The closing of all borders in Portugal, land, airport and sea, will be decided tomorrow, after two ministerial meetings, the first at European Union level and then between the Portuguese and Spanish ministers, Prime Minister António Costa has just announced .
"Tomorrow morning, there will be a meeting of the European Health and Internal Administration ministers to define a common decision on the external borders of the European Union", revealed António Costa, in a statement after the videoconference he had this afternoon with Pedro Sanchez, the head of the Spanish government.
The prime minister stressed that Portugal and Spain will act "always in common in the management of common borders" and, in this sense, tomorrow, after the European meeting, there will be another one between the ministers of the Interior and Internal Administration of Portugal and Spain that "set the rules" for the functioning of common borders.
These rules, he explained, will allow "to maintain the freedom of movement of goods, the rights of cross-border workers, but there will be restrictions on movement for the purposes of tourism and leisure."
The prime minister recalled the traditional greater influx of Spaniards to Portugal for Easter, which this year will not be allowed. The same will be done in relation to the travel of Portuguese people to Spain.
Border control will continue "surely for a period longer than a month in order to ensure that it covers the Easter period".
Costa stressed that these rules will apply not only to land borders, but also to air borders and all others. He guaranteed that "the situation will not be repeated" "today's situation with a cruise ship, which could not disembark its passengers in Portugal, disembarked them in Spain and then came by land" to our country.
It is a cruise with 2000 Brazilian passengers on board, who ended up disembarking in Cádiz (Spain), then entering Portugal by bus, at the Caia border, on their way to Lisbon airport, to leave the country.
The prime minister also announced that, when the President of the Republic understands that there is a need to declare a State of Emergency, "the Government will not give a negative opinion". But he warns that "we cannot use up all ammunition immediately".
"We have to understand that the best way to avoid the need to adopt tougher measures is to continue to do what the Portuguese have done so well in a responsible way: to restrain themselves in their circulation and social contacts".
We must continue to keep the country functioning” and “avoid activity as much as possible, but guarantee that level of activity essential for our own survival”, added António Costa.
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