The Bottom Line

Get thy own house in order

The bleak housing situation for young professionals on the Costa del Sol has reached the point where people feel they need to uproot their lives from friends and family and move 400km away comments contributor Neil Hesketh

Neil Hesketh
  • Pérez in the spotlight
    Florentino Pérez during the Real Madrid Board of Directors meeting. (. AFP)

    A Look at La Liga

    Pérez in the spotlight

    Florentino Pérez's bizarre press conference leaves Real Madrid with more questions than answers

    Rob Palmer, commentator ESPN |
  • The Music Maker

    Game of cards

    Columnist Peter Edgerton finds himself coiled like a viper in a midnight battle of wits against the Spanish bureaucracy’s digital gatekeepers

    Peter Edgerton |
  • The Euro Zone

    Cooking the books

    Columnist Mark Nayler looks at how Spain's misuse of EU recovery funds came under the spotlight

    Mark Nayler |
  • A prayer for public transport
    (Eugenio Cabezas)

    The Bottom Line

    A prayer for public transport

    Columnist Jennie Rhodes welcomes the long-awaited drop in bus fares but argues that cheaper tickets will do little to solve the fifteen years of stress, poor signage and station chaos that continue to plague local passengers

    Jennie Rhodes |
  • Awaiting a response
    (E. P)

    The Euro Zone

    Awaiting a response

    Columnist Mark Nayler highlights the awkward timing of Spain’s request for EU protection against American sanctions as Madrid simultaneously faces a legal showdown with Brussels over its discriminatory property tax rules

    Mark Nayler |
  • The Music Maker

    Safe as ours is

    Columnist Peter Edgerton marks International Password Day by questioning the sanity of three-month updates and the insidious difficulty of identifying bridges in tiny internet photos

    Peter Edgerton |
  • The Euro Zone

    Nail in coffin?

    The Koldo corruption case concluded on Wednesday in Madrid, with evidence from its three main characters: former transport minister José Luis Ábalos, his ex-aide Koldo García and businessman Víctor de Aldama

    Mark Nayler |
  • The Music Maker

    Spring into action

    Watching swallows go about their springtime business is one of life's little luxuries; they bring a sense of optimism and renewal to the world, says columnist Peter Edgerton

    Peter Edgerton |
  • Malaga-Madrid: don't call it high speed
    (Ñito Salas)

    The Bottom Line - Opinion

    Don't call it high speed

    Back in 2008, when the AVEs had been running for a few weeks we asked when the travel time between Malaga and Madrid could be reduced to two hours; now the journey takes three hours, complains columnist Ignacio Lillo

    Ignacio Lillo |
  • Trade before rights
    (AFP)

    The Euro Zone

    Trade before rights

    Columnist Mark Nayler looks at the 'elephant in the room' during Pedro Sánchez’s recent trip to China, questioning why human rights are a deal-breaker in Gaza but a footnote in Beijing

    Mark Nayler |
  • Coming together to heal
    A child with Epidermolysis bullosa. (Pablo Nosti)

    The Bottom Line

    Coming together to heal

    Rare diseases like Epidermolysis bullosa (butterfly skin) often fall into the shadows of pharmaceutical research because the "market" is too small. This is where the expat spirit shines brightest

    Dilip Kuner |
  • The Music Maker

    Cars and effect

    Columnist Peter Edgerton compares Madrid’s chaotic M-30 to the quiet lanes of Lancashire, questioning why the law frets over sun visors while letting rusty drivers like him back behind the wheel

    Peter Edgerton |
  • The moon
    (EFE)

    The Bottom Line

    The moon

    Columnist Manuel Vilas comments that the Artemis mission in 2026 is less about technology than a profound "act of faith," showing that humanity is searching the void for the meaning it has lost on Earth

    Manuel Vilas |
  • The Music Maker

    Kiss and tell

    Columnist Peter Edgerton watches as a routine bus ride dissolves into total uproar following Paco’s disastrous and loudly mocked attempt at a traditional two-kiss greeting

    Peter Edgerton |
  • Guilty as charged?
    Begoña Gómez. (Jaime García)

    The Euro Zone

    Guilty as charged?

    Columnist Mark Nayler observes how Judge Peinado’s "absolutist" rhetoric has bolstered claims that the corruption charges against Begoña Gómez are politically charged

    Mark Nayler |
  • A tale of two trials
    Jorge Fernández Díaz. (EFE)

    The Euro Zone

    A tale of two trials

    Columnist Mark Nayler writes that if the allegations against former minister José Luis Ábalos are proven true, Pedro Sánchez must either resign or be branded the "biggest hypocrite in Spanish politics"

    Mark Nayler |