Gandía
October 23
Yet again, the British Consulate ignores the hundreds, if not thousands, of British expats who live on the northern Costa Blanca between Denia and Valencia both on the coast and inland.
Ten meetings on how Brexit will affect our lives have been arranged by the Consulate between November 6 and December 18 (Costa Levante News October 19) but all of the venues being used are located from Denia south along the coast.
Why no meeting in Oliva or Gandía for instance? As is well known public transport links between Denia and Valencia are non-existent, so a car journey of some distance is required to reach the nearest venue.
Yet there are meetings for instance in Teulada and Calpe, Jávea, Denia and Alcalalí. Why are those of us who live outside this zone being denied easy access to vital information, which will have a profound impact on all of us resident here?
To my recollection this is the second time meetings have not given due consideration to those who live further north.
Of course the schedule of meetings will have been planned before the latest news from Brussels suggesting an extension to the transition period, so it is possible the officials from the Consulate will have no final and definitive information to impart, but perhaps when they do know what will be happening they could give all of us who live in the Valencian region an opportunity to attend.
Joanne Wright
Joanne you are not alone in finding it odd as regards meetings with our Consulate over Brexit updates.Some months ago a meeting was held in Alfaz del Pi.Most of the British nationals reside in Albir,a far fewer number in Alfaz .The venue selected(by whom I wondered) was in the retirement complex of Forum Marie Nostrum whose residents are,in the main,Scandinavian & Dutch,although there is a much smaller number of British retirees,I suspect due to the cost factor.If you had no transport this involved a walk uphill from the centre of about 15 minutes on my old legs.Fortunately there are benches at certain points.From Albir this means taking the bus into Alfaz & then a longer walk from the bus stop,get off near the Chinese restaurant,then up through the town to the turn up to the hill climb.Was there no suitable venue available in Albir which even for Alfaz town residents only meant a short ride on the no.10 bus?Actually,Joanne,any information that was given out by the Consulate,just my opinion,could have been gained by listening to the British TV news or by reading our English language newspapers.So don’t fret. Best wishes,Alice.
The meeting in Denia, at least, was organised by the British consulate in Alicante and Denia is at the very northern end of the Alicante province. It may be an administrative issue. Perhaps you need to speak to the British Consulate in Valencia. https://www.consulby.com/british-consulate-spain/valencia/