General Daily Briefing: Thursday, 29 October 2026
Halloween and Pão-por-Deus with Children in Portugal
How Halloween, trick-or-treating, and the Pão-por-Deus custom of 1 November work in Portugal, with safety tips, local events, and useful words.
Good morning. Here is your Thursday briefing for 29 October 2026: the day's essential Portugal stories for residents, immigrants and anyone keeping an eye on the country, below this week's featured guide.
- Budget: the 2027 budget passed its first vote on Wednesday with only PSD and CDS-PP in favour, the Socialists, PAN and JPP abstaining and five parties against.
- Banks: four bank staff unions agreed a 3 percent rise backdated to January and called off the 30 November strike, except at Millennium bcp and Banco Montepio.
- Police: PSP and GNR officers march from Largo do Carmo to the Prime Minister's residence at São Bento at 17:30 today, demanding the pay review promised in their 2024 agreement.
- Porto housing: Porto's Santa Casa da Misericórdia plans up to 400 rental homes for middle-class families within two to three years, at rents its president puts at 500 to 1,500 euros, with no public funding.
- Lisbon housing: Lisbon City Council approved a settlement with developer SGAL that keeps more than 71,500 square metres of building land in the Alta de Lisboa, valued at 46 million euros, for affordable housing.
- Road safety: ANSR's latest quarterly report counts 105 road deaths in Portugal from January to March 2026, up 15.4 percent on a year earlier, with most of the rise on town streets.
The 2027 Budget Clears Its First Vote
Parliament approved the 2027 State Budget at first reading on Wednesday: PSD and CDS-PP voted for it, PS, PAN and JPP abstained, and Chega, IL, Livre, PCP and BE voted against. The Government warned that the budget leaves a margin of only 300 million euros for changes. Amendments close on 6 November, and the final vote is on 24 November.
A Pay Deal for Bank Workers
Four bank staff unions have agreed a 3 percent rise in salaries and bank pensions for 2026 with the Portuguese Banking Association's banks and Crédito AgrÃcola, up from the banks' 2 percent offer. ECO reports it is backdated to 1 January and paid with November salaries. The 30 November strike is off, though it formally stands at Millennium bcp and Banco Montepio.
Police March on São Bento Tonight
Police officers from the PSP and GNR hold a national demonstration in Lisbon from 17:30 today, marching from Largo do Carmo to the Prime Minister's residence at São Bento. The ASPP/PSP union and the APG/GNR association say the pay scale and career review promised in 2024 has not happened. Expect traffic disruption between the Chiado and São Bento this evening.
Up to 400 Middle-Class Homes in Porto
The Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Porto plans up to 400 rental homes for middle-class families in two to three years, at Rua da Constituição and on the old Estádio do Lima site. Its president puts rents at 500 to 1,500 euros, with homes allocated by public call and no public money; the timetable depends on council planning permission.
Lisbon Holds On to Alta de Lisboa Land
Lisbon City Council has approved a settlement with the developer SGAL that keeps Alta de Lisboa plots valued at 46 million euros in public hands, ending a dispute over a 1984 contract. The mayor wants the land for affordable housing, but no number of homes or timetable has been set. Chega voted against; Livre and the PCP abstained.
Road Deaths Up in the First Quarter
Road deaths in Portugal rose to 105 in the first quarter of 2026, 14 more than a year earlier, according to ANSR's newest quarterly report, while serious injuries rose to 559. Leiria and Porto had the most deaths, and deaths inside built-up areas rose 34 percent, leaving the country well short of its goal of halving road deaths by 2030.
Also published since yesterday's briefing
- Portugal's Tax Court Backlog Has Halved Since 2020, Yet a Dispute Taken Through Three Courts Can Still Last More Than a Decade Read →
- Portugal's Over-65s Lived Through a Record 39 Million Heatwave Days in 2025, Lancet Countdown Data Show Read →
- Friday's CP Rail Strike Is Called Off After the Conductors' Union Reports Progress in Talks With the Infrastructure Ministry Read →
- Portugal Plans Up to 80 Percent Support for Lower-Income Electric Vehicle Buyers in 2027 and a 50 Million Euro General Incentive Read →
- Specialist Nurse Midwives Will Run Low-Risk Pregnancy Care and Order Scans in SNS Health Centres That Opt In Read →
- Residents' Tourist Trips Fall 1.5 Percent in the Second Quarter, the First Drop in Two Years, as Domestic Travel Shrinks 3.8 Percent Read →
- More Than a Third of Portugal's Medical Students Are Weighing a Move Abroad, According to a Survey of 700 by Their Association Read →
- More Than 600 People in São Tomé Apply for 100 Construction Jobs in Portugal: How Legal Hiring From Outside the EU Works Now Read →
- Parliament Approves a Bigger IRS Deduction for the Third Child and Beyond, Phased In From 2027, and Ties the Child Guarantee to It Read →
- Free-Market Electricity Has Cost Households More Than the Regulated Tariff Since Mid-2023, ERSE Finds, Though Cheaper Offers Were There Read →
- Porto Wants Owners of Vacant Buildings in Its Historic Centre to Pay Ten Times the IMI in 2027, After Writing to 6,400 of Them Read →
- Keeping Pets Permanently Chained or on a Balcony Will Be Banned Under Two Laws Parliament Passed on Wednesday, Along With Pain-Causing Collars Read →
