Lisbon, Dec. 31, 2025 (Lusa) - The Portuguese Socialist Party (the PS) will request an urgent debate in parliament to hear the government's position on the suspension of the European border control mechanism at Lisbon airport, which it hopes will take place on 7 January.
Socialist MP Luís Testa told the agency that the request for this urgent debate will be presented on Friday and expressed his expectation that "the interior minister [Maria Lúcia Amaral], who has primary responsibility for these issues, but also the cabinet office minister [António Leitão Amaro] will be heard immediately".
"We cannot continue to watch what we have been seeing in recent days at Lisbon airport and also remain unaware of the real reasons behind the suspension of this computer programme, which is a robust programme that provided the country with conditions of security regarding access," he explained.
The Socialist Party (PS) MP argued that, in addition to the interior minister, "Minister Leitão Amaro also has explanations to give to the parliament" because "he has always played a role in conducting these issues and, in fact, announced with great pomp and circumstance the inauguration of this robust computer system that was to be an example of the country's modernisation".
On Tuesday, the ministry of the interior announced the three-month suspension of the new European border control system for non-EU citizens, known as EES, at Lisbon airport, accompanied by a reinforcement of resources, with officers from the country's national guard, to reduce passenger waiting times at border control.
On behalf of the PS parliamentary group, Luís Testa considered that the Democratic Alliance (Social Democrat, PSD/Christian Democrat-Monarchist Parties, CDS-PP) Government has not voluntarily provided the necessary clarifications on this matter and that new information has emerged that requires explanations.
"With every passing hour, we are surprised by news about issues we were unaware of. Even today, this news brought to the public about an imposition by the European Commission regarding the mobilisation of police forces for the airport, that there were procedures that were not being done correctly and that security needed to be reinforced with more personnel. We did not know this, the Government never spoke about it," he pointed out.
According to the MP, we also need to know "the real reasons for suspending the new system for third-country nationals entering the country and, consequently, the European Union".
"We fear that, with this suspension, the great virtue of implementing this system, which was the real-time circulation of biometric data across all European Union countries, will be called into question and, with that, the security of the national and European space," he added.
Luís Testa maintained that the implementation of the system was not carried out "with the preparation and competence that was required", but that this "cannot serve as a justification for simply suspending it".
With an urgent debate scheduled in plenary, the PS hopes to obtain "full clarification" from the executive.
"The first available day for this urgent debate to take place is 7 January, and it is on that day that we hope it will take place," said the MP.
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