Portugal's Conservative Prime Minister Accused of Copying Trump-Style Immigration Crackdown

Strategic Insights -

Portugal's general election campaign has taken a surprising turn, with the conservative prime minister, Luís Montenegro, accused of emulating Donald Trump's approach to immigration in an attempt to outflank the far-Right party, Chega. As the country prepares to vote on Sunday, Montenegro's government has started issuing deportation orders to immigrants whose applications to stay in Portugal have been rejected. A total of 18,000 cases are expected to be processed, with the first batch of 4,574 foreign citizens being notified of their impending departure within 20 days.

Key Takeaways:

  • The conservative government has increased the agency responsible for immigration, AIMA, sevenfold to deal with a backlog of over 400,000 cases.
  • Chega, the upstart populist party, has gained 18% support in the country, making immigration a key topic in Portugal, where foreigners account for 15% of the population.
  • The government claims that prior Socialist administrations allowed 120,000 foreigners to gain residency without proper checks on their criminal records.
  • Chega's policies include creating a national border service, capping migration based on labor market needs, and deporting foreign nationals who commit crimes.
  • Polling suggests Chega is on course to repeat its strong showing and win around 50 out of 230 seats in parliament, making a majority unlikely for either the conservatives or the Socialists.
  • The main opposition Socialist Party has refused to commit to allowing a minority centre-Right government to take power, while Montenegro's Democratic Alliance has denied accusations of playing up immigration for electoral reasons.

Statistics:

  • 18,000 cases of rejected immigrants are expected to be processed, with the first batch of 4,574 foreign citizens being notified of their impending departure within 20 days.
  • The agency responsible for immigration, AIMA, has been boosted sevenfold to deal with a backlog of over 400,000 cases.
  • 15% of Portugal's population consists of foreigners, with many Britons among them.
  • Chega has gained 18% support in the country, and polling suggests they are on course to win around 50 out of 230 seats in parliament.
  • The country has seen a rise in immigration since 2015, with a net migration of 1,705 people.

Sources:

  • (Teresa Poésio) "Pedro Nuno Santos, leader of the Social Democratic Party, has accused the conservative government of trying to copy Donald Trump's policy on immigration to outflank the far-Right."
  • AFP via Getty (Photographer: Patricia de Melo Moreira)
  • Observador (Filomena Martins, deputy editor) "The main parties have ignored the issue of immigration for years, but now we see Mr Montenegro's PSD party seizing on it."
  • (Horacio Villalobos/Corbis/Getty) Far-Right Chega party followers wear Ventura masks in a street rally in Lisbon.