The Coalition parties that support the Government of the Azores (PSD, CDS-PP, and PPM) announced yesterday that they would submit an initiative to Parliament to lower the maximum price of airline tickets for residents on flights to the mainland, which currently stands at 134 euros.
The draft resolution, which will be discussed at the October plenary session of the Legislative Assembly of the Azores, calls for “a reduction in the maximum amount, currently set at 134 euros, to be paid by resident passengers on air connections between the archipelago and mainland Portugal, which should already include a change of reservation at no additional cost”.
The initiative follows the recent decision by the Government of the Republic to set a maximum limit of 600 euros per airline ticket as the amount eligible for access to the Social Mobility Allowance, which, in the opinion of the PSD, CDS-PP, and PPM Assemblymembers, “conditions the right of Azoreans to travel freely within the national territory.”


“[The] imposition by the Government of the Republic of a maximum limit of 600 euros per air ticket on the amount eligible for access to the Social Mobility Allowance by resident passengers when traveling to mainland Portugal and Madeira is unacceptable, and constitutes a limitation on the mobility of Azoreans,” says the initiative.
According to the draft resolution by the three parties that support the regional government, “any setback in a transportation model that has contributed to greater mobility for Azoreans is unacceptable,” which is why it is justified for the Azorean Legislative Assembly to “take a stand on a matter of the utmost importance.”
The initiative also states that it “regrets that the Government of the Republic has decided to set a financial ceiling per air ticket before the working group to review the Social Mobility Allowance model has completed its work and approved its report.”
The PSD, CDS-PP, and PPM MPs also argue that “resident passengers should only have to pay the amount corresponding to the portion of the journey that is theirs to pay when they purchase the trip.”
For the Coalition parties that support the Government of the Azores, “any changes that lead to simplifying the current model of the Social Mobility Allowance, safeguard the mobility of the Azoreans and reduce the risk of fraud is important.”

in Correio dos Açores, Natalino Viveiros-director

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.