Tens of Thousands Protest Housing Crisis and Rising Living Costs in Portugal

In a Nutshell

• On Saturday, October 17, tens of thousands of people marched through central Lisbon, in a demonstration called by Portugal’s largest trade union, CGTP, against rising living costs and the housing crisis.
• The union said “many tens of thousands” attended, although police did not provide a crowd estimate. Protesters said wages were failing to keep pace with rents and other expenses, making it increasingly difficult to make ends meet.
• The protest followed days of growing unrest over housing, including a tent camp set up by housing activists in Porto, northern Portugal, which police cleared in a pre-dawn operation on Monday.
• House prices have more than doubled since 2017, while rents for new leases have nearly doubled, creating one of Europe’s worst housing affordability crises, particularly in major cities.
• Portugal saw an increase in Inflation upto 3.6% in September, driven by rising food and fuel prices. Fuel prices were up 15% year-on-year amid heightened tensions in the Middle East.
• Similarly, Portugal’s neighbour, Spain, is experiencing some of the worst housing crises in recent years, with tens of thousands also taking to the streets over such concerns. Portugal’s demonstration also coincides with protests in France over the rising cost of living and underfunded public services, amid an economy facing one of the largest budget deficits in the developed world, second only to the United States.
• Other protests happening in Europe include smaller demonstrations in Belgium and mass protests in Albania, where demonstrators are demanding the prime minister’s resignation.
• The Portuguese government has rejected pressure from protesters. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Carlos Abreu Amorim said on Friday that the government “will not yield to shouts from the street”, adding that measures to address people’s concerns were already being implemented.