The position emerged from a parliamentary hearing with members of the Supervisory Council of the Information System of the Portuguese Republic (CFSIRP), chaired by former Socialist Minister Constança Urbano de Sousa.
In the meeting, the CFSIRP’s 2024 report was accepted without significant controversy, with input from various parties. The council also includes Supreme Court Judge Mário Belo Morgado and Joaquim Ponte.
As in previous years, a pressing concern remains the urgent renewal and rejuvenation of the intelligence service staff, particularly considering the lengthy and complex training period for each agent.
Another major concern is the urgent need for technological renewal, especially given the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the increasing demands on information collection by the elements of the Strategic Defense Intelligence Service (SIED).
On the political-constitutional front, the possibility of intelligence agents accessing metadata during investigations was discussed. Despite several decrees passed with the PS and PSD’s support in parliament, the Constitutional Court has deemed this contrary to the Fundamental Law.
This issue was approached as a medium-term challenge, with major political forces suggesting it may only be resolved through a comprehensive constitutional review rather than incremental legislative changes.
The second part of the meeting addressed the activities of the Brazilian criminal organization Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) within national borders, in response to requests from Chega and JPP’s sole deputy, Filipe Sousa.
These requests were considered “unfounded” by PSD and PS deputies, and during the meeting, any notion of alarm about the impact of this Brazilian criminal organization within the country was dismissed.
