The European Commission presented a new strategy for the nine outermost regions of the European Union, accompanied by a regulatory package aimed at adapting Community legislation to the particular conditions of these territories. The initiative intends that the geographic, economic and social specificities of these regions be considered more systematically when Brussels prepares legislation, covering areas such as agriculture, fisheries, migration and taxation.
For insular territories like the Azores and Madeira, one of the potentially most relevant areas is connectivity. The Commission intends to strengthen the air and maritime links of the outermost regions and take their distance from the continent into consideration when applying other European policies, preserving territorial continuity and access to essential services. The legal basis for these measures already exists in Article 349 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU.
Madeira is presented as the only European archipelago without any regular passenger maritime link to the mainland, a situation that contrasts with the Canary Islands and other European insular regions. The article argues that there is a systematic boycott of the ferry operation, fueled by a protection lobby and studies commissioned with pre-defined conclusions to protect the maritime cargo monopoly.
The article concludes that the obstacle to the ferry has never been in Europe, in the laws or in the lack of resources, but rather in Madeira's own internal complicity. Portugal, France and Spain will necessarily have to include specific measures for their respective outermost regions in the new partnership plans for the Multiannual Financial Framework from 2028 to 2034.
