Public policy news in Portugal

Vila Nova de Gaia Mayor Luís Filipe Menezes has accused Minister of National Defence Nuno Melo of lying, denying that he missed any scheduled meeting regarding surplus military land in Serra do Pilar.

Menezes stated he requested the plot a year ago to build roughly 3,000 affordable and youth housing units, but claimed Melo has blocked the transfer despite openness from Prime Minister Luís Montenegro and infrastructure ministers. The Ministry of National Defence (Ministério da Defesa Nacional) previously asserted that the municipality breached a 2002 agreement and that Menezes failed to attend a scheduled negotiating session. Menezes rejected the ministry's account and placed sole blame for the stalled project on Melo.

Lisbon Mayor Carlos Moedas has formally requested that the government immediately cancel the Volta packaging deposit system. The program, which refunds 10 cents for returned single-use containers, has been criticized by the mayor as an environmental policy that has devolved into an unprecedented social drama for the city's residents.

A new think tank called the Instituto Progresso has launched with the goal of developing and testing public policies through pilot experiments. The organization aims to bridge the gap between the centre and the left, counting 170 subscribers from parties including the Socialist Party (Partido Socialista or PS), the Social Democratic Party (Partido Social Democrata or PSD), and the Left Bloc (Bloco de Esquerda or BE).

The Public Prosecution Service (Ministério Público) filed 781 charges for illegal gambling activities between 2020 and 2025. During this six-year period, the office also opened 1,884 inquiries and issued 1,095 dismissal orders related to the illicit exploitation of gambling.

With the school year nearing its end, the government still lacks reliable data on the number of students missing teachers for specific subjects. Following an audit by KPMG that identified flaws in ministry data systems, the government stopped publishing figures, raising concerns about transparency under Minister Fernando Alexandre.

The Court of Auditors (Tribunal de Contas or TdC) has labeled the Lisboa 65+ health plan as redundant and inefficient. The report found that the program, launched in 2022, failed to add value beyond existing services, with a significant portion of its budget spent on administrative costs rather than patient care.

The government is currently seeking public consultation on the new National School Health Programme (Programa Nacional de Saúde Escolar), which is open until June 16th. The proposal aims to strengthen health teams in schools, with a focus on expanding sex education, mental health support, and addictive behaviour prevention.

On the first day, the President of the Republic dedicated his time to the Castelo Branco district.

Groups led by the Movimento Democrático de Mulheres are staging demonstrations in 16 cities demanding equality, dignity, better wages and improved public services, while the Assembly of the Republic (Assembleia da República) is holding exhibitions, talks and concerts from 9–14 March to mark International Women's Day. Expresso notes the EU pay-transparency directive, to be transposed by June, could force more employer reporting and help expose wage gaps. Those attending public events should check local routes and schedules for marches and parliamentary exhibitions.

Público reports that the regime de maior acompanhado, which came into force seven years ago to protect vulnerable adults, has not fully materialised in daily practice, according to sociologist Alexandra Lopes. The law was hailed as a rights advance but implementation gaps remain in areas such as dependency management and access to support services, creating a gap between law and practice. Municipalities and social-service users should watch for local rollout details and resources; families of vulnerable adults may need to follow up with local services about available support.

Update: Seven years on, implementation gaps persist

Público's follow-up piece reiterates Alexandra Lopes's findings that local provision for dependency management and care services still lags behind the law's intentions, leaving families to chase support. Municipalities are the front line for rollout and those needing services should contact local social services to check available programmes.