Catalonia to collect its own taxes in new step towards self-governance, woman arrested in Bilbao for kissing baby on the lips and more news from Spain on Tuesday July 15th.
Spain to test age-check app to protect children online
Five EU countries including Spain will test an app aimed at preventing children from accessing harmful content online by checking users’ ages, the European Commission said Monday.
Several European nations have ramped up the pressure on the bloc to better protect minors online through more stringent measures, with some going as far as to advocate banning social media for under-15s.
On Monday, the commission unveiled the prototype of an age-verification app that Denmark, France, Greece, Italy and Spain will customise to launch national versions within several months.
“It will allow users to easily prove they are over 18 years old, protecting children from inappropriate content,” EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen told reporters.
Advertisement
Catalonia to collect its own taxes in new step towards self-governance
Spain’s national government and the regional Generalitat government of Catalonia agreed on Monday on the new ‘singular financing’ system for the northeastern region.
The agreed model stipulates that Catalonia – and the autonomous communities that wish to adopt this system – will collect all taxes in the region.
These will be allocated to a tax basket from which the Spanish State will retain the amount it needs to finance its expenses in Catalonia, and the remainder will go to the Catalan government.
For decades, many in Catalonia have argued that the wealthy territory pays more to Spain than it gets back.
Woman arrested in Bilbao for kissing baby on the lips
A woman was arrested this Sunday in Bilbao for kissing a baby on the mouth without the mother’s consent.
The incident occurred while a mother was sitting with her baby in a local park.
Without saying a word, a woman approached the child, who was between 8 and 10 months old, and suddenly kissed him on the lips. The woman now faces sexual assault charges.
Kissing on the mouth can result in infections for infants, with viruses such as herpes leading to serious illness.
Briton nabbed at Lanzarote airport with 4kg of marihuana
Spanish police have arrested a 27-year-old UK national at the airport of Lanzarote, one of the Canary Islands, with 4 kilograms of marihuana in his checked-in luggage.
During a random check, custom officers identified a suitcase that was unusually light in relation to its size and gave off a strong odour.
With additional reporting by AFP.
