Portugal announces four-hour ban affecting UK tourists 'at long last'

Portugal has issued a ban "at long last" after furious anger from local residents in the European Union holiday hotspot. Flights areto be banned from Lisbon’s Humberto Delgado Airport between the hours of 1am and 5am, it has been confirmed.

Minister for Infrastructure and Housing, Miguel Pinto Luz told parliament yesterday – as part of the special examination of the proposed State Budget – that the move followed the conclusions of a working group put together to study the issue of night flights.

“The working group (…) has already concluded and I can announce here that we are going to implement a ‘hard curfew’ that will prevent flights between 01:00 and 05:00 in the morning,” he said, in response to a question put by LIVRE MP Isabel Mendes Dias.

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The minister admitted the decision is “a giant step forward” compared to what is currently happening – referring to the “criticism from municipalities, mayors and citizens regarding the noise caused by airplanes, as well as pollution”.

The announcement came within a day of a protest outside the city’s airport by dozens of residents demanding, among other changes, “the right to rest”. Citizens want the obsolete airport closed as soon as possible and the airport sighted ‘outside the city’.

They want it in an area that will reduce the negative consequences impacting people’s lives. Sérgio Morais, from the platform, explained the protest stemmed from ‘interim plan to actually EXPAND the Humberto Delgado airport’. “It was indicated that the works will cost €300 million and last three years – for a structure that is said to be temporary”, he said – pointing to the likelihood that temporary would stretch well into the next decade.

“We are demanding several things, but the main thing is that this airport has to move to the location of the new airport. We are residents affected by this airport and expanding it is completely scandalous,” he said.