WEDNESDAY BRIEFING

Behind the latest headlines

 

Easter disruptions

The Portuguese Foreign Office has warned that travellers arriving in Portugal in the next few days may face delays due to strike action by immigration officers. The strike will last from this Thursday to next Monday. The Foreign Office suggests travellers should “follow the guidelines provided by your airline or operator”.  Luca News is reporting the immigration service has closed about 90% of its offices nationwide today.

Clean energy high

In the first quarter of this year, renewable sources provided 72% of Portugal’s electricity consumption even though the weather conditions were unfavourable in March. Two months earlier, after heavy rains, plus good wind and solar conditions, renewables provided 88% of the nation’s electricity.

Dams up and down

Reservoirs across the country currently average 81% capacity. Some in northern and central areas are virtually full, but some in the south are low, according to official sources. The situation in the Algarve and Alentejo is all the more serious as a very dry summer is anticipated, due largely to global warming.  

Ukrainian Refugees

Portugal’s Immigration aand Border Service (SEF) has announced that 59,000 temporary protection orders have so far been issued to people who have fled from Ukraine since the start of Russia’s invasion. The number of arrivals has significantly slowed. By the end of March last year the number of Ukrainians here made up the second largest foreign community. It had risen from 27, 200 to 52,00 in just one month.  

International art fair

A total of 84 galleries from 22 countries wiil be taking part in this year’s international contemporary art fair in Lisbon from 25 to 28 May. It will include works from 26 Portuguese galleries.

Julia is not Madeleine

The DNA test results on Julia Wendell have shown that the 21-year-old Polish woman is not Madeleine McCann as she claimed. Julia has returned to her father in Poland from California where she was taken by an American private investigator, Dra Fia Johannson, who also describes herself as a psychic medium.

Feliz Páscoa  - Happy Easter!