In its most recent periodic report, on the application in Portugal of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UN Committee highlights that the law on the Protection of Children and Minors gives preference to protection measures in the natural environment of life, that is, with family members, for children from the age of six.

On the other hand, it shows concern for the fact that institutionalisation remains widespread, including for children under the age of three "and for reasons attributed to poverty or disability".

Portugal "must ensure that policies and practices are guided by the principle that material or financial poverty - or conditions solely attributed to poverty - can never be the only justification for removing a child from parental care, for receiving a child in alternative care or for preventing the social reintegration of a child," says the committee.

Portugal should adopt a strategy of general deinstitutionalisation and guarantee the existence of foster families throughout the country, and should take all the necessary measures to prevent the withdrawal of children from the family, firstly by guaranteeing adequate support for vulnerable parents and families, so that children over the age of six are put in a foster family and never in an institution.

Still on the subject of poverty, the Committee says it is concerned about "persistent wage inequalities" and high at-risk-of-poverty rates among children, especially those living in non-conventional housing, such as gypsies and afro-descendants.

In its report, the Committee calls on the country to amend its legislation and remove "all exceptions allowing marriage before the age of 18", increase the number of homes for children who are victims of domestic violence, abuse or neglect and ensure a "complete ban on corporal punishment, however light. It also recommends that the minimum age for attending bullfights be 18 years.

It calls on Portugal to ensure that all professionals working with children, in particular social workers, police, health professionals, among others, have mandatory training on children's rights and wants to see the best interests of children reflected in all legislation and policies.

The UN Committee also voiced concern that Portugal would continue without a National Strategy for Children, and criticised the "unnecessary delays" in approval, pointing out that it undermines the monitoring of the implementation of the convention.