Portuguese police cleared a rights-to-housing protest camp in central Lisbon on October 25, 2026, arresting 25 people in an operation that protest organisers said injured around 60 demonstrators; police reported seven minor injuries, according to Al Jazeera. Two days later, on October 27, thousands of people rallied outside parliament in Lisbon over the housing crisis and the camp’s clearance, according to Africanews and Euronews.
The protesters’ core demand is that the government scrap a rental-reform bill that would make evictions easier and end rent caps on new leases. The bill has already passed its first reading in parliament, with the far-right Chega party abstaining rather than voting against it. Organisers argue the reform would weaken protections for tenants in a market where rents in Lisbon have risen sharply in recent years, pricing out both long-term residents and newer arrivals, including foreign buyers and renters drawn to the city.
The CGTP trade union confederation, one of the protest’s organisers, has called a further demonstration outside parliament for November 24, 2026, meaning the dispute is set to continue rather than resolve with the latest clearance. For anyone renting, buying or already holding property in Lisbon, the bill’s current trajectory — a first-reading pass despite the street opposition — is the clearest signal yet of where the rules may be heading before the legislative process concludes.
References
Al Jazeera – Portuguese Police Clear Lisbon Housing Protest Camp, Arrest 25 / Africanews – Portugal: Lisbon Housing Crisis Sparks Protest Outside Parliament
