According to the note released, the government decree-law amends the General Regulation of Prison Establishments to allow the installation of telephones in cells, "complementing the availability of telephone cabins located in the common areas of the prison establishments”.

The measure was approved by the Council of Ministers on 25 August, with the note explaining that the aim is to "reinforce people's contacts with their families and with their significant others, in more dignified conditions. As well as giving more privacy and in the hours after work and after their children finish school".

The system has already been tested in pilot projects during 2020 and 2021 in the Linhó, Odemira, Leiria, Santa Cruz do Bispo and Caldas da Rainha Prison Establishments, with the installation of 846 fixed phones. This has been applied in other countries as well including France, the United Kingdom and Belgium.

"The system safeguards security needs - it only allows calls to telephone numbers previously approved and with the duration established by the prison services, and cannot be made available in special security establishments", said the Ministry of Justice in a statement, who added a "very positive assessment of the pilot projects implemented and pointed to the "gradual expansion" to all prisons.