The State will finance 100% of the reconstruction of houses up to 150 thousand euros and 85% of the surplus value affected by this month’s fires, announced this Thursday by the Minister of Territorial Cohesion, Manuel Castro Almeida in a press conference after the Council of Ministers.

Responsibility for Reconstruction

He explained:

“The reconstruction and rehabilitation of the homes will be the responsibility of the owner or the municipality, with the PSD Government choosing not to delegate this task to the Regional Coordination and Development Commissions (CCDR) as it considers that their vocation “is not to be contractors”

The PSD Government has decided not to delegate this task to the Regional Coordination and Development Commissions (CCDR). According to the Minister, the government believes that the CCDR’s role is not to be contractors.

Damage Assessment

Castro Almeida revealed that the survey of damage caused by the fires is currently underway. This effort involves municipalities working in conjunction with the CCDR. The survey covers 69 municipalities and 291 parishes. He estimated:

“Next week we will have around 90% of the surveys completed.”

Furthermore, the minister said it is not yet possible to specify the number of houses and factories affected by the fires. However, believes it’s more than 50 but much less than 100.

Support for Affected Businesses

The government also announced the creation of a line of support for the treasury and support for the replacement of production (buildings, raw materials, and machinery). As for details on the level of support, the minister said that:

“There is more difficult to achieve, there are European competition rules that limit State aid and we will have to comply.”

Still, he assured that within legal limits they will give all possible support to entrepreneurs and companies that want to rebuild their path. Among the measures announced this Thursday is a differentiated simplified lay-off mechanism for affected companies.

Measures for Individuals and Farmers

This mechanism allows for the reduction or suspension of employment contracts. Additionally, there will be an exceptional regime in Active Employment Measures to benefit individuals who were victims of the fire, as indicated by the minister.

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He also highlighted several measures, including:

• Professional training actions for the unemployed.
• An extension of the deadline for fulfilling tax obligations for both individuals and legal entities who are unable to meet their obligations due to the fires.
• Farmers will receive a subsidy to compensate for agricultural losses, with amounts reaching up to 6,000 euros.

Additionally, there will be support for agricultural production capacity, which includes funds for replacing or repairing animals, agricultural machinery, equipment, and agricultural warehouses.

Castro Almeida highlighted that many farmers engaged in subsistence agriculture lack proper documentation for their purchases and sales. He noted that these farmers often collect seeds from their own fields and sell them at the nearest market.

Assessment of Agricultural Damage

The minister said that this is a way to solve the problem of many farmers who would not be able to survive in the near future. Manuel Castro Almeida stated that, according to the assessment conducted on the ground, the damage caused by the fires in agriculture is greater than most people think.

In contrast, the damage to industry and housing is less than anticipated. The government official also announced support for forest recovery. This includes stabilization and recovery of affected areas, as well as funding for the replacement or repair of machinery, forestry equipment, and forestry warehouses.

Funding for Immediate Needs

Additionally, support will extend to other buildings that support forestry activities. In total, 100 million euros will be made available to provide liquidity to the regional coordination and development commissions, in order to cover the most immediate expenses until the end of the year.

The plan for the forest will be presented in three months. Nine people died, and more than 170 were injured due to the fires that affected primarily the North and Center regions of Portugal last week. The National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority officially counted five deaths in the fires.

Impact of the Forest Fires

The forest fires burned approximately 135,000 hectares in Portugal, raising the total area burned this year to nearly 147,000 hectares. According to the European Copernicus system, this amount represents the third-largest area burned in a decade.

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The Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, announced several measures to enhance security and border control. These include:

• A new system for entering and leaving Portugal from outside the Schengen area, which will involve the collection of biometric data.
• The establishment of a Foreigners and Borders Unit at the PSP (Public Security Police).
• A new regime for the return and removal of individuals in an illegal situation.

Stricter Penalties for Attacks on Professionals

At the same time, the Council of Ministers approved legislation that will impose a stricter criminal framework for attacks on professionals, including teachers, doctors, and security forces.

The Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, explained at the end of the meeting that the government approved a set of legal measures focused on security. These new rules address crimes of aggression against specific public officials, individuals in positions of authority, and those in critical public services.

This includes attacks against various professionals such as security forces, prison guards, teachers, non-teaching staff in schools, health professionals, and firefighters.

Legal Support for Victims

In addition to the stricter penal framework, the minister noted that the measures include exemptions from costs and the classification of these crimes as public offenses. This means that victims will not need to file a complaint for legal action to proceed.