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The Catalan Government and most of the political parties have criticised the Spanish Government’s project to reduce local powers. Furthermore, the Catalan Vice-President, Joana Ortega, emphasised the “unfair vision” of local governments given by the Spanish Finance Minister. Ortega underlined that in Catalonia, most of the town halls ended 2012 with a budget deficit of 0%, which is “not in line with the mismanagement image given” by the Spanish Government. Furthermore, while the Spanish Government is aiming to reduce the number of councillors earning a salary to only 18%, Ortega reminded them that in Catalonia only 10% are now earning a salary. Political parties in Catalonia criticised the Spanish Government for taking away power from the government level closest to the citizens.

The technique started in Catalonia in 2007 and by 2011 it was practiced on 40% of patients with renal failure. The Catalan Health Ministry hopes to cover 100% of the cases within the next 5 to 10 years. In the United States it started being used a year ago as they were waiting for clinical results to expand its use. Now, a clinical study on 900 patients from 27 different Catalan centres has proved that the technique reduces mortality by 30% on patients with kidney failure within the first three years. In addition, it improves quality of life, reduces hospitalisations by 22% and it also makes hypotension episodes drop by 28%.

FC Barcelona go to Granada on Saturday for the first in a marathon series of five games in 14 days, including massive matches with Milan in the European Champions League and Real Madrid in the Spanish Cup. The Manager has said in the press conference before the Granada vs. FC Barcelona game that “we are in comfortable position in the league but that should be no excuse for any kind of relaxation”. “We’re into the nice part of the season when in a few days there are lots of things at stake. In terms of fitness and morale this is a good moment for us” commented Roura.

Barcelona plays host each year to the world’s largest cell phone-related technology event, the Mobile World Congress, and the Catalan city is becoming an international hub in this field, concentrating several platforms, business initiatives and cultural projects. In fact, Barcelona was declared the Mobile World Capital, in order to act as a global meeting point and platform for mobile related industry. The Mobile World Centre was unveiled on Thursday in Catalunya Square, in the heart of the city, and will become a permanent lighthouse for mobile technology. It will display human stories of how this technology can help in everyday life, explaining the latest developments and also the history of this industry.

Economic recession hit Catalonia even harder in 2012 than in 2011, when it dropped by 0.7%. The contraction was especially severe in the last quarter of the year. In December, Catalonia’s GDP plummeted by 0.6% compared to 3 months previously. The fourth quarter’s poor figures made the Catalan economy contract by 1.3% over 2012. In 2011, it also decreased but at a slower pace, dropping by 0.7%. For the whole of Spain, the economy plummeted by 1.8% in 2012 and by 0.7% over the last quarter of the year, compared to the figures from September 2012. The main reason behind the last quarter’s drop is the decrease in consumption by families, compared to the purchases made in the third quarter, before the VAT increase.

A week before Ildefonso Falcones’ third novel ‘The Barefoot Queen’ goes on sale, CNA interviews the Barcelona lawyer that became internationally acclaimed in 2006 thanks to his best-selling debut ‘Cathedral of the Sea’. The novel, set in medieval Barcelona sold seven million copies in 40 countries and introduced him to the literature scene as one of the main Spanish authors of historical novels. Now, on the 21st of February, he will publish his third book, which will be on sale simultaneously in Spain, Latin America and the United States. Falcones explains what writing means to him as well as the difficulties of the creative process.

Researchers from the Catalan Institute of Oncology have led the largest international study on breast cance4r and nutrition. The 8-year study has been based on 335,062 women between 35 and 70 years old. It has involved 23 centres in 10 European countries and it has been published in the ‘International Journal of Cancer’. The study concludes that the Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of breast cancer by 6% among women in general and 7% in the case of post-menopausal patients.

The Catalan Executive has provided details of how it will adjust €4 billion of its 2013 budget in order to meet the deficit target imposed by the Spanish Government. Besides the 1 billion tax increase already announced, the Catalan Executive will have to implement further budget cuts. On Thursday it will present its austerity plan for 2013 to the unions, which will affect all public employees, in order to save €700 million. As last year, public employees will not receive 7% of their annual salary, corresponding to part of the summer and Christmas bonuses. According to the unions, 3,000 civil servant posts will remain empty and 10,000 substitution contracts will not be signed.

The Sitges Carnival is one of the best-known in Spain. Its spectacular nature, alongside with the crowded parades and the dedication of the entire city to this festival, make thousands of tourists and people from all over Catalonia visit the city and enjoy its Carnival. For a week, the whole town dresses up and organises activities that include parades, parties, races or balls, where adults and children have fun together. This year, more than 300,000 people joined the villagers in the celebration of Sitges’ most important holiday.

Leading Catalan electric and natural gas company Gas Natural Fenosa has bought 10% of Medgaz, a submarine gas pipeline between Algeria and Europe that provides natural gas to the south of Europe. The pipeline has a capacity of transporting eight billion cubic meters per year and the acquisition has cost the Catalan company €61.9 million. Gas Natural Fenosa will use 10% of the transport capacity of the gas pipeline. The contract will last for 18 years.

The 63rd International Film Festival in Berlin is taking place at the moment through to the 17th of February. This year a film made by Catalan production company El Kinògraf is on show: ‘La Plaga’ (‘The Plague’ in English), a film shot by Neus Ballús, had its world premiere in Berlin. It is a combination of reality and fiction, presenting five different characters living around Barcelona at the time of the economic crisis. Ballús explains that the film is based on true life stories, real emotions, situations and genuine characters.

David Alegre, Quico Cortés and Roger Padrós are three Catalan field hockey players who were selected in the Hockey India League draft. All three have been representing Catalonia in this league’s debut season. The goalkeeper Cortés eventually won the HIL championship with his team, the Ranchi Rhinos. While 11 Catalan players were part of the draft, only three of them became HIL players. They have fought with their respective teams to win the league and have already flight back to their European clubs after a short but intense experience.

The 20th event of the most important electronic music festival in Southern Europe has been announced, unveiling new names in its line-up and announcing a change in location. For the first time, the morning and afternoon sessions of Sónar Barcelona will not be held in the CCCB and MACBA art centres – located in the Raval neighbourhood – but they will be moved to the Fira de Barcelona pavilions next to the Montjuic hill. Besides the already-confirmed Pet Shop Boys and Kraftwerk, other names have been added to the festival’s line-up: Justice, Jamie Lidell, Laurent Garnier, Soulwax, Seth Troxler, Diplo, Major Lazer, Skrillex, TNGHT, bRUNA, Liars and Francesco Tristano. The next event will take place in the Catalan capital between the 13th and 15th of June.

The 2,885 housing units sold in Catalonia during December increased by 4% compared to the figures from a year ago. The main reason for this rise is that, in January, the Spanish Government’s tax benefits applied when purchasing a house – approved to reactivate this economic sector after the collapse of the real estate market – will no longer exist. 66% of the houses and apartments sold were second hand, while the other third were newly built. For the whole of Spain, housing sales increased by 2.3% in December. In 2012, house sales dropped by 11.3% over 2012.

Restoration works of this UNESCO World Heritage site are expected to end in May, at a cost of €225,000 and after 14 weeks. The Paleochristian cemetery of Tarragona is mostly a third century funerary site, although it also contains ruins dating between the first (Roman times) and seventh century (Visigoth period). It is located in the city’s suburbs, near the Francolí River. It is the most important cemetery of the Western Mediterranean and due to its importance and uniqueness, the City Hall has decided to make it accessible to the public again. The space has remained closed since 1992.