The Gibraltar Insurance Institute held its 1st Annual Dinner at the Rock Hotel on Thursday 26th of February.

Mr Branko Bjelobaba, Vice-President of the Chartered Insurance Institute in the UK, gave the key note address to a packed Rock hotel. The GII has now over 130 members, which is impressive considering the Institute was only started in 2008.

The aims of the GII are to promote higher standards of competence and integrity in the practice of insurance in the Gibraltar market, and to liaise with, and represent the CII, on behalf of local membership. Mr Bjelobaba who delivered a lively and entertaining speech, presented Andy Baker, the current GII President with a Silver salver to commemorate the dinner, and Mr Baker in turn gave Mr Bjelobaba an engraved Gibraltar Crystal “Rock of Gibraltar”.

“It was great pleasure to represent the CII at your annual dinner. Very well done for a first class event and for running such a vibrant institute that offers so much to its members in Gibraltar” commented Mr Branko Bjelobaba.

“Our objectives for the coming year are to deliver value for our members, whether it be through helping them with their studies or keeping them informed as to developments and new trends in Insurance, plus to secure official recognition as an Associated Institute of the CII in London.

We will apply for this once the GII has been in existence for a full year. Our grateful thanks to Mr Bjelobaba for taking time to join us in Gibraltar, and we hope he will be a successful ambassador for us going forward” concluded Mr. Andy Baker, the current President of the GII.

Setting the plot of the book in the year 1179, Gibraltarian Abraham Marrache has just released in Madrid his first historic novel: ‘La Historia de Fermosa’.

Published by Hebraica Ediciones in conjunction with Casa Sefarad Israel, the book charts the love affair that swept two young individuals – King Alfonso VIII of Castile and Fermosa, a local Jewish beauty – towards a direct confrontation with Leonor, his English-born Queen and a group of nobles opposed to the extra-marital relationship and its possible influence on the Kingdom’s future.

Mostly set in Toledo, the narrative also encompasses the singular characteristics of the city at that time, when its Christian, Moslem and Jewish inhabitants helped to make it one of the most important centres of power and learning in Europe, not least on account of its renowned School of Translators.

The author comments: “Working over a four-year period, with the separate calendars of the three religions, numerous manuscripts and reference books, both in Spain and the United Kingdom, one had to become a medieval sleuth in order to follow the King’s movements on a daily basis. Finally, though, all the pieces to the puzzle fell into place and the timing and context of the love affair became satisfyingly clear”.

Patients at the King George V Hospital have a new garden and recreation area to enjoy thanks to the help of staff from RBS International.

Staff members were approached by Local Charities with a view to making donations towards the King George V Hospital. Upon visiting the hospital, the Spanish Mortgage Team were taken aback by the condition of the Garden / Recreational Area, at the rear of the Hospital, which the patients used on a daily basis and consequently they immediately decided to raise money for the project.

The team came up with the idea of sponsoring two of the staff to become volunteer Fire Fighters at the Defence Fire & Rescue Services for a day, and as a result raised over £5,300. They then approached local contractors Haymills to assist with the construction work. Haymills’ work included redesigning of the garden as a whole, adding a pergola an aviary, making the swimming pool safe, installing safe benches along with fixing the drainage and leveling off all the floors. A gate at the entrance to the garden was also erected.
The Spanish Mortgage team also pitched in, swapping their office-wear for overalls, as they helped excavate the garden, laid new soil and potted plants to bring some colour to the area. A new BBQ area and garden furniture have also been provided for the patient’s enjoyment.

Steven Gonzalez, Mortgage Analyst at RBS International explained: “We realised immediately that fundraising was needed to improve the recreational facilities at the hospital, which are used on a daily basis by patients and staff. The Spanish Mortgage team decided to raise funds so the area could be vastly improved. This involved two members of the team joining the MOD Fire Brigade for two days. This raised £5,300, which we pledged to the hospital. We are so grateful to Haymills, without whom this project would not have got off the ground for both their generosity and the time they have invested, as well as the Defence Fire Service for their hospitality.”

Chief Executive of the Gibraltar Health Authority, Dr David McCutcheon, commented: “The Minister for Health, the mental health staff and the patients are absolutely delighted with the new recreational area. We are extremely grateful for the hard work and commitment that RBS International and Haymills have shown throughout this project and we are all looking forward to using the area in the future.”

WestMed Insurance, a fully owned subsidiary of local insurance company Argus, is now able to offer all Argus customers a complete range of insurances for Spain.

“Having listened to requests from our existing customers we have developed a new scheme with partners in Spain which enables us to offer cover for many different risks based in Spain.” said Tyrone Montovio chief executive of WestMed.

“We can now offer cover for villas or apartments, businesses or warehouses, cars or vans, yachts or boats as well as Health and Travel. We will provide instant quotations from our offices here in Gibraltar, and we can usually arrange cover on the same day. All customers will be assigned a local account handler, so it is just as easy and simple as insuring with us in Gibraltar.” said Tyrone.

“This new initiative from WestMed is typical of how we listen and react to our clients changing insurance needs, and we are working on further initiatives which we will be announcing soon.” said Andy Baker, Argus Chief Executive.

Castle Windows is the first manufacturer of PVC plastic windows and doors units in Gibraltar, ever, to gain a British Standard Kite mark License to support the manufacturing of its new PVC windows and doors systems locally. Their factory employing twelve employees is based in Shackleton Road.

The Castle Windows team under the direction of Director’s Peter Turner and Steven Noble and Production and installations Manager Bryan Yandle started full production in May 2008.

The company manufactures REHAU window and door systems that are recognised as some of the most technologically advanced, environmentally friendly, long lasting systems in the world. In November 2008 after much hard work from the whole team, the Company gained its Kite mark License.

Built in Gibraltar for Gibraltar.

Castle Windows been manufactured window and door systems for the Government of Gibraltar’s housing schemes at Cumberland Terrace, Bayview and Nelson View in the south district. The quality, strength and endurance of the windows and doors were put to the test in October of last year when Gibraltar saw some of the worst storms on record, Castle Windows systems withstood the test of those terrible environmental conditions.

All Castle Windows employees receive ongoing training from REHAU specialists; Production and Installations Manager Bryan Yandle is now accredited to deliver REHAU training locally to all new employees. REHAU visit the factory at least twice a year to continue their support. All manufacturing machinery meets with REHAU and British Standards. Castle Windows is delivering cutting edge technology in its products and customers benefit from a locally based after care service.

Castle Windows are presently producing casement windows, tilt & turn windows, French, Patio and sliding doors and will also be developing curtain-walling systems over the coming year. West End theatres as well as the Royal Opera House.

As the financial crisis bites across Europe, competition among airlines has made it a good time to be travelling, with many carriers dropping prices in order to attract customers.

It is well worth checking out the premium airlines as well as the low cost carriers and making a comparison of fares to services offered; you may well find that by applying a few simple rules you can book yourself a bargain flight and travel in style at the same time.

Celebrating 90 years of operation this summer British Airways is one of the longest established airlines in the world and has some simple tips that you can apply when booking your flights online with any airline to make sure that you get the best deal possible.

The first rules of the game is to keep your journey simple, travel on less popular days and at less popular flight times, and of course avoid making any last minute changes.

Jordi Porcel, Regional Commercial Manager, for South West Europe explains that “On all flights there are a limited number of seats offered at competitive fares and the people who book early snap these seats up. With most booking engines it is much easier for customers to compare prices for simple journeys, that is a single flight e.g. Gibraltar to London, and simple transfers such as London to New York. By keeping your journeys simple you can easily identify the best fares.”

Finding the optimum day and time for travel should not be left to chance – mid-week is usually a good time to grab a lower fare but this in not always the case depending on the chosen route and the season.

“When booking online make sure that you can view fares offered across a whole week this helps you to identify the most favourable travel days. For example, you can save up to £100 by simply travelling a day earlier. We have a great feature on our site, ba.com, that customers can use to scroll through the days and weeks to find the best fares for their selected journey,” adds Jordi.

Another useful tip is to research your travel well and try to find a single airline that can provide flights for the whole journey; this is where the premium carriers really manage to offer
a great service through their extensive networks.

When you have planned your journey and selected some potential carriers compare the services and products offered. Once you have added up all the extras for baggage, online check in, in flight refreshment, and space and comfort on board, you may find that for a few extra pounds you can enjoy all the benefits of travelling with a premium carrier.