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10-Jun-08 11:15 [Europe, Middle East and Africa]
Spanish lorry drivers go on strike Spanish lorry drivers have started indefinite industrial action over the rising price of diesel.
Tens of thousands stopped working at midnight, with around 200 blocking a boarder crossing with France in the Catalonian town if La Jonquera.
A package to assist the sector is being prepared by the country's government, which is said to include emergency loans and more flexible contracts.
There is also a cash incentive to encourage older lorry drivers to retire.
Head of the transport association federation Fenadisema Julio Villascusa told Cadena SER radio station: "We are the ones who move the goods that this country needs to keep working."
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Mr Villascusa added that if the drivers have to stop because they cannot afford the fuel, the country will stop as a consequence.
It has been reported that the price of diesel has risen by 20 per cent throughout the course of the year.
Spain's largest lorry driver's trade union is not taking part, despite the action receiving support from counterparts in Portugal and Southern France.
In May, French fishermen started a series of protests and strikes as a result of high fuel costs.
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An increasing number of people are doing away with pension and insurance contributions as the credit crunch looms large, it has been understood.
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The National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) has listed four areas where UK pensions regulation is "out of step" with other international practices.
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