The JPP, the largest opposition party in the Madeira parliament, indicated this Monday, December 22, that it will ask the Constitutional Court to declare the illegality of the rule that requires the absence of debt to be entitled to the mobility allowance if the Government does not back down.
“If the Government of the Republic does not back down from this intention of forcing and humiliating Madeirans and excluding them from receiving the mobility allowance due to tax requirements […] we will proceed with a request for unconstitutionality or illegality to the Constitutional Court”said the party’s general secretary.
Speaking after a meeting of the JPP political commission called urgently for this evening on this topic, Élvio Sousa added that “gross violations and illegalities of autonomous rights cannot be tolerated without a quick response in defense of the people of Madeira”.
“The mobility subsidy is a structural instrument of territorial cohesion, intended to offset permanent costs of the outermost regions and is a constitutional obligation of the State aimed at correcting permanent structural inequalities”pointed.
“We cannot tolerate this attempt to degrade, inferiorize and humiliate Madeirans, and also our Azorean partners”reinforced the general secretary of the JPP.
The Government of Madeira (PSD/CDS-PP) has already requested the Government of the Republic to review the provision proposed in the amendment to the Social Mobility Subsidy (SSM) regime which provides for the absence of debts to Social Security and the Tax Authority.
In the statement sent to the Government of the Republic it is highlighted that “a resident of mainland territory can travel by train, bus, car, boat or plane regardless of whether they have debts or not, or their existing subsidized condition for the respective activity, without prejudice caused by their contributory relationship”.
The Government of the Republic wants to change the SSM eligibility criteria so that support is only paid to those who do not have debts to Social Security and the Tax Authority.
In the proposed changes to the ordinance that regulates the SSM, to which the Lusa agency had access this Monday, the Government introduces a “new eligibility condition” for support related to the “regularity of the beneficiary’s contribution and tax situation before Social Security and the Tax and Customs Authority”.
The Government of the Republic sent the draft ordinance regulating the SSM decree-law to the autonomous regions for hearing, as provided for in the legislation when diplomas affecting the archipelagos are in question.
In the project, in addition to changing the eligibility criteria, the Government seeks to “adjust the documentation requested from beneficiaries, taking into account the future entry into operation of an electronic platform for processing” the support and introduce changes to “clarify the rules for calculating the value of the subsidy”.
The diploma also specifies that the maximum value supported by the subsidy is reduced by 50% if only a one-way trip is involved.
The ordinance is scheduled to enter into force on January 1, 2026.
The SSM guarantees air tickets between Madeira and the mainland (return) at 79 euros for residents and 59 euros for students, but involves paying for the ticket in full, up to a maximum ceiling of 400 euros, an amount that is sometimes exceeded by companies, and the refund is processed after the trip.
In the case of the Azores, the maximum amount paid is 119 euros for residents of the archipelago and 89 for students, with a limit of 600 euros on the eligible cost of the ticket and it is also necessary to first pay the entire amount at the time of purchase.