Portuguese police forces protest in Lisbon to demand salary increases

The Police Professionals' Trade Union Association (ASPP/PSP) and the National Guard Professionals' Association (APG/GNR) are organising a national demonstration in Lisbon on 29 October to demand higher pay, revised career structures and allowances, and better conditions.

By Íris Marçal, in News · 29 Oct 2026, 11:35 · 0 Comments

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The demonstration, which will start at 5:30 pm at Largo do Carmo and end near the PM's residence, culminates a series of protests by both bodies in cities across the country since September.

Paulo Santos, President of the ASPP/PSP, told Lusa that the initiative is designed to put pressure on the government to meet the fundamental demands of the PSP and the GNR. He pointed out that these measures were part of an agreement with the government in 2024 and have still not been implemented over two years.

The head of the largest PSP union added that during the current round of talks with the authorities, all that has been offered are generalities and experiences, with no actual proposals put forward.

APG/GNR President César Nogueira also backed the decision of these officers to go on the streets as part of the negotiation following the professionals' decision not to put forward any real proposals on the commitments already agreed in 2024, citing the fact that the current pay scale for GNR officers is such that they are in fact being paid over €200 a month more than they should be. That is the very reason for the frustration and the lack of motivation.

César Nogueira explained that the decision to call off the protest at the Head of the Executive’s official residence was because Luís Montenegro is the ultimate authority in the Government and the Minister of Internal Administration simply doesn't have the political clout or ability to move things forward.

The current negotiating process is through technical meetings at the Ministry of Finance (PSP, GNR and the Secretaries of State for Internal Administration and for Public Administration), with a meeting with the Minister of Internal Administration scheduled for November.

When asked whether they had considered changing the date of the demonstration in the wake of the recent police interventions in the housing rights protests in Lisbon and Porto, Paulo Santos said they had, but still considered the demonstration quite appropriate.

He expressed his concern and solidarity about the housing issue, which he described as very worrying and which obviously also affects the police, but did point out that union action doesn't mix causes.