Rita Alarcão Júdice participated in the parliamentary debate on the government's proposed law that aims to make the identification of speedboats over four meters mandatory and provides for penalties of up to four years in prison for violations, as a way to combat drug trafficking.

“Significant increase”

In her opening remarks, the Minister of Justice explained that "since 2020, there has been a significant increase in the detection and seizure of high-speed inflatable and semi-rigid boats in Portugal" and that cases of these speedboats being used by criminal drug trafficking organizations are increasingly frequent.

"In addition, Spain has banned the use of these vessels, which coincides with the shift in trafficking routes to the Portuguese coast," warned Rita Alarcão Júdice, adding that these boats "allow rapid entry into national territory and also high-speed escapes."

On the party side, Chega wanted to know whether, with the approval of this proposed law, there will be an increase in authorities' enforcement resources, and the Minister of Justice stated that it will not be necessary to guarantee an increase in resources.

For the PS, Livre, and PCP, although none of the parties criticized the content of the bill presented by the Government, they indicated that a broader debate would be useful when it comes to changes related to criminal matters.

The proposed law to regulate the use of high-speed craft (HSC) was approved on August 7th by the Council of Ministers and was submitted to the Assembly of the Republic on August 13th, having been discussed today by deputies.

The law provides the same penalty, from one to four years in prison, for "anyone who transports, imports, or exports" speedboats or uses them to "enter or leave the national territory" without authorization from the Tax and Customs Authority.

The bill also establishes that it will be mandatory to submit construction or modification plans for speedboats to the Directorate-General of Natural Resources, Security, and Maritime Services.

Anyone who fails to do so faces a penalty of up to two years in prison, as do crew members who carry more fuel than permitted in a speedboat or use devices, such as paint or electronic equipment, to conceal their vessels from radar detection.

This proposal aims to change the current regime, which was established in 1990 and only defines the rules governing the operation of these speedboats. Failure to comply with these rules is punishable by fines, now increased to a maximum of 25,000 euros for individuals and up to 100,000 euros for corporations.