Speaking to Lusa on the side-lines of a meeting with her Spanish counterpart in Seville, Constança Urbano de Sousa said the law had not been finalised yet and was undergoing “internal consultations” to gather contributions.

For the fourth time since last July, two foreign citizens tried to escape from Lisbon airport in January when they were in transit, situations the internal affairs ministry describes as attempts at illegal immigration.

As regards the accusations by a German minister that Portugal does not automatically share information with the European Union about finger prints and vehicle registration numbers to combat terrorism, Constança Urbano de Sousa said this was a matter for the justice ministry.

However, she did add that the fact there was no automatic interchange, “does not mean there is no interchange of information".