An initiative launched by a handful of political activists in 2012 is on the verge of striking the biggest blow yet in a fight over allegations of political corruption in Spain.

On Monday, dozens of former members of the board at Spanish bank Bankia go on trial in Madrid on charges of misappropriation and fraud.
Among them, the activists' prize catch: former minister and IMF chief Rodrigo Rato, who denies any wrongdoing.
It all began at a meeting in Barcelona over four years ago, held to mark the first anniversary of the 15 May 2011 "indignado" ("indignant") protests against corruption and cronyism.
"Why don't we have Rato sent to prison in five years' time?" asked one attendee.
"So we drew up a rational plan with a reasonable production timeframe towards that goal," says Sergio Salgado drily. He is a leading member of the campaign group 15MpaRato, which is directly responsible for Mr Rato going on trial.
"We have nothing personal against him," explains Mr Salgado.
"He is the symbol of the revolving doors culture. He has been a minister, then managing director at the IMF and a banker. And he was a very well-known figure," says Simona Levi, another leading figure in 15MpaRato.
Now 67, Mr Rato was economy minister in the conservative Popular Party (PP) governments of Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar from 1996 to 2004. Mr Rato was often credited with being the "mastermind" of Spain's economic boom, before it turned to bust when a real-estate bubble burst in 2008.
When the PP lost power in 2004, Mr Rato became IMF chief, a post he suddenly left in 2007 for "personal reasons". In 2010 he was named chairman of Bankia, a bank formed by the fusion of Caja Madrid with other public savings banks, all struggling to deal with the blowback from years of easy lending to construction projects.
On his watch, Bankia became the bank that symbolised Spain's financial crisis.
The small team at 15MpaRato started compiling evidence of what they saw as fraudulent information given to people with accounts at Bankia who had been given the chance to buy "preferential" shares before the flotation.
They encouraged small investor "victims" to come forward, sue Bankia, and help them build a credible narrative with which to persuade public prosecutors to take action.
Bankia eventually agreed to give back €1.5bn to the approximately 200,000 who had bought preferential shares when Spain's courts accepted a Bank of Spain report that established there had been deception.
Mr Rato's role in this alleged fraud is still being investigated with no date set for that trial yet.
What no-one expected was the case of the "black credit cards" -  and that is why the former Spanish economy minister goes on trial on Monday.
The evidence arrived in 2013, when Simona Levi opened a whistle-blowing email.
In the email was a complete list of people accused of using secret credit cards issued to board members and advisers at Caja Madrid and later Bankia, as well as claims about what they had spent their money on.
"At first you read these huge amounts of information that come through that account and you don't take it too seriously. But then we began to think 'wow, this is a real treasure'," Ms Levi recalls.
The list was a who's who of Spanish political life, including representatives of political parties from the left and right, unions, a secretary to Spain's royal family and the bank's top management, including Mr Rato. And the 15MpaRato activists shared it with Spanish media.
The total sum spent between 1999 and 2012 amounted to €15.5m - money supposedly meant to cover the costs of attending board meetings, but often allegedly used for personal items or simply taken out of cash machines.
"The amount was not the thing. It offended people's innate sense of justice. We all go to cash machines; you might have some money in there, sometimes not enough. But these people always had what they wanted," says Mr Salgado.
Mr Rato faces a possible jail sentence of up to 10 years if found guilty of running and expanding the secret credit card system, and may be put on trial in at least three other cases.
Prison would complete the downfall of a man once considered a probable prime minister of Spain but who in 2014 felt forced to give up his PP membership card.
In 2015 it emerged that he was being investigated for tax fraud after taking advantage of a fiscal amnesty three years earlier, repatriating money he had been keeping abroad. This investigation caused him to be briefly arrested in April 2015.
He denies any wrongdoing.
2004: Mr Rato leaves Spain's economy ministry to head IMF
2007: He returns to Spain after three years in Washington, citing unexplained personal reasons. An internal IMF report in 2011 criticised the organisation under Rato's leadership, saying it "failed to anticipate the crisis, its speed and magnitude"
2010-12: During his 18-month stint at Bankia, Spain sees the unravelling of the biggest banking disaster in its history, prompting an EU bailout of Spain's financial sector
July 2012: Mr Rato is called to court to explain Bankia management, following complaints from 15MpaRato and political party UPyD
2013: His name crops up in the "black credit card" affair
2014: Mr Rato resigns from Popular Party
2015: Arrested for seven hours during police search of home and office .
2016: Panama Papers leak reveals Mr Rato as a client of Mossack Fonseca, which helped him to wind up two offshore companies worth €3.6m


Police in India say they have no evidence to charge Amnesty International with sedition after some people allegedly raised "anti-India" slogans at its event recently.

Amnesty said its event in Bangalore aimed "to seek justice for human rights violations" in Kashmir.
But a right-wing student group said the event was "anti-national" and filed a complaint.
In February, two students were arrested in Delhi on sedition charges.
Reports said some Kashmiri students started raising "anti-India" slogans after a participant praised the Indian army at the event in Bangalore.
The police said it had examined unedited video footage of the meeting held on 13 August where a few participants allegedly chanted the slogans.
"As things stand now, we can say prima facie that no charge of sedition can be made out against Amnesty International India. We can say that we are not getting substantive evidence to prove that charge," senior police official Charan Reddy told BBC Hindi.
He said there was "some slogan shouting regarding freedom from India and we have identified some people".
"We will be questioning those people. We need to await the translation by experts of the proceedings of the meeting," Mr Reddy said.
More than 60 people have been killed and more than 5,000 injured in Indian-administered Kashmir in recent weeks as protesters have repeatedly clashed with the security forces.
The recent upsurge in violence has been triggered by the killing of militant leader Burhan Wani.
Disputed Kashmir is claimed in its entirety by both India and Pakistan and has been a flashpoint for more than 60 years, sparking two wars between the neighbours.
Within the Muslim-majority territory, some militant groups have taken up arms to fight for independence from Indian rule or a merger with Pakistan.


A man has suffered slash wounds to his face after an attack in north Belfast.

The victim, 24, was found in an entry off Glencairn Way shortly after 05:00 GMT on New Year's Day.
He was taken to hospital for treatment to his injuries, but they are not thought to be life-threatening.
Police believe he was attacked by another man and are appealing for anyone with information on the assault to contact them on the non-emergency number 101.


A flypast has taken place over Lincoln Cathedral to mark the 70th anniversary of the World War II Dambuster raids.

A Lancaster bomber from the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and a pair of Tornado aircraft from 617 Squadron took part.
Earlier, 1,300 people attended a service to pay tribute to the crew of the 19 Lancaster bombers, which took off from RAF Scampton on 17 May 1943.
More than a third of the men did not return from the raids.
Only three of the original 133-strong squadron are still alive.
By Danny SavageNorth of England Correspondent, BBC News
Lincoln Cathedral's commanding position on a hill in the city centre can be seen for miles around.
Today, air force personnel came in their hundreds for a service of commemoration and thanksgiving for 617 Squadron, the Dambusters.
Tornado jets from today's 617 Squadron flew low over the cathedral after those here had been told how the men who formed the squadron originally had caused a turning point in the war - with their dedication, heroism and bravery.
Two of them, 94-year-old John "Les" Munro and 91-year-old George "Johnny" Johnson, attended the service along with Mary Stopes Roe, the daughter of "bouncing bomb" inventor Barnes Wallis.
Councillor Nick Worth, who helped organise the event, said: "Since the earliest days of the RAF, Lincolnshire has been an important part of its story and these close ties continue to this day.
"The county played a major part in the war and there were thousands of airmen who left Lincolnshire on bombing missions never to return.
"Therefore, it's only fitting we mark their sacrifice in this way."
RAF Chaplain-in-Chief Raymond Pentland said at the ceremony that Lincoln Cathedral had been "significant for generation after generation - but perhaps never for so many as those who served with Bomber Command in this county".
"For it was a sign of coming home."
BBC History: Barnes Wallis
Key events of World War II
He added: "Seventy years ago 617 Squadron was formed with a very specific mission in mind.
"And about this time 70 years ago, the aftermath of that operation was being evaluated - the cost was being counted - in loss of life on both sides.
"But, from the brilliance of Barnes Wallis and the daring leadership of Guy Gibson. and the skill of his crews. we have a story of bravery, ingenuity, tenacity and the will to overcome all adversity."
Compared to today's pilots, who must fly 250ft (76m) above ground, they flew incredibly low at 60ft (18m). They also had to fly at night.
They flew so low, according to historian Dan Snow, that one hit the sea, tearing off the bomb carried by the plane. Another flew into high voltage electricity cables and was engulfed in flames.
More than 1,300 people were killed in the raids, in which bombs were dropped on German dams flooding the Ruhr valley.


Nearly 1,000 dead bodies of political activists and suspected armed separatists have been found in Pakistan's restive Balochistan province over the past six years.

Activists say the figures, obtained from the human rights ministry by BBC Urdu, point to large-scale extrajudicial killings.
Relatives say most victims had been picked up by security agencies.
The government blames the dumped bodies on infighting among insurgent groups.
Thousands of people have disappeared without trace in Balochistan since a separatist insurgency gained momentum in 2007.
A military-led operation was launched in early 2005 aimed at wiping out the uprising by ethnic Baloch groups, who are fighting for a greater share of the province's resources.
According to the Federal Ministry of Human Rights, at least 936 dead bodies have been found in Balochistan since 2011.
Most of them were dumped in the regions of Quetta, Qalat, Khuzdar and Makran - areas where the separatist insurgency has its roots.
One of the more prominent cases of "kill-and-dump" is that of Jalil Reki, a political activist who lived in the Saryab neighbourhood of Quetta.
He was arrested at his residence in 2009, and his body was found two years later in the Mand area near the Iranian border, some 1,100km (680 miles) south of Quetta.
"They came to our house in three vehicles. These were the vehicles of agencies. They took away Jalil," his mother told the BBC.
"The police did not take our report. Our male relatives later approached the then chief minister's office, but we could not get any response.
"Two years later some people found his body in Mand. He had one bullet in the head and three in the chest. His arms were fractured and there were cigarette burns on his back."
Relatives of the victims believe the number may be higher.
The Voice for Baloch Missing Persons (VBMP) says it has recorded 1,200 cases of dumped bodies and there are many more it has not been able to document.
Nasrullah Baloch, the head of VBMP, told the BBC most of the bodies "are of those activists who have been victims of 'enforced disappearances' - people who are picked up by authorities and then just go missing."
His allegations chime with an independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) report in 2013 that noted "credible reports of continued serious human rights violations, including [enforced] disappearances of people, arbitrary arrests, torture and extrajudicial killings".
Provincial government spokesman Anwarul Haq Kakar denied that state agencies were involved in such acts.
"There are several explanations. Sometimes insurgents are killed in a gunfight with law enforcement agencies but their bodies are found later," he said.
"Militant groups also fight among each other and don't bury their dead fighters. Then there are tribal feuds, organised crime and drug mafia."
There have been frequent protests by relatives of the victims and Baloch nationalist organisations over the years, while many have fled to foreign countries or safer locations within Pakistan.
Naveed Baloch, who was briefly held by the German police for the 19 December truck killings in Berlin, left Pakistan in February to "escape persecution" in his village in Mand region.
An activist of a nationalist party, he was arrested and tortured by Pakistani forces in Balochistan last year, and more recently his home in the village was raided again, his cousin, Waheed Baloch, told BBC Urdu.


US officials say they formally complain about Russia's interception of a US reconnaissance plane.

The incident occurred over the Baltic Sea on 7 April, according to the United States European Command, which called the interception "unsafe" and "unprofessional".
US officials say the plane was in international airspace at the time.
The Russian defence ministry denied any wrongdoing on the part of its pilots, according to Russian media reports.
Russian Maj Gen Igor Konashenkov said the US plane had been "steadily moving towards the Russian state border," according to Interfax news agency.
A Russian jet "was scrambled, which approached the unidentified aircraft [and] flew by it several times," after which it changed course, Maj Gen Konashenkov said.
US officials say the fighter intercepted the US aircraft at a high rate of speed from the rear, and then proceeded to conduct two more passes using "unsafe and unprofessional manoeuvres" in close proximity.
Russia has been accused of border violations several times by its Baltic neighbours in recent months.
Baltic states have expressed concern at increasingly frequent snap Russian military drills in the region amid tension over the crisis in Ukraine.


Tap water in 80,000 homes in Lancashire has been declared safe to drink, after the discovery of a parasite at a treatment works left residents boiling water for three weeks.

Parts of Blackpool, Chorley and Preston got the all clear from 18:00 BST, United Utilities said.
The microbial parasite cryptosporidium was found on 6 August.
Water was treated with ultraviolet light to kill the bug.
United Utilities said it had assessed hundreds of test results after discussions with Public Health England.
Gary Dixon, customer services director for United Utilities, said: "We hope to get the warning lifted for the rest of our customers by the end of the coming week."
If people have been using their water regularly there was no need to flush their system, he added.
A statement on the company website said: "We are now able to lift the boil water advice in a number of postcode areas.
"For those still subject to the boil water advice, please continue to boil your water until advised otherwise.
"We will be keeping you informed and this page will be updated on a regular basis."
It advised people to check for their postcode on the website or ring the company helpline on 0800 9127241.


Forty-five men who died in the worst offshore helicopter accident in Scotland's history have been remembered at a service marking the 30th anniversary of the tragedy.

A Chinook helicopter crashed just a minute's flying time away from Sumburgh in Shetland in 1986.
The service remembered all those who have died working in the UK's offshore industry.
It was held at the Kirk of St Nicholas in Aberdeen.
The service included an act of remembrance, where the names of those added to the book of remembrance were read out, followed by a piper's lament and a minute's silence.
Among the speakers were Rev Pauline Nixon, whose husband Neville Nixon died in the Sumburgh disaster.
Josh Watson, a five-year-old whose grandfather was killed in the Chinook crash, lit a candle.
Iain Stuart, 41, from Laurencekirk, who died in a helicopter crash off Norway in April, was among the others remembered.
The Rev Gordon Craig, the chaplain to the oil and gas industry who officiated at the service, said: "It is really important for families to realise their loved ones are still being remembered and respected by the industry.
"The service is an opportunity to commemorate all those no longer with us.
"Thirty years on from the Chinook crash may seem like a long time but the memories are still vivid for those who lost their loved ones suddenly and tragically. The pain may be more manageable but there will still be times when the loss is felt deeply."


Yorkshire stay top of the One-Day Cup's North Group, despite suffering a 15-run loss at Durham, who move into third.

After winning the toss, the hosts batted well, with Scott Borthwick (84) and Michael Richardson (53) putting on 76 for the fifth wicket as they made 281-7 at Chester-le-Street.
In reply, Yorkshire kept pace with the target up until the final few overs.
Tim Bresnan hit a useful 92 but was removed by Chris Rushworth (3-67) late on as Yorkshire ended on 266-8.
Rushworth also claimed Bresnan's England team-mate Liam Plunkett in the 47th over to dampen Yorkshire's hopes of victory.
Durham were indebted to quickfire scores of 27 from Ryan Pringle and Stuart Poynter at the end of their innings to help their cause.
The White Rose county were ahead of Durham's run-rate until the 44th over, but tight bowling, including the penultimate over from Mark Wood which went for just one run, saw Durham home.


Strong earnings from Amazon and a boost to the company's stock have made its founder, Jeff Bezos, the world's third richest person, according to Forbes.

Mr Bezos owns 18% of Amazon's shares, which rose 2% in trading on Thursday. Forbes estimated his fortune to be $65.3bn (£49.5bn).
Amazon's revenue beat analysts' expectations, climbing 31% from last year to $30.4bn in the second quarter.
Profit for the e-commerce giant was $857m, compared with $92m in 2015.
According to Forbes estimates, Mr Bezos's fortune is only surpassed by Microsoft founder Bill Gates, worth $78bn (£59bn), and the $73.1bn (£55bn) fortune of Zara founder Amancio Ortega.
Amazon had developed a reputation for announcing little or no profit each quarter, but appeared to hit a turning point last year and has seen improving earnings since.
Amazon shares have spiked 50% since February.
•Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1964
•Studied at Princeton University and worked on Wall Street
•Launched Amazon as online book retailer in Seattle in 1994
•Company expanded dramatically but struggled to make a profit
•A lifelong Star Trek fan, he launched Blue Origin spaceflight and aerospace firm in 2000
•Bought The Washington Post newspaper in 2013
•Reputation as a driven boss, intensely focused on customers
Amazon's Prime membership, which offers extra services including free shipping for an annual fee, saw impressive international growth.
In June, Amazon launched Prime in India to take advantage of the country's large consumer market.
"It's been a busy few months for Amazon around the world, and particularly in India - where we launched a new [Amazon Web Services] Region, introduced Prime with unlimited free shipping, and announced that Prime Video is coming soon, offering Prime members in India exclusive access to Amazon Original Series and Movies - including original content featuring top Indian creators and talent," said Mr Bezos.
Amazon has boosted Prime membership by improving its video streaming offerings, an area in which it competes with Netflix.
Prime Day, Amazon's annual promotional shopping festival earlier this month, was the company's largest ever sales day.
Amazon does not release figures for its Prime membership, but Consumer Intelligence Research Partners estimated US membership to be close to 63 million. Members spend an average of $1,200 a year, compared with $500 by non-members, according to the research firm.
Amazon's cloud computing unit also spiked. Revenue for Amazon Web Services (AWS), climbed 58.2% to $2.89bn, beating analysts' exceptions of $2.83bn.
Sales growth for the unit in North America climbed 10% and 8% in the rest of the world.
Amazon has grown its market share in cloud computing compared with rivals such as Microsoft and Google.
It introduced a new Asia Pacific region for its cloud unit this quarter.
Amazon has also been looking to expand its presence in other areas. The company has now launched its online grocery store in the UK.
Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with US bank Wells Fargo to offer discounts on student loans for members of its Prime Student services.


Sussex's victory bid was frustrated as David Lloyd's unbeaten hundred enabled Glamorgan to bat out the final day.

After three wickets fell in the morning, Lloyd made 102 not out, with a six and 14 fours, supported by Aneurin Donald (44) and Jacques Rudolph (38).
Stu Whittingham (1-58) and Danny Briggs (2-62) were the pick of the Sussex attack on a placid pitch.
The teams shook hands on a draw at 17:20 BST when Lloyd reached three figures.
Sussex looked in with a strong chance when Will Bragg was run out just before lunch for 33, after nightwatchman Owen Morgan (36) had earlier been bowled by Briggs.
But they took just one wicket in the afternoon, and Lloyd was dropped at slip on 66 off Whittingham when the home side took the second new ball.
Sussex remain in the lower half of the table despite remaining unbeaten, with one win and seven draws.
Glamorgan have been unable to win a Championship game in the first half of their season, but do have a successful limited-overs campaigns to focus on - and they will meet Sussex again, in the T20 Blast, in Cardiff on Thursday.
Sussex captain Luke Wright told BBC Sussex:
"It was a tough four days but I am really chuffed for the guys, particularly with the way we batted. We've not scored enough big runs, and to see the guys get big hundreds is exactly what we are looking for.
"It was always going to be difficult. The wicket didn't really turn, we kept flying in and tried everything, but credit to Glamorgan for holding on tight."
Glamorgan top scorer David Lloyd told BBC Wales Sport:
"It was a big challenge, we lost an early wicket but the way the boys turned up today and occupied the crease was really good, so to come away with a draw is excellent.
"I tried to bat time but also to bat positively as well so as not to die in a hole - the way Aneurin [Donald] played his shots, it rubbed off on myself as well so we just had to make sure it was the right ball to put away.
"I didn't have a choice [about staying on for his hundred], I thought by the field that Sussex set, I had  one over to get it so that's what I tried to do.
"We've had a good start in both white-ball formats and the T20 is the one we're really trying to target after the start we've had, so hopefully we can keep it going at home."


The UK leaving the European customs union would not create an "iron curtain" at the Irish border a leading academic has said.

Prof Michael Dougan said that it would mean "an enormous amount of paperwork" for Northern Ireland businesses.
The UK will have to decide if it will leave the customs union when it leaves the EU.
Remaining in the union would mean the UK could not negotiate its own trade agreements.
However leaving will mean that goods moving between the UK and the EU will be subject to customs procedures and probably tariffs.
That would mean the Irish border becoming a customs frontier which could have significant impacts on businesses trading across the border.
Professor Dougan, an expert in European law at University of Liverpool, said there would have to be some form of customs enforcement.
In evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, Mr Dougan said that, aside from tariffs, the customs border is about "regulatory enforcement" for things like product standards.
"There does have to be a frontier, it does have to involve checks and does have to involve pre and post border formalities." he added.
His University of Liverpool colleague, Dr Stephanie Reynolds, explained that EU customs controls are based on an "electronic risk management system" which identifies "high risk" cargo before it reaches the border.
There has also been a move towards paperless customs with the vast majority of declarations being filed electronically.
A system called Authorised Economic Operator status also gives quicker access to certain simplified customs procedures and in some cases the right to 'fast-track' shipments.
She added that most inspections of cargos generally focus on "non-intrusive methods" such as x-rays.
They gave the example of the Norway/ Sweden border as an example of a "well-managed, fully co-operative" border.
Sweden is a member of the customs union but Norway is not.
BBC Northern Ireland has been to the main crossing between the two Nordic countries to see how traffic and business if affected and to see if there are any lessons for Northern Ireland.
There are reports across all platforms on this subject including The View on BBC One Northern Ireland at 22.45 GMT on Thursday.


With an audience of head teachers it was never likely to be a highly rowdy affair.

But with their complete silence as Nicky Morgan walked on stage, low cries of rubbish and then loud outraged laughter as she answered questions, head teachers here at the NAHT conference in Birmingham made clear quite how disillusioned they're feeling.
It's not just the plans to force all schools to become academies, which will affect primary schools most, as few have chosen to go down that route.
It's also the changes, delays and uncertainty around primary testing which have left the Department for Education looking ham-fisted.
The decision to postpone baseline testing for children starting school for a year, was closely followed by the accidental publishing of test papers for seven-year-olds online.
This all falls within the remit of schools minister Nick Gibb - so one head asked if he was running the department.  A question Nicky Morgan dismissed as "sexist" .
It's never great to have to start a speech with an apology, which the education secretary did today on the leaked test paper.
She offered significant reassurance that many schools won't suddenly find themselves marked down this year as a result of Sats tests.
But the speech, to a union which has tried harder than most to engage with the government, left them cold.
And these are the head teachers who are meant to be taking the initiative in deciding what kind of academy trust they want to form.
It would offer them greater freedom to make their own decisions, Nicky Morgan told them.
The loudest applause was for the head teacher who told her being forced to change wasn't the kind of freedom they needed.
It was at best an uncomfortable encounter, and ministers can and have been describing union opposition as coming from "vested interests".
Less easy to ignore are the many Conservative councillors and some MPs who are already very queasy about the forced academy plans.


Wolverhampton-born actress and writer Meera Syal has been recognised in the Queen's New Year Honours.

Syal, who is famous for comedy roles on television in Goodness Gracious Me and The Kumars at No.42, becomes a CBE.
One of the pioneers for black footballers in the 1970s, ex-West Bromwich Albion defender Brendon Batson, is among those appointed OBE.
Former chief constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland Matt Baggott, of Solihull, is knighted.
Sir Matt, who retired from the job in September after five years, is honoured for services to policing in the United Kingdom.
He said: "This award is an acknowledgement of the courage, commitment and achievements of my policing colleagues without whose immense efforts I would not have been able to fulfil my responsibilities."
Syal, who is honoured for services to drama and literature, scripted the film Bhaji On the Beach and starred in the radio series Goodness Gracious Me, which later transferred to TV.
She used her experiences growing up in the West Midlands for her first book Anita And Me, which was later adapted for the screen.
Syal, who is married to her screen colleague Sanjeev Bhaskar, also scripted the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Bombay Dreams.
Batson, previously an MBE, receives the OBE for services to football.
The former defender, from Birmingham, worked for the Professional Footballers' Association and has also been an adviser to the Football Association on equality.
Others recognised include ex-Cadbury chairman Sir Adrian Cadbury, of Solihull, who has become a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour for services to business and the community in the UK, particularly Birmingham.
Walsall College principal and chief executive Jatinder Sharma is honoured for services to education while Denise Ellen Moreton, from Wolverhampton, is recognised for services to the Women's Institute Movement in Staffordshire. Both are appointed OBE.


"Immer wieder Oesterreich," - Austria, again and again - sang supporters of Norbert Hofer at his final campaign rally before Sunday's presidential run-off election.

It was a sunny evening in a working-class district of Vienna. Some people had brought along their children, others their dogs. They waved Austrian flags and carried blue balloons - the colour of the far-right Freedom Party.
Many of them believe that victory for Mr Hofer is within reach.
In the first round of the presidential election in April, he won a clear victory, 35% of the vote compared with the 21% gained by his nearest rival, Alexander van der Bellen, who is backed by the Greens.
It represented the Freedom Party's best result ever at a federal level."Immer wieder Oesterreich," "Austria, again and again," sang supporters of Norbert Hofer, at his final campaign rally for President.
For the first time since World War Two, the two parties that have dominated Austrian politics for decades, the Social Democrats and the conservative People's Party, were both knocked out of the race.
A political earthquake had occurred in this small, wealthy central European country.
And there were consequences. Shortly afterwards, the Social Democrat leader, Chancellor Werner Faymann, resigned after a revolt in his party over the failure to stop the Freedom Party, which has been on the rise here for years.
And now the smiling, softly spoken Mr Hofer could be on the verge of becoming the first far-right head of state in the European Union. The run-off vote on Sunday is expected to be close.
Austria's presidency is a largely ceremonial post but it includes powers to dismiss the government.
Political analyst Thomas Hofer (no relation) says the success of the anti-immigrant Freedom Party has much to do with long-term and deep-seated discontent with the political status quo in Austria - fuelled by the migrant crisis.
Ninety-thousand people claimed asylum here last year, equivalent to about 1% of the Austrian population.
"The government of Mr Faymann was seen as a do-nothing government by many Austrians.
"It's not so much the strength of the Freedom Party that we see in Austria," he said.
"It's the weakness of the ruling parties and of course the public agenda, the refugee crisis and unemployment really played well for the Freedom Party."
In the small town of Untersiebenbrunn, east of Vienna, where 53% percent voted for Mr Hofer, a local Freedom Party councillor, Dieter Dorner, said he was "worried about immigrants that want to change our culture, our society."
"That is a growing problem," he told me. "And this makes the fear of the people grow."
They are concerned, he said, about "the possibility that our culture will be changed radically due to more EU regulations, due to strange religions."
Norbert Hofer has threatened to fire the government if it fails to take a tougher line on migrants or boost the economy. He has also said he would not swear in a female minister who wore a hijab, which he has described as a sign of oppression.
His opponent, Alexander Van der Bellen, has said he would not swear in the anti-EU Freedom Party leader, Heinz Christian Strache, as chancellor, if the party were to win a general election.
"The real danger is a Freedom Party president who dismisses the government to clear the way for a blue [Freedom Party] republic," Mr Van der Bellen has said.
Austria is polarised.
On Thursday a group of several hundred left-wing protesters gathered in front of the Hofburg presidential palace in Vienna to demonstrate against the far right.
Some carried banners saying "No Nazis in the Hofburg". One of them, Maxi, told me he was demonstrating against the Freedom Party's "racism and inhumane politics."
"We hope we can make a statement for open-minded Austria and to give a little help to the refugees," he said.
In recent years, the Freedom Party has toned down some of its harsher rhetoric, but the analyst Thomas Hofer says it continues to targets immigrants and Muslims.
"It's a far-right party, there is no question about that. It has members that say outrageous things including, but not only, about the Third Reich.
"But they are changing their strategy. They are trying to appear more centrist than they were, like the National Front does in France."
A victory by Mr Hofer is likely to be seen as an encouraging signal to other European far-right and populist movements.
Florian Kotanko, a retired headmaster from the town of Braunau, who is supporting Mr Van der Bellen, thinks that if Mr Hofer were elected president, there would be more damage for Austria's image abroad than for its domestic politics.
"If Mr Hofer wins, he won't be able to bring all his ideas in. But if Austria gets a president from the extreme right, there will be a lot of discussion about Austria's position in the European family."
"So for foreign policy and for the economy and for exports, it will be more important than for interior politics, I think," the retired headmaster adds.


Northern Ireland's past will continue to cast a shadow over politics this year.

The government and all of the political parties have said agreement on how to deal with the legacy of the Northern Ireland Troubles is a priority.
It is now more than two years since the Stormont House Agreement set out a plan for dealing with the past.
But there are no signs that an agreement to implement that blueprint is close.
Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire had indicated he would hold a public consultation on proposals for dealing with legacy issues.
That consultation was supposed to be launched in November, but last month he told the BBC it will not happen unless there was political agreement.
"No-one will thank me for coming forward with something that simply would be stopped in its tracks at that first phase," he said.
One of the main hurdles is what is referred to as national security and how much sensitive information the government, police and security services are prepared to put into the public domain.
Sinn Féin wants an independent arbiter to make the final decision on what level of detail should be made available to the families of victims of the Troubles.
The government and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) are not happy with the model proposed by republicans.
The national security issue is not the only stumbling block.
It is still unclear to what extent the IRA and loyalist paramilitary groups will co-operate with a proposed Independent Commission on Information Retrieval (ICIR).
The ICIR would enable victims and survivors of Troubles-related violence to seek and privately receive information about the deaths of their loved ones.
The commission will run in parallel with an Historical Investigations Unit (HIU), which will seek to prosecute perpetrators responsible for the killings.
Loyalists have warned that they do not believe the two processes can co-exist and former paramilitaries would be more likely to volunteer information if they did not believe there was a risk of future prosecution.
The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) and Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) have not yet been involved in any formal discussions about the proposed structures for dealing with the past.
If the leaderships of the two organisations were to instruct members and former members not to volunteer information while the HIU tries to prosecute them, the ICIR will be severely undermined.
Sinn Féin has said republicans will co-operate, but the party also insists the IRA does not exist as an organisation.
That would mean there is unlikely to be a formal order or instruction to members or former members to co-operate with the ICIR.
Participation would then be left to individuals to decide.
Given the difficulties encountered trying to get former IRA members to volunteer information about the victims of the Troubles who were killed and secretly buried, known as the Disappeared, many believe the numbers who would volunteer to come forward is likely to be extremely low.
Legacy inquests are another part of the past still to be addressed.
Northern Ireland's most senior judge has made it clear that the state has a legal obligation to ensure inquests into some of the most controversial killings of the Troubles take place.
There are 56 so-called legacy inquests involving 98 deaths.
Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan told the BBC last month that a failure to hold the inquests as soon as possible could frustrate the rule of law.
"This is not just a matter of policy, there is actually a legal obligation in relation to the legacy inquests," he said.
The government has rejected a request from Sir Declan to release millions of pounds to enable the inquests to take place, and has said there must be a wider political agreement on how to deal with the past before that happens.
There has been much talk about commitment to deal with the past, but to date there has been little action.
There are no talks scheduled involving the government, DUP and Sinn Féin to discuss the issue.
At this stage the prospect of an agreement appears remote.


Emails to NHS Wales accounts from outside senders have been blocked following a cyber attack which hit services in England and Scotland.

About 45 NHS organisations were disrupted in the global attack that affected organisations in 100 countries on Friday.
NHS Wales Informatics Service said incoming emails would be automatically deleted as a precaution until Monday.
Outbound and internal emails are unaffected.
A Welsh Government spokesman said NHS Wales had not been affected by the cyber attack but it was "monitoring the situation closely".
He added: "We have recently invested in upgrading IT to protect potentially vulnerable front-line NHS Wales systems.
"We have also introduced a national standard for IT security for all GP surgeries in Wales."
In a tweet on Saturday, NHS Wales Informatics Service wrote: "Due to the NHS England cyber attack, we have blocked all inbound emails (external senders and NHS England) to NHS Wales. Will review Monday."
Another read: "Blocked emails will be dropped and deleted. Client services supported file shares have also been disabled until Monday as a precaution."
Home Secretary Amber Rudd said on Saturday, the NHS "must learn" from the attack and upgrade its IT systems.


Poland striker Robert Lewandowski needed treatment after a flare thrown by home fans exploded near him during a heated World Cup qualifier in Romania.

The Bayern Munich player was not hurt but appeared shaken after the incident early in the second half, which forced play to be stopped for several minutes.
The match in Bucharest was also interrupted for a minute at the end of the first half after fans threw flares and firecrackers on to the pitch.
Poland won the Group E match 3-0.
Rennes forward Kamil Grosicki's fine solo goal put the group leaders in front after 11 minutes.
The two delays followed as the home crowd grew restless before Lewandowski made sure of the win late on, scoring with a composed finish in the 82nd minute before adding a third from the penalty spot in injury time.
Unbeaten Poland top the group on 10 points after four matches. Montenegro, on seven points, remain in second place despite suffering their first defeat of the campaign in Armenia.
Match ends, Romania 0, Poland 3.
Second Half ends, Romania 0, Poland 3.
Jakub Blaszczykowski (Poland) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Alexandru Chipciu (Romania).
Foul by Michal Pazdan (Poland).
Claudiu Keseru (Romania) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Corner,  Poland. Conceded by Vlad Chiriches.
Corner,  Romania. Conceded by Lukasz Fabianski.
Attempt saved. Razvan Marin (Romania) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Alexandru Chipciu.
Foul by Lukasz Teodorczyk (Poland).
Andrei Prepelita (Romania) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Goal!  Romania 0, Poland 3. Robert Lewandowski (Poland) converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the bottom left corner.
Penalty Poland. Robert Lewandowski draws a foul in the penalty area.
Penalty conceded by Dragos Grigore (Romania) after a foul in the penalty area.
Substitution, Poland. Slawomir Peszko replaces Kamil Grosicki.
Attempt missed. Bogdan Stancu (Romania) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Dragos Grigore.
Attempt missed. Jakub Blaszczykowski (Poland) right footed shot from the left side of the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Artur Jedrzejczyk.
Foul by Krzysztof Maczynski (Poland).
Claudiu Keseru (Romania) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Goal!  Romania 0, Poland 2. Robert Lewandowski (Poland) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the top right corner. Assisted by Lukasz Teodorczyk.
Substitution, Romania. Claudiu Keseru replaces Nicolae Stanciu.
Substitution, Poland. Lukasz Teodorczyk replaces Piotr Zielinski.
Florin Andone (Romania) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Robert Lewandowski (Poland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Florin Andone (Romania).
Attempt missed. Andrei Prepelita (Romania) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right.
Attempt blocked. Grzegorz Krychowiak (Poland) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Artur Jedrzejczyk.
Attempt saved. Kamil Grosicki (Poland) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Krzysztof Maczynski.
Piotr Zielinski (Poland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Andrei Prepelita (Romania).
Attempt blocked. Razvan Marin (Romania) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Alexandru Chipciu.
Artur Jedrzejczyk (Poland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Bogdan Stancu (Romania).
Attempt missed. Piotr Zielinski (Poland) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the right.
Substitution, Poland. Krzysztof Maczynski replaces Karol Linetty.
Cristian Sapunaru (Romania) is shown the yellow card.
Corner,  Romania. Conceded by Robert Lewandowski.
Attempt blocked. Florin Andone (Romania) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Razvan Marin with a cross.
Corner,  Romania. Conceded by Lukasz Fabianski.
Attempt saved. Florin Andone (Romania) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner. Assisted by Andrei Prepelita.


The campaign has not even got under way, yet in the space of a couple of hours we have now been treated to not only one election pledge, but to two.

The prime minister ruled out raising VAT if re-elected - while Labour said National Insurance contributions wouldn't go up.
Usually politicians fudge the question of tax rises.
When he was leader of the opposition David Cameron himself said "we have no need to raise taxes" - before hiking up VAT after polling day.
Famously, John Major said he had "no plans" to put up the sales tax -  before his chancellor did just that.
And when he appeared in front of the cross-party Treasury committee of MPs on Tuesday, the current chancellor seemed to be continuing that tradition.
Under repeated questioning, George Osborne said: "The policies we have do not involve a VAT rise."
That formulation appeared to give him not so much wriggle room, but an entire wriggle mansion.
Labour assumed their campaign warning of further VAT rises to come under the Tories was very much on the money.
But George Osborne's allies are suggesting privately that he had, in fact, been walking Ed Miliband to the edge of an elephant trap, then beckoning the prime minister to push the opposition leader in.
Ed Miliband's strategists fully expected Mr Cameron to repeat the chancellor's obfuscation on tax at the final Prime Minister's Questions of this Parliament.
They would then have expanded on the theme, inviting the prime minister to answer other difficult questions - then say he wasn't being straight with the British people for avoiding them.
But the Labour leader was completely wrong-footed when first the prime minister said he would rule out a VAT rise and then counter-punched, inquiring if Labour would now rule out an increase in National Insurance contributions.
Ed Miliband dodged the question and what could have been downbeat Conservative benches, uneasy over the prime minister's announcement this week of his retirement plans, were given something to cheer.
The reason Ed Miliband didn't respond is because he was holding the National Insurance pledge back for Labour's manifesto.
But that soon became unsustainable - so the other Ed, the shadow chancellor Ed Balls, had to undertake a hasty round of the TV studios to do just that.
When I spoke to him mid-tour, he put on a brave face.
His view was that George Osborne, having raised VAT from 17.5% to 20%, wanted to give the issue a low profile - whereas the prime minister had now made the mistake of putting it centre stage.
And he believed David Cameron's promise would be judged against his past VAT-raising performance.
He defended Ed Miliband's reluctance to talk about National Insurance as he felt it would have been "inappropriate" to announce Labour tax policy at PMQs.
So the prime minister - always a better tactician than strategist - can at least satisfy himself that he smoked Labour out on NI and disrupted at least one entry in their election campaign grid.
But the exchange actually raised more questions than it answered.
If the main parties are ruling out further potential sources of revenue, but still committing themselves to eradicating a Â£90bn black hole in the public finances, will they now be under more pressure during the election campaign to spell out in much greater detail exactly what they intend to cut?


There's nothing like an old-fashioned town hall hustings in the run-up to an election to make politics personal.

And on a wet Wednesday night with Storm Doris brewing, about 150 people in South Antrim filled Ballyclare Town Hall.
Under a glittering disco ball in the former dancehall, they challenged the candidates vying for their votes on 2 March.
The health service, the RHI scandal and Brexit were raised as the campaign's headline issues, but the state of the town's Rashee Road was highly emotive, too.
The event had been organised with just a few days' notice by Robert Robinson, who said people should see they "have the ability to change things".
That was reflected in an audience he described as being switched on, with "their issues in their pockets".
"The political dynamic is changing and people want to bring politics back home," he explained.
"People from Northern Ireland are motivated and they want answers."
Street pastor Alastair Armstrong said there had been more "backward steps instead of frontward steps" at Stormont in recent times.
"But tonight I've been encouraged because there's been quite a lot of young people who've been involved in asking question about their community," he added.
First-time voter Ben Lowry, 18, said he still wasn't sure who would get his first preference next week but the debate had "certainly helped".
"Politicians have to realise the future lies with young people, and they have to work together for young people in particular," he said.
One man, whose interest in politics has only recently been sparked, said Northern Ireland needed to be "brave" and "elect somebody new" to ensure political progress.
Many voters, he said "know what they want" but were not prepared to abandon "green and orange" parties.
"I think we have a low voter turnout because the parties aren't there that represent the voters' views," he added.
One woman said the hustings had been like "having our own little Newsnight" - referring to the BBC current affairs programme.
"Getting to speak to the politicians directly, to ask the questions that were individual to each of us, to have the eye contact, to feel like we were holding them to account, was really interesting," she said.
"I like the idea of having them back again a year later!"
As the party leaders hop from one end of Northern Ireland to the other, the leader of the SDLP has used his Eastwood Express to tour the constituencies, but has he also been employing a body double to head out on the canvass?
It appears that Colum Eastwood has a striking doppelganger, who could come in handy in the final furlong of this campaign.
London-based James Barnard has jokingly offered to stand in for the nationalist candidate at pre-election parties, should he be required.
Mr Barnard was at a gym on Tuesday night when he spotted an election report on the BBC News at Ten, featuring Mr Eastwood.
He decided to put together a spot-the-difference series of photos, recreating some of the SDLP leader's poses from the campaign trail and tweeted it to him.
The resemblance is so striking that Mr Barnard's wife once mistook a photo of Mr Eastwood for her husband.
He is, however, missing a couple of key features.
Firstly, he can't replicate that distinctive Londonderry accent - he's originally from Lincolnshire, and that won't cut the mustard when it comes to political grillings from the press.
And then there's that peculiar little white patch on Mr Eastwood's beard.
The graphic designer said he wouldn't be dying his beard, but he has another solution, as he could use a bit of digital trickery to complete the Eastwood look.
Always one of the primary issues at polling time, health has been high on the agenda again in this election campaign.
In Belfast on Wednesday, health charities, support bodies and trade unions put their questions to candidates at a hustings event hosted by the Belfast Healthy Cities organisation.
The focus was on changing lifestyles - greater freedom for breastfeeding mothers and wider access to green spaces, for example - and on adding sustainability to the health service, through social care reform and investment in mental health services.
Joan Devlin, the health policy and promotion organisation's chief executive, said Stormont needed to commit to long-term plans to tackle inequality in the health system.
She said that instability at Stormont could hamper plans to press forward on those plans, adding that it was "essential" for parties to agree on health matters.
"Having the assembly obviously gives us much closer contact to our ministers and they obviously have a much greater understanding of the key issues," she said.
"But if we can work with civil servants in developing those long-term strategies that will have an impact on improved living that would be an acceptable way forward as an interim."
Rachelle Adams, a masters student in sustainable development at Queen's University in the city, said she still had to be convinced that words from prospective politicians would ultimately become action.
"I really question how it's going to be implemented in practice," she said.
"I don't know if sustainability is really on their agenda, and the social detriments of health, like the increase in the number of people with lifestyle diseases and the focus on preventative care.
"I just hope it's not aspirational, and they're really going to implement it in practice."
BBC News NI's Campaign Catch-up will keep you across the Northern Ireland Assembly election trail with a daily dose of the main stories, the minor ones and the lighter moments in the run up to polling day on Thursday 2 March.
Hear more on BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster and BBC Radio Foyle's The Breakfast Show at 07:40 GMT, and on BBC Radio Ulster's Evening Extra at 17:40 each weekday.


Notts County have signed former Newcastle United striker Shola Ameobi on a deal until the end of the season.

The 35-year-old was a free agent after leaving League One side Fleetwood Town at the end of last term.
"It's a great honour to join a club like this, one of the founder members of the Football League," he said.
Ameobi, a former team-mate of Notts boss Kevin Nolan at St James' Park, was named on the bench for Saturday's League Two game at Accrington.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


Two planes collided at an airport in Indonesia's capital Jakarta, resulting in a wing bursting into flames.

A Batik Air passenger plane was taking off when its wing clipped the tail of a TransNusa aircraft being towed across the runway.
Authorities said there were no injuries in the Monday night incident, and all passengers were evacuated safely.
Indonesia has had a dismal air safety record amid a boom in air travel, particularly with budget carriers.
The incident took place at the largely-domestic Halim Perdanakusuma airport in Jakarta, causing the temporary closure of the airport.
The Batik Air plane was carrying 49 passengers and crew, reported AFP news agency.
A spokesman for budget carrier Lion Air Group, which owns Batik Air, told the wire news agency that the pilot had aborted the takeoff after the collision, and passengers and crew were safe.
Transport ministry officials said the collision had mangled parts of both aircraft. A video posted online shows flames erupting from the Batik Air plane wing.
In 2013, a Lion Air plane overshot the runway at Bali's Denpasar airport and crashed into the sea, in an incident that hospitalised at least 22 people.
That same year another Lion Air plane skidded off a runway on the island of Sulawesi after it crashed into a cow.
In 2014, an Indonesian subsidiary of AirAsia flying from Surabaya to Singapore crashed into the sea, killing all 162 onboard.


A US university has bowed to pressure to sack its head basketball coach over footage of him physically abusing players and screaming homophobic slurs.

The dismissal of Mike Rice from Rutgers University in New Jersey was effective immediately, a college spokesman said.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and NBA star LeBron James were among those who condemned the coach's conduct.
Mr Rice apologised on Wednesday, saying there was no excuse for his actions captured on video.
He was recruited in 2010 to be head basketball coach at Rutgers, which finished last season near the bottom of their league, the prestigious Big East Conference.
"I've let so many people down: my players, my administration, Rutgers University, the fans," Mr Rice told ABC News in an interview outside his home on Wednesday.
"My family [are] sitting in their house just huddled around because of the fact that their father was an embarrassment to them."
Featuring clips shot between 2010-12, the video aired on sports network ESPN shows Mr Rice shouting obscenities, hurling balls at team members, as well as kicking and grabbing them.
Rutgers athletic director Tim Pernetti reportedly viewed the footage late last year.
The university then suspended Mr Rice for three games, fined him $75,000 (Â£50,000) and ordered him to attend anger management classes.
On Wednesday, Rutgers President Robert Barchi said in a statement on the university website: "Coach Rice's abusive language and actions are deeply offensive and egregiously violate the university's core values."
Mr Barchi added that the video revealed a "chronic and pervasive pattern of disturbing behaviour", which led to his dismissal.
The decision to fire Mr Rice comes amid mounting pressure at both state and national level for the university to take action.
Gov Christie said in a statement that he was "deeply disturbed" by the footage.
"This was a regrettable episode for the university, but I completely support the decision to remove Coach Rice," he said.
New Jersey Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver said the coach's conduct was "unbecoming of our state".
She called for an investigation into why Rutgers decided not to fire Mr Rice when it first became aware of the video.
One of the most famous basketball players in the US, the Miami Heat forward LeBron James, tweeted: "If my son played for Rutgers or a coach like that he would have some real explaining to do and I'm still gone whoop on him afterwards! C'mon.''
Athletic director Mr Pernetti apologised for not taking more robust action when the footage first came to his attention.
"I am responsible for the decision to attempt a rehabilitation of Coach Rice," he said in a written statement.
Saying that Rutgers had considered firing him at the time, Mr Pernetti added: "I thought it was in the best interest of everyone to rehabilitate, but I was wrong."


Millions of rail passengers will have to pay up to 3.6% more for their train tickets from next January, following the release of the latest inflation figures.

The current version of the fares system lets so-called regulated fares rise by the annual rate of inflation, as measured each July by the Retail Prices Index (RPI).
About 45% of fares in England, Scotland and Wales are regulated.
Broadly speaking they are season tickets, some off-peak returns, some standard returns, and commuter fares into and out of the London area.
Yes. About 55% in fact. These include all first class tickets, all advance purchase ones, and some off-peak fares.
For these, the train operating companies can decide their own increases, which can be more or less than the regulated ones.
The government must agree to the rise being implemented. It will not come in automatically.
But assuming the government gives its blessing, the increases will affect fares from 1 January next year.
The train companies do not in fact have to implement the increase if they do not want to. It is a ceiling.
But obviously the chances are they will go the whole hog.
Not quite. In Wales rail fare increases are also capped at July's RPI figure.
But in Scotland the maximum increase affects some regulated peak fares, including Anytime and Season tickets.
However, regulated off-peak fare increases are set at 1% below RPI.
The train companies say that some of their most important costs go up each year in the same way.
These include the track access charges, which they must pay to Network Rail for the right to run trains on its rails, and to use its stations and signals.
Also, under the various franchise agreements which govern the economics of each train operating company, payments they make to the government are also linked each year to the RPI.
Regulation of some fares has existed since the old British Rail was privatised and split up into many separate companies in the mid-1990s.
The point of regulation was to stop the new regional rail franchises abusing their near monopolies to overcharge their passengers.
However, since 2007 it has been explicit government policy for passengers to pay more of the overall cost of running the country's rail system, and for taxpayers as a whole to pay less via subsidies.
The coalition government continued the policy of shifting the financial burden to the wallets of passengers, though with less aggressive price increases than before.
A research paper, published earlier this year by the House of Commons Library, cited earlier figures from the rail regulator in March 2016 showing that "passengers have contributed an increasing proportion of the rail industry's income relative to taxpayers over the past four years - up from 55.6% in 2010-11 to 65% in 2014-15."
No, according to the rail industry trade body the Rail Delivery Group.
But any fare increases which are implemented should be made public by individual train operating companies this November or December.
Not necessarily at all.
According to the annual analysis published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), in January this year average fares across the rail system - regulated and unregulated - rose by only 1.2%.
It was "the second year in succession when fares have risen below inflation," said the ORR.
How come? Because train firms in fact chose to keep the lid on unregulated ticket increases, limiting them to just 0.8%.
And even the regulated rises averaged just 1.8%, slightly below the cap of 1.9% set by the July 2016 RPI figure.


A Ryanair passenger jet has been grounded at Warsaw's Modlin airport after a hoax bomb threat.

A 48-year-old man was arrested after the call was traced to his home, Polish police said.
Officials closed the airport to inbound flights while they inspected the plane, Ryanair said in a statement, but decided the call was a hoax.
The airline said it expected to release the aircraft - which was due to fly to Oslo - and reopen the airport shortly.
"This was an irresponsible prank," Mariusz Mrozek, a police spokesman, told Polish broadcaster TVN24.
The flight landed on Thursday morning at Modlin - a small, auxiliary airport in Warsaw used only by Ryanair - from Oslo and was due to return to Norway later in the day.
A spokesman for the Ryanair said: "Warsaw Modlin Airport received an anonymous call that there was an explosive device on a Ryanair aircraft due to take off from Modlin to Oslo at 08.40hrs local.
"The airport security authorities ordered an immediate inspection of the aircraft (which hadn't yet boarded) and closed the airport to inbound arrivals as a security precaution.
"Warsaw Modlin believes this is a hoax call and expects the security sweep to confirm this fact.
"They expect to release the aircraft and reopen the airport shortly. Ryanair sincerely apologises to the customers of the outbound Oslo flight for any inconvenience caused by this hoax call."


An unusual judgement from the family courts has revealed a race against time to stop a family heading to join so-called Islamic State.

The judgement, released by the High Court, details frantic efforts by authorities in the UK and Moldova to stop Asif Malik and Sara Kiran taking their four children into the Syrian warzone.
The account reveals how officials initially tried and failed to persuade the family to return voluntarily after they were apprehended.
Senior judge Sir James Munby, President of the Family Division, said he had released the judgement because it was an example of the system working quickly to protect children.
In April, Asif Malik and Sara Kiran left their home in Slough, Berkshire, with their four children, who are aged between 20 months and seven years old.
They left without warning, crossed the English Channel at Dover and were heading south-east across the continent when police launched a public appeal.
Thames Valley Police warned the family could go to Syria - but publicly stressed they had no specific evidence they were joining the self-styled Islamic State.
On 20 April, Turkish police found the family and detained them - but after days of attempts to persuade the family to fly home voluntarily, senior judges were asked to intervene.
According to the judgement, early on 4 May, the family's local council, which is legally responsible for keeping children safe from harm, sought an urgent application to make the children wards of court.
As is usual in such circumstances, a duty judge heard the case by telephone.
In its submission, the council said: "On the basis of the information the police and South East Counter Terrorism Unit has been willing to share, there are reasonable grounds for believing that this family left Slough in order to join Islamic State in Syria.
"If that is right, the parents chose to expose their children to obvious risks."
British social workers were preparing to fly to Turkey to intervene, but it then emerged that Mr Malik and Mrs Kiran were planning to leave for Moldova. Why they chose Moldova remains unclear - although the small country lies across the Black Sea from Turkey.
"It appears that the family is… 'in flight' from the UK," the council's barrister told the judge.
"It does seem to us that in view of the parents' obvious refusal to return to the UK, a proportionate response is to seek their urgent co-operation with an assessment in order that their plans for the children may be clearer to us, and about which reasoned decisions may be taken."
BBC News has compiled a database of people from the UK who have travelled to support or fight for jihadist organisations in Syria and Iraq. It includes the stories of:
The judge made the children wards of court. But despite that order the family pressed on, prompting Phil Batson, the British ambassador in the capital Chisinau, to get involved.
By lunchtime, he and his team had an assurance from a top official in the Moldovan prime minister's office that its security forces would help the UK.
Knowing this could be the last chance to intervene, social services lawyers, sought a second court order to stop the family going any further once they had arrived in Moldova.
With less than an hour before the family were due to arrive in Moldova, Sir James Munby made a new order, formally asking Moldova to stop the family, while warning the parents they faced jail if they did not comply.
The judge added: "This is a case where all the evidence would strongly suggest that until they were stopped by the Turkish authorities these young children, who are, of course, completely under the control of their parents, were intended by their parents to go through the middle of a war zone."
By midnight, the family were in Moldovan detention - and their passports in the hands of British officials.
Mr Malik and Mrs Kiran were described as "completely co-operative" and the children "safe and well".
The family returned home on a flight the next day - and since then the children have remained wards of court while social workers work out the next steps.
Their passports remain under official lock and key.


The failure to successfully prosecute a single case of female genital mutilation (FGM) in the UK is a "national scandal", the Commons home affairs select committee has said.

In a report, the MPs said it was "beyond belief" that no-one had been convicted of FGM, 30 years after the practice was made illegal in the UK.
It said the duty to report FGM "must be enforced with stronger sanctions".
The Home Office said it was tackling FGM by strengthening the law.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said it was "determined to hold those responsible [for FGM] to account".
Only one FGM prosecution has been brought to trial since 1985 and both defendants in that case were cleared last year.
The committee said the poor record on prosecutions and convictions would "deter those brave enough to come forward" to report FGM and "result in the preventable mutilation of thousands of girls".
The scale of the problem remains unknown because of a lack of reliable data, but the government estimates 170,000 women and girls in the UK have undergone the procedure.
The first ever recorded figures for FGM, reported in July, showed that between April 2015 and March 2016 there were 5,702 new cases in England.
Most of the women and girls were born in Africa and underwent the procedure there, but at least 18 were subjected to FGM in the UK.
Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland have not collected any figures on FGM.
Nearly 6,000 new FGM cases in England
'Protected from my father's FGM plans'
'This is what it's like to pee after female genital mutilation'
Anatomy of female genital mutilation
Minister for Safeguarding, Vulnerability and Countering Extremism Sarah Newton said: "This government is clear that FGM is a barbaric form of abuse that has absolutely no place whatsoever in a Britain that works for everyone, and the criminals who perpetrate it should be brought to justice.
"That's why we are taking world-leading action to tackle FGM by strengthening the law to improve protection for those at risk and remove barriers to prosecution."
She said government action had included introduction of FGM protection orders, a new offence of failing to protect a girl from FGM, a mandatory reporting duty for front-line professionals, new guidance for police and lifelong anonymity for victims.
"We welcome the report and will carefully consider the recommendations before responding in due course," Ms Newton added.
Source: World Health Organization
A CPS spokesman said: "Prosecutors work closely with police, offering advice on their investigations, but when a case is referred to the CPS a prosecution can only be brought where there is sufficient evidence.
"Factors such as the age and vulnerability of FGM victims, who frequently do not want to report offences that could lead to them giving evidence against their family, make it extremely difficult to secure this evidence.
"We welcome the strengthening of the law last year to encourage more victims to come forward."
The committee called on the government to adopt a "more sophisticated, data-driven approach to eradication", to include direct engagement with those at-risk or affected, and better intelligence for Border Force officers to help them target people taking girls abroad for FGM.
Interim committee chairman Tim Loughton said: "FGM can leave women and girls with significant lifelong health and psychological consequences. We intend to continue to draw attention to this horrific crime to improve the safeguarding of at-risk girls.
"We are dismayed that there have been no convictions for FGM-related offences. When we next review FGM, the new laws against the practice will have bedded in and we expect to see a number of successful prosecutions.
"We welcome many of the steps that the government has taken to prevent FGM and our report calls for that work to be enhanced and strengthened."


Blackburn have signed striker Tony Watt on loan from Charlton until the end of the season, with a fee agreed for a permanent move in the summer.

The Scotland Under-21 international has faced Rovers twice this season, for the Addicks and also on loan at Cardiff.
Watt, 22, began his career at Airdrie before moving to Celtic and has also spent time with Belgian sides Lierse and Standard Liege.
He becomes boss Paul Lambert's fifth signing in the January transfer window.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


Watford secured their second win in a row with victory over West Ham as Odion Ighalo continued his goalscoring form.

Ighalo turned home the opener after Nathan Ake robbed a dallying Andy Carroll in defence and crossed low.
The Nigerian doubled Watford's lead just after the break, firing home from Ikechi Anya's cut-back for his seventh goal of the season.
Enner Valencia intercepted Craig Cathcart's poor backpass but hit the post, before James Collins saw red.
The centre-back was dismissed for a foul on Ighalo, who was then replaced by Adlene Guedioura.
Watford's win, their second at home since promotion from the Championship last term, moves them up to ninth, while West Ham drop to fifth.
Read how Watford's victory over West Ham unfolded.
Follow reaction to all of Saturday's games.
If Slaven Bilic had been wondering whether striker Carroll could cut it in defence he need wonder no longer - Watford's opener came from his mistake.
The striker sliced a clearance under no pressure at all, but still had time to clear with Ake bearing down. Instead though, he tried to turn the Watford man, who stole the ball and crossed to Igahlo.
Bilic will be wondering, too, why his team seem incapable of giving their best in matches they are expected to win.
Watford had scored and won just once at home this season, but this Hammers performance was a world away from their victories at Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea.
Former Blackburn striker Chris Sutton on Final Score: "I don't know what Andy Carroll was thinking? Just put your foot through it, get rid or put it out for a corner, anything.
"It's a dreadful mistake. I think he's tried a Cruyff turn in his own box. Never do that."
Ighalo has now been involved in Watford's last nine Premier League goals, scoring seven and setting up two.
His partnership with Troy Deeney up front looks a real strong point for Quique Flores's Hornets, who followed up on their impressive victory at Stoke last weekend with another three points today.
If there was an element of slight fortuity about Ighalo's first goal - the cross might have eluded him had Aaron Cresswell not got a touch - his second goal was all power and purpose.
Smashed home past Adrian, it sucked the life out of the Hammers right after half-time and capped a deserved win for the home side.
Watford manager Quique Flores, speaking to BBC Sport: "I'm really pleased, very happy with the result and the performance.
"I think we enjoyed the game a lot. The players played with real confidence on the ball, with high pressure, it was an amazing performance.
"It's been important to change the mentality when you come in from a lower division, to win gives you the respect of the other teams."
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic, speaking to BBC Sport: "What happens weeks before and all the statistics is interesting but it doesn't mean a thing once the referee blows his whistle.
"From the start we were basically second best. They were better in every football department and totally deserved to beat us.
"We didn't have energy. They were quicker, more hungry than us. Today it was just that."
Odion Ighalo is now the highest scorer in Watford's Premier League history, overtaking Heidar Helguson and Hameur Bouazza.
This is the first time Watford have scored more than once at home in a Premier League game since April 2007 (4-2 v Portsmouth).
West Ham have received the most red cards in the Premier League this season with four.
This was West Ham's first league defeat at Vicarage Road since April 1985, having been unbeaten in 11 games at the ground since then.
The Hammers lost their first away game since the last day of last season (2-0 vs Newcastle).


Two eagle-eyed litter pickers found a box of medals from WW1 and the Second World War while clearing areas of the River Lodden, in Berkshire.

The medals have now been returned to the descendants of the two recipients, who were both in the Royal Navy.
Litter pickers found the medals in a cash box which was on the river bank.
Using the medal inscription, members of Swallowfield Village Hall were able to find the owner's descendants via an ancestry website.
Martin Moore and Russ Hatchett discovered the cash box on 19 March.
Mr Moore said: "We took it back to the village hall check that there wasn't anything interesting in there and low and behold, there was something interesting in there."
The medals from WW1 were awarded to Petty Officer Oliver Reed, who fought on the HMS Noble in the Battle of Jutland in 1916.
The Second World War medals were awarded posthumously to Mr Reed's son Alfred.
He was an Able Seaman on the HMS Cornwall in 1942, when it was sunk by a Japanese dive bomber in the Indian Ocean.
Mr Reed's great great-nephew Oliver Dunn-Hipp said he was "absolutely shocked" when he received an email about the medals.
He added: "I was close to deleting the email because I thought it might be junk, but thankfully I didn't.
"It's unbelievable and I'm still shocked by it."
Mr Dunn-Hipp, from London, said he had "no idea" how the medals ended up on a river bank in Berkshire, but hoped to find out more.
The medals were returned to Mr Dunn-Hipp in a ceremony at Swallowfield Village Hall on Saturday.


National League side Braintree have signed Millwall winger Kris Twardek on a 28-day youth loan deal.

Twardek, who is out of contract at the end of the season, made his Lions debut in the EFL Trophy in August, and has since made two further appearances.
The 19-year-old represented the Czech Republic up to under-19 level, but now plays for Canada's Under-20 team.
He could make his Braintree debut when the Iron host Chester in the National League on 7 January.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


Former Burnley striker Jay Rodriguez helped knock his old club out of the FA Cup as Southampton survived a second-half comeback by the Championship side.

Rodriguez scored from close range after Burnley had come back from 2-0 down before Adam Lallana sealed the win.
Kevin Long's late close-range header was not enough for the brave visitors.
Nathaniel Clyne and Rickie Lambert had earlier scored from 20 yards before Sam Vokes' header and Danny Ings' angled shot pulled Burnley level.
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Childhood Southampton fan Ings hit the post for Burnley minutes before substitute Lallana gave Southampton a 4-2 lead as the Premier League men were made to fight all the way for their third-round victory.
Rodriguez, who signed for Southampton for a fee in the region of £7m in 2012 after five years at the Clarets, had also come off the substitutes' bench after Lambert had limped off with a leg injury.
And his predatory instincts were needed as Burnley's prolific strike duo Ings and fellow Saints fan  Vokes took their combined tally for the season to 31 goals in a thrilling second half.
The Clarets, sitting second in the table, made their intentions known early on with Scott Arfield curling a 20-yard shot inches wide.
Saints have lost their last two Premier League matches but grew in confidence as the half wore on, enjoying plenty of possession without really threatening a well-organised Burnley defence.
And, with their first notable effort, the hosts took the lead through Clyne's 25-yard strike which flew into the top corner to leave goalkeeper Tom Heaton helpless.
Six minutes later, Lambert punished the Clarets for playing in their own half. The England striker collected the ball with his back to goal, turned, and fired past Heaton from 20 yards.
When: Sunday, 5 January 2014
Where: Wembley Stadium
Time: 14:00 GMT
Who: Cousins Martin and Paul Allen, who both played for West Ham, will make the draw after the Hammers face Nottingham Forest.
Fourth round dates: Ties to be played over the weekend of 25 and 26 January 2014
Southampton are already missing record signing Dani Osvaldo for the next two games, after he received a three-match ban for violent conduct, and will be left fearing a striker shortage for important league games ahead as Lambert limped off soon after.
Burnley refused to be daunted by their task and Vokes headed home his 11th goal of the campaign from Dean Marney's cross to lift the vocal visiting fans soon after the restart.
Minutes later the buoyant Clarets were level when Danny Ings raced on to a hopeful ball, cut inside, and fired low past Kelvin Davis at the near post.
Parity had not been restored for long when Rodriguez rolled the ball into the net to give his side the lead, a goal he declined to celebrate because of his Burnley history.
When Lallana drove through the midfield before shooting past Heaton from 20 yards it looked as though it was game over but Sean Dyche's men refused to give up and Long headed into the net from close range to set up a frantic finale.
Southampton assistant manager Jesus Perez:
"Sometimes one of the sides is clinical and the other isn't. That was the case today. We scored two great goals. Burnley started the second half better. We woke up after they equalised.
"Everyone can see how well Adam Lallana is doing this season. He is always doing great things. He is an example to the squad. He is an example in training.
"Rickie Lambert has got a dead leg. We don't want to take any risks when we are in a tough period for injuries."
Burnley manager Sean Dyche:
"Southampton are a big club with some big players and we have more than matched them at the end.
"We were still going at it at 4-2 and 4-3 and right to the end. One of our biggest mantras is to have no excuses, no fear and no regrets.
"The harshness of the business is you don't always get what you deserve. We possibly deserved a little bit more and didn't get it, but if you perform like that often enough, you win more games than you lose."
Check out a photo gallery from all of today's FA Cup fixtures on the BBC Sport Facebook page.


Reading defender Liam Moore believes "trying new things" in training and matches is helping improve his game.

Moore helped Reading to a fifth successive Championship win on Saturday as they edged out Bristol City 2-1.
"To have a manager who wants his defenders to play is only going to improve me as a player," Moore said.
The 23-year-old will miss their next match at Fulham on Saturday through suspension after picking up a fifth booking of the season.
Jaap Stam's possession-based approach to Reading's style of play received a cautious welcome, but has seen the Royals collect maximum points in November.
Moore, who joined the club from Leicester City in August, is thrilled to be given the chance to be a key part.
"We have to have the ball as defenders," he told BBC Radio Berkshire. "There's no two ways about it.
"We have to make angles and take brave decisions. The gaffer always wants us to take initiative, so if I can improve that in my game, it will obviously make me a better player."


Nestle says it will destroy more than $50m (£32m) worth of its hugely popular Maggi noodles, following a ban imposed by India's food safety regulator.

India's food safety regulator says tests have found the instant noodles "unsafe and hazardous" and has accused Nestle of failing to comply with food safety laws.
The company insists that the noodles are safe and is challenging the ban.
Nestle has 80% of India's instant noodles market.
The company said in a statement that the value of withdrawn noodles include stocks taken off the shelves and stocks stored in factories and with distributors.
"There will be additional costs to take into account, for example bringing stock from the market, transporting the stock to the destruction points, destruction cost etc. The final figure will have to be confirmed at a later date," Nestle said.
Earlier this month, Nestle began withdrawing the Maggi brand from stores, after regulators said they found higher-than-allowed levels of lead in some packets.
The company is challenging the ban in the high court in the city of Mumbai and "raised issues of interpretation" of India's food safety laws.
Nestle's global chief executive Paul Bulcke has asked to see the results of the laboratory tests and promised to return Maggi to store shelves soon.
Several states have also been testing the noodles for the chemical monosodium glutamate, widely known as MSG.
The instant noodles arrived in India in 1983 and can be found in corner shops across the country.


Bowler Peter Siddle has cancelled his Nottinghamshire deal for 2016 because of a stress fracture in his back.

The 31-year-old Australian was forced to pull out of the second Test against New Zealand after suffering from back spasms and is set to have a "lengthy" spell on the sidelines after surgery.
Siddle had signed a two-year deal to play County Championship and 50-over cricket from this season.
Director of cricket Mick Newell said Notts will sign a replacement.
"It's obviously disappointing, most importantly for Peter himself, and we wish him well for his recovery," Newell said.
"An experienced overseas bowler is a key position for us and we're confident of signing a player of sufficient quality in time for the start of the season."
Siddle took 37 wickets at 31.48 in his previous spell with Notts in 2014.
He has played 61 Test matches since making his debut in 2008, taking an Ashes hat-trick in 2010 and claiming four five-wicket hauls against England.
Cricket Australia physiotherapist David Beakley said: "He will now require a significant amount of time away from the game with a lengthy rehabilitation process.
"While he is laid off with his current back injury, we will take the opportunity for Peter to have exploratory surgery on his left ankle to investigate and treat the cause of his ongoing ankle pain.
"Once that surgery is complete we will have a better idea of his prognosis and likely rehabilitation time frame."


The number of visitors to a Scottish castle has risen by almost a third since it featured in hit drama Outlander.

Doune Castle, near Stirling, is portrayed as the fictional Castle Leoch, the seat of Clan MacKenzie.
It also featured as Camelot in the film Monty Python and The Holy Grail and in the pilot episode of Game of Thrones.
Historic Scotland figures show year-on-year visitor numbers to the castle have grown by 30.2% to 49,553 in 2014/15.
The TV series follows the story of Claire Randell, a nurse from 1946 who is swept back in time to 1743.
Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop said: "Doune Castle is just the latest location to report the 'Outlander effect'.
"From Dumfries to Inverness, historic visitor attractions are reporting a rise in visitor numbers thanks to the popularity of the TV show and renewed interest in the novels.
"Canada, the USA and Australia, where the series is shown, all have a shared history with Scotland, and Outlander is a great introduction to our must-visit country.
"We hope that visitor numbers increase further as viewers in the UK and Germany get to enjoy the programme."
Outlander is based on novels by US author Diana Gabaldon.
Mike Cantlay, chairman of VisitScotland, said: "Scotland is the land that inspired Outlander and our locations map has already proved a big hit with visitors with many making the journey to stunning locations within the series such as Doune Castle.
"Furthermore, we are seeing more and more tourism businesses, including accommodation providers and visitor attractions, looking at ways in which they can capitalise on the show."
Ms Hyslop will travel to New York and Los Angeles for Scotland Week, attending a series of business, tourism, cultural and film industry engagements.


Annie Mac says all her musical tastes will be reflected in her show as she takes over from Zane Lowe.

He left his slot on the evening show on BBC Radio 1 last Thursday, to take up a position with Apple in Los Angeles.
Despite being the network's dance music champion Mac says that genre won't be the focus of her show.
"Anyone who knows me from Sunday nights on Radio 1 will know that I do love all different types of music," she explains.
Listen to the full interview including how Annie started out as an assistant producer on Zane's show.
"I love hip-hop. I love R&B, I love guitar music and all of those will be completely reflected.
"I can't go in there and be like, 'Right, we're not going to play this any more' because that show has a responsibility to reflect all the late night shows."
As for features on the show, new music will carry over from Lowe's era.
Each night at 7.30pm, a new and often first play of a track is declared the 'Hottest Record in the World' right now.
"We're going to change the way we do it a little bit, but we're going to keep it. It's an institution on Radio 1 now," she says.
Mac is also going to bring some of the features she's developed on her other shows on the network.
"The Sunday show was called the musical hot water bottle. We're going to bring elements of that in one night," she explains.
"We'll have a chunk of music that is just reflective of the mellower side of stuff; all genres, put my mic down, talk less and just let people get lost in the music a little bit."
Also on a Thursday night, an artist will come in and play tracks, creating a "house party vibe."
But Mac is keen to let listeners know the "music is still what they want it to be - new and exciting and fresh."
As for her predecessor, she says Zane Lowe was very happy to hand over a show to the woman who was his assistant producer when he first started.
"Zane called me the night before the news came out and was really, really lovely and complimentary," she said.
"What he said about this situation was, that it is very rare in these scenarios that everybody is happy.
"When someone leaves it is not normally quite such a positive thing. He's leaving to go and do something exciting. I'm going to do an exciting thing in his job, so we're both happy and it's a lovely scenario.
"The advice he gave me was to be yourself."
She is keen to get her teeth into big interviews, but realises that might take a bit of time.
"Zane has been on air for 12 years and he has gained the trust of these people over the years," she says.
"What I have to do is get stuck in and start interviewing people, and let people know that hopefully I know my stuff and they will want to do more with me."
As for Annie Mac, the DJ, she won't be slowing down on that front.
"The way it works with DJ'ing is that you really have your schedule mapped out. You confirm gigs six months before, or even more.
"I've got my whole year mapped out. I've got all my festivals mapped out, I've got my autumn tour mapped out. But I won't be taking on any more gigs.
"It's going to be a lot of seven day weeks, so we're going to have to make sure I make time to live."
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Sheffield Wednesday consolidated their place in the play-offs with a thumping win over Norwich.

Ross Wallace gave the Owls an early lead with a finish into an empty net from 40 yards after John Ruddy failed to get distance on a clearance.
Jordan Rhodes made it 2-0 with a header from Fernando Forestieri's cross before Cameron Jerome pulled one back only for Morgan Fox to make it 3-1 at the break.
Rhodes headed his second before Forestieri scored a fine free-kick.
The defeat stretched Norwich's winless run to four matches and left them nine points adrift of the play-off places.
The Owls went into the game on the back of two defeats, but took an early lead in unusual circumstances.
Midfielder Sam Hutchinson closed down Ruddy, who had left his area to clear the ball, and the keeper could only find Wallace, who controlled well before showing great technique to find the back of the net from long range.
Norwich gave themselves a lifeline when Jerome pounced after Steve Naismith's initial effort was saved, but Fox's header from Forestieri's near-post corner restored Wednesday's two-goal lead just three minutes later.
Wednesday boss Carlos Carvalhal had backed striker Rhodes to improve after a slow start to his Hillsborough career and the Scotland international proved the Portuguese right with two well executed headers as the hosts cruised to their biggest win of the season.
Sheffield Wednesday boss Carlos Carvalhal:
"My players did fantastic and they did exactly what they must do. It was probably the best performance of the season.
"When we are like this, playing good football, we can achieve more goals and a better performance.
"I had a very good expectation about the game. We played some very good football and put our opponents under pressure for long periods during the game."
Norwich City manger  Alex Neil:
"I'm obviously disappointed and frustrated. I think we understood the gravity of the game but ultimately we didn't handle it.
"We gifted two goals to Sheffield Wednesday and then started to play a little bit. If you're going to gift two goals to a team like Sheffield Wednesday, you're going to struggle.
"The lads were disappointed with their performance and they know they should have done better. They know it was unacceptable."
Match ends, Sheffield Wednesday 5, Norwich City 1.
Second Half ends, Sheffield Wednesday 5, Norwich City 1.
Mitchell Dijks (Norwich City) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday).
Offside, Norwich City. John Ruddy tries a through ball, but Cameron Jerome is caught offside.
Jonny Howson (Norwich City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Josè Semedo (Sheffield Wednesday).
Corner,  Sheffield Wednesday. Conceded by Russell Martin.
Foul by Alexander Tettey (Norwich City).
Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Josh Murphy (Norwich City) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Sam Winnall (Sheffield Wednesday).
Attempt blocked. Jonny Howson (Norwich City) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Mitchell Dijks.
Attempt saved. Josh Murphy (Norwich City) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Alex Pritchard.
Attempt blocked. Jordan Rhodes (Sheffield Wednesday) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Sam Winnall with a headed pass.
Hand ball by Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday).
Mitchell Dijks (Norwich City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Callum McManaman (Sheffield Wednesday).
Foul by Ivo Pinto (Norwich City).
Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Substitution, Sheffield Wednesday. Callum McManaman replaces Ross Wallace.
Offside, Norwich City. Jonny Howson tries a through ball, but Cameron Jerome is caught offside.
Substitution, Sheffield Wednesday. Josè Semedo replaces Barry Bannan because of an injury.
Josh Murphy (Norwich City) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Barry Bannan (Sheffield Wednesday).
Substitution, Norwich City. Alex Pritchard replaces Wes Hoolahan.
Substitution, Norwich City. Josh Murphy replaces Steven Naismith.
Foul by Alexander Tettey (Norwich City).
Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Goal!  Sheffield Wednesday 5, Norwich City 1. Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday) from a free kick with a right footed shot to the top right corner.
Foul by Wes Hoolahan (Norwich City).
Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Mitchell Dijks (Norwich City).
Ross Wallace (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Attempt blocked. Wes Hoolahan (Norwich City) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Steven Naismith.
Attempt missed. Ryan Bennett (Norwich City) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Wes Hoolahan with a cross following a set piece situation.
Steven Naismith (Norwich City) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by David Jones (Sheffield Wednesday).
Attempt saved. Cameron Jerome (Norwich City) left footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Steven Naismith (Norwich City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.