“We were not going to make the political mistake of removing the lights, irreparably harming the tourist offer and transforming the New Year's Eve in Madeira into a painful situation, not to say catastrophic, from the point of view of attractiveness”, he said.

The island official, who was speaking during a visit to a beverage distribution company, in Funchal, reacted in this way to the decision of the Government of the Republic to limit decorative lighting at Christmas during the period between 18:00 and 24:00, according to the 2022-2023 energy saving plan.

“The idea is worthy and we should all adopt it”, said Miguel Albuquerque, stressing, however, that the Government of Madeira will not apply it in the region.

“Christmas lights are something that are decisive and fundamental for the end of the year in Madeira and for the tourist offer”, he said, stressing that “the multiplier effects” of this investment by the Regional Government “are, in fact, to make the Christmas in Madeira and, above all, the New Year, a tourist attraction.”

Miguel Albuquerque also underlined that it is an “exception in the name of the economy”.