Corruption crisis engulfs Portugal as PM stands down
António Costa implicated in corruption probe over award of contracts for two large-scale lithium-mining projects

Portugal's Prime Minister António Costa resigned yesterday after police raided his official residence and confirmed his implication in a corruption probe over lithium mines and a green-hydrogen project.
With "the country's leadership now in flux" said Politico, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa must exercise his constitutional right to "either appoint a new prime minister, or dissolve parliament, sparking an election".
Following Costa's resignation announcement, De Sousa said he would seek advice from leaders of political parties with representation in parliament, before the Council of State, an advisory body to the president, meets on Thursday.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The corruption probe is investigating the award of contracts by the government for two large-scale lithium-mining projects, "as Portugal tries to win a place for itself in Europe's growing battery-manufacturing production chain", said The Economist.
Prosecutors said that in the course of their investigations, suspects had invoked the "name and authority" of Costa and suggested he had made interventions to "unblock procedures".
Costa said he was "surprised" to learn "a criminal case has already been or will be initiated against me", and insisted that he had nothing to do with any "illicit or reprehensible act".
"But regardless of this, the dignity of the role of prime minister and the trust that the Portuguese people have in institutions are absolutely incompatible with [having] a prime minister who faces suspicions about his integrity," he added.
Paulo Otero, a law professor at the University of Lisbon, called it the gravest moment of institutional discredit since the country became a democracy in 1976.
"What is at stake is not suspicion about former rulers or a former prime minister, but about a prime minister in office," he told Público, a Portuguese newspaper.
Whoever succeeds Costa "will face the difficult task of restoring public trust in government", said The Economist.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jamie Timson is the UK news editor, curating The Week UK's daily morning newsletter and setting the agenda for the day's news output. He was first a member of the team from 2015 to 2019, progressing from intern to senior staff writer, and then rejoined in September 2022. As a founding panellist on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast, he has discussed politics, foreign affairs and conspiracy theories, sometimes separately, sometimes all at once. In between working at The Week, Jamie was a senior press officer at the Department for Transport, with a penchant for crisis communications, working on Brexit, the response to Covid-19 and HS2, among others.
-
Why some people remember dreams and others don't
Under The Radar Age, attitude and weather all play a part in dream recall
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
The Week contest: Hotel seal
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
New FBI Director Kash Patel could profit heavily from foreign interests
The Explainer Patel holds more than $1 million in Chinese fashion company Shein
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Russia frees US teacher Marc Fogel in murky 'exchange'
Speed Read He was detained in Moscow for carrying medically prescribed marijuana
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Hamas pauses Gaza hostage release, upending ceasefire
Speed Read Hamas postponed the next scheduled hostage release 'until further notice,' accusing Israel of breaking the terms of their ceasefire deal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Baltic States unplug from Russian grid, join EU's
Speed Read Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are disconnecting from the Soviet-era electricity grid to join the EU's network
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
At least 11 killed in Sweden adult ed school shooting
Speed Read The worst mass shooting in Swedish history took place in Orebro
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Who is the Hat Man? 'Shadow people' and sleep paralysis
In Depth 'Sleep demons' have plagued our dreams throughout the centuries, but the explanation could be medical
By The Week Staff Published
-
Same-sex marriage becomes legal in Thailand
Speed Read The law grants same-sex spouses the same rights as married heterosexual couples
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Top Israeli general to resign over Oct. 7 failures
Speed Read Herzi Halevi took responsibility for his failure to prevent the attacks that sparked Israel's war in Gaza
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
80 dead in Colombia amid uptick in guerrilla fighting
Speed Read This was the country's deadliest wave of violence since the peace accords set by President Gustavo Petro in 2016
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published