PORTUGAL NEW GOVERNMENT MEASURE NEW POLIECIES, INCLUDING IMMIGRATION AS WELLMEASURE NEW POLIECIES INCLUDING IMMIGRATION AS WELL …!

PORTUGAL NEW GOVERNMENT MEASURE NEW POLIECIES, INCLUDING IMMIGRATION AS WELL

The new Government led by Luís Montenegro has delivered its program with guidelines for the legislature to the Assembly of the Republic, a document that will be debated over the next two days in parliament.

After approval by the executive, the Minister of the Presidency, António Leit?o Amaro, stated that the document is based on the electoral program with which the Democratic Alliance (AD) presented itself to the March elections, but incorporates “more than 60 electoral program measures from other parties with parliamentary representation”.

Here are some of the main measures planned for various sectors of governance:

Remuneration supplement for performance in public service

The creation of individual career plans for public administration workers is planned, as well as a performance remuneration supplement or variable bonuses based on merit.

In his program, the executive led by Luís Montenegro defends "a medium-term human resources policy for each entity, as well as implementing individual career development plans for public servants".

Quick decision on new airport

The document reiterates the commitment to a quick decision on the location of the new Lisbon airport and the start of its construction as soon as possible.

“Completing the process of choosing the New Lisbon Airport and begin its construction as soon as possible, as well as other essential infrastructure, namely the Railway and the TGV (High Speed)”, is one of the planned measures.

The 184-page document contains few references to the new airport, but reiterates the commitment made by the Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, before being elected, to decide on the location of the infrastructure in the first days after the executive takes office.

Increase the supplement for seniors until reaching 820 euros in 2028

As one of the solutions proposed to combat poverty in Portugal, the AD executive proposes to increase the Solidarity Supplement for the Elderly (CSI) by 2028 to a reference value of 820 euros by 2028.

“To combat poverty, it is necessary to gradually increase the reference value of the Solidarity Supplement for the Elderly (CSI) to a value of 820 euros in 2028, with the aim of equalizing the value of the national minimum wage, in the following legislature, and improving access to social benefits so that those who actually need them can benefit from them”, the program reads.

Extend anti-corruption rules

The PSD-CDS executive intends to extend anti-corruption rules to political parties and the criminalization of illicit enrichment, implementing an “ambitious, rapid and ideally consensual agenda” to combat corruption.

The document, which describes corruption as “a serious problem that affects the quality of democracy, the efficiency of public management, the equity of the distribution of resources and the trust of citizens”, identifies prevention, repression and education as the three pillars of action in this area.

At a preventive level, the executive wants to extend anti-corruption rules to parties, “including in terms of risk prevention plans and codes of conduct” and the termination of functions of public leaders under a replacement regime for more than nine months, but also regulate the 'lobbying' – with the creation of a Transparency Register common to public entities and which is mandatory, publicly accessible and free.

Review careers at PSP and GNR as a priority

The executive will, “as a priority”, develop a process to “dignify the careers” and “professional and remunerative development” of police officers, according to the program delivered to the Assembly of the Republic, without specifying whether the risk allowance will be increased.

“Initiate, as a priority, a process of dignifying careers and professional and remunerative development of men and women who serve in the security forces, stimulating and promoting adequate professional motivations from the base of the pyramid to management and seeking to regain attractiveness of security careers”.

In the document, the executive led by Luís Montenegro also states that he wants to “initiate a process to recover the attractiveness of security careers, namely, through the aforementioned remuneration review”.

Timely consultation with a family doctor for everyone

In Health, the Government's program plans to ensure that patients receive general and family medicine consultations in a timely manner by the end of 2025 and assign a family doctor to all Portuguese people, starting with the most fragile.

These measures are part of the SNS Emergency Plan that the executive intends to present in 60 days, which aims to guarantee an urgent response in the area of maternal and child health, in primary and hospital health care.

Housing across five axes

Housing policy will be based on five axes, with the first focusing on increasing supply (private, public and cooperative), within which a program of public-private partnerships is proposed for “construction and rehabilitation in large scale, whether general housing or student accommodation”.

The second axis is based on the observation that it is necessary to promote “stability and confidence” in the rental market and includes measures such as “review and acceleration of mechanisms for rapid dispute resolution in the event of non-compliance with contracts”.

Thirdly, the Government maintains support for “vulnerable tenants”, aware that “the commitment to increasing the supply of private and public housing takes time”.

The fourth axis consists of support for young people to purchase their first home, through tax exemption and a public guarantee to enable bank financing of the entire price.

Revoking the “wrong measures” of the Mais Habita??o program, approved in October with only favorable votes from the PS, is an indication of the fifth axis of “reforms to resolve the crisis” in this sector.

Tax reduction

Among other tax measures, as included in the AD's electoral program, the Government Program foresees the reduction of IRC rates, with a gradual reduction of two percentage points per year, which aims to ensure the effective taxation of profits at a rate of 15%, as well as the gradual elimination of the progressiveness of the state surcharge and municipal surcharge in terms of IRC, ensuring in the case of the latter the competition through the State Budget of the loss of revenue for municipalities.

Maintaining the fiscal shock strategy, according to the electoral program, it promises to reduce the IRS up to the 8th bracket, through the reduction of marginal rates between 0.5 and 3 percentage points (pp.) compared to 2023, with a focus on the class average.

It also provides for the exemption of performance bonuses from contributions and taxes up to the equivalent limit of a monthly salary, as well as the reduction of the IRS bracket thresholds and the introduction of a synthetic notion of income subject to IRS.

Against "open doors" to immigration, admits quotas

The Government admits to limiting access to residence permits to immigrants with work visas or those looking for work and introducing "quantitative objectives" in the reception of foreigners.

The objective is to "adopt the principle that 'we are a country with open doors to immigration, but not wide open doors', materialized in quantitative objectives for immigration, considering the security dimension, prioritizing in terms of qualifications and avoiding exploitation by illegal and criminal networks", the program reads.

Resize the network of jails and community work instead of prison

Luís Montenegro's new executive is committed to resizing the network of prison establishments and social reintegration teams and reinforcing the provision of work in favor of the community as an alternative to prison.

It is also planned, within the scope of the prison system, to expand electronic surveillance teams and promote the differentiation and individualization of intervention in prisons.