Azores Assembly opens October plenary in Horta

The October plenary of the Azores Legislative Assembly begins on 20 October in Horta, opening with a Chega-proposed urgent debate on the financial health of the region's hospitals.

The session will include two urgent debates and an interpellation to the Government on health, housing and tourism. It is the last parliamentary session before discussion of the 2027 plan and budget proposals, scheduled for the end of November.

Chega says Azores hospitals face a financial squeeze affecting Regional Health Service users. The party says the Hospital do Divino Espírito Santo in Ponta Delgada is recording a monthly loss of around €4.5 million, with a deficit that almost quadrupled in the first half of this year, and has raised concerns about the real size of supplier debt.

On Wednesday, Bloco de Esquerda will question the coalition government on the housing crisis. António Lima, BE's sole deputy in the Azorean parliament, has described housing as a social emergency; BE cites rising house prices, scarce rental supply and delays in spending Recovery and Resilience Plan funds for the sector.

A PS-proposed urgent debate on Thursday will address urban policies to encourage tourism. PS calls the sector's situation alarming and seeks explanations for the loss of passengers following Ryanair's departure from the region, while accusing the executive of failing to halt a prolonged decline in tourism activity.

The 24-item agenda also includes oral questions to the Government on the movement of health professionals, firefighters' airport service and financial execution of the Recovery and Resilience Plan. Other topics include voluntary sports directors, health-professional recruitment, support for student associations, the European Union's 2028-2034 multiannual financial framework and safeguarding the Azores' outermost-region status.

This site previously reported that Chega/Açores schedules urgent hospital finance debate.

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