Vila Nova de Paiva, Viseu, Portugal, June 5, 2026 (Lusa) - The interior minister, Luis Neves, announced on Friday that Portugal’s international airports will see an increase of 340 security staff, who are currently undergoing training, from 4 July.
“On 4 July, we will deploy a further 340 officers from the Public Security Police (PSP) who are currently undergoing specific training, at our borders. One hundred and forty will be sent to Lisbon, 100 to Porto, and then to Faro, Funchal and Ponta Delgada,” the minister announced in remarks to journalists on the sidelines of the inauguration of the refurbishment works at the National Republican Guard (GNR) barracks in Vila Nova de Paiva, in the region of Viseu.
Luís Neves said that “the whole process is being carried out with great effort and, naturally, with much hardship, but the day will come when it yields results” and noted that “already this week” the PSP “has deployed additional personnel who are already making a difference”, with around 50 extra officers at Lisbon airport.
“We have new spaces to accommodate people, we are acquiring technological equipment that has already been allocated, we have more booths where more PSP officers will be stationed, and so we are seeking to create conditions for the operation during the summer, and for the long term, to be different – for the better,” he emphasised.
The minister also said that “until we reach the optimal point”, which he hopes “will be in the shortest” possible time, “there are digital issues that need to be resolved”, not least because “they jeopardise the speed” of operations.
"But this is not Portugal’s fault; therefore, this is a joint effort to balance two priorities: firstly, security – knowing who enters and who leaves – and, on the other hand, efficiency, because the impact of those coming to us, of those leaving, particularly in terms of tourism, is very significant, and the government is fully committed," he stated.
Luís Neves said it was “important to look at operations over the last few days” at airports and cited last Saturday as an example, which “may have been the day of the year when the most passengers used Portuguese airports”, noting that “the operation went very well”.
The minister added that the media, for which he said he had “great respect for that which is free and reports accurately”, should report the news and not distort reality “in some cases, maliciously, in a distorted manner and with lies and untruths – the time will come when we must address these – denigrating the work of those at the airports, tarnishing the country’s image, with images from the past, some fabricated, and others with messages that do not correspond to the truth”.
Asked about the cases he was referring to, the minister said he would speak “in due course”, not least because he said he “does not mince his words” nor is he “afraid to speak his mind”.
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