In a strange move, the Portuguese President of the Republic recommended recently that all Portuguese nationals should spend their holidays in the country, instead of going abroad. The minister of the Economy did not like the idea, commenting that he wished that politicians abroad did not make similar statements because, if they did, and if foreign tourists stayed at home, Portugal would be ultimately affected, as the tourist balance is traditionally favourable to the country. Part of this dispute is due to politics, as the President is from the Social Democratic Party and the Government from the Socialist Party, and (direct) presidential elections are due soon. But part of the dispute also has deep roots that lye across the party spectrum. As a matter of fact, the President’s protectionist slip is not new, and many in Portugal, particularly in the centre-right and the far left, seem to back such kind of views.

Despite the strengthening of protectionism sentiment, European integration and the euro remain still quite popular in Portugal. There are two main reasons for that. Firstly, the modernization of the country in the past couple of decades is frequently associated with the positive impact of belonging to the European Union. It is hard to ascertain what would have happened if (oddly enough) Portugal had not joined the EU, but most people do not care much about counterfactuals, and they simply conclude that the Union was the cause of most of the good things that happened. Secondly, the euro brought down considerably interest rates and inflation, and a large majority of the population in the country benefited from such reductions.

But the positive feeling towards Europe is now mixed with the sentiment that the economy needs to be protected. It possibly comes as no surprise that such sentiment thrives in the left of the political spectrum, because the left tends to link globalization with unfettered capitalism (which is dangerously becoming truer). But, what is more surprising, is that protectionist ideas are also thriving among forces at the right hand side of the political spectrum, which should instead be arguing for freer markets and more competition. Such paradox can however be solved if it is taken into account that in Portugal there is an historical fear of loosing political independence and independence certainly is a great value for the right and centre-right.

How distant is Portugal from other countries in the European periphery? Are protectionist sentiments also rising in other parts of the periphery? Probably yes, and that may be an unattended consequence of the current crisis. If European governance is not improved, if the economic conditions in the poorer countries and regions are not taken care of, protectionism will have fertile grounds to prosper. That certainly is not good for economic integration within the Continent.