Ponzi fraud: two men found guilty of involvement in £115m UK scam

Two men have been convicted of involvement in the UK's largest Ponzi fraud, which saw hundreds of people – among them the former cricketer Darren Gough and the actor Frances de la Tour – lose £115m. John Anderson, 46, and Kenneth Peacock, 43 were found guilty of unauthorised regulated activity at Southwark crown court in London on Monday, but were cleared of one count each of fraud. The jury is still deliberating over allegations that they deceived investors. The scheme's mastermind, Kautilya Pruthi, 41, of Wandsworth, London, has pleaded guilty to the fraud and is due to be sentenced later this week. Ponzi frauds – which take their name from the Italian conman Charles Ponzi, who was particularly fond of employing the scheme – use cash from new investors to pay returns to existing investors and depend on a constant stream of new investors to fund the payouts. The court heard that Gough and the actor and singer Jerome Flynn are each thought to have lost up to £1m in the fraud, which also duped De la Tour. Victims handed over their cash to Pruthi, who promised them safe investments with returns of up to 13%. Instead, he spent their money on entertaining women, paying his daughter's private school fees and chartering helicopters. He also bought a private jet and built a car collection that included three Bentleys, a Lamborghini, two Ferraris, two Mercedes, a Rolls Royce, a Jaguar and a Maserati. "Mr Pruthi is believed to be the UKs most successful Ponzi fraudster," said David Aaronberg QC, prosecuting. "He obtained some £38m from investors and caused contractual losses of over £115m." Aaronberg added: "He enjoyed the company of women and was generous in the payments he made to a number of female friends, for whom he bought cars as presents, in total giving them £373,149." Indian-born Pruthi came to the UK in 2004 having been deported to his homeland after serving a sentence for faking documents in the US. Jurors heard that on coming to the country, Pruthi was quickly able to pose as "a wealthy individual". After setting up his company, Business Consulting International, said Aaronberg, Pruthi accepted deposits and "orchestrated a large-scale and sophisticated collective investment scheme". He would send personally tailored emails claiming he could offer up to 13% returns on 12-month investments because the scheme was available to a limited clientele. But in reality, said the prosecutor, he was "robbing Peter to pay Paul". Pruthi, who was not registered with or authorised by the FSA, admitted four counts of obtaining money transfers by deception, one of participating in a fraudulent business, one of unauthorised regulated activity and one count of converting and removing criminal property. Peacock, of West Hampstead, north London, and Anderson, of Surrey, are alleged to have acted as "aggregators" who pooled funds from third parties and then passed them on to Pruthi, who had duped them into the fraud at the outset. Eventually the scheme collapsed as there were not enough new investors to bring in the money needed to keep the old investors happy. "The scale of this scheme was vast and the losses were immense; several investors lost their homes, others have been declared bankrupt," said Aaronberg. "The monies which Pruthi received were generally not invested anywhere, neither in the UK nor abroad." According to the prosecution, of the £38,631,792 Pruthi obtained, £28m was used to pay back other investors, while £10m was siphoned off for Pruthi's "lavish lifestyle".

Read More

Deadlocked Stanford Fraud Trial Jury Told to Keep Deliberating

 

The judge in R. Allen Stanford’s fraud trial ordered the jury to return to deliberations after the panel sent a note saying it couldn’t reach a unanimous verdict in its fourth day of reviewing the evidence. The eight men and four women on the jury told U.S. District Judge David Hittner in Houston yesterday they were “unable to reach a verdict on each of the 14 counts,” the judge said, reading their note to attorneys for both sides. Enlarge image R. Allen Stanford, accused of leading a $7 billion investment fraud scheme, gestures as he exits the Bob Casey Federal Courthouse in Houston, Texas. Photographer: F. Carter Smith/Bloomberg Hittner instructed jurors to “continue your deliberations in this case,” telling them the trial has been costly in terms of both time and money, that the lawyers were unlikely going to be able to put on a better trial and that another jury was unlikely to be more conscientious. “It is your duty to agree upon a verdict if you can do so, without surrendering your conscientious opinion,’” Hittner told them. Stanford, 61, is accused of leading a $7 billion international fraud scheme involving the sale of certificates of deposit issued by his Antigua-based bank. He faces as long as 20 years in prison if found guilty of the most severe charges, mail fraud and wire fraud. The financier maintains he is not guilty. After the jury returned to deliberations, lead prosecutor Gregg Costa told the judge the jury’s note could be construed as meaning it couldn’t agree on any one of the 14 counts against Stanford or upon all of the counts. ‘We’ll See’ While acknowledging the possibility of having to accept a partial verdict, Hitter said, “We’ll see what comes out next.” When Hittner instructed the jurors to “take all the time you may feel necessary” to reach a verdict, one of the jurors grimaced. The jury left for the day yesterday after being told to resume deliberations. Jury selection in the case began Jan. 23 and the panel heard five weeks of evidence. The government presented testimony at from investors who bought the allegedly fraudulent CDs as well as from the executives who helped sell them. The witnesses included government officials and former Stanford Group Co. Chief Financial Officer James M. Davis, who pleaded guilty to fraud-related charges in 2009 and testified for five days against Stanford. Davis, whose relationship with Stanford traces back to when they were Baylor University roommates, told the jury he knew the boss was committing fraud and didn’t stop it. The defense presented former Stanford employees who said they saw no evidence of fraud at the company. Some offered testimony in support of the defense’s contention that Stanford was an absentee visionary who left the details of running his operation to Davis. Stanford didn’t testify during the trial.

Read More

Mandela faces fraud charges

The liquidators of Aurora Empowerment Systems, which is accused of asset-stripping bankrupt Pamodzi Gold, will lay charges of fraud this week against Nelson Mandela’s grandson Zondwa, and Ahmed Amod, an attorney for the company. The liquidators are also said to be planning to lay charges this week against Aurora chairman Khulubuse Zuma and possibly other directors under section 424 of the Companies Act, under which directors can be held personally liable for company debts. The charges follow a threat by the liquidators to lay charges of perjury against Thulani Ngubane, a director of Aurora, after he gave evidence at an inquiry.

Read More

AN expat gangster has fled his £3million Spanish villa amid claims his life has been threatened by the Russian mafia.

 

 Pat McCadden hasn’t been seen at the Marbella mansion for weeks and his cleaner has told callers he has moved to South Africa. The convicted drug dealer – nicknamed Pat the Rat – is said to be living in fear after a bootleg tobacco deal turned sour. Underworld sources claim McCadden is wanted by a Russian gang who claim he ripped them off in a plan to smuggle cigarettes and tobacco to Ireland. One said: “McCadden is terrified. He has been missing for weeks and has only spoken to his cleaner. “He struck a deal with some Russians to smuggle tobacco into Ireland but they accused him of ripping them off. Now he’s been told there is a price on his head. “He has told her to tell anyone who calls that he has moved to South Africa.” No one answered the door when the Sunday Mail called at McCadden’s mansion last week. It’s a stone’s throw from the exclusive Las Brisas Golf Club, where Sean Connery was a regular when he lived on the Costa del Sol. Post and junk mail remained uncollected in the post box outside the property. There were no cars on the drive behind the metal gates and high hedge which surrounds the front of the house. A postman said: “I’m still delivering letters in Mr McCadden’s name but I’ve never seen anyone here.” A neighbour added: “Pat lived at the house with his family but they haven’t been around for five or six months at least. “Someone’s looking after the house and they’ve told us he’s gone away.” Another neighbour in the upmarket estate of Nueva Andalucia said: “I used to see Mr McCadden quite a bit and he seemed pleasant. I haven’t seen him for ages.” McCadden, jailed for 10 years in 1985 for drugs trafficking, has lived in Spain for more than 10 years. He spent most of 2006 on remand accused of the attempted murder of a Spanish police officer in December 2003. The officer was gunned down during a shootout with two men who moments earlier had shot British expatriate businessmen Luke Miller in the leg. McCadden was in jail for almost seven months before being released on bail while a judicial probe continued. But a judge dismissed the case against the Glaswegian after witnesses failed to identify him and there were also problems with DNA evidence. A source at Malaga’s Policia Nacional, which covers the Marbella area, said: “There’s nothing outstanding against Pat McCadden that we’re aware of at the moment.”

Read More

Tomb opened to investigate stolen baby allegation, and found to be empty

A judicial commission given the job of exhuming the remains of baby girl, as part of the investigation into alleged stealing of babies, opened the site where the baby’s remains was supposed to be, at an old cemetery in Ronda, Málaga. A court in Málaga had authorised the exhumation to carry out DNA testing to confirm identity, but the tomb was empty. Diario Sur reports the mother said there was nothing there ‘Not even a blanket or clothes, nothing at all, just an empty box with a cross on top’. The parents saw the child being born alive, but they were told later that she had died. The death is not recorded in the Registro Civil.

Read More

Gored bullfighter leaves hospital

 

Spanish bullfighter, Juan José Padilla, who was dramatically gored in the face on October 7 as part of the Pilar fiestas in Zaragoza, was released from hospital in the city on Wednesday. He told the press, sitting in a wheelchair and with his face uncovered and clear of any bandage, that he would be putting on his suit of lights and entering the ring again, although he admitted that it was impossible to continue this season. He said he would be back in 2012. Chief Ophthalmology surgeon at the Miguel Servet Hospital, Luis Pablo, described the matador’s recovery as spectacular, given that he arrived in the E.R. with his eye out of its socket. The bullfighter admitted that the prognosis is not so good as the optic nerve has been affected, and his retina also came detached, but he said ‘in medicine you never know, and miracles exist’. He told the press that he would not mind seeing pictures of him being gored, where one horn entered his cheek and exited in his left eye, but he had not done so as yet. ‘I bear no grudge against my profession or the bull’, he said. ‘The bull has given me much grandness’.

Read More

UK Benefit Fraud investigators have recently enjoyed more success in the fight against benefit cheats in Spain.

 

 In one of the latest cases to go to prosecution, Debbie Williamson from Rotherham was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court to 18 months immediate imprisonment for having stolen UK benefits between 2004 and 2009. Ms Williamson had been claiming a number of non-exportable benefits from the UK, including income support. She denied having any connection with Spain, but investigators established she owned property in Valencia, had made regular cash withdrawals abroad and had her daughter in a local Spanish school. In total Ms. Williamson stole £42,558.72 from the British taxpayer by claiming benefits she was not entitled to after her circumstances changed. Ms. Williamson is just one of many cases that make up the estimated £79 million of benefit fraud committed abroad. Although most people claiming UK benefits abroad do so legally, Spain is one of the countries where most UK benefit fraud is committed. In many of these cases, the person has purposefully not informed the UK authorities of a change in their circumstances. Anyone in receipt of a UK State Pension or benefit has the responsibility to keep the department paying their benefit up to date with any changes that could affect their payment, no matter how small the change seems. More information on UK benefits in general and on which ones can and cannot be received whilst living in Spain can be found on the DirectGov website. If you know of someone committing UK benefit fraud whilst living in Spain, such as claiming a non-exportable benefit, working in Spain while in receipt of UK incapacity benefit, or claiming benefit as a single person but living with a partner, you can help to protect the taxpayers’ money. A free and confidential Benefit Fraud Hotline is available in Spain – call 900 554 440 or visit the Benefit Fraud website to help UK investigators close the net on the benefit thieves.

Read More

SEPLA call 24 more strikes in Iberia, and some are over Easter

Iberia SEPLA union pilots have announced a new wave of strike action in protest at the company’s plans to start a new low-cost airline, Iberia Express, the first flight of which is set for March 25. They have called 24 more 24 hour strikes, which follow from the previous 12 which have already been seen. The stoppages are between March and May and some affect both the Easter break and bank holiday weekends. The pilots say they have upped their action because the company is refusing to talk and their attitude is ‘a radical rejection of any of the proposals offered by the collective, and to maintain the creation of Iberia Express which will result in the destruction of 8,000 jobs’. The union also claims that Iberia is not respecting Air Safety Regulations on work and rest time for the crew, saying that in one case a pilot has been sacked for this reason. The new strike action will be taken on 16, 19, 23, 25, 26 and 30 of March; 2, 4, 9, 13, 16, 20, 23, 27 and 30 of April; 2, 4, 7, 11, 14, 18, 21, 25 and 28 of May. On these dates Government imposed minimum services will see some services and normally the links to the Canaries and the Baleares are not affected. The 12 days strike action carried out so far is estimated to have resulted in losses of 32 million €.

Read More

Duchess of Cambridge arrives at Fortnum and Mason wearing a Missoni coat.

The Queen, the Duchess of Cambridge and the Duchess of Cornwall seemed to have colour-coordinated their outfits today for a visit to London's boutique department store, Fortnum & Mason.The royals were all dressed in shades of blue when they arrived at the famous Piccadilly store to meet military personnel and tour the restaurant which has been renamed 'The Diamond Jubilee Tea Station' to mark the Queen's 60 years on the throne.

The Queen wore a pale blue outfit with a matching hat; Camilla was dressed in a navy blue coat with eye-catching white horizontal stripes at the top, while Kate, the newest addition to the Royal Family, wore a blue wool above-the-knee coat.

So far, so safe. But in fact, Kate's outfit broke from tradition in one subtle way. The Duchess, who almost exclusively wears British-based labels chose a coat by M Missoni, the second line of Italian fashion house Missoni. The powder blue coat bore all the hallmarks of the luxury brand famous for its elaborate knitwear, and palace sources have confirmed its origins.

But fear not British Fashion Council - ever the diplomat, Kate topped off her outfit with shoes by British designer Rupert Sanderson. To be fair, if one is going to stand around all day with one's step mother-in-law, grandmother-in-law and Boris Johnson chatting to military personnel, one should at least be able to indulge in a bit of luxury Italian fashion for the occasion.

The Queen, The Duchess of Cornwall and The Duchess of Cambridge arrive at Fortnum & Mason. PHOTO:AP

Read More

Mercadona Rocked As Own Label Linked To Canine Deaths

 

Mercadona is in the middle of a public relations disaster after its ‘Compy’ own label dog food brand was linked to the deaths of several pets across Spain, after having caused kidney failure in the animals. . The deaths were initially recorded by pet owners in Andalucia, Murcia and Alicante, but new reports have claimed that similar cases have been found along the Costa del Sol. Several pet owners insisted that the deaths were caused after their pets ate the own label product, and following intense pressure, Mercadona has removed two variants of the ‘Compy’ range from select stores. The chain said it is now studying whether there indeed is a connection between the product and the deaths. It would not comment on whether the problem was caused by a recent shift in packaging of the product from tins to cartons. Mercadona added: “At this stage we have only removed the product as a precaution and we are waiting for the results of the analysis. We do not know with any certainty if the food is to blame”.

Read More

Blues legend Gary Moore died after drink binge

ROCK legend Gary Moore died after bingeing on enough alcohol to put him nearly eight times over the drink-drive limit, tests in Spain have revealed. The guitar ace (58) suffered a heart attack brought on by the massive amount of alcohol that he knocked back at the start of a sunshine holiday in Spain's Costa del Sol, the studies showed. No traces of any illegal drugs were found in his body. But he had 380mg of alcohol per decilitre of blood in his system, which is more than 30mg the amount associated with fatalities. And it was just short of the 416mg that Amy Winehouse had in her body when she died. Tests revealed that dad-of-three Mr Moore, found dead in bed at a luxury hotel on February 6 last year, had abused alcohol for years. Former Thin Lizzy guitarist Mr Moore died at the Kempinski Resort Hotel in Estepona hours after starting a six-day holiday with his new partner.

Read More

Britain’s biggest international criminals has walked free from court despite been accused of attempting to smuggle £80 million worth of cocaine into the U.K.

A man who was named one of the Britain’s biggest international criminals has walked free from court despite been accused of attempting to smuggle £80 million worth of cocaine into the U.K.

Jamie Dempsey, 33, was suspected of plotting to flood London and the south-east with 299kg (660lb) of high-purity cocaine in 2009.

He appeared on a ‘most wanted’ list of crooks hiding in the Costa Del Sol - nicknamed ‘Costa Del Crime’ - and even featured on BBC’s Crimewatch programme.

Freed: Jamie Dempsey, centre, leaves court with his friends and family after being acquitted of his involvement in an £80m euro cocaine empire

Speaking outside of court after being cleared of any wrongdoing, Dempsey said: 'I’m just relieved the nightmare is over.

'I couldn’t be further from being a criminal - I’m just a penniless plumber from Essex.

 

 

 

'I was in Marbella at my parent’s house when I was arrested - the police simply got the wrong man, it was a case of mistaken identity but I don’t want to say any more.

'My face has been all over the TV and the newspapers, my friends and family have been put through hell.h

'I just want to have a good meal and get on with my life.'

Hiding place: Dempsey was cuffed in Benhavis, a mountain village near Marbella in Spain in a police operation that cost £1m

A two-year investigation, costing over £1million pounds, was launched to track Dempsey who was believed to be evading capture in Spain.

Officers from the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) finally arrested him with the help of the Spanish police in Benhavis, Marbella, last May following a tip-off from the public.

His capture was hailed as a 'great result' but on Monday he was dramatically cleared of conspiracy to supply cocaine after a four-week trial.

Last May police named Dempsey as a suspected drug lord living the high life in the Costa Del Sol.

But a jury of five men and four women took nine-and-a-half hours to find him not guilty.

Judge Michael Pert ordered the court to be cleared after Dempsey’s family erupted into cheers after the verdict was read out. 

Jailed: Fernando Hurtado, left, and John Esqulant, right, were both sentenced to 28 years behind bars

Speaking outside Leicester Crown Court his sister Natalie Dempsey, 24, said: 'We are just happy he’s coming home.

'Our family has been torn apart because of this. We’re going to give him a proper Essex home coming.

'The champagne will be flowing in Chigwell when he comes home. He doesn’t normally drink or smoke but he’ll want to party hard after all this.

'The police got the wrong man but they didn’t care. They just wanted to arrest someone in the Costa Del Sol and send them down.'

Last year three people arrested in the same police ‘sting’ operation as Dempsey were jailed for a total of 55 years.

Taxi driver John Esqulant and Colombian Fernando Hurtado were each jailed for 23 years at the same court after they were convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine.

Part-time model and promising footballer Frank Stedman was jailed for nine years after admitting the same offence.

The sting operation began in March 2009 when officers posed as criminals who could arrange delivery of the drugs.

Three Soca agents met 41-year-old Hurtado, from Woking, Surrey, at a site in Waltham Abbey, Essex, to organise the delivery.

Two weeks later, Stedman, 26, of North Weald, Essex, paid the officers £320,800 in cash as part-payment for the drugs.

Shortly after the handover in April, armed officers stopped the van containing the Class A drug near an industrial estate in Markfield, Leics.

Esqulant, 52, of Theydon Bois, Essex, and Hurtado were arrested the same day while Stedman was brought in as he stepped off a flight at Heathrow airport in June 2010.

Read More

Spanish government will try and secure the 'gold on the Rock'

 

With the Odyssey gold back in Spain, the Spanish keep referring to more gold that remained in Gibraltar. It is being reported in Spain that the Spanish government will try and secure the 'gold on the Rock' through what they term a European order. They say that although Gibraltar likes to play a dual role, it is in fact part of the UK and thus Madrid is knocking on the UK's door to get them to urge Gibraltar to hand over the gold. Bilateral talks are said to be taking place. It is said that there are 59 artefacts still in Gibraltar, apparently stored by Odyssey. A Spanish heritage official was critical of the way the Oddysey gold left for the USA via Gibraltar,which is a joint sovereignty airport, adding that it was far from being dignified. This happened in 2007, a year after the signing of the Cordoba Agreement. The British Embassy in Madrid has confirmed that it is in touch with the Spanish foeign ministry, saying it was not clear if part of the consignment was in Gibraltar. Two military planes laden with 17 tons of silver and gold coins from a Spanish warship that sank during a 1804 gunbattle with the British is now back in Spain. It followed a 5-year legal battle between the Spanish and the American Odyssey company. On Thursday the Peruvian government made an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court seeking to block transfer of the treasure to give it more time to lodge its claim as the rightful owner of the gold. Peru says the gold and silver was mined, refined and minted in that country, which at the time was part of the Spanish empire. But the appeal obviously arrived too late, as the gold was flown to Madrid by the two Spanish military aircraft.

Read More

Tarragona village wants to grow marihuana to get out of the recession

 

village in Tarragona has come up with a way to beat the recession. They propose to plant marihuana. A smokers’ club in the village of Rasquera and say the plantation would create jobs. They say they will not sell it, rather it will be for the use of the club members and also for ‘therapeutic ends’. A cannabis association in Barcelona that uses the drug for therapeutic reasons has offered to pay 36,000 € to the club and sign a deal with the Town Hall, and then promises to pay 550,000 € a year each July for the land rental, legal and judicial costs, and security which make up the project, noting the Town Hall won’t have to pay a penny. For now the local Town Hall is to hold a meeting and vote on Wednesday to decide on what to do; they have requested a report to see if the idea is legal or not. The Mayor of Rasquera, Bernat Pellisa, told the EFE news agency that they are studying the proposal which he said was ‘developed and an opportunity, and certainly not frivolous’. There are about 1,000 inhabitants in the village, and while they admit they could never have imagined it, the crisis is such they say they are prepared to grow whatever is needed.

Read More

Renounce your British Citizenship?

Britain ignores its citizens who live abroad. James Preston, a businessman in Spain angrily declares he will renounce his British citizenship. Yet he feels sick at feeling forced to do so. Why does he do it? He is denied representation at Westminster (the vote!) because he has lived outside of Britain for more than 15 years. He has fought before the High Court his demand to be represented as a Citizen in the British seat of power – the Parliament at Westminster. His case and his appeal have been rejected. James Preston resents having the door slammed in his face. Britain denies him the basic democratic right of representation. He writes “We have concluded, therefore, that the contract between the State and my wife and I – the citizens – has been broken. We moved to Spain, an EU country, to represent British interests and find work, and not continue to claim unemployment benefit.” James Preston in his despair, intends to renounce his British citizenship and take out Spanish citizenship. Britain, in this, acts as a dictator State which regards the citizen abroad as ‘subjects’ and not as free people with democratic rights. The Government of Britain will not listen to the citizens abroad but still expects their obedience to the laws of Britain. These are strong words but are they not true? James Preston, is undoubtedly proud of his British (English) Ancestry which he can trace back for over 400 years. He left Britain in 1995. He was then unemployed but found work with a British company in Madrid, and has worked for British companies ever since. He stills considers his soul is British, but in Spain you cannot hold dual citizenship. Because Britain will not grant him representation in Parliament he therefore feels that he has no alternative but to turn his back on Britain. But still the clammy mechanical claw of British bureaucracy might well hold claim on his estate at his death. British Tax Law could still claim to his dying day that he is ‘domiciled in Britain’, because it says he will retain his British domicile of birth! You may think this outrageous and you are right to think so. It is difficult to cut yourself loose from the British State if you are born British. The fact that his children are educated in Britain, and extraordinarily, the very fact that he has taken a case before the High Court in London to claim the right to vote displays in the eyes of the Revenue his ‘attachment’ to Britain. It is incredible but true that for these reasons the estate he leaves could well be subject to taxation by the British State, even though he would die a Spanish citizen. Mr. Preston also tells me that his children do not have full British Citizenship but are considered as 'Spanish of British descent' because they were born in Spain. If they had been born in the UK they would be fully British. If they then marry British spouses and have children born outside of Britain, his grandchildren would not be British citizens at all. But if they were born in the UK they would be British. It is a crazy stupid mixed up world. It is the last straw that, after having been insultingly refused the right to Representation, Britain could still claim a pound (£) of ‘flesh’. It beggars belief that Britain, claiming to lead the world in Democracy so treats its own citizens who dare to live abroad. It cannot desire, can it, that every British Citizen living abroad should renounce their citizenship? Should not Britain be proud of us who live abroad? To our neighbours we are the image of Britain. Why are we ignored by our own country? We want to be ambassadors for Britain, but Britain does not want us – except perhaps our money.

Read More

Costa Concordia's sister ship 'adrift off Seychelles after fire'

 

The Costa Allegra is owned by the same company that operated the Costa Concordia, which ran aground off the Italian island of Giglio last month with the loss of at least 25 lives. Planes, ships and tug boats are heading towards the Costa Allegra, which is about 200 miles south-west of the Seychelles. The luxury liner left the port of Diego Suarez in Madagascar on Saturday and was due to arrive in Mahe in the Seychelles on Tuesday. There were no injuries from the fire, which has not spread to other parts of the vessel. But the ship is without power and adrift about 20 miles off Alphonse Island in the Indian Ocean.

Read More

Basques reveal they want to replace Madrid as their capital with.. Edinburgh

 

BASQUE nationalists want to replace Madrid with Edinburgh as their capital. And the fringe group plan to adopt the kilt as their national dress. The jokey call came in the run-up to carnival season in the Basque region around Bilbao in north-west Spain. But Andoni Ortuzar – president of the Basque National Party (PNV) – said he had a real political point to make. He said: “We have a tradition of carnival in the Basque country and I used this to suggest we adopt the kilt as part of our national dress. “I also said in a satirical way that we should annex the Basque country to Scotland because they are going to be able to choose their future whereas we cannot.” The PNV gave their annual carnival in Bilbao a Scottish theme. And they have started a campaign for the Basque country, Euskal Herria in Basque, to be annexed to Scotland to form “Euskotland”. Dressed in a kilt, Ortuzar said he was “a little jealous” that Scots would be having an independence referendum. He added: “Scotland and the Basque country are identical twins. “We are both noted for our stubbornness, we both love football, rugby, whisky and a version of tossing the caber is a fixture of traditional Basque sport.” Ortuzar pointed out that both countries have a centuries long dispute with their southern neighbours. He added: “We are like two drops of water, except that they are going to decide for themselves but we are told we can’t.” The Basque country has its own police body and manage public finances with virtually no intervention from the central government of Spain. The PNV have had close links with the SNP in the past but it is not thought talks on a political union have ever been discussed.

Read More

A glamorous French politician is set to become France’s first ever ‘MP for Britain’ to represent more than 100,000 Gallic expats living in the UK.

A glamorous French politician is set to become France’s first ever ‘MP for Britain’ to represent more than 100,000 Gallic expats living in the UK.

Emmanuelle Savarit, 39, is leading the race to be elected to France’s newest overseas constituency - based in London’s well-heeled Kensington.

The member of Nicolas Sarkozy’s conservative UMP party is the clear frontrunner among five hopefuls vying for the seat of northern Europe.

Hopeful: Emmanuelle Savarit, 39, is leading the race to be elected to France's newest overseas constituency - based in London's well-heeled Kensington

The radical plans to create 11 foreign constituencies to represent French abroad were approved by the Paris parliament three years ago.

 

More...

• Dominique Strauss Kahn to be grilled in New York next month over 'sadistic and violent attack' on hotel maid

 

Britain is part of the northern Europe constituency, which also includes the Irish Republic, Scandinavia and the Baltic states.

But within the new seat, 113,655 French voters are registered in the UK, compared with 27,076 in all the other countries put together.

Divorced mother-of-two Ms Savarit’s main rival is equally glamorous 36-year-old socialist Axelle Lemaire, a London-based lawyer.

Competition: Divorced mother-of-two Ms Savarit's main rival is 36-year-old socialist Axelle Lemaire, a London-based lawyer

But the French media predict the right-winger’s victory will be ensured by wealthy expats based mainly in west London when the first election takes place in June.

Ms Savarit, who has a doctorate in Psychology, describes herself
on her campaign website as ‘a tough cookie’, but adds: 'That’s not necessarily a fault when you’re in politics.'

The new foreign constituencies are the brainchild of former French interior affairs minister Alain Marlaix.

Vital: The importance of the French expat vote was highlighted when President Sarkozy came to London to give a speech to thousands of French voters ahead of his 2007 election campaign

He said: 'This is the first time in any country in the world that something like this had been done.

'The new overseas MPs will have identical status to any other MP based in France, and vote in parliament in Paris.

'They will be elected in the same way and speak for the French expatriates they represent.'

Government advisor Herve Fabre-Aubrespy, who is overseeing the new constituencies, said: 'It is a challenge for us, because nothing similar has ever been done anywhere.

'No one has carved the world up into constituencies in this way.'

The new constituencies are part of a larger parliamentary shake-up, with seats being merged or enlarged across France so that the total number of 577 MPs still remains the same.

The importance of the French expat vote was highlighted when President Sarkozy came to London to give a speech to thousands of French voters ahead of his 2007 election campaign.

But French socialists have claimed the new overseas seats are ‘closet gerrymandering’ - where constituencies are created to the benefit of the ruling party.

A socialists’ spokesman said: 'Studies show French people living abroad are more likely to vote for a centre-right party than a left wing one.
'This is being proposed as something that is good for French expatriates, but in fact it is just a way for the government to give itself another 11 safe seats.'

Six of the 11 new constituencies will be in Europe, but others are based in Canada and the US, central and South America, the Middle East, Arica and Asia, representing more than million French people living abroad.

Read More

ENVELOPES full of cash, drug habits funded by EU grants and police taking payments to legalise prostitutes – you name it, it has happened in Spain.

 

 Add to those a snail-paced justice system and, a law society in Malaga that fails to scrutinize bent lawyers, and things start to look distinctly cloudy. Consider too that last week Spain’s top anti-corruption lawyer, Baltasar Garzon, was suspended from his post for illegally tapping the phones of lawyers, and most will come to the same conclusion. “Yes, corruption is certainly endemic in Spain,” says Gwilym Rhys-Jones, an Estepona-based financial expert. “Sadly there is a tradition of it and it became institutionalised since the late 1980s as nobody was dealing with it from the top down.” There is certainly nowhere better to highlight the problem than here on the Costa del Sol, where in Marbella for over two decades you could only get anything done if you were prepared to pay for it. Under the current Malaya corruption trial, centred around Marbella Town Hall, which has been going for over a year. Over a hundred councillors, mayors, businessmen and civil servants are currently on trial for taking backhanders totalling up to 2.4 billion euros. And sadly, the same state of affairs was taking place at hundreds of town halls around the country, with a central government apparently prepared to turn a blind eye. It led to hotels and golf courses being built in national parks, developments installed in river flood plains and hundreds of thousands of illegal – and unsellable – homes around the country. It comes as no surprise then that Transparency International has listed Spain as more corrupt than Uruguay, Chile and Qatar, and almost on a par with of Botswana – quite a feat for the fourth richest nation in the European Union. And while some might like to point the finger at the right or the left, the range of cases shows that bending the rules for personal gain goes right across the spectrum. The Conservative PP party has often been in the spotlight – most recently thanks to the Gurtel case, in Valencia – but the PSOE socialist party, particularly with the ERE pension scandal in Andalucia, certainly takes some beating. Even the royal family may have dipped its toes in the murky waters, with King Juan Carlos’ son-in-law about to stand trial for a misuse of public funds and embezzlement. So where did it all begin? Franco regarded it as the ‘necessary lubrication for the system’, according to historian Stanley Payne. While central government appears to be largely free of endemic corruption, in the regions it is quite a different story. In Andalucia, for example, UGT trade union leader Manuel Pastrana believes as many as 75 per cent of the region’s town halls are corrupt. This is partly down to the fact that much of Spain’s corruption is linked to illegal planning, which is said to be more profitable than drug dealing – mainly because tourism is the biggest earner on the Costa del Sol. It’s a simple tale, and sadly all too common. Developers purchase non-urban, rural land for knock-down prices, then pay corrupt town hall mayors to reclassify the land as available to develop. This leaves the developers to build whatever they like – and it is arrangements like this that explain the illegal 411-bedroom Algarrobico hotel in Almeria’s Cabo de Gata natural park – which will thankfully be demolished any day now. The question is, why are so many mayors and councillors tempted to the dark side, considering the possible environmental and criminal consequences? Aside from describing Spain as having the ‘slowest justice system in the known world’, investigator Rhys-Jones argues that it is human nature to be tempted by money once it’s dangled in front of you. “When people see a massive amount of money, they can’t help but steal it. It’s human nature,” he says, using the unscrupulous former Marbella mayor Jesus Gil as his example. Jesus Gil was described as the bad apple that spoilt Marbella’s bunch “Gil was a crook, but he started out with good intentions. Marbella was a mess in the 1980s. Property wasn’t selling. It was a dump filled with drugs and hookers. So Gil started a political party, the GAL, to try and sort it out.” But this apparent do-gooder turned resident evil, with many describing Gil – who was convicted in 2002 – as being the bad apple that spoiled Marbella’s bunch. Either way his legacy was a disaster and has led to the following three mayors – as well as his main cohort, planning boss Juan Antonio Roca, who became the svengali of the operation – all facing prison. Much of the corruption comes down to backgrounds and a lack of education, believes Marbella-based lawyer Antonio Flores. “A lot of mayors have previously had rural-based jobs, without the ability to make any money,” he explains. “The moment they have responsibility, the temptation to make money becomes too great. After four years in power, they’ll often have to go back to their tractors,” he says. A classic example of a rags-to-riches mayor is Julian Munoz, also heavily implicated in the Malaya case, who worked as a waiter before running Marbella Town Hall in 2002. Roca, too, had been on the dole before going on to pilfer 30 million euros. Planning boss Juan Antonio Roca, the main man in the Malaya case Flores compares town hall councillors with more prominent politicians in central government who are less reliant on get-rich-quick methods: “It’s not so difficult to get another job when you’re in a higher political position,” he says. The good news is that most commentators agree that corruption in Spain is on its way out. “The Malaya case was where the mentality changed,” estimates Flores. “It was a turning point for corruption and the Marbella run by thugs completely collapsed when they were all arrested. “As Spain becomes more civilised, we are slowly getting rid of corruption,” he continues. “But it has definitely not gone completely,” argues Rhys Jones. “That will take quite a few more decades.” As for shamed Judge Garzon, opinion remains firmly divided on whether he too was a man who let power corrupt him… or whether he has been silenced by a country whose corruption will be harder to iron out than some may hope. Big cases Malaya Planning chief Juan Antonio Roca is at the heart of this 2.4 billion euro scandal in Marbella. The unelected Roca operated a cash-for-permissions scheme, which saw over 18,000 homes built illegally. Gurtel Businessman Francisco Correa gave money to PP bosses in Valencia in return for lucrative contracts with the regional government. ERE The Junta is being investigated in a 647m euro retirement scandal, where posts were created in non-existent companies in order to defraud public funds. Ballena Blanca One of the largest money laundering cases in Europe, with 21 people accused of investing proceeds from drug trafficking and prostitution in property via over a thousand companies.

Read More

EU clampdown on unregulated financial advisers in Spain

 

The European Commission is to consider setting up an ombudsman to help expat victims reclaim against unregistered financial firms. It comes after a local pressure group, that represents over 1,000 victims, sent a dossier of information to Brussels. The Costa del Sol Action Group demanded action against the advisers who, it claims, have lost their clients over €120 million (£102 million). “It is good news as something has to be done about this bunch of rogues,” said group founder David Klein. “The current Spanish regulatory system is totally inadequate and ineffective. Dealing with the authorities is a constant game of ping-pong. Anyone can come to Spain and be a financial adviser; they could have been selling fish before they came here for all anyone knows." This situation could soon be coming to an end, after the European Commission confirmed it was to begin "a preliminary investigation of the problem". Foreign Office plans evacuation of expats 18 Dec 2011 It has asked for more information and the action group has called on all victims to write to the European Parliament outlining their experience. “This problem is causing untold stress and heartache in the expatriate community and it cannot be allowed to continue,” explained Klein. The European Commission is to study how investors would be able to make an official complaint against Independent Financial Advisers (IFAs). At present, there is no effective means for victims to make a complaint against product providers who work with unregistered IFAs. The group was also highly critical of the local media for its willingness to accept adverts from unregulated financial firms in a bid to maximise advertising revenue. To highlight the problem, the group included testimonials by members who were allegedly defrauded by one specialist investment brokerage, which it claims is "not regulated or registered". It said the company was able to trade, "collecting unsuspecting clients who are soon relieved of their money". One Costa del Sol-based financial adviser, Richard Alexander, said he was pleased with the EU’s response. “Bring on the review,” he said. “I have seen too many sad stories of people being turned over, badly advised or grossly over-charged by unregulated independent financial advisors in Spain. "It is entirely possible to provide professional, quality advice without the client losing out.”

Read More