SPRING HAS SPRUNG AT LAST!

 

The weather keeps us wondering: what’s coming next?

 

The first three weeks of this month made it the wettest March on record in the Algarve. Then, as it so often does, the weather changed dramatically, bringing beautiful blue skies and sunshine in recent days.

 

March’s heavy rainfall significantly raised water levels in the Algarve’s reservoirs, though not as dramatically as elsewhere in Portugal, where some reservoirs reportedly reached 80% capacity, with some even overflowing. 

 

Amid the downpours, Storm Marinho swept in from the Azores Archipelago, bringing winds of up to 159 kilometres per hour (nearly 100 miles per hour). Some large trees and unstable structures were brought down, but according to the National Civil Protection Agency, there was no substantial damage to buildings.  

 

It was only in January last year that the Algarve faced one its most severe droughts in recent years. The government declared a state of alert and adopted a series of measures to curb both farming and domestic water consumption. Extreme or severe droughts occur in Portugal every decade or less. 

 

Spring (Primavera in Portuguese) officially starts on 21 March. So, what will the weather be like this year until the arrival of summer on 21 June? In Portugal, the average temperature ranges from 11 C (52F) to 22C (72F) at this time of the year.  Spring in the Algarve is comfortably warm and bright, with just occasional showers in April and May. 

 

Summer, on the other hand, is a different story. While visitors from the north usually welcome June's warmth, July and August have been sizzling hot in recent years – likely a consequence of the Global Warming crisis. There is little reason to expect that this summer will be any different, with temperatures once again expected to soar well into the 30sC (high 80sF). By then, cool rain will be a distant memory.

 

Written by Len Port,

Edited by Catriona Anderson.

 

MAIN HEADLINE NEWS

ELECTION IN MAY  

Parliament has been dissolved ahead of a national election set for 18 May –  the third in as many years – following a no-confidence vote against the minority Social Democratic Party (PSD). The main contenders in May will be the PSD, the Socialist Party (PS) and Chega. 

WEATHER WARNINGS

The Portuguese Sea and Atmosphere Institute has issued multiple weather warnings for various parts of the mainland, as well as the Azores and Madeira archipelagos. Flights have been disrupted, flooding has occurred, and some reservoirs have overflowed. The Algarve, after years of drought, has experienced relentless rain day after day after day this month.

AIRPORT ARRIVALS. 

Portugal’s airports handled 4.2 million passengers in January, 6% more than the same month last year. This surge is all the more remarkable, given that January falls in the middle of the tourism low-season.

UKRAINE SUPPORT

Portugal's prime minister and foreign minister have been in close collaboration with British and EU efforts to secure a lasting peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia. 

HOME PRICES 

The price of homes is expected to continue to rise this year in Portugal, one of Europe’s hottest property markets. This is driven by strong foreign demand and limited supply.

HOMELESSNESS  

A Catholic Charity is taking action to tackle what it describes as “a dramatic increase” in homelessness. The organisation has stressed the urgent need “to fight against poverty and exclusion in Portugal.” New homes rose by 7.5% in 2924 over the previous tear. The rise in existing homes over the same period was 9.7%.

TRUMP’S TARRIFS  

Wine producers in the Douro, Portugal’s prime wine-producing region are deeply concerned that Trump’s proposed  20% tariffs on drinks, including wine, from the European Union. Industry experts warn the measures could have a “brutal effect” on their exports.  

HUNTERS HUNTED 

Between 18 August and 28 February, the GNR police inspected 7,496 individuals, detaining 197 for illegally hunting protected species.

ANIMAL ABUSE..

The PSP police have detained 326 people for environmental crimes, including animal abuse and have recorded 11,485 offences related to those crimes over the past three years. 

YET ANOTHER GENERAL ELECTION

 

The third snap election in as many years is to take place in May, triggered this time by a controversy involving Prime Minister Luis Montenegro.

As leader of his minority government and the centre-right Social Democratic Party (PSD), Montenegro had worked quite well in coalition with the centre-left Socialist Party (PS). However, this fragile partnership collapsed when the PS rejected a confidence vote called by the prime minister, who faces allegations of a conflict of interests relating to a family-owned business. 

 

A last-minute effort to avoid the confidence vote fell apart when the parties failed to agree on the terms for establishing a parliamentary inquiry into the allegations.

 

Montenegro, 52, took office last April, but his government came crashing down on Tuesday evening when the confidence vote failed. The PS backed by the right-wing Chega party, voted against him, leaving President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa to set yet another election vote. 

The prime minister has said that when he became leader of the PSD in 2022, he transferred control of a law firm he had created to his wife and children. Mr. Montenegro has insisted he has committed no crime and done no wrong.

Last year’s snap election followed the resignation of the PS Prime Minister Antonio Costa amid a corruption scandal within his party. He denied any wrong-going himself and went on to become president of the European Council, a position he still holds.

 

EU LEADERS STAND FIRM AGAINST TRUMP

 

^{Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro (pictured) was in Brussels for Thursday’s emergency summit to thrash out defence plans for Ukraine and the entire continent in the face of Russian aggression and the lack of solidarity from the Trump administration.}

 

^{Leaders from 26 of the 27 European nations attending the summit reached a commitment to work closely together to bolster support for Ukraine and increase the continent's security. Predictably, the only exception was Hungary’s Victor Orbán.} 

 

^{Mr Montenegro made it clear that the summit was of great importance. Speaking to reporters on the sideline of the meeting, Mr Montenegro said: “Our expectation is that we can take very big steps towards the EU’s participation in a peace process that everyone wants for Ukraine.”} 

^{He noted that the EU will provide €150 billion in loans to member nations, but would not be drawn on the possibility of a snap election quite soon in Portugal}

 

^{As a loyal supporter of the European Union for decades, and a founding member of NATO in 1949, Portugal, like nearly all other EU and BATO member states, is deeply concerned about President Trump’s increasingly erratic and unpredictable decisions.}

 

^{Portugal’s stance in the current defence crisis is neither erratic nor unpredictable— nor is that of Europe’s most influential leader, President Emmanuel Macron, who recently met with Mr Montenegro during the French president’s state visit to Lisbon. Their position is unambiguous: they will continue to back Ukraine against Russian aggression and fully support the EU and NATO, with or without United States backing.}

 

^{Prime Minister Montenegro and the other European leaders are trying to work out the problem of money: how to dramatically raise funds to meet the need for far greater defence spending.}

 

^{As part of the latest discussions in Brussels, the European Commission has proposed invoking an emergency provision that would allow Portugal and all other EU nations to significantly exceed hitherto defence spending limits. The plan includes loans guaranteed by the EU budget.}

 

 

 

 

FRENCH PRESIDENT’S STATE VISIT

During a two-day state visit to Portugal, President Emmanuel Macron of France sought to boost bilateral ties between France and Portugal, while also advocating for greater European unity in the face of growing threats and uncertainties.

 

President Macron and his wife, Brigitte, were warmly welcomed in Lisbon on Thursday by Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and Prime Minister Luis Montenegro.

 

The visit came just days after Macron met with U.S President Donald Trump in Washington, where he tried to persuade Trump of the importance of continuing the long-standing transatlantic relationship, which now seems to be crumbling.

 

Soon after his arrival, Macron stressed the need to support Ukraine, especially at a time when the Trump administration is befriending Russia’s Vladimir Putin while Ukraine’s fate remains desperately uncertain. Macron and other European leaders have been calling for greater cooperation in response to the deepening concerns triggered by Trump’s perplexing turn-arounds.

 

A considerable majority of people in France (66%) believe that the European Union should continue supporting Ukraine financially and militarily, even without US backing. However, a greater majority of French people (78%) oppose deploying French troops on the ground in Ukraine.

 

Macron expressed hope that the meeting between Trump and  Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy this Friday would go well. “I’ll always try to be there to make things easier, but Ukraine is an important fight for us,” said Macron in Lisbon.

 

He added: “It’s important that Zelensky should be able to explain to President Trump what is at stake in his country, as I tried to explain last Monday how important it is for us, and also to remind him of the importance the transatlantic link can have.”

Unfortunately the Ukrainian leader’s meeting in Washington could hardly have been worse. During an angry quarrel in the Oval Office, Trump cancelled the meeting and ordered Zelensky out.

 

On Friday President Macron and his wife travelled to Porto in northern Portugal, where they signed agreements related to political, security, and economic issues.

 

 

Written by Len Port,

Edited by Catriona Anderson.

PLASTICS BUBBLE BARRIER

A remarkably innovative way to help prevent plastic waste from contaminating the oceans has been devised in Portugal.

Portugal has long been at the forefront of combating plastic pollution. Specialist researchers warn that every minute of every day, the equivalent of one garbage truckload of plastic waste enters our oceans. In Europe alone, an estimated 825 million pieces of plastic end up in the sea yearly. Experts caution that by 2040, this figure could reach a staggering 37 million tonnes annually.  This includes huge quantities of microplastics, which are killing hundreds of marine species and severely endangering human health by infiltrating our food chain. This is not alarmist speculation—it is a reality that demands urgent action.

The coastal town of Vila do Conde in northern Portugal has joined forces with scientists to create a ‘bubble barrier’ in the Ave River. This relatively simple yet highly effective system uses a curtain of air bubbles to trap plastic waste in a container before it can reach the Atlantic. Plastics – even microplastics - can then be eliminated. So far, the ‘bubble barrier’ has successfully intercepted 86% of the plastics in the river.

Further high-tech methods may help address this growing crisis, but municipalities, businesses, and individuals also need to play their part by actively collecting and reducing plastic waste – both near the water and elsewhere.

Trump’s ACCUSATIONS AND LIES

Following the security conference in Munich and the European summit in Paris, Portugal, and most other European countries, have dismissed President Trump’s absurd accusations against his former allies while switching sides and befriending President Putin.

In one of his blusters, Trump accused Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy of being a “dictator”.

FACT: As confirmed by all top international news outlets, Zelenskyy is not a dictator. He won a landslide victory in the second round of Ukraine’s national election in 2019. He gained global respect after Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. 

Trump accused Zelenskyy of refusing to hold elections.

FACT: Ukraine was scheduled to hold a national election in 2024 at the end of Zelenskyy’s first five-year term in office. However, long before Zelenskyy became president, Ukraine’s constitution already forbade elections if the country was under martial law, which it has been since 2022. Zelenskyy has stated that it would be “absolutely irresponsible” to hold an election during the war. He has affirmed that new elections will be held as soon as possible but has not indicated whether he will seek another term in office.

Tump claimed Zelenskyy had a job approval rating of just 4%.

FACT: Zelenskyy’s approval rating stands at 57%, according to the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology. By contrast, Trump’s job approval rating is 45%, according to Gallup.

Trump claimed Ukraine was to blame for starting the war.

FACT: It is undeniable to the whole world that President Putin is responsible for Russia’s so-called “military operation” that started the war. 

Trump has also claimed that Ukraine wants to prolong the war “to keep the gravy train going,” meaning continuing aid for the war effort provided by the United States under the Biden administration.

FACT: Time and again Zelenskyy has stated that he wants to end the war, but he will not surrender. As Ukraine’s foreign minister put it: “We will defend our right to exist.”

Having turned his back on Ukraine and his NATO allies in Europe and Britain, Trump is looking forward to having a personal meeting with Putin to build on the extensive phone conversation he has already had with the Russian leader. 

The danger with Trump is that he is so capricious and unpredictable that no one knows what is coming next. The fear is that he will fully betray America’s allies, putting Europe and the wider world at serious risk."

Russia stands as the most easterly country in Europe, while Portugal is the most westerly. Despite the distance between them, Portugal has every reason to be deeply concerned about the ongoing situation. As tensions continue to rise and alliances look to be shifting, Europe faces an uncertain future. 

 Written by Len Port

Edited by Catriona Anderson.