Spanish hoteliers have begged Benidorm Council to ease noise restrictions that would force England World Cup fans indoors before the final whistle — as 228,000 signatories push MPs to debate a separate petition for a public animal abuse register.
Under rules signed by local officials, the late-night noise limit on pub terraces in the ‘Little England’ area of the Costa Blanca resort drops to 55 decibels after midnight. The restriction applies only to England, Scotland, Germany and Spanish games in the early stages of the tournament. Many group games start at 10pm or 11pm Spanish time, meaning fans would have to move inside before the end of the match.
“Spanish hoteliers seek noise rule changes for England fans; 228,000 sign petition for animal abuse register”
The hotel association Hosbec has written to Benidorm Council asking officials to delay the decibel limitation, which kicks in around 11.30pm Spanish time, until the final whistle. All three of England’s Group L games — against Croatia, Ghana and Panama — are included in the petition. The council has yet to respond, but the expectation is they will cave and loosen the regulations.
Riot police are set to be sent to Benidorm as part of its World Cup security operation, and the town council announced evening and night-time police reinforcements between June 11 and July 19 after confirming an expected influx of UK tourists. In Magaluf, Majorca, the Calvia Town Hall has ruled that terrace TVs must be muted after midnight, with only the visual signal of matches shown, and screens oriented toward the interior of establishments to prevent crowds gathering in public spaces.
While the World Cup noise dispute unfolds on the Costa Blanca, a separate campaign in the UK has gathered 228,795 signatures demanding a public animal abuser register and automatic lifetime bans for offenders. The petition, titled ‘Make a public animal abuser register & automatically ban ownership’, was created by Bea Elton on the parliament.uk website. It calls for a register searchable by vets, breeders, charities and the public to prevent repeat offending, and an immediate automatic lifetime ban on animal ownership for anyone convicted of neglect or abuse.
After the petition passed 10,000 signatures, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs issued a response on May 19 stating there are no plans to introduce a publicly accessible animal cruelty register. It said existing provisions under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 are stored on the Police National Computer and may be shared at the police’s discretion with appropriate organisations or the public when requested.
Despite the Government’s refusal, the issue is scheduled for debate in Parliament on June 29.