The Finance Minister informed Parliament today that despite the completion of the "emergency period" of the past three years, the country continues to face challenges.

"We still have many challenges ahead. We continue to be in a situation of excessive deficit this year, we have a high debt. This calls for continued effort, not with the same intensity they we have had in the last three years, the emergency phase is already over, but that does not mean that everything is resolved," according to Maria Luis Albuquerque.

The deputy governor of the Bank of Portugal, Pedro Duarte Neves, has been under a degree of pressure of late as his memory has developed a tendency to fail him at key moments.

Neves has been shifted, not shifted out as many had hoped, but shifted sideway within the cosy Bank of Portugal structure despite his clear failure to supervise Banco Espírito Santo in any recognisable measurable way.

A young male driver died and four were injured in a crash on the notorious Tunes section of the IC1 in the Algarve late this morning.

One of the four injured is said to be in a serious condition by hospital staff in Faro.

The riverside park to the west of Faro officially was opened on Sunday morning and according to the mayor the site aims to be "a new centre" for the city.

The waterfront area is accessible from the roundabout by Teatro das Figuras and stretches towards the airport but so far has no events planned, just walking or cycling along the waterside.

Some good news for a change for Spain as the OECD think tank declared that the country appears to be on the path to recovery.

The organisation said Spain’s economy has had a “major turnaround” thanks to “courageous reforms” in the banking sector instituted over the last two years and to public sector spending cuts.

Ryanair is set for the long haul with its order of 200 new Boeing 737 aircraft worth $22bn (£13.6bn).

The new planes provide eight more seats on each flight for a total of 197 as well as fuel savings of 20%.

The price of oil has fallen to less than $100 a barrel for the first time in 16 months.

The drop to $99.95 came after data from China added to fears that the world’s second largest economy could be heading for economic slowdown.

Health Minister Paulo Macedo last week interrupted his Algarve holiday to visit the hospital in Portimão to observe the results of renovation works and the reorganisation of the ER and inpatient areas.

During the visit, the Minister said that the redesign and reorganisation of the emergency admission area has ended the necessity for patients to be placed on trolleys in the hospital corridors.