A technical difficulty in the border control system is causing “long waiting times” at Lisbon airport, which reached three hours this morning, according to the PSP (Public Security Police), who assure that they are working “at maximum capacity”.
An official source for the PSP told Lusa that “there is a technical difficulty in the border control system,” which is not the responsibility of the public security police force – and is causing queues at Lisbon airport since Monday, reaching a peak waiting time of over three hours…”
Contacted by Lusa, ANA Aeroportos de Portugal confirmed the story: “high waiting times at border control at Humberto Delgado Airport, reaching a maximum of three hours today”.
ANA added that it “has been collaborating with the authorities responsible for border control and supporting passengers, to mitigate, to the extent possible, the regrettable constraints, namely through the distribution of water and food”.
The PSP reiterates that Lisbon airport is at “maximum capacity,” with all border posts staffed by police officers.
The new European border control system for non-EU citizens came into operation on October 12 in Portugal and the rest of the Schengen Area, and since then waiting times have worsened, especially at Lisbon airport, with passengers sometimes having to wait for several hours.
This situation recently led the government to create an emergency task force to manage this crisis. It seems to have had very little impact, if any at all.
SSI, the country’s Internal Security System has already admitted that the Entry/Exit System (EES) may be suspended during Christmas to avoid these bottlenecks. It is a measure that has already been authorised by the European Commission, and is a decision that “will be taken according to the information that arrives from Portuguese airports”.
In other words, any decision to suspend or not the application of the EES will be taken “on a case-by-case basis and, if necessary, based on an assessment of the situation at each airport and without compromising border security.”
“If there is no need to suspend the EES, it means that there are no excessive waiting times to cross the border,” the agency stated.
A team from the European Commission has been in Lisbon since Monday and will continue until Wednesday to conduct an assessment of security conditions at Portuguese air and sea borders.
According to the SSI, this assessment focuses particularly on the border posts at Humberto Delgado Airport, and the port of Lisbon, as well as coordination structures.
The Minister of Internal Administration will be in parliament this afternoon, at the request of the Socialist Party, to discuss the long queues, measures adopted, and the expected timeframe for their resolution. This will be a rare moment for the minister to be ‘seen in action’.
It is already accepted that this situation is a ‘national embarrassment’ that does nothing for Portugal’s standing as a top-class tourist destination.
Source: LUSA
