The proposal was approved, according to a municipal source, by a majority, with the favourable votes of the Novos Tempos coalition (PSD/CDS-PP/MPT/PPM/Aliança) and the abstention of the remaining forces, during a private meeting of the municipal executive, after the introduction of a proposal by the Bloco de Esquerda (BE). The new PMPSSA, with a six-year time horizon, aims to meet 23 objectives, through the development of 89 measures in the areas of prevention, intervention in street situations, housing, social integration, and knowledge and communication. The document, originally signed by the councillor for Social and Human Affairs, Sofia Athayde, was the target of several criticisms from the opposition (PS, PCP, Livre, BE and Cidadãos Por Lisboa) and was only approved after incorporating an amendment indicated by the BE. The proposal of the Bloquistas, included in the final version with the opposing vote of the Novos Tempos coalition, foresees that by the end of this local government term (2025) the municipality will make 800 places available in the "Housing First" model (supported transition houses) for people in homeless situations. Initially, the proposal of the Novos Tempos foresaw that the Lisbon City Council would maintain the 400 places that already exist until 2027, foreseeing "changes only after this local government term". In the proposal, to which the Lusa agency had access, it is explained that the construction of the PMPSSA "is based on a participatory process that involved around 500 people, including those who are directly in this situation, and 36 entities". In a note sent to Lusa, the PS councillors criticise the fact that the document "pushes the social response to the next term", at a time when the number of homeless people in the city of Lisbon has "increased exponentially". "Of the 70 million euros announced in the 2024-30 Plan, only 15 million are for 2024 and 25, in a measure of 7.5 million euros per year. The reinforcement will only be felt in the next term, with an average of 11 million per year, when Lisbon is experiencing a situation of social urgency", refer the socialists. In the same vein, the Livre councillors state that this is a "very qualified" plan, but that it is "outdated", not providing "responses to current needs". The Cidadãos Por Lisboa (elected by the PS/Livre coalition) express reservations about the "execution schedule", which "pushes many lines of action to after 2025", which is why they abstained. The position is shared by the PCP, for whom, "faced with the emergency of an intervention", it is "incomprehensible to push the major investments to 2030". The criticisms were rejected by Sofia Athayde, who, in statements to Lusa, assured that this is "the best possible plan" for the city. "This plan for people in homeless situations is a plan that is seen over the next seven years. We are already creating responses and we have been increasing the number of places, with diversified responses. More than criticising, we need to see what is already being done on the ground", she pointed out. Regarding the BE's amendment proposal incorporated in the original proposal, the mayor regretted that it had emerged "after the public consultation", classifying it as "opportunistic". "I will not give importance to something that has already arrived outside the public consultation. These are these opportunistic issues of the Bloco de Esquerda that are constant. What I said to the Bloco is that we have been working since September 2023 with all the parties. I believe that the plan's proposals had incorporated all the responses and solutions to this problem", she stressed. The proposal will now be submitted to the Lisbon Municipal Assembly. The Lisbon executive, composed of 17 members, includes seven elected members of the Novos Tempos coalition (PSD/CDS-PP/MPT/PPM/Aliança) -- the only ones with assigned portfolios and who govern without an absolute majority --, three from the PS, two from the PCP, three from the Cidadãos Por Lisboa (elected by the PS/Livre coalition), one from the Livre and one from the Bloco de Esquerda. Read Also: United Kingdom. Ministers abandon plans to "criminalise" homeless people (Portuguese version)