The Socialist, Left Bloc (BE), Communist and Green parliamentary parties voted in favour, as did the single deputy for People-Animals-Nature and the independent deputy Paulo Trigo Pereira, after a consensus text had been reached in committee between the Socialists, BE and Communists.

The centre-right Social Democrats and People’s Party (CDS-PP), whose alternative bills were rejected, voted against the government’s bill.

Public-private partnerships (PPP) are not mentioned in the final text of the law and the law leaves for statutory regulation, within six months and probably only by the next government, the terms under which public management is to be exercised, with the repeal of the 2002 legislation that has provided the legal framework for PPPs until now.

Friday's vote marks the end of a period of open disagreement between theminority Socialist government and its leftist allies in parliament on whether to allow private management of public health units.