporary solution that will prevent critical situations like the ones produced by Italy and Malta’s reiterated refusals to take in humanitarian ships. Interior ministers are scheduled to meet in Romania in early February to discuss the matter further, but there is little hope that an agreement will be reached that makes everyone happy. SPAIN will on January 29 officially lower the speed limit on secondary roads from 100kph to 90kph. The Council of Ministers had approved the measure, which is designed to cut the death toll from road accidents, earlier this month. At the moment 66 per cent of road fatalities occur on secondary roads, about half of which are due to cars leaving the highway usually due to excessive speed. A 24-year-old man from Liverpool has been jailed for stealing £4,500 from his grandad to pay for a holiday in Ibiza. Brett Bridgen reportedly used online banking to send money into his personal account the day before travelling to the Spanish island. BBC viewers have blasted 'smug' David Cameron as the 'worst diplomat ever' after watching a documentary about his failed attempts to negotiate with the EU before calling the 2016 referendum. Violence could erupt on the streets of Britain in the wake of Brexit according to a secret report by European officials for national leaders including Theresa May . Senior intelligence officials warned that civil unrest and rioting is almost inevitable and the UK will be left 'unstable' for decades. The NHS is hiring hundreds of 'social prescribers' to refer patients to art classes and ballroom dancing lessons. Up to 1,000 advisers are being recruited across England to carry out almost a million appointments a year. The mother of James Bulger has penned a heartfelt letter calling on the director of a controversial film about her son's murder to withdraw the picture from the Oscars, as a petition to pull it hits 220,000 signatures. The film, called Detainment, which re-enacts scenes after the murder of James Bulger, has been shortlisted for an Oscar. Criminal gangs are exploiting children as young as 11 to run lucrative 'county lines' drug networks each worth up to £1million a year, a new report warns. The National Crime Agency (NCA) believes there are now more than 2,000 individual deal line numbers in operation in the UK - more than double the number previously identified.

Angela Merkel has hailed a new Franco-German friendship treaty as being a step towards the creation of a future joint European army.The German Chancellor said the pact, inked in the ancient western German city of Aachen today, aims to build a 'common military culture' between the two countries. Spanish tennis star Pablo Carreno Busta has spectacularly blown up at the chair umpire as he crashed out of the Australian Open after an epic five-hour clash with Kei Nishikori. SPAIN’S Ministry of Public Works has announced that it will not be taking any action against Ryanair in the aftermath of the racist incident that happened on a Barcelona to London flight back in October. A BRITISH expatriate in Benidorm has allegedly been ordered to take down Union Jack flag bunting at her bar and has been threatened with a fine if she fails to do so.Tracey Walker, 54, originally from Bradford, claimed Spanish police threatened her with an €800 fine. A 21-year-old man, originally from Uruguay, was arrested last Thursday in the Barcelona area for allegedly beating up his son, a baby aged just two months. THE boss of Puerto Banus, Marbella, based nightclub chain Lineker’s Group SL has died in a hail of bullets.The 49-year-old Marbella night club entrepreneur looks to be the latest victim of a ‘settling of scores’ murders that have struck the Costa del Sol city in the past few months. AROUND 14,000 missing people in Spain remain unaccounted for and two people a day disappear in the country, according to new data. FIREFIGHTERS were called out to an industrial estate in the Valencia Region on Monday after a fire broke out at a decorating company’s premises on a local industrial estate. Emergency services said they were alerted to the fire, which broke out on the Cova industrial estate in Manises, at around 1.15pm. The town is home to Valencia’s airport. Medical personnel treat three workers for smoke inhalation, with two of them aged 41 and 51 taken to the Intermutual Hospital of Levante. A few days after the Duke-s car accident....A royal gamekeeper hit a motorist on the head with a stick and called him a 'f***ing peasant' on the Sandringham estate. A mother-of-two who punched a 13-year-old girl in the face then bragged about it on Facebook has been spared prison. Gemma Johnson, 33, from Hull, walked free after beating the teenager while her co-defendant was locked up for assaulting the girl's father.......... Rachel Crowe, 26, of Bolton, Greater Manchester, was assaulted and stalked by James Hall on the day millions of viewers watched her become a comedian's 'unexpected star' on tv programme. A Labour-supporting schoolboy from an East End council estate has won a £76,000 scholarship to Eton despite calling the public school 'absurd and corrupt'.