Joshua Parfitt

Joshua James Parfitt is the Costa Blanca correspondent for the Olive Press. He holds a gold-standard NCTJ in multimedia journalism from the award-winning News Associates in Twickenham. His work has been published in the Sunday Times, Esquire, the Mail on Sunday, the Daily Mail, the Sun, the Sun on Sunday, the Mirror, among others. He has appeared on BBC Breakfast to discuss devastating flooding in Spain, as well as making appearances on BBC and LBC radio stations. Contact me now: joshua@theolivepress.es or call +44 07960046259. Twitter: @jjparfitt

El Gobierno Cede Y Acepta Valorar Los Despidos Cuando Acaben Los Erte

Spain’s government signs agreement to allow businesses in struggling industries to fire staff after the end of ERTE furlough scheme

BUSINESS across Spain will be able to fire staff when the government’s furlough scheme (ERTE), putting an end to a month-long debate with associations and

11 May, 2020 @ 21:15

Lead

Benidorm hotel bosses fear ‘disaster’ for tourism industry as UK suggests imposition of two-week quarantine on any new arrivals

BENIDORM hotel bosses fear a ‘disaster’ could hit the city if British tourists are asked to isolate for 14 days on their return to the

11 May, 2020 @ 20:36

Lead

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‘Thousands’ of apartments to become available for short lets in Spanish cities after ‘collapse’ of Airbnb during the coronavirus lockdown

THOUSANDS of apartments in cities across Spain could soon be returned to the traditional rental market following the collapse of tourism due to the coronavirus

11 May, 2020 @ 20:11

Lead

British-run art restoration group behind efforts to bring copy of stolen Velazquez painting home from London museum

A BRITISH-run art restoration group is leading efforts to return to Sevilla a stolen 17th-century painting currently in a London museum. The Factum Arte group

11 May, 2020 @ 19:06

La Cultura

What will change when parts of Spain move to phase 1 of de-escalation on Monday?

SPAIN’S government last night announced that more than half the country’s population will, on Monday, move to ‘phase 1’ of de-escalation from the coronavirus lockdown.

9 May, 2020 @ 21:22

Lead

Government and unions reach agreement to extend ERTEs until June 30 – read new measures here

AFTER three weeks of negotiation, trade unions and government ministers have agreed on conditions to extend ERTEs until June 30. The temporary redundancy mechanism currently

8 May, 2020 @ 20:35

Lead

Amazon Spain defends online sales of ‘non-essential items’ after court ruling shuts down French warehouses

AMAZON’S country director of Spain and Italy has defended online sales of ‘non-essential items’ following complaints the activity damages small businesses and puts workers at

8 May, 2020 @ 19:14

Lead

Madrid will be denied entrance to ‘phase 1’ of Spain’s coronavirus lockdown – more than 7,000 hospital beds needed

MADRID will not enter ‘phase 1’ of de-escalation from the coronavirus lockdown this Monday, May 11, report El Mundo. The Ministry of Health believes the

8 May, 2020 @ 18:28

Lead

Why are Benidorm bars putting ‘for lease’ signs up in protest of Spain’s de-escalation regulations?

HUNDREDS of bars across Benidorm have stuck ‘to lease’ signs on their window-fronts in protest of de-escalation from Europe’s strictest coronavirus lockdown. The Cobreca-Abreca associations

7 May, 2020 @ 21:52

Costa Blanca·Lead

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Valencian Community to ask Spain’s government for permission to enter ‘phase 1’ of de-escalation from next Monday

THE government of the Valencian Community, the Generalitat, will today ask that the entire region pass immediately to the next stage of coronavirus de-escalation from

6 May, 2020 @ 19:56

Costa Blanca

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250kg of cocaine found hidden in South American helicopter parts in Spain’s Valencia

A GUARDIA Civil operation has resulted in the seizure of 250kg of cocaine that arrived at the Port of Valencia hidden among the pieces of

6 May, 2020 @ 17:38

Costa Blanca

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Valencian Community sees out first 24-hours with ‘zero’ intensive care admissions for coronavirus

BETWEEN 9 pm on May 4 until 9pm on May 5, no coronavirus patient has been admitted to intensive care in any hospital in the

6 May, 2020 @ 17:24

Costa Blanca

Man helicoptered to hospital after falling off horse in the Valencian Community before being fined for disobedience and poor horse maintenance

GUARDIA Civil agents have rescued a 24-year-old man who fell off his horse in the Valencian Community – and then fined him. Police were called

1 May, 2020 @ 18:52

Costa Blanca·Crime & Law

Suspiciously well-groomed man leads police to clandestine barber in central Spain – both fined up to €30,000

A SUSPICIOUSLY well-groomed man has led police to bust a clandestine barber operating in breach of Spain’s strict coronavirus lockdown. Policia Local agents in Toledo

1 May, 2020 @ 18:38

Lead

Has Zara-founder Amancio Ortega won over his hardened critics with his contributions to Spain’s COVID-19 crisis?

HE’S the world’s sixth-richest person, with an eight-brand empire of 7,200 clothing shops spread across 93 countries. There isn’t a lot that Zara-founder Amancio Ortega

1 May, 2020 @ 17:02

Business & Finance·Lead

Man parked in buslane taunts angry Valencian busdriver to ‘smash his car if he has the balls’ – he did

A DRIVER will be more careful with his words after leaving his parked car in a bus lane and tempting an angry busdriver to ‘smash

29 Apr, 2020 @ 13:25

Costa Blanca

EXCLUSIVE: Sirens and helium balloons surprise British expat on her 100th birthday under confinement in Spain – watch

CORONAVIRUS may have stopped Peggy Bloomfield from celebrating her 100th birthday in style. But it didn’t stop neighbours, friends and local authorities from surprising her

28 Apr, 2020 @ 15:40

Costa Blanca·Lead

Police hunt down 100 illegal immigrants who arrived on small dinghies from Spain back to Morocco – one caught in a clay oven

MOROCCAN police are tracking down more than 100 illegal immigrants who fled Spain on small dinghies at the end of March. Moroccan daily Al Ahdath

24 Apr, 2020 @ 17:23

Lead

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Man denied entrance to supermarket with his wife starts brawl before coughing in police officer’s face claiming he has ‘coronavirus’ – arrested in Valencia

A MAN has been arrested in Valencia after coughing in a police officer’s face and claiming he had ‘coronavirus’ following a supermarket brawl. Policia Nacional

23 Apr, 2020 @ 19:20

Costa Blanca·Crime & Law

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Man to be fined at least €601 for dancing ‘Sevillanas’ dressed as a woman in sunglasses in Spain’s Alicante

A MAN is under investigation for a serious disobedience after he was filmed dancing ‘Sevillanas’ dressed as a woman in sunglasses in Spain’s Alicante province.

23 Apr, 2020 @ 18:59

Costa Blanca·Lead

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Catalan clothing line Mango plan to quarantine tried-on clothes for ’48 hours’ as part of strict measures to hopefully reopen ‘in June’

SPANISH clothing lines Mango has begun reopening shops in northern Europe, with 135 active in Austria and the Netherlands, while 483 more are due to

23 Apr, 2020 @ 15:28

Business & Finance·Lead

World’s largest tomato fight, La Tomatina, cancelled in Valencia due to the coronavirus pandemic

THE world’s biggest tomato fight, the Tomatina, is the latest of Spain’s iconic festivals to be cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. First fell the

22 Apr, 2020 @ 16:55

Lead

Cancer patients and pregnant women in Alicante’s Marina Alta comarca can receive rapid COVID-19 tests – details here

CANCER patients and pregnant women can receive free coronavirus tests thanks to a campaign launched by health activists in Alicante’s Marina Alta comarca. The rapid

22 Apr, 2020 @ 15:20

Costa Blanca·Health

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Plexiglas screens, thermal cameras and safety ‘certificates’ – how Spain’s restaurants and hotels plan to open to a COVID-19 world

Would a hotel buffet be relaxing if staff steam-clean your table between hermetically-sealed meals? How would a candlelit dinner work without the ability to squeeze

22 Apr, 2020 @ 14:52

Food & Drink·Lead

Mountain goats roam empty streets and scale houses close to Sevilla’s Sierra de Esparteros

RECLUSIVE mountain goats have been photographed roaming empty streets and scaling houses near to Sevilla’s Sierra de Esparteros mountain range. Images of a drove of

21 Apr, 2020 @ 18:06

Spain’s biggest bullfighting festival in Pamplona, San Fermin, cancels July events due to coronavirus pandemic

THE centre of bullfighting culture – Pamplona’s summer San Fermin festival – has been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. Navarra’s capital city, in northern

21 Apr, 2020 @ 14:19

Lead

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