A consortium of expat pensioner groups has won the right to continue its campaign to get Britain’s long-standing frozen pensions policy rescinded.

British pensions for many expats do not increase in line with inflation. They have been frozen at the rate that was in force when they began drawing their pensions overseas. In some cases, that was 20 years ago when the basic weekly pension was £43.60. It is now nearly twice that sum: £95.25.

Spain said Wednesday it will send one million condoms to Africa to fight the spread of AIDS, one day after Pope Benedict XVI’s controversial remarks that they aggravated efforts to battle the disease.

“The objective is to advance the prevention of this epidemic, which affects 33 million people all over the world, two-thirds of them in Africa,” the health ministry said in a statement.

Two police officers who were caught on tape sleeping in their patrol car while on duty have been suspended for two weeks without pay, Spanish media reported Sunday.

In a widely distributed video clip filmed with a mobile phone by an anonymous passerby, the two officers can be seen fast asleep in the car in the eastern city of Villanueva de la Serena in November 2008.

A court in Valencia ruled that they had been unlawfully charged a 35 per cent non-residents capital gains tax on the sale of their properties, when the rate for nationals was only 15 per cent.

The higher rate contravened the European Community Treaty rules on discrimination and the court said the higher levy must be repaid, with 6 per cent interest.

It means British couples could receive as much as £14,500.

After a battle lasting more than a year, they have successfully reclaimed their overpayment and the case now paves the way for thousands of other Britons to make similar claims from the Spanish government.

Until recently, British property owners and other foreign nationals had to pay 35pc of any gains made on Spanish properties as tax. This compared to just 15pc paid by Spanish nationals. The European Union challenged the rules, claiming they were discriminatory, and since the start of 2007 the Spanish tax authorities have levied the same 15pc tax rate on Spanish and overseas property owners.

Alliance & Leicester International leads the way on monthly interest accounts, paying 3.88 per cent gross, equivalent to 3.95 per cent annually, on its eSaver Offshore Flexible Income Issue 1. You have to give 60 days’ notice to withdraw your money, and you must put in at least £25,000 to get this rate, according to data from statisticians Moneyfacts.

Britain’s Princess Anne Wednesday arrived in Gibraltar on a three-day official visit that has sparked complaints from Spain which contests London’s rule over the strategic territory.

The princess flew into Gibraltar on a Royal Air Force jet for her second visit in four years to the largely self-governing British outpost which lies at the western entrance to the Mediterranean.

Several EU leaders on Sunday opened the door for the first time to the possibility of fast-track membership of the eurozone, while ruling out a relaxation of the tough rules for adopting the currency.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said after an EU summit in Brussels that the bloc “could consider” accelerating the candidacy process and French President Nicolas Sarkozy said that “the debate is open”.

The government of Spain will EUR 1 billion to reform the country’s tourism infrastructure in 2009, more than double the amount originally planned, the industry and tourism ministry said Thursday.

In 2008, the government said it would provide EUR 400 million to hotels and other tourist sector establishments to help them modernise and face up to growing competition from cheaper sunshine destinations with newer establishments.

Spanish police said Thursday they had arrested a Serbian-born football agent suspected of running a drug trafficking network, following an operation in which they seized 600 kilogrammes of cocaine.

Ten other people, including “several linked to the world of football,” were also arrested, a police statement said.

A police official later told a news conference that two retired footballers and two players’ agents were among those held, but did not identify them.

Here in south-west France, car boot sales are spring and summer events: in most communes, autumn and winter heralds the Lotto season – large bingo sessions inside the warmth of the village hall.

But my neighbours tell me I should not think that the local car boot sales are totally forgotten until the new shoots on the vines appear.

More Britons will take a caravan holiday home this year than will visit Spain – our most popular holiday destination.

While the number of visits abroad is falling sharply, more and more Britons are looking for options to holiday at home this summer, say reports.

And camp and caravan sites are most in demand – while enquiries to hotels and B&Bs are down. One operator, 118 118, says calls for caravan & camping sites rose 40 per cent in December and January, while calls for lodging in Britain fell by 20 per cent.

Thousands of Britons retiring abroad and using flexible offshore pension schemes to exploit tax loopholes face the risk of a hefty tax bill.

Offshore pensions, known as Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Schemes (QROPS), have generated a lot of interest among Britons leaving for foreign shores since they were first introduced in April 2006.

In some cases, these schemes have been promoted as a way to avoid buying an annuity by the age of 75 while still retaining tax relief granted on pension contributions made in Britain.

The Daily Star reports that extra officers and fire crews have been put on standby in the event of trouble. The friendly was moved from Madrid following racist abuse of England players at the Santiago Bernabeu in 2004.

The newspaper quotes a Seville police source, who says: “Moving the game means many people won’t get to see it. There are concerns people will be here without tickets, that trouble could take place on the streets.

Information about workers’ rights in Spain: contracts, hours, paid time off, paid vacations, unions, dealing with problems, and other topics.

The rights of those who legally work for a company in Spain (por cuenta ajena), not being self-employed, are governed by the Spanish Constitution, the Workers’ Statute (Estatuto de los Trabajadores), and other laws and legal instruments. These rights include the right to work, the right to unionize, the right to collective bargaining, the right to strike, the right not to be discriminated against, the right to a safe and clean working environment, the right to be paid on time, and the right to that which is specified in the work contract.

What is expat living like for María, a Spaniard who moved with her boyfriend to Ireland three years ago? Here she shares aspects of her expat life there, like how she found a job, her perceptions of the Irish, and the cost of living in Dublin. She also gives some tips you might find useful if you’re planning on moving to Ireland. (Via Expat Interviews)

A number of years ago when we first started thinking about buying a property in Spain and had found Almerimar we were recommended to buy a book called “You & the Law in Spain” written by David Searl. David Searl is a legal writer, broadcaster and lecturer in Spain.

The Spanish Boat Tax System Explained

The Spanish tax system is one of the hardest in the EU. The two main taxes to consider when we buy a boat in Spain or take a boat to Spain are the VAT and the registration (Matriculation) tax. Any citizen of the European Union has the obligation to register their craft in the country where they have their usual residency. The Spanish law requires to register, under the Spanish flag, any boat used inside a Spanish territory by a Spanish tax resident.

Gillian Merron, the minister for consular affairs, said many Britons living in Spain were not adequately prepared to cope when hard times hit and “the dream turns sour”.

Ill health, a deteriorating property market and financial difficulties were the main problems, she suggested.

“Life happens and things go wrong whether people stay at home or move abroad,” she told The Daily Telegraph on a visit to British expatriate communities on the Costa Blanca, near Alicante in southeastern Spain.