Mr Barreto also said during a speech to mark Day of the City of Funchal that flights to the neighbouring island of Porto Santo were also intolerable.

“Whatever the root of the problem is and whatever corrective solutions to be undertaken, it is completely intolerable for us all to have the sensation that travelling to Madeira and Porto Santo by plane is a distressing and often uncertain experience,” he said.

According to Mr Barreto, the prices practiced had to be revised in order to create healthy competition with other destinations.