Education, a stagnant pond
Spain needs sustained action to check the known evils in its school system
World Cup draw may give new meaning to Group of Death
Champion Spain enjoys relative comfort of being a seed going into Friday’s Brazilian lottery
Services sector expands again for first time in three months
New orders grow at fastest pace since 2007
Portugal unveils new high-tech system to protect its coast
The new system is based on 20 radars and cameras installed along the coast
Government seeks to reassure consumers on electricity rates
Power producers up in arms over withdrawal of budget support
Venezuelan government blames opposition for latest power blackout
Caracas and other major cities go dark after breakdown at substation
Rating the ratings agencies
The companies that classify and quantify risks fail the EU supervisor’s examination
Unemployment falls in November for the first time in decades
Opposition points to falling Social Security affiliation as sign of declining active population due to emigration
Prosecutors find no evidence of glorifying terrorism in ETA homages
Government delegate criticizes Basque police "inaction" over receptions for prisoners released under “Parot doctrine” ruling
Putin 1, Kiev 0
Ukraine’s refusal obliges the EU to rethink its strategy toward the former Soviet republics
‘As’ becomes leading digital sports paper in Spanish
Online publication gets a neck ahead of leading rival ‘Marca’
A worrying drift
The government wants to criminalize a wide range of behavior concerning basic liberties
State auditor finds irregularities in accounts of National Parks agency
Report laments lack of inventory control over the its extensive assets
Goodbye to an era
The lifting of Silvio Berlusconi's immunity opens the door to the regeneration of Italian politics
Reform saves Spanish banks 30 billion euros in capital requirements
Cabinet to allow lenders to transform deferred tax assets into state-backed tax credits
Judicial power by shares
Carving up an institution by political quotas calls into question its independence
This week’s movie releases
The Counselor leaves critics flat while Disney revisits Andersen classic The Snow Queen
Killers walk free after European ruling as lawyer bids to keep teen murderer in jail
Emilio Muñoz was serving 43 years for the kidnap and murder of a young Madrid woman Juan Manuel Valentín was jailed for 63 years for killing nine-year-old Olga Sangrador in 1992
Consumer price figures for November dispel fears of deflation
Household spending picked up again as Spain emerged from recession
Negotiated solution for YPF
The agreement with Argentina saves Repsol a costly lawsuit, but fails to clear up all uncertainties
Repsol’s board approves deal on YPF compensation
Talks to flesh out details on post-expropriation package to start soon as Spanish company demand payment “guarantees”
UK takes Spain to task over diplomatic bag tampering
Spanish government assures Britain there will be no repeat of incident on Gibraltar border
EL PAÍS launches Brazilian website
New edition is “a very big step for our country,” says President Rousseff Cebrián: “There is need to define Latin America’s role in the globalized era”
Limited justice
While Fabra’s sentence was light, it did at least symbolize the abuses of the PP in Valencia
Repsol board expected to approve YPF compensation deal
Oil firm’s shares jump as agreement brokered by Argentinean, Mexican and Spanish governments hints at compensation of $5 billion
All or nothing for Sociedad in Champions League bout
Basques must win in Ukraine to maintain knockout chances
Sculptor Jaume Plensa takes Velázquez art prize
The artist is best known for his large-scale sculptures of letters and numbers
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