The government in Andalucía believes establishments which already provide a separate area for smokers should be exempt for the next few years

The regional government in Andalucía believes that the bars and restaurants which have invested money in providing a separate area for smokers should be exempt from the extended smoking ban which central government has announced will be introduced next year. Under the current anti-smoking legislation which has been in place since 2006, establishments which are larger than 100 square metres must provide a separate closed-off area if they want to allow smoking on the premises.

Jacinto Higueras performed with García Lorca in the thirties

Jacinto Higueras Cátedra, the last survivor of the ‘La Barraca’ theatre group established by Federico García Lorca, has died at is home in Madrid at the age of 96.

Famous in later life as a sculptor, he performed with Lorca in the travelling theatre group which took culture to the smaller villages of Granada and Andalucía between the years 1932 and 1936.

A report ruled out by the Junta de Andalucía pointed to an area nearby as the most likely burial spot

The mass Civil War grave which is believed to hold the bones of Spain’s much-loved poet, Federico García Lorca, could be just 400 metres away from the site in Alfacar, Granada province, where excavations concluded earlier this month with no human remains being found.

The Socialist administration has invited Catalan politicians to visit the region to learn about the ‘fiesta’

The Junta de Andalucía has come out in support of bullfighting and has invited Catalan politicians the visit the region where they say the bullfighting world is part of their community.

The Governing Councillor for the Junta, Luis Pizarro, is behind the initiative which comes after the Catalan Paliament has admitted for debate a citizens petition to ban bullfighting in the region.

Tens of thousands of victims are believed to lie in mass graves across the country

An agreement is to be signed this Monday, under the Law for Historical Memory passed in 2007, to draw up a nationwide map of the mass graves which contain the remains of thousands of victims killed during the Civil War and the Franco dictatorship.

The Catalan Parliament has voted out a series of amendments designed to stop Friday’s debate

A total of 67 deputies in the Catalan parliament have voted in favour of debating a possible prohibition of bullfighting in the region. A series of amendments presented to block to vote, presented by the PSC, PP and Ciutadans, have all been defeated this morning in the chamber. 59 voted in favour of the amendments and 5 abstained.

No human remains have been found at the site thought to be a civil war mass grave

The experts report on the excavations of what was thought to be a civil war mass grave at Alfacar, nine kilometres from Granada where the famous poet, Federico García Lorca was thought to be buried, has concluded that no human remains have been found. The report says there is no evidence that there had been any burials in the area.

Catalonia’s parliament is due to vote Friday on a call to ban bullfighting in northeastern Spain in a debate that has drawn emotional arguments from both sides, as well as in France.

The parliament in Barcelona will decide whether to debate a petition with 180,000 signatures that calls for a change in an animal protection law that bans killing or mistreating animals in shows except in the case of bullfights.

Spain’s culture chiefs on Wednesday announced plans to slash value-added tax on electronic books to the same low level as traditional paper tomes.

The culture ministry said in a statement the tax would be lowered from 16 percent to four percent on the electronic devices, as the battle hots up between rival companies to capture the fledgling market.

Antonio Maria Avila, head of the federation of Spanish editors, told El Pais newspaper the move was “the fruit of a long struggle” by the publishing industry.

MPs in the chamber are debating the issue on Friday

A petition was handed in to the Catalan parliament this Monday, signed by 127,000 people demanding an end to bull fighting. The signatures have been collected over the years since the campaign was first launched in 2006. It’s been run by the ADDA Association in Defence of Animals’ Rights and WSPA, the World Society for the Protection of Animals, who want bull fighting banned as a cruel and barbaric practice.

The man behind the scenes in such cinematic greats as Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago received the 2009 award for lifetime achievement in film, presented at the annual Almeria short film festival this week.

Creative director Eddie Fowlie, who worked alongside the likes of stellar director David Lean on many films shot on location in Almeria, was visibly moved at the recognition shown to him for his contribution to the film industry over more than 60 years, from the organisers of the award – the Andalucian Association of Audiovisual Festivals (ASFAAN).

A Spanish couple has been sentenced to prison for breaching a distancing order and reuniting after hitting a troubled patch in their marriage.

A court found the husband and wife guilty of breaching the order, which forbade them from coming within 500 metres of each other

The pair, who have not been identified, separated in September 2008 and a court imposed the distancing order after repeated conflict between the two.

Thirteen etchings by Pablo Picasso have come to light after a Spanish professor discovered them jammed into the pages of a book owned by the Spanish artist’s lover and muse, Dora Maar.

The aquatints were found by chance earlier this year when Professor Andrés Soria began leafing through the pages of an illustrated edition of a book of poems by the Spanish poet Luis de Góngora, which was bought by Spain’s National Library a decade ago.

The new list of winners and losers in Spain was presented in Madrid on Wednesday

Spain now has another Michelin three star restaurant. The Celler Restaurant in Can Roca is run by chef Joan Roca.

There are now seven three star restaurants in Spain, and the new list as featured in the Michelin Guide to Spain and Portugal 2010, was presented on Wednesday in the San Miguel Market in Madrid.

The official ‘Calendario Laboral’ for 2010 has just been published

The number of fiestas or bank holidays in Spain for 2010 is one more than in 2009 according to the Official State Bulletin published on Friday.

The extra fiesta day is January 6, which will be celebrated across the country, but which can be substituted by any region which wishes to do so.

Two women were slightly injured as the bulls were loose in Cádiz city centre for an hour on Sunday

Two women were slightly injured on Sunday night when seven bulls being used for the shooting of a scene in the film ‘Knight & Day’ escaped in the historic city centre of Cádiz, and then headed for the La Caleta beach.

Population growth in Spain is close to zero, according to state statistics institute, the INE.

The predicted growth for 2010 is 0.3% down from 1.2% in 2008. The drop is related with the reduction of immigrants coming to Spain as foreign births formed an important part of Spanish population growth.

INE figures also show that the average age for women to have children is 31 and families tend to have 1.5 children.

French screen goddess turned animal rights activist Brigitte Bardot has appealed to the government of Catalonia to back a campaign to ban bullfighting in the northeastern Spanish region.

The Popular Legislative Initiative, which has gathered 180,000 signatures, calls for a change in Catalonia’s animal protection law, which bans killing or mistreating animals in shows except in the case of bullfights.

One of the main rock festivals in Spain is now owned by promotor, Vince Power

It’s no lie to describe the FIB as British. The Benicàssim International Festival, one of the most famous summer pop and rock festivals in Spain each summer, and one of the most important in Europe, is now in the hands of the British music promoter, Vince Power.

Marbella University is the first and only English-speaking university in the South of Spain.

For decades, Marbella has been an international hub for both business and pleasure. Marbella’s unique demographics and smart-casual atmosphere have made it a centre for the entrepreneurial spirit that is well established and growing in Spain.

In the past 50 years, Marbella has seen countless hotels, golf courses, developments, international schools, as well as other businesses set up, and now the launch of an English-speaking University.