The priest who banned his tight-fisted parishioners has said that perhaps he didn’t express himself clearly enough. So maybe he did, after all, get a call from the Pope down in Valencia.

I mentioned the other day that home-grown commentators could be far more critical than I am. Right on cue, the President of an organisation called Associated European Motorists has dismissed the newly-introduced points-based driving system as a ‘typically Spanish’ bodge. He says it stands little hope of effecting the significant reduction in mortalities achieved elsewhere, as the loss of points will not be regarded as a sanction. Instead, acquiring the points will merely be seen as a requirement equivalent to good eyesight or good mental health. I’m not sure I get this contrast but I do understand his point that the Spanish model is nothing like that already adopted in 11 other EU countries. And I do hope he’s wrong, especially as the weekend brought its usual crop of teenagers slaughtered in the early hours of Saturday and Sunday mornings.

Here’s something for those buying property up in the hills of Lugo and Ourense to think about – global warming is forecast to mean that, by the end of the century, the interior of Galicia will be ‘hotter and more arid’ than it is now. As it was over 40 degrees in Ourense today, this is not something to take too lightly. At least not if you want to leave some valuable property to your kids.