The Portuguese government has pledged a €20 million investment to support its security forces by acquiring 600 new vehicles for the country’s police.
This move, announced by Prime Minister Luis Montenegro on Wednesday, aims to bolster the Public Security Police (PSP) and the Republican National Guard (GNR). Montenegro highlighted the importance of this investment, emphasizing the need to “value the remunerative careers of public administration employees, especially security forces and beyond,” and affirmed that Portugal remains “one of the safest countries in the world.”
This funding initiative was initially revealed by the previous government earlier this year. However, police union representatives have described the investment as inadequate. Armando Ferreira, president of the police union, expressed disappointment, pointing out that much of the current equipment is in poor condition. “Obviously, it is always positive to hear the government say it is going to invest in the security forces,” Ferreira remarked. “But you have to realize that this investment has always been made; it has to be made – because if you don’t invest, the police grind to a halt.”
The announcement comes in the wake of recent unrest in Lisbon, where officers were injured during riots sparked by the police shooting of a man from Cape Verde last month.
