The Legislative Assembly of the Autonomous Region of Madeira has passed a resolution proposing to the Assembly of the Republic a change to the new model of the Social Mobility Allowance (SSM), which was approved in parliament last week and has already been published in the Diário da República.
During the proposal’s discussion, it was highlighted that the shift from subsidy to fare (Fare Island Resident) removes the requirement to fulfill tax and contributory obligations. This decision has drawn significant criticism from various political groups.
According to the proposal, “contrary constitutional duty and undermines the principles of cohesion and territorial continuity, structuring national solidarity.” In this sense, “any revision of the regime must therefore be guided by the strengthening of the rights achieved and not because of its limitation.”
Among the proposed changes, alongside ending the requirement for a regularized tax situation, there’s a focus on ensuring that SSM beneficiaries, when buying their ticket, only pay the reference amount they’re responsible for, something expected to become reality once the platform is up and running. Also included is the “prior hearing” of the regional governments of Madeira and the Azores in the process of approving the SSM value.
The required documents must be submitted through the mentioned platform, and the beneficiary will only need to return the awarded amounts if the trip is not made due to reasons attributable to them. However, this repayment doesn’t apply if the trip is cancelled because of extraordinary, unavoidable circumstances beyond the beneficiary’s control, which can be objectively proven, such as a medical emergency, hospitalisation, serious impediment, the death of a close family member, natural disaster, serious accident, public authority restrictions, or any exceptional event that makes travel impossible.
The proposal also includes: the safeguarding of “beneficiaries with digital access difficulties,” to whom Alternative forms of access should be made available.
For the maximum cost and the reference amount the beneficiary must cover, the same values apply whether it’s a one-way or a round trip. This has sparked a lot of debate, as the new model suggests halving the maximum eligible cost for a one-way trip. If the proposal goes through, the maximum limit of 400 euros will apply to any trip, whether one-way or round-trip.
The publication in the Official Gazette essentially kicks off the legislative process, making it public and more transparent. From there, the proposal goes to the relevant Specialised Parliamentary Committee, which will decide whether it should move on to the Plenary for a general discussion. If that happens, the process concludes with a vote to determine the next steps. If it fails, the process ends.
If approved, it moves on to Discussion and Vote in the Specialty. After that stage, the final text, often quite different from the original proposal from the Legislative Assembly of Madeira due to deputies’ amendments, goes back to the Plenary for another vote. Once approved there, the diploma is sent to the President of the Republic for promulgation. Only after this entire process can the proposals from the regional parliament be put into effect.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
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