*Last Chance Switzerland

The 3rd annual International Residence & Real Estate Conference takes place on 16-17 November in Zurich at five-star Widder Hotel. The cost is CHF3,150 plus 7.6 per cent VAT. Investment International subscribers will receive a 50 per cent discount for registration and payment before 15 October from the organisers Henley & Partners, Baker & McKenzie and Withers. For further details email: Zurich-office@henleyglobal.com or fax: +44 41 266 22 23.

*Dream home away

Legal & General’s “Home Sweet Home” survey looks at British housing hopes, attitudes and expectations. Australia and New Zealand rank as top choice for a dream home abroad. Amongst European Union destinations, Italy is the most desirable country of choice, followed by France and Spain.

* European Millions

Eighteen cities across Europe have 1m plus inhabitants. Greater London with a population of 7.2m is Europe’s largest, followed by Paris at 6.2m according to a study of 258 cities by Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities. Madrid and Rome are next with around half of Paris’s population. Discounting size, the fastest growing cities in the EU are all in Spain with Palma de Mallorca recording the highest growth.

*Barclays responds to European property boom

Barclays has expanded its services in France and Spain to cope with the British fuelled property boom across Europe. FranceSolutions is a new package combining a wide range of assistance and banking services for expatriates in France. At the same time, the bank is expanding its branch network on the Spanish Costas and in the Canary and Balearic islands with 17 new outlets specifically dedicated to the foreign market. Barclays is also launching a dedicated banking service for foreigners in Spain called Destination Spain that brings together current accounts, mortgages, debit cards and bilingual staff.