Portugal’s government to ask Britain and France to send police reinforcements

Paul 13 June 2016

policestation Portugal’s Ministry for Internal Affairs wants French and British police to send officers to tourist hot-spots in the Algarve this summer.

The Secretary of State for Internal Affairs, Jorge Gomes, visited the Algarve to sign a new piece of paper kicking off a Regional Plan for Road Safety with the mayors and Road Safety Authority, and took the opportunity to announce that "we are negotiating with France in order to have French police here in the summer.”

As for British coppers patrolling the bars of Albufeira, Gomes admitted that he has yet to ask the Home Office to send reinforcements, but none-the-less expects it to happen this summer.

Gomes says that by having British police in the Algarve, Brits and others over-enjoying themselves will desist and those just out for a good time will feel comforted that British police are at hand should things turn decidedly pear shaped.

According to Gomes, "a foreign citizen who is here will feel the same comfort as we would feel if we were in a foreign country and there was a PSP officer or a GNR officer at hand. We would feel more protected."

Before the arrival of reinforcements from the UK and la belle France, the region can rely on Spanish Guardia Civil offciers which, under the "Destination Safe Algarve" scheme, have been helping out in the Algarve each summer since 2013.

Gomes wants to make the Algarve "the safest tourist destination in Europe" to attract those holidaymakers who are wary of terrorist threat.

The Secretary of State is all for measures such as "effective coordination and inspection tools" at border control points to combat crimes liked to terrorism such as illegal immigrant smuggling, trafficking in human beings, drugs and weapons smuggling and counterfeiting.

Faro airport has been under ‘particular’ surveillance by PSP officers since the attacks in Paris last November and this summer should see record numbers of tourists in Portugal.