Who will follow in Levina's footsteps? Six acts revealed in Germany

German broadcaster NDR has revealed the six names that will participate in the forthcoming national selection for the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest. Germany is planning an ambitious search for its 2018 Eurovision Song Contest entry. Three broadcasters will air the national selection, Unser Lied für Lissabon (Our Song for Lisbon) on Thursday 22nd February at 20:15 CET; Das Erste, ONE and Deutsche Welle.100 members of a special Eurovision Panel and 20-member international jury of experts voted for the six participants. The whole selection process began with 4,000 hopefuls. Thomas Schreiber, Head of Entertainment at ARD said: "Congratulations and thanks to our six acts! In a multi-stage process, they were selected by the members of our international jury and the 100 women and men who represent the international Eurovision Song Contest viewers. They found six participants that promise to deliver a very exciting and diverse show. The goal is to find the best song for Lisbon now."

Who is in for 2018?

The following six participants stand a chance of representing Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest in Lisbon: 

Xavier Darcy

Ivy Quainoo 

Ryk
Michael Schulte  

Natia Todua 

The voXXclub band

What happens next?

A three day Song Writing Camp will be held in Berlin during which up to 15 national and international lyricists, composers and producers will develop songs together with the six acts. On the basis of this material a decision will then be made as to which song is right for whom, and how the performance shall be staged.

For additional information about the German national selection go to the official website, Eurovision.de. Eurovision Song Contest Logo

Spanish Royal couple enjoy whirlwind trip to Portugal

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Spain’s King Felipe VI and his wife Queen Letizia this week conducted a three-day tour of Portugal to pay testament to the bond and diversity of the relationship between the two countries and their peoples. Monday’s itinerary saw the royal couple welcomed at Porto Town Hall, and also viewing the collection of artist Joan Miró at the Serralves Foundation. After visiting Porto and Guimarães, Felipe VI and Letizia, moved on to Lisbon, arriving on Tuesday afternoon where they were welcomed at the city chambers and offered a dinner by the Prime Minister, António Costa, at the Palácio das Necessidades. The King and Queen of Spain ended their visit on Wednesday with Felipe VI giving a speech to Portugal’s parliament and visiting the cutting-edge Champalimaud Foundation. The monarchs then went to the residence of the Spanish ambassador in Lisbon at the Palácio de Palhavã, in Praça de Espanha, for a reception with the Spanish community that lives in Portugal. The visit ended with Felipe VI and Letizia visiting the Champalimaud Foundation, where they were once again accompanied by Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. The Portugal News Photo

Spain & Portugal avoid budget fines

The Council of the European Union has decided not to fine Spain and Portugal for failing to reach budget deficit cutting goals and has set “new fiscal paths” for each country.“The EU finance ministers decided to cancel financial fines for Spain and Portugal. They also confirmed the new budgetary adjustment paths for both countries. Effective action by Spain and Portugal will be a necessary condition to lift the suspension of commitments under the European Structural and Investment Funds,” said EU Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis. Economic & Financial Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said that by giving more time to Spain and Portugal to bring their public deficits below the prescribed three percent, the “Council sets new credible fiscal trajectories, which will contribute to strengthening both their economies and the euro area.” “I trust that Spain and Portugal will respond accordingly to the collective decisions by the Commission and the Council,” said Moscovici. Portugal now has to end its excessive deficit by 2016, and Spain by 2018 at the latest. The measures taken by the two countries will be assessed in the coming months. The Council called on Spain to reduce its deficit to 4.6 percent of GDP in 2016, 3.1 percent in 2017, and to 2.2 percent in 2018. Portugal should reduce the deficit to 2.5 percent in 2016. Last month, the eurozone finance ministers decided to start sanctions procedures against Madrid and Lisbon for breaching EU spending rules. This could have included a fine of up to 0.2 percent of a country's GDP and the suspension of commitments or payments from EU structural funds of up to 0.5 percent. According to EU fiscal rules, budget deficits should be no more than three percent of the country’s GDP. The criterion was introduced ahead of the euro launch in 1999 and so far no country has been penalized for breaking them. RT

EU begins sanctions process against Spain & Portugal over breaking budget rules

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Eurozone finance ministers have decided to start sanctions procedures against Spain and Portugal for breaching EU spending rules, reports AFP. Both countries are accused of not making “sufficient effort” to cut their budget deficits which, according to EU fiscal rules, should be no more than three percent of GDP. The criterion was introduced ahead of the euro launch in 1999 and so far no country has been penalized for breaking them. Sanctions could be a fine of up to 0.2 percent of a country's GDP and the suspension of commitments or payments from EU structural funds of up to 0.5 percent. Spain was asked by Brussels to lower the deficit to 4.2 percent of GDP in 2015, from 5.9 percent in 2014, but Madrid ended up with a 5.1 percent shortfall instead. Lisbon's shortfall was 4.4 percent last year, a drop from 7.2 percent in 2014 and from almost 10 percent in 2010. French Finance Minister Michel Sapin told reporters that Portugal “does not deserve excessive discipline.” He praised the efforts the country has made in recent years. Spanish minister Luis de Guindos said sanctions would be "sheer nonsense". A decision should come "as soon as possible" in order to give "clarity and certainty", said Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem. He and EU finance commissioner Pierre Moscovici added that the rules would be applied "intelligently.”"It’s a possibility to have zero sanctions," said Dijsselbloem. Once the decision is made, the Commission will have 20 days to prepare penalties. If the eurozone ministers approve sanctions Spain and Portugal will have 10 days to explain their position and to appeal for clemency. Both countries are members of the eurozone and have very high unemployment rates which at the end of 2015 reached 22.1 percent in Spain and 12.6 percent in Portugal. In 2012, Spain received billions of dollars from the European Union to rescue its banking system. The Spanish government then undertook a tough policy of fiscal austerity, prompting popular protests. Portugal received a loan package from the Eurozone countries in 2011. The European Central Bank (ECB) and the IMF allocated €78 billion to support the country. In return, Lisbon lowered the salaries of state employees, cut social benefits and increased taxes. RT Photo