Portugal set to reject citizenship revocation law despite parliamentary backing

Parliament is preparing to reject a proposal from the Chega party to ratify a decree imposing loss of citizenship as an additional punishment for crime. The measure has already been ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court and blocked by the president.

Ratification of the decree requires a two-thirds parliamentary majority. However, the ruling coalition (PSD and CDS) wishes to revise the list of offences for which Portuguese citizenship can be revoked. They propose limiting such revocation to terrorism and crimes against the state.

Chega is firmly opposed to this narrowing of scope. The party insists on including human trafficking, paedophilia and slavery in the list of qualifying offences. Chega leader André Ventura has accused the coalition of betraying agreed terms and pledged to vote against the amendments. Without Chega's support, the PSD and CDS proposal has no chance of passage—they would need backing from left-wing parties, which are clearly opposed.

The result is a paradox: the government cannot pass its own law. Portuguese citizenship remains protected from new restrictions.

Source: Portugal News