The measure was approved at the municipal assembly's plenary session, with the abstention of the CDU (Central Democratic Party) and favorable votes from the PSD/CDS-PP, PS, MPT, and BE majorities.

The proposal had already been approved at the Funchal City Council meeting on August 20, with the favourable votes of the PSD/CDS-PP majority and the abstention of councillors from the Confiança coalition, led by the PS, who raised "serious doubts" about the measure's legality.

At today's meeting, the last of the 2021-2025 legislative term, although the Socialist Party voted in favour, the Socialists and the PSD/CDS-PP majority exchanged accusations and criticisms.

The Socialist Party, through Representative Sérgio Abreu, said that the current executive "took four years to understand the problem of local accommodation," a criticism refuted by the PSD representatives and the mayor herself.

Cristina Pedra countered that, in the executives led by the Socialist Party, local accommodation applications were not rejected, while in the last four years, about "a third" were rejected.

The mayor indicated that this year alone, 451 license applications have been rejected (48% of the total), also noting that in 2022 the municipality registered 204 rejections, in 2023 there were 409 rejections, and last year, 640 requests were rejected.

In turn, Councilman Miguel Silva Gouveia, who served as mayor in 2020, clarified that 109 local accommodations were licensed that year.

On August 20, at the end of the Funchal City Council meeting, the executive branch considered it essential to "carry out extensive mapping of the areas in order to identify those that are most saturated," as well as to develop regulations for local accommodation.

The mayor, Cristina Pedra, assured at the time that a "survey and diagnosis" of the local accommodation situation is underway in the 10 parishes that make up the municipality, which will allow for the identification of containment zones and liberalization zones.

The decision to temporarily suspend the issuance of permits for collective housing buildings came after the licensing of local accommodation units in an apartment block built with public support by the Cortel housing cooperative was announced, a situation denounced in July by the Confiança coalition.

On Tuesday, at a press conference, the Funchal City Council presented the conclusions of its investigation and announced that it will report non-compliance by the Cortel housing cooperative to the Public Prosecutor's Office and revoke the tax benefits it granted, as well as withdraw its local accommodation licenses.

At issue is a development called "Residências Cortel I," built with public funding and featuring three apartments licensed for local accommodation (AL).

The City Council said in a statement that "it was completely correct, with all legal and regulatory procedures being followed, with the due process being processed and approved, the granting of the expected tax benefits, and the recording of the procedure at a public meeting of the City Council held on January 26, 2023."