Planned strikes at some Portuguese airports have been cancelled after the government stepped in and issued a legal decree.
Portuguese immigration officers had been planning strikes on certain dates throughout June.
The strikes were a protest against the restructuring of the SEF customs and immigration service under the authority of the police, a move the SEF has termed ‘unconstitutional.’
Interior Minister Eduardo Cabrita said the measure had been requested by the regional government of Madeira and various heads of tourism. But it was fundamentally taken “with national security in mind, and the safeguarding of obligations of the Portuguese State”.
In a statement, the tourism board confirmed that the strikes had been called off: “The strikes at Portuguese airports by immigration officers, originally planned for June, will not be taking place as per the order of the Portuguese government through a legal decree, who have banned the strikes from happening, in order to guarantee essential activities, when there are serious disturbances in social, economic or political life.”
Portugal is currently the only major tourism destination on the UK’s green list, and it is expecting a huge influx of visitors during UK half-term, which began on Friday.
