“We have been deceived for 10 years,” stated Élvio Sousa, the parliamentary leader of JPP, during a session at the Legislative Assembly of Madeira in Funchal, prior to the day’s agenda items.
He emphasized that despite announcements from the current Republic Government regarding an international competition to create a ferry line between Madeira and the mainland, only a feasibility study for the line was included in the State Budget.
According to Élvio Sousa, Madeira’s social democrats demonstrate “blind obedience to the Republic,” suggesting that their acceptance of this feasibility study indicates the party’s “subservience” to the National Government.
Élvio Sousa also pointed out that Madeira residents still pay the full cost of air travel, needing to claim the mobility subsidy at CTT counters, despite promises to pay only the established 86 euros.
Additionally, lawmakers concluded discussions on a PS-initiated regional legislative project to create a legal framework for traffic restriction zones for car rental companies in the Autonomous Region of Madeira. This measure aims to address the “increasing pressure on mobility and public spaces, especially in sensitive urban and tourist areas.”
The restriction zones’ creation “allows for defining perimeters and periods of application, establishing gradual restriction levels (by environmental class, hourly or daily quotas, or zero emissions requirements), providing justified exceptions (emergencies, accessibility, first/last mile operations, resident and worker needs), and coordinating traffic management with enhanced public transport, shared mobility solutions, and real-time user information,” the socialist proposal states.
The initiative faces rejection from the PSD/CDS-PP majority, with social democrat deputy Paulo Macedo arguing it is a “disguised attack on tourism, the golden goose” of Madeira, ignoring “what the Regional Government is doing” to improve mobility, stressing the need to reconcile all interests in this area.
The session was subsequently suspended due to the Council of Ministers’ approval of two days of national mourning for the death of Francisco Pinto Balsemão.
