On an evening when the death of a one-month-old baby was confirmed as one of the 38 who perished in the weekend’s fires, with seven people still unaccounted for, the Viegas Report has been released, blaming an electrical cable for the devastating fire in Pedrógão Grande this June.
 
The independent technical report on Pedrógão Grande, ordered by the Government, arrived on Monday afternoon at the Ministry of Internal Administration.

The commander of the Portuguese League of Fire Brigades, Jaime Marta Soares, said that the number of fires set deliberately this past weekend goes beyond any established pattern displayed by arsonists, and suggested that a ‘terrorist organisation’ is behind these tragedies.

The seemingly careful selection of multiple incendiary points to create large fires, led Soares to comment, "I believe that there is a terrorist organisation that is premeditated and organised to set fire to our country, it is a way of creating instability,"

Patrícia Gaspar from Portugal’s Civil Protection Authority confirmed at 10:00 on Monday morning that the number of people that so far have lost their lives as a result of the fires that have swept through central and northern regions, can be confirmed at 27 so far, with 51 injured, 15 of these are in serious condition.

Fatalities have been reported from the Guarda, Coimbra, Viseu and Castelo Branco districts but the figure of 27 will rise as more reports are received.

Private Luxury Forums Europe, an initiative that promotes meetings and networking between the main players in the luxury tourism industry, is coming to the Algarve on October 19th.

The venue is the Pine Cliffs Resort in Albufeira where the event will have the support of the Algarve Tourism Association (ATA), the agency dedicated to promoting the region to foreign markets.

In the worst day for forest fires this year, emergency services are stretched to breaking point with well over 300 separate fires having to be tackled in less than a 24-hour period.

Strong winds in the centre and north of the country have been taken full advantage of by arsonists who have set light to countryside, causing rapidly spreading blazes, some of which are simply out of control, according to commanders, including those in Monção (Viana do Castelo), Lousã and Arganil, both in Combra district.

Ryanair is to challenge a Lufthansa deal to buy parts of the failed German airline, Air Berlin, referring to the deal as a “stitch-up.”

Lufthansa plans to use Air Berlin's aircraft to expand its Eurowings budget airline business, a direct threat to the beleaguered Ryanair whose management says it will take the €210 million deal to the European competition authorities.

Portugal’s government has confirmed that in July, 2017, it severed diplomatic ties with North Korea as part of a concerted international efforts to have the country stop its nuclear and missile activities.

The Portuguese Embassy in Washington confirmed that severing its ties with North Korea, in line with the international community, was aimed at strengthening pressure in a bid to open dialogue on the path to abandoning its current nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.

The Portuguese cabinet has approved the 2018 State Budget Proposal, at the end of a 14-hour meeting on October 12. The Minister of Finance, Mário Centeno, will present the proposal and accompanying report to MPs for discussion and approval.

The final vote on the 2018 State Budget will be on November 28th, giving enough parliamentary time to make additions and amendments if there are any difficult areas but with income tax cuts for low earners and only small increases in other areas, the budget looks to be the mildest for many years.