"Three days ago Montse was here with me, and now she is not," laments Lluís, a worker in the City Council's cleaning services and colleague of the woman who died on Saturday at night at his home after completing his shift during the heat wave. A death that, pending an autopsy to clarify its causes, has shaken the ranks of cleaning staff who comb the city's streets every day. "We're scared," admit several workers who spoke to ARA and who, like Lluís, use fictitious names to preserve their anonymity.

She put on pearl earrings, fake pearls. And she set foot in the most exclusive neighborhood in Paris for the first time. It was September 2012, and sociologist Alizée Delpierre, who had been researching the relationship between the wealthy and their servants for some time, decided it was essential to see and experience it firsthand. That's why she worked as a nanny in the homes of the super-rich. The result of the investigation is Serving the rich (Editorial Península).

The start-up Plazy has managed to close a record year thanks to its consolidation and expansion in the Spanish market. In 2024, the company exceeded 10,000 services performed and managed to attract more than 4,000 clients among individuals, companies and public administrations, achieving a growth of 136% compared to the previous year.

It was a request from the residents of the Gothic Quarter, the Old Town and the Raval for years, and finally the Barcelona City Council has taken action. The municipal government has announced that it is launching a pilot test to reduce Dirt on the streets of Barcelona, especially in these neighbourhoods of the Ciutat Vella district. And they will do so based on information and awareness, but also with greater sanctions. This was announced on Tuesday by the third deputy mayor and councillor of Ciutat Vella, Albert Batlle, who insisted that the problem does not focus on the work of the cleaning services –whom he has thanked for their work– but on the incivility of the "neighbours, merchants and visitors".

Barcelona is reopening to the world after the pandemic and the City Council fears that the image it will project may be tainted by vandalism. According to deputy mayor for Prevention and Security, Albert Batlle, graffiti has long been "degrading" the streets and heritage of Barcelona, and the graffiti on the Basilica del Pi and several shops in recent months –such as the modernist shop window of Queviures Múrria– are proof of this. Residents, businessmen and all of the opposition have asked the City Council for stronger measures in the fight against this kind of vandalism and this Monday the City Council presented a package of measures that aims to promote "habits of urban cleanliness" and improve the coexistence between neighbours and visitors. The plan includes an increased budget for cleaning graffiti on buildings of high historical value, an urgent and free cleaning service for businesses attacked and an intensified police presence in hot spots. "We do not want the city's image to be harmed on walls, shutters, monuments and heritage," Batlle insisted.