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Ferdinand sued the newspaper for misuse of private information after they published details of his 13-year relationship with interior designer Carly Storey, who accepted £16,000 for telling the tale of her liaisons with the defender. But Mr Justice Nicol dismissed the case at London's high court on Thursday, and refused Ferdinand's legal team permission to appeal. "Overall, in my judgment, the balancing exercise favours the defendant's right of freedom of expression over the claimant's right of privacy," he said. The judge was not swayed by Ferdinand's claims that he had not tried to meet Storey after being made England captain, despite claims in the newspaper that he had snuck Storey into the team hotel. "I did not find this answer persuasive. In his evidence the claimant said that (Fabio) Capello had told him to be professional, not only on the pitch but 'around the hotel'," the judge said. "In the past, the Claimant (Ferdinand) had not behaved in a professional manner around the hotels into which he had tried to sneak Ms Storey. "Whether or not he had done that in the few weeks since he had been made the permanent captain of England, his relative recent past failings could legitimately be used to call into question his suitability for the role." Former England captain Ferdinand, who has three children with wife Rebecca, had told the judge at an earlier hearing that, "I do not see why I should not be entitled to a private life just because I am a famous footballer." Sunday Mirror editor Tina Weaver hailed the judge's decision. "The Sunday Mirror is very pleased that the court has rejected Rio Ferdinand's privacy claim," she said. "The judge found that there was a justified public interest in reporting the off-pitch behaviour of the then England captain and discussion of his suitability for such an important and ambassadorial role representing the country. "We are pleased the judge ruled that Mr Ferdinand had perpetuated a misleading public image and the Sunday Mirror was entitled to correct this impression. "There has never been greater scrutiny of the media than now, and we applaud this ruling in recognising the important role a free press has to play in a democratic society."
The England and Manchester United star will now be saddled with paying the estimated £500,000 legal bills incurred by the Sunday Mirror in defence of the lawsuit.
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Thursday, 29 September 2011
Rio hit with £500k bill after losing court battle
Paramedics Who Tried To Save Singer's Life Give Evidence
Alberto Alvarez was in charge of back stage during Jackson's final rehearsal on June 24, 2009. He described Jackson as "happy and in good spirits" during the performance. "He was doing very well for the most part," he told the Los Angeles court. He explained that he later drove Jackson back to his rented Holmby Hills home and saw Dr Murray's car parked there. He said the last time he saw Jackson alive was when he said "good night" to the singer. Mr Alvarez was the first person who went into Jackson's bedroom after Dr Murray telephoned for help as he was trying to resuscitate the singer. He said Jackson was lying on his back, with his hands extended out to his side, and his eyes and mouth open. "When I came into the room, Dr Murray said 'Alberto, hurry, we have to get to hospital, we have to get an ambulance'." Jackson's logistics director Alberto Alvarez He then described how Jackson's children Paris and Prince entered the room behind him. "Paris screamed out 'Daddy' and she was crying. "Dr Murray said to me 'Don't let them see their dad like this see'. "I ushered the children out and told them 'Don't worry, we will take care of it, everything is going to be OK'." Mr Alvarez asked what had happened, to which Dr Murray replied: "He had a bad reaction". Two paramedics who tried to save Jackson's life are also due to give evidence on day three of the trial. Martin Blount and Richard Senneff are expected to say that Jackson already appeared to be dead when they arrived at his home on June 25, 2009. The court will also hear from another key witness - Jackson's personal chef Kai Chase. Sky's US correspondent Greg Milam, who is at the court, said: "There are fewer demonstrators, fans of Michael Jackson, and supporters of Dr Murray here today - but they are still being very vocal in their support of both sides in the case." On Wednesday, Jackson's security chief revealed how the star's children crumpled in shock, as they saw their apparently dead father being given heart massage in his bedroom. The court also heard that Dr Conrad Murray, accused of involuntary manslaughter over Jackson's death two years ago, asked aides if any of them knew how to do cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). "Paris was on the ground balled up crying, and Prince was standing there, and he just had a real shocked, you know just slowly crying type of look on his face," bodyguard Faheem Muhammad, referring to two of Jackson's three children, said. "I went and gathered them together, and I kind of talked to them for a second, got the nanny... and we walked downstairs and put them in a different location," he said. He was describing the scene after he was called up to the master bedroom of Jackson's rented Los Angeles mansion where the star died after an overdose of a powerful sedative. The defence team for the doctor insists Jackson self-administered other sedatives, prompting the overdose while his physician was outside the bedroom. Dr Murray, 58, faces up to four years in jail if convicted of involuntary manslaughter for administering the overdose of Propofol.
Motorway speed limit to be raised
The speed limit on Britain’s motorways is set to rise to 80mph but with a big expansion in the number 20mph zones in cities and towns, The Independent has learnt. As part of a deal negotiated with the Liberal Democrats the Transport Secretary Phillip Hammond is expected to announce the Government’s intention to bring in the new speed limit at the Conservative conference. Ministers will then consult on the proposal later in the year along with plans to significantly expand the number of areas in Britain covered by 20mph zones.
Ferdinand loses privacy action
Rio Ferdinand has lost his privacy action over a "kiss and tell" story. The England and Manchester United centre back was not at London's High Court to hear Mr Justice Nicol dismiss his claim against MGN Ltd. Ferdinand, 32, brought his case for misuse of private information over an April 2010 Sunday Mirror article in which interior designer Carly Storey gave her account of their 13-year relationship in return for £16,000. The judge said: "Overall, in my judgment, the balancing exercise favours the defendant's right of freedom of expression over the claimant's right of privacy." Ferdinand had branded the piece - "My affair with England captain Rio" - a "gross invasion of my privacy", and said he had not seen Ms Storey for six years by the time it appeared. At a hearing in July, his lawyers asked for a maximum of £50,000 damages and a worldwide gagging order. Afterwards, Sunday Mirror editor Tina Weaver said in a statement: "The Sunday Mirror is very pleased that the court has rejected Rio Ferdinand's privacy claim. "The judge found that there was a justified public interest in reporting the off-pitch behaviour of the then England captain and discussion of his suitability for such an important and ambassadorial role representing the country. "There has never been greater scrutiny of the media than now, and we applaud this ruling in recognising the important role a free press has to play in a democratic society."
Saturday, 24 September 2011
Alexa Chung range a hit
THE Queen gave Prince William the go-ahead to rip up the official guest list for his wedding to Kate Middleton
THE Queen gave Prince William the go-ahead to rip up the official guest list for his wedding to Kate Middleton, he has revealed. He told how he never knew a soul on the official paper of hundreds of people and was not happy with the line-up. The 29-year-old said: “I came into the first wedding meeting, post-engagement. And I was given this official list of 777 names, dignitaries, governors, all sorts of people, and not one person I knew. William told how he then approached the Queen for help. He added: “I rang her up the next day and said: ‘Do we need to be doing this?’ “And she said: ‘No. Start with your friends first and then go from there’. And she told me to bin the list. “She told me there are certain times when you have to strike the right balance.”
Gary Barlow, Tulisa Contostavlos, Kelly Rowland and original X Factor judge Louis Walsh have sent home dozens of hopefuls from boot camp
With Cheryl Cole and Simon Cowell no longer on the judging panel, the X Factor producers clearly felt they had to take drastic action to keep viewers on their toes this year.
And new judging team Gary, Kelly, Tulisa and Louis certainly kept the contestants on their toes as they turned up to the boot camp stage of the competition and were promptly turned away by the judges.
X Factor judges have made this year's boot camp the 'most brutal ever' (Picture: ITV)As 186 hopefuls arrived at the London venue to sing for the judges again, 40 of them were immediately given the chop after the judges reviewed footage of their first auditions.
Take That star Gary justified the decision by saying: 'We have seen hundreds of people; I think there are some people that don’t deserve to be here. It’s time to get serious.
The X Factor contestants gather to hear the bad news (Picture: PA)'Now we have the measure of where the best are and where the worst are. I think we need to get rid of a lot of people.'
Tulisa added: 'Looking back, when you’re on the panel and you’ve got all these people on that stage, you kind of get lost in the moment.
'Yes they are a great person, they’ve got a great voice, but great isn’t good enough, these people have to be stars, they have to be amazing.'
Some of those who were given the chance to perform were not the ones fans might have expected (Picture: PA)Explaining the decision to the contestants, many of whom were left distraught and confused after the news, Gary tried to be as diplomatic as possible.
He told them: 'Guys, we have had a chance now to review everything, we don’t believe that everybody standing here today actually has the chance to make it.
Dermot was left with the task of consoling the axed hopefuls (Picture: PA)'It’s been a really tough decision but some of you are going to be going home right now.'
Contestants who survived the culling were Frankie Cocozza, Kitty Brucknell and Janet Devlin, but plenty more were not so lucky.
The boot camp scenes will be shown when The X Factor airs tonight at 8pm on ITV1.
Thursday, 22 September 2011
Tony Montana would be displeased at the news Scarface is going to be remade again
In 2011 there have already been a slew of remakes of familiar movie favourites. So it should come as no surprise Hollywood is returning to the well again to reboot silver screen classic Scarface. Unlike examples such as the critically maligned Straw Dogs or the panned Arthur however, it will be a completely re-imagined flick based on the original concept. Say hello to my little friend: Perhaps Tony Montana would be displeased at the news Scarface is going to be remade again Interestingly, while most people think of the 1983 version that starred Al Pacino as iconic Cuban anti-hero Tony Montana when they hear the title today, it is not the original. The 1932 first entry in the series was a seminal film in its own right, and is regarded as the more ground-breaking of the pair, holding a position as one of the first great talkies. It followed the exploits of Italian gangster Tony Camonte as he climbed the criminal underground ladder in prohibition era Chicago. According to Deadline Hollywood the new version will take the same basic concept, in which an immigrant outsider barges his way into the criminal establishment, but have a new distinctive story. Gunning for revenge: And maybe Tony Camonte would not to too happy either He will then become a kingpin through his own ruthlessness and brutality, but will be brought down by his flaws and weaknesses. Specifics about the new main character are being kept under wraps, but no doubt his origin and background will be as vital to the new story as in the previous versions. Universal Pictures is developing the project, and has reportedly been tasking writers to script a take for a film that will be produced by the company's former chairman Marc Shmuger and heavyweight Martin Bregman. Good business: Legendary Martin Bregman and Marc Shmuger are producing The latter produced the Pacino version, as other key hits in the legendary actor's career such as Serpico, Carlito's Way and Sea Of Love. The decision to remake the movie will no doubt draw howls of derision, although the Brian De Palma remake also drew a lot of criticism at the time because the original is considered a cinematic classic. The original picture was produced by colourful mogul Howard Hughes, and followed the exploits of the insanely violent gangster Camonte as he claws his way to top. Original and (arguably) best: The poster for the classic first film It starred legendary actor Paul Muni in one of his breakthrough roles, which led to a storied career that would see him win an Oscar and be nominated for five others. The film's second lead George Raft became a professional success thanks to his role as Camonte's best chum Guino Rinaldo, with his character's trait of habitually flipping a coin becoming a classic reference. After the original ending was deemed too violent by censors, Hughes funded a new one, but when it was still deemed too violent he had the original put back in and showed it in more lenient states in the US. The De Palma version charts the life of Montana, as the Cuban refugee rises from the bottom to become a cocaine kingpin in Miami. It contains iconic cinema moments including Al Pacino sniffing away at a small mountain of cocaine on his desk as he prepares for a final shootout with gangster rivals.
French court fines women for wearing veils
Wednesday, 21 September 2011
Elizabeth Taylor's designer clothes to be auctioned
Ernest Hemingway’s final visits to Spain are remembered at a new exhibition in Rioja.
Ernest Hemingway’s final visits to Spain are remembered at a new exhibition in Rioja. However, the exhibition does not focus solely on Hemingway’s visit to Paternina in 1956. Making use of never-before-seen photographs and working with the Hemingway family, Paternina’s exhibition is more of a look at Hemingway’s association with Spain in the final years of his life. Greater attention is given to his passions for wine in general, bullfighting, writing, fiestas and good company. Carlos Eguizábal, CEO of Paternina, spoke to the drinks business at the opening ceremony in Ollauri. “We felt the exhibition was appropriate because of his relationship with wine and Rioja in general,” he said. “There is a connection between wine, culture, bullfighting and literature which Rioja encapsulates and which underpinned his love of Rioja and Paternina. It’s a celebration of his life.” Hemingway’s daughter-in-law Valerie and grandson John were also at the opening of the exhibition and Valerie tolddb about the author and his connections with wine. “He was always looking for what was good,” she said. “Not always the best but what he could enjoy. He didn’t follow trends or labels or vintages but wine was part of the fabric of his life.” As for his reputation as a heavy drinker (and at worst a drunk), Valerie countered: “He was very disciplined with his drinking and never drank because he ‘needed’ the drink. He would also never write after drinking, saying: ‘Anything you write after drinking is worthless’.” Much of the exhibition centres on Hemingway’s return to the bullfights between 1956 and 1960. His visit to Paternina in 1956 coincided with the coming of age of Antonio Ordóñez son of the bullfighter Cayetano Ordóñez also a friend of Hemingway and model for the character Pedro Romero in The Sun also Rises. Antonio was on a tour of the Basque country and Rioja in 1956 and Hemingway followed his fights in cities such as Bilbao, Pamplona, Haro, Logroño and Calahorra. It was on this trip that the two of them visited Paternina and a great many of the unseen photographs in the exhibition show the pair being shown around the cellars – and tasting wine. Hemingway would follow Antonio on subsequent returns to Spain between 1956 and 1960. These, along with the mano a mano contest between Antonio and his great rival and brother-in-law Luis Miguel Dominguín in 1959, formed the basis of Hemingway’s last series of articles for Life magazine, The Dangerous Summer. To help commemorate the event, Paternina’s winemaker Carlos Estecha has designed a special edition label for the 2006 Conde de los Andes reserva. The exhibition runs from Tuesday to Sunday – with more limited opening times on Sunday – until 15 April 2012. Admission with a tasting is €3, €2 for over 65s and under 18s and free for under 14s.
former X Factor judge and Girls Aloud singer said she would consider becoming a fashion designer and launch her own range.
The former X Factor judge and Girls Aloud singer said she would consider becoming a fashion designer and launch her own range. Asked by The Guardian if she'd like her own fashion collection, she replied: 'Do you know what? I wouldn't rule it out, actually. I have loved designing these shoes. I haven't enjoyed a project so much in a long time. So, yes, it might be the start of something.' Chezza stepped out earlier this week during London Fashion Week to launch her shoe collection with website Stylistpick.com at The Home House. The star will also be choosing her favourite items from the online accessory store's collections and telling fans why she likes them in a new blog. Stylistpick’s chief creative officer Juliet Warkentin said: ‘We are thrilled to be working with Cheryl. Cheryl is the style icon and is amazingly warm, a quality that has made her the nation's favourite. 'We believe that the launch will have a huge fashion impact; establishing fashion's greatest influencer as a major force in fashion design and further democratising fashion.’
Brit Designers Shine At London Fashion Week
"The truth is that all the ideas come out of here," he said.
"Before they used to be picked up by every other designer from around the world, diluted and communicated to other parts of the world and other people were making the money.
Models display creations by British born designer Osman
"Maybe now it is becoming a lot more important.
"I think Burberry, in a way, bringing their shows back to England has been very important because they have managed to bring the attention back here - that England isn't only a hub of ideas but it is also a business and there is an industry working and people are making it happen."
Rosario Dawson and Pippa Middleton on the front row at Temperley catwalk
The runways have seen a global standard of models showcasing collections, with designers including Burberry Prorsum, Christopher Kane, Erdem, Jonathan Saunders, Mario Schwab and Mary Katrantzou.
US-based media analytics company Global Language Monitor recently ranked London as the Global Fashion Capital, overtaking New York.
It said the Alexander McQueen wedding dress that Kate Middleton wore at her royal wedding moved London from third to top position.
Cheryl Cole 'Falls For Hunky Soldier' In Afghanistan | Cheryl Cole
It seems Cheryl Cole has finally put her failed marriage to footballer Ashley Cole behind her, after apparently falling for a "gorgeous" solider in Afghanistan. The Girls Aloud beauty, who visited Camp Bastion in Helmand Province to boost troops morale, claims to have swapped numbers with the hunky young corporal after taking a shine to him during her trip last week. Chezza confessed to The Mirror: "Not only are the soldiers incredibly brave, a few were also incredibly cute. I actually came back with a phone number from one lad." "He started chatting to me after I'd been shot at during a training exercise. Obviously it wasn't real ammunition, but it was still terrifying." She continued: "Anyway, I think I am going to call him this week and we'll see what happens. I'm sure he's not expecting me to ring but that's why it'll be funny - and that's why I'm going to do it." Cheryl went on to admit that she is realistic about any chances of romance with the lucky solider, stating: "Long-distance relationships are a nightmare – a big time difference is a killer because it’s just so hard to stay in touch.” As well as proving a hit with the men, the former X Factor judge also seems to have charmed ladies, claiming: "There really were so many handsome guys – even some of the girl soldiers were totally gorgeous. Loads of the girls are now following me on Twitter and tweeting me. It’s great.” The 28-year old added: “I’d love to stay in touch with some of the incredible people I was lucky enough to meet.”
Celebrity Cruises Taps Top Chef to Join Culinary Team
Known for its culinary leadership and commitment to offering guests a modern, luxurious experience during their precious vacation time, Celebrity Cruises has expanded its already robust culinary talent by naming 2010 James Beard Foundation "Rising Star Chef" nominee and 2007 "Rising Star Chef of American Cuisine" John Suley as its director of Culinary Operations. Tapped by Celebrity's charismatic Vice President of Culinary Operations Jacques Van Staden – himself a James Beard-nominated Master Chef – Suley is widely regarded as one of the country's top "up and coming" chefs. Prior to joining Celebrity, he worked in the star-studded, international dining scene as executive chef at the South Florida incarnation of three-time James Beard honoree Alfred Portale's famed "Gotham Bar & Grill" (New York), "Gotham Steak" at the chic Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami. Suley's wealth of experience also includes work at the Ritz Carlton-South Beach, the Waldorf Astoria and St. Regis hotels, and with many of the world's most accomplished chefs, including Daniel Boulud, and Celebrity's Van Staden himself, at some of the finest restaurants in the dining mecca of Las Vegas. Suley is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. At Celebrity, Suley joins Van Staden in leading the line's continuing quest to achieve the highest levels of consistency, quality and innovation in the culinary experience. "John Suley is known for his edgy and innovative cooking style, and is a genuinely unique chef," said Van Staden, "Having known him for 12 years, and observing the amazing contributions he made during the recent debut of our newest Solstice Class ship, Celebrity Silhouette, I am confident he will be an inspirational and creative leader within Celebrity's innovative culinary team, and will make tremendous contributions as we continue to prove to vacationers around the world that we can treat them to a dining experience that is easily comparable to the best on land." About Celebrity Cruises: Celebrity Cruises' iconic "X" is the mark of modern luxury, with its cool, contemporary design and warm spaces; dining experiences where the design of the venues is as important as the cuisine; and the amazing service that only Celebrity can provide, all created to provide an unmatchable experience for vacationers' precious time. Celebrity sails to Alaska, Australia/New Zealand, Bermuda, California, Canada/New England, the Caribbean, Europe, Hawaii, the Pacific Coast, Panama Canal, South America, and year-round in the Galapagos Islands. Celebrity also offers immersive cruisetour experiences in Alaska, Australia/New Zealand, Canada, Europe and South America.
Who needs The X Factor when you have your own shoe line?
Cheryl Cole was all smiles at the Olivier National Theatre in London on Monday night, where the ousted X Factor judge was celebrating her newest venture -- fabulous footwear! To celebrate her partnership with U.K. fashion website, Stylistpick.com, the 28-year-old Brit showed off her amazing figure through the sexy cutouts in her scarlet mini dress. She styled her hair into a voluminous bouffant accessorized with a gold headband and sported smoky eye makeup. The stylish star finished off her look with a pair of sparkling, sky-high heels. But despite their fabulous appearance, weren't such a walk in the park. "Girls..Don't you just love taking your foot out of a heel and into your slippers..The best! Feels like my feet are having a cuddle.. X," the Girls Aloud singer tweeted after the event. Cole's limited-edition footwear collection is due to hit stores in December just in time for the holiday season. "Cheryl is the style icon and is amazingly warm -- a quality that has made her the nation's sweetheart," Stylistpick's CEO, Juliet Warkentin, said. "We believe that the launch will have a huge fashion impact, establishing fashion's greatest influencer as a major force in fashion design." Cole will also curate her own picks on the site as well as give style tips to users.
Tuesday, 20 September 2011
Pippa Middleton sat front row at the Temperley London show at London Fashion Week
The line contained garments that could easily be seen on either Middleton sister, with tailored jackets and clean cocktail dresses. Drop-waist dresses and a ’20s flapper vibe was also incorporated in the collection, a trend that was also seen during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in New York last week. This is not the first time Pippa and Temperley have appeared in the same headline. The royal bridesmaid wore an emerald green gown by the designer for Kate and Will’s post-wedding festivities in April.
Pippa Middleton had a prime seat at the Temperley runway show at London Fashion Week at the British Museum. (Tim Whitby - GETTY IMAGES) on Monday, taking in the elegant 2012 resort collection by Alice Temperley next to British journalist Peaches Geldof and actress Rosario Dawson.
Monday, 19 September 2011
Marbella Club Hotel, Golf Resort & Spa: Marbella, Spain hotel:
Located on the Southern Spanish Costa del Sol, in the heart of the 'Golden Mile' only 5 minutes to Old Town Marbella and Puerto Banús, with 320 days of sunshine and a mild year round average temperature of 21ºC). Open year round, the renowned Marbella Club Hotel, was once the private residence of Prince Alfonso von Hohenlohe. The 121 luxury bedrooms and suites, spread over the beach front resort, harmonize with 14 Andalusian-Style villas throughout 42,000 square meters (452,083 sq. ft.) of lush subtropical gardens. Each guest room is decorated with the finest fabrics and Mediterranean interior design, reflecting the surrounding elements and has furnished balcony / terrace and spacious luxurious bathrooms with separate shower and bath. The 14 charming villas are in the unmistakable style of the Hotel, faithful replicas of traditional Andalucían architecture, blending harmoniously with their surroundings, and are ideal for families and guests seeking to enjoy more space and privacy. The 2, 3 or 5 bedroom villas have their own private garden and heated pool, providing guests with both comfort and privacy during their stay. Both of the 2 outdoor heated swimming pools, one with seawater invite you to relax in the surrounding gardens or to enjoy the views of the Mediterranean through the palm trees of the famous beach club.
Housing Market Woes Even Hit Celebs
Even celebrities are having a hard time selling their mega-mansions. More on DIS Fan Cam: The Next Sports Cash Machine?Jay Rasulo, Senior Executive Vice President And Chief Financial Officer, The Walt Disney Company, To Speak At The Goldman Sachs 20th Annual Communacopia ConferenceBond Funds See Huge Spike in Inflows Market Activity The Walt Disney Co| DIS Mommy-to-be Hillary Duff has put her first mansion that she purchased while starring in Disney's Lizzie McGuire up for sale with an asking price of $6.25 million. But according to The Real Estalker, Duff also attempted to sell the estate last year, listing for $7 million last time around. Real estate records reveal Duff bought the 9,277 square-foot house in Toluca Lake, Calif., in March 2004 for $3.5 million. Mark Wahlberg, a.k.a. Marky Mark, also recently re-listed his Beverly Hills estate with a $2 million price cut. Wahlberg originally listed the property in 2008 for $15.9 million. The 1.41-acre home is now listed for $13.9 million. The executive producer of Entourage purchased the mansion in 2001 for just $5 million, later remodeling it. Earlier in the summer, Christina Aguilera reduced the price on her home in the Hollywood Hills to $5.5 million from $8 million, while Jodi Foster's Beverly Hills mansion was brought down to $8.9 million from $10 million. The housing market continues to wobble with few consumers taking advantage of record-low mortgage rates. Sales of newly built homes are expected to be at their worst levels for decades this year, while sales of previously occupied homes are on pace for their poorest showing in nearly 15 years
Spain finance chief admits odd quirk in wealth tax
One aspect of a plan to restore wealth tax in Spain makes no sense but there's nothing the government can do about it, the finance minister said Saturday. Elena Salgado spoke from Poland where she was attending a meeting of euro zone counterparts. The tax stems from the central, Socialist government but is collected by regional administrations. It was suspended in 2008 to stimulate growth as the global economic crisis started to bite in Spain. But the Madrid government has kept compensating regional governments for the lost revenue. Now, regions stand to get the money twice: once from high-earning taxpayers under a decree passed Friday and again from the central government because the compensation must continue under a separate law that has a higher status than a decree. Salgado said "this does not seem reasonable" but there's no way around it. "With a decree, there is nothing you can do to avoid it," she said. Her comments were the latest in a sea of confusing government statements about the wealth tax, which is levy on a person's net worth: assets minus debts. The flip-flops concerned the wealth level at which it will kick in and how much revenue it will raise. In the end, if passed by Parliament next week, the levy will apply to taxpayers' net worth above euro700,000 ($963,000), or an estimated 160,000 people, and raise euro2 billion in revenue. It is temporary, and will be in effect only in 2011 and 2012. The government says the tax is aimed at getting richer people to chip in more as Spain struggles with a 21 percent jobless rate, anemic growth and a high deficit. But it has been criticized by the conservative opposition as a populist nod to leftist voters angry over deficit-cutting austerity measures as Nov. 20 general elections approach. The ruling Socialists are projected to lose badly. Salgado's remarks seemed to contradict some made just Friday by government spokesman Jose Blanco, who said no region would get the wealth tax money twice. Salgado said Blanco really meant the same thing she did: that it seems unreasonable for regions to get the money doubly.
UBS fraud: rogue trader followed in Kerviel's footsteps
Fraud went on for three years before detection, according to charges. UBS statement reveals similar pattern to SG rogue trader Jérôme Kerviel Fresh details about the losses suffered by UBS at the hands of a rogue trader – alleged to be exchange-traded funds (ETF) specialist Kweku Adoboli – make the episode look almost identical to the €4.9 billion rogue-trading loss suffered by Société Générale (SG) at the hands of Jérôme Kerviel in 2008. Related articles Market volatility may have brought UBS losses to light UBS rogue-trading losses reopen old wounds JAC reaffirms retail structured products principles with bigger committee Trading positions - November 2010 In a statement on September 18, UBS said: "The loss resulted from unauthorised speculative trading in various S&P 500, Dax and Eurostoxx index futures over the past three months. The positions had been offset in our systems with fictitious, forward-settling, cash ETF positions, allegedly executed by the trader. These fictitious trades concealed the fact that the index futures trades violated UBS's risk limits." The bank also raised its estimate of the losses caused: the total is now $2.3 billion rather than $2 billion, it said. If UBS's statement is correct, the fraud would have a number of similarities to SG's 2008 losses. Kerviel, like the UBS rogue trader, put on large directional trades using equity index futures – in Kerviel's case, on the Dow Jones Eurostoxx 50, Dax and FTSE 100 indexes. And Kerviel, like the UBS rogue trader, hid the fact he had gone far beyond his risk limits by logging fictitious offsetting trades – including forwards and warrant trades. Kerviel chose these because they did not require immediate confirmation or daily margin payments, unlike futures trades, and so would be likely to go undetected for longer. The UBS rogue trader might have chosen them for the same reason. If Adoboli was indeed behind the rogue trades, there are other similarities. Both men were 31 years old. Both had moved to the trading desk after spending some years in the back office – in Kerviel's case, his back-office experience gave him the knowledge he needed to avoid detection. And both had been breaking risk limits for years before they were detected. According to Adoboli's charge sheet, he falsified trading records on ETFs almost constantly from October 2008 to September 2011 – he started work as an ETF trader in September 2006. Early reports that UBS was unaware of the unauthorised trades until the trader admitted them are not true, the bank said: the trader confessed "following inquiries directed to him by UBS control functions that were reviewing his positions" on September 14. This still appears to leave almost three years in which he was able to operate without detection – or at least without UBS acting to stop him. In this respect, too, there could be parallels with the Kerviel case: it emerged in SG's own inquiry report that his unauthorised trades had triggered internal alarms at SG on 93 occasions, but each one had been ignored or discounted by Kerviel's superiors and SG's internal control functions. It's also possible that both Kerviel and the UBS trader were eventually discovered after market turbulence sent their losses so high that the bank's internal controls could no longer fail to notice them. Early speculation that the UBS losses were linked to a directional trade on the volatile Swiss franc now seems to be mistaken, but European equity indexes in particular have also moved dramatically in recent weeks in response to the worsening eurozone debt crisis. Kerviel's own losses followed similar turbulence in the equity markets in January 2008. Two inquiries are now under way at UBS. The bank's own internal inquiry is led by senior independent director David Sidwell, assisted by two other UBS directors – former Swiss Re chief financial officer Ann Godbehere, who acted as interim chief financial officer at Northern Rock after it was nationalised, and Joseph Yam, formerly head of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. The UK Financial Services Authority and the Swiss regulator Finma will also oversee an inquiry by an unnamed third-party contractor.
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