Community volunteers in Torre del Mar have delivered essential food supplies to a record 145 people this month, including 66 children, making this the most successful campaign yet for the local group.

Record support reaches families across Axarquia

Volunteers packed and distributed bags filled with vital non-perishable items to officially identified families facing hardship in Torre del Mar and surrounding areas. This latest effort surpassed previous months and brought direct relief to dozens of households. Many recipients expressed gratitude for the timely assistance that helps ease daily pressures.

Grateful organisers thank generous contributors

On Thursday, April 23, local residents united to achieve something truly incredible. Every contribution counted, whether through packing bags, donating food or money, collecting items, making deliveries, serving as drop-off points, doing the shopping, or simply spreading the word. Community members made a real difference in neighbours’ lives, and none of this would have happened without such widespread backing.

Key partners enable ongoing success

Several local businesses and organisations played crucial roles in the drive. Drop-off points included BluCee, Lux-Mundi Centro Ecumenico, Oasis Hair & Beauty, Villasolutions, Trilingo Idiomas, La Tasca – Torre del Mar Breakfast & Brunch Restaurant, Global Sport Café, Casa Direct, GPS Insurance Services, Currencies Direct Spain, El Puente Christian Fellowship, Anglican Church of St Barnabas, ACAHUB, and Axarquia Business Networking Group.

Their consistent involvement allowed smooth collection and distribution across the community. Lux Mundi Ecumenical Centre continues to coordinate the monthly operations with dedicated volunteers.

How residents can join future campaigns

People who want to support future drives can drop off donations at any listed collection point or contact Lux Mundi directly. Monetary gifts also help purchase missing staples when needed. Regular appeals focus on items such as rice, pasta, tuna, lentils, chickpeas, tomato frito, cereals, biscuits, coffee, and oil.

Organisers encourage everyone in Torre del Mar and the broader Axarquia region to stay involved. Small actions from many people create lasting impact for vulnerable families, including numerous children who benefit each month.

This milestone goes to show the strength of local solidarity on the eastern Costa del Sol. Continued participation will sustain help for those who rely on these deliveries. Residents interested in volunteering or donating can follow updates via the Food Drive Torre Del Mar Facebook page or reach Lux Mundi at Avenida Moscatel 1 “I”, Torre del Mar.

Residents and those who need to travel to the airport on the MA-21 can finally breathe a sigh of relief. This stretch of tarmac, long criticised for its bone-shaking potholes, is set for a comprehensive facelift starting late April. Malaga Council has authorised a month-long project to restore the highway to its former safety standards after months of complaints regarding the deteriorating surface. Following the recent outcry over vehicle damage, this maintenance work hopes to resolve the crumbling conditions once and for all.

Crucial resurfacing dates and times

Nightly closures will affect the road heading towards Malaga from Torremolinos, between Malaga Airport and the city boundary. Malaga council has confirmed that works will commence on Sunday, April 26, and are expected to conclude by Friday morning, May 22. These improvements respond to a series of reports detailing the hazardous conditions drivers have been facing on this specific route, dodging and suddenly swerving for potholes and cracks, and taxi drivers protesting due to the damage their cars are suffering on a daily basis. Maintenance teams will work throughout the night to ensure the road is ready for the heavy daytime traffic flow.

Plan your journey to avoid delays

Drivers should prepare for restricted access between 11pm and 6am from Sunday to Thursday each week. Workers will take a break during Friday and Saturday nights to minimise disruption for weekend visitors and tourism traffic. Heavy rain may force a change to this schedule, as laying fresh asphalt requires dry conditions to make sure of durability and long-term quality. Drivers are encouraged to check local weather forecasts if they plan to travel late at night.

Alternative Routes for Local Traffic

Anyone needing the shopping centres or airport surroundings via the MA-21 must divert onto the MA-23 at the airport junction before joining the MA-21. Commuters heading from Churriana to Torremolinos are advised to use Camino del Pilar instead. Detailed signage will be placed at key junctions to guide drivers through these temporary diversions.

Contractors from the council’s high-density road programme, specifically a joint venture between Suministros Asfálticos and Firmes y Asfaltados del Sur, will carry out the project. This long-awaited upgrade hopes to end the “pothole nightmare” that has plagued the Costa del Sol’s main artery for years. Finally the Costa del Sol and Malaga Airport can look forward to an entrance worthy of its stature, rather than one that resembles a war zone.

Hard workers in Spain are facing a shrinking disposable income as the national tax burden continues to climb well above international averages. Recent data released by the OECD in the “Taxing Wages 2026” report confirms that a single worker without children now loses 41.4 per cent of their gross earnings to the government and social security.

The figures show Spain’s “tax wedge” (the difference between what an employer pays and what a worker actually receives) has reached its tenth highest level across the 38 nations of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Spanish tax pressure grew by 0.31 percentage points over the last year, a rate more than double the OECD average increase of 0.15.

Salary increases failing to match Tax growth

Workers experienced a real-term loss in purchasing power throughout 2025 because tax hikes overtook wage growth. Average salaries rose by 1.2 per cent, while personal income tax jumped by 1.5 per cent, resulting in a 0.3 per cent drop in what people could actually afford to buy. Spain remains one of only seven OECD countries where this specific imbalance led to a direct reduction in household wealth.

Most of this growth came from personal income tax, which rose by 0.25 percentage points in Spain despite falling slightly across the rest of the developed world. This trend suggests that even when employees receive a pay rise, the state claims a larger portion of the increase, leaving families with less money for daily essentials. The pay rise essentially goes to more tax, potentially eliminating the impetus to work harder.

Spain’s burden of high social security costs

Business owners also face heavy pressure, with employer social security contributions accounting for a massive 23.4 per cent of total labour costs. This figure dwarfs the OECD average of 13.5 per cent and creates a major barrier for companies looking to hire new staff. Higher business costs make Spain a more expensive place to operate compared to many neighbouring economies.

Personal income tax (IRPF) accounts for another 13.1 per cent of the gross salary, while employee social security contributions add a further 5 per cent to the total deduction. While the average developed nation requires a 13.5 per cent contribution from employers, Spain demands nearly double that amount, making it almost impossible for small businesses to expand their teams.

Failure to adjust for inflation costs workers

Financial experts at the General Council of Economists point to a lack of inflation indexing as a primary cause for these rising costs. Tax brackets have stayed static even as nominal wages increased, meaning many low-to-middle-income earners are pushed into higher tax bands without experiencing a genuine improvement in their lifestyle.

Many warn that this “fiscal drag” effectively erases the benefits of hard-won pay rises before the money ever reaches a bank account. In some cases, a pay increase can almost entirely disappear once tax benefits and subsidies are reduced or cut off due to the higher gross figure.

The OECD cautioned the Spanish government that such a heavy focus on workers’ taxation discourages job creation. They recommend moving toward alternative revenue sources, such as environmental levies or VAT, to help strengthen employment incentives. Belgium currently leads the world with a massive 52.5 per cent tax wedge, while countries like Colombia and Chile maintain much lower burdens at 0 per cent and 7.5 per cent, respectively.