The temporary measure comes over his harsh criticism of the PP’s Regional President of Madrid

Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón’s No. 2 at Madrid City Hall, Deputy Mayor, Manuel Cobo, has been suspended from the Partido Popular for his critical comments of Esperanza Aguirre over the Caja Madrid Savings Bank affair.

Two far right groups came to blows outside the Velázquez Hotel in the capital

28 people were arrested in Madrid on Saturday when two far right groups came to blows outside the hotel Velázquez in the city.
All the arrests were from the far right collective Patriotic Socialist Movement, who were trying to break up a meeting being held inside the hotel by the D.N., Democracia Nacional group.

Thousands of Spanish farmers on Saturday marched through the streets of Madrid, halting traffic to protest the low prices they receive for their produce which they say is leading them to financial “ruin.”

The farmers and their supporters came from across the country and they walked behind tractors along Madrid’s main avenues under banners with the theme “The countryside is heading towards ruin, take action.”

GOING on an ‘alco-bender’ in Alcobendas doesn’t pay – but being breathalysed can, thanks to a new incentive launched by the police in the town just outside Madrid.

Partygoers driving home actually present themselves to give a breath test – because they can get free petrol out of it.

Police explain that they are concentrating their efforts in the parts of town where the most bars, restaurants and nightclubs are found, and breathalysing as many drivers as they can.

The Partido Popular today decided to suspend Manuel Cobo, one of the figures at the centre of the political battle taking place within the party.

The decision to suspend him from the party came after an interview with Cobo was published in the El Pais newspaper in which he severely criticised Madrid community president, Esperanza Aguirre and her followers, describing their actions as “vomit-inducing”.

Sr Cobo said: “I accept and will obey the decision.” (Via The Reader)

Madrid city council organises the second bike tour aims to gather 8,000 people to cycle from Retiro to Paseo Camoens.

The Madrid Bike Tour is back!

Organised by the Madrid city council, the second bike tour aims to gather 8,000 people to cycle 12 km from Retiro to Paseo Camoens.

The event not only aims to promote cycling in the city, but also to fight against drug consumption and to favour a healthy lifestyle.

30 October, food lovers in Madrid can choose to eat at some of the city’s gourmet restaurants. For EUR 25, you can enjoy a full meal at any of the 24 participating restaurants.

The price does not include drinks but gives the opportunity to taste some of the gourmet chef’s specialities. Some restaurants offer two course meals and appetisers while others would offer dessert with a two course meal.

A Euro per suitcase charge is being considered for next year

Taxi Drivers in Madrid have probably been using low cost airlines for their holidays, as they have announced that they want to charge a Euro per suitcase from next year. Such a charge was in force in Madrid a decade ago, but was later abandoned. A similar charge remains in force in Barcelona.

Many elderly expats have suffered recently because of the falling value of sterling, the property crash and their failure to qualify for state benefits.

Charities, expatriate groups and diplomats in Spain now report that thousands are struggling to cope the rising cost of living, the Times reports.

They say that the ageing expatriate population, hit by the falling Spanish property market that left them with “dream homes” they cannot sell, also face insufficient healthcare resources.

It will cut journey time between the two cities to one hour and 35 minutes

The AVE high speed train link between Madrid and Valencia will be operational at the end of next year, when the journey will be completed in one hour and 35 minutes. The announcement came from Development Minister, José Blanco, and the Valencia President, Francisco Camps, who held a joint press conference following a meeting in Madrid this Tuesday.

The city of Madrid has withdrawn all the honours it bestowed on the late dictator Francisco Franco while he ruled Spain from 1939 to 1975, a spokesman for the city hall said Monday.

“The municipal council unanimously voted to withdraw Franco’s honours,” the spokesman told AFP. The Spanish capital’s council is dominated by the right-wing opposition Popular Party.

The British Embassy in Madrid will move to their new location in the ultra-modern Torre Espacio building this July.

The stylish, award-winning construction is aimed to be the safest skyscraper in the world and, at 236 metres, the tallest building in Spain, with 57 floors above ground housing offices, restaurants, a gymnasium and four other embassies.

It follows speculation over his future as the possible new leader of the Partido Popular

The Mayor of Madrid, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, has announced that he will be standing again as Mayor of the capital in 2011.

His statement comes in response from the Partido Popular leader who had earlier in an interview last Sunday challenged him to make his position clear, by stating his intentions. Rajoy feels he has emerged reinforced in the party after the PP win in the European Elections, but before many had been expecting Gallardón to make a move on the party leadership.

Until recently, visitors to Madrid’s central tourist area were warned away from the adjacent old hillside district of Lavapies. The former medieval Jewish enclave and working-class immigrant ghetto had a bad reputation, with muggings depressingly common.

Now, though, the area has been restored, with cobbled streets, period streetlamps — and a far more visible police presence. Flats have been tarted up, intellectuals have revived cafes, ethnic eateries have improved, musicians play flamenco and jazz, and now reborn Lavapies is a colourful global village, Madrid’s melting pot.

Beat the heat this summer with a good old fashioned water fight in the middle of Madrid. If you’re looking for a unique way to battle the intense Madrid summers, this interesting festival is the place to be.

Every year the district of Vallecas in Madrid celebrates its patron saint, The Virgin del Carmen by holding a huge water fight in Puerto Balbir Street near the El Pozo train station. Citizens and tourists dress up as pirates and use buckets, hoses and water guns to soak anyone who gets in their way.

A growing number of Spaniards back Madrid’s bid to host the 2016 Olympics, and some three-quarters believe it will be successful, an opinion poll said on Wednesday.

Madrid is one of four cities, along with Chicago, Tokyo and Rio de Janeiro, shortlisted as candidates for the 2016 Summer Games.

The International Olympic Committee will choose the host city in Copenhagen on 2 October.

Spain on Monday reported six more schools in the Madrid region have been hit by swine flu, bringing the total to nine, with 96 children diagnosed with the disease.

The health ministry said 76 children at the Isaac Albeniz secondary school in the suburban town of Leganes have now been confirmed to have the A(H1N1) virus.

Local authorities said on 1 June they believe the outbreak began with a girl at the school who apparently picked up the disease during a visit to the United States.

A global conference on the World Wide Web got under way in Spain Monday, 20 years after the invention of the global information medium that has changed the daily lives of people around the world.

British software genius Tim Berners-Lee, one of the founders of the system, will give a keynote talk on Wednesday “which will reflect on the last 20 years and look forward to the next 20 years” of the Web.

Spain marked the fifth anniversary of the Madrid train bombings, Europe’s worst terror attack, on Wednesday in a low-key fashion which drew criticism from relatives of the 191 victims.

Lawmakers marked a minute of silence in parliament and Crown Prince Felipe and his wife Princess Letizia are scheduled to attend a concert in Madrid on Wednesday evening in memory of the victims.

A van loaded with a bomb has exploded near a trade fair centre in the east of the Spanish capital, Madrid, Spanish National Radio (RNE) has said.

Police sources told the station that no injuries had so far been reported.

The bomb exploded at the Campo de las Naciones at around 0900 (0900 GMT), about half 90 minutes after a warning was received by the Spanish Red Cross.