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Introducing the new Lisbon Consul Simona Demuro was appointed British Consul to Lisbon at the end of May this year, but having spent several weeks preparing for her new career at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, she has only recently taken up her post in the Portuguese capital.
Simona Demuro, who is now responsible for the consular team in Lisbon, will also supervise the Honorary Consulates in Funchal, Oporto, and Ponta Delgada. In an interview granted to The Portugal News at the Embassy in Lisbon, spoke of the tasks that lie ahead and what she thinks of her appointment. Simona Demuro has worked for the British Council for the past 12 years and was Examinations Manager for Portugal, based in Lisbon, between 1998 and 2006, when she also dealt with English language outreach programmes throughout the country. “I am very fortunate that the team is very knowledgeable and professional”, she explains when questioned over how she has coped with her new role the past few weeks. “I have done a bit of shadowing, I think it would be a bit unfair to deal with it all on my own”, she adds, but stresses the first month or two as Lisbon Consul have been relatively hassle free thanks to the support she has received from her team. “They are a fantastic team”, she boasts. As for her appointment earlier this year, she admits she was hopeful she would be selected. “I was always interested in working at the Embassy, it was there in the back of mind”, when she worked at the British Council in Lisbon a few years earlier. “I was on a short-list of 12 after a sifting process which had reduced the number of candidates down to 135. I was delighted to be amongst the last six and the final two”. And the rest is history. Speaking after her appointment, British Ambassador Alex Ellis said: “I am delighted that Simona is joining us to lead the Consulate in Lisbon and oversee our very busy Honorary Consular network in Oporto, Funchal and Ponta Delgada. Simona’s mix of public sector and client experience with the British Council, alongside her many years as a resident in Lisbon, give her just the right profile to lead the Consulate in providing a consistently excellent service to British residents and visitors alike.” Praise indeed, but the new Lisbon Consul explains how she was taken aback when she realised the FCO was looking for a person outside of the United Kingdom. “When I saw the advertisement I was rather surprised that they were looking for a locally engaged consul, but since starting here I have come to understand the thinking behind my appointment”, adds Mrs. Demuro, who turned 40 this year. The new Lisbon Consul, who replaced Mark Crathorne after he vacated the job late last year, says she applied for the post for “a number of different reasons”. “I love challenges”, she explains, but reasons further “That does not mean that I left my previous job because I had become bored”. Prior to her post in Lisbon, Mrs. Demuro was Head of Examinations for the British Council in Spain, and was based in Madrid. “My husband and I decided we wanted to be back in Portugal which is a fantastic place to bring up children (she has two aged six and three) and Portugal is also a fantastic place to live.” Speaking of her aims and ambitions for the future, the Consul says: “We want to get closer to the resident community”, recalling a recent lunch at the Ambassador’s official residence where a number of prominent figures were invited to express their views on the needs of the British expatriate community in Portugal. “This was an opportunity to bring together different associations we want to work closer with”, she adds. In a letter sent to the guests who attended, Mrs. Demuro said the Consul was also looking to do a number of roadshows in partnership with the Department of Work and Pensions and Department of Health (DWP/DH) around Portugal in the next 12 months. “The roadshows will be similar to the ones that have already been happening around Spain”, said Mrs Demuro. As for work at the consul, she stresses the need to “maintain high standards at consuls”. “In terms of consular work you represent your country and you are the face that people see when they are in trouble.” As for the mid and long term future, Simona Demuro remains pragmatic: “Life throws so many things at you, it depends what lies around the corner. We are living in times of constant change.” And her hands will be full if figures released last week by the UK Office of National Statistics are anything to go by. Around 1,629,000 British nationals visit Portugal every year and while most visits are trouble-free, a total of 383 British nationals required consular assistance in Portugal in the period between 1 April 2009 and 31 March 2010 for the following types of incident: deaths (218 cases); hospitalisations (92 cases); and arrests, for a variety of offences (8 cases). During this period assistance was also requested with regard to lost or stolen passports (618 cases). According to figures provided by the British Embassy, approximately 50,000 British residents live in the Algarve and 30,000 in the rest of Portugal. A further 30,000 own holiday homes. Consular work is divided between assisting British nationals, (deaths, hospitalisation, detainees, prisoners and ‘protection work’), and carrying out notarial services (birth and death registrations, the legalisation of translations, marriage formalities and car importation certificates). In 2009, Consular Services in Portugal issued a total of 621 emergency passports, 211 deaths were dealt with, 97 hospitalisation cases were assisted together with a total of 1,500 other assistance cases of varying dimensions. Brendan de Beer
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