At the end of the first round of questions from the ten political forces, PSD’s parliamentary group leader, Hugo Soares, highlighted the government’s time constraints, even after his party allocated ten minutes to the prime minister. He urged the chamber to approve an additional ten minutes for the executive, noting that the social democrats did not intend to forego more time.
The President of the Assembly of the Republic, Aguiar-Branco, presented the issue to the plenary. However, PS parliamentary leader, Eurico Brilhante Dias, immediately refused, stating the government was aware of the rules and should manage its time better, urging PSD to donate more time.
Prime Minister Luís Montenegro asserted he had managed his time judiciously, highlighting that of the 40 minutes allotted for the initial intervention, he used only 25. He felt it was necessary to respond to the initial clarification requests with equal time, five minutes, as a matter of institutional respect.
“I share with the chamber that, in the leaders’ conference, they can consider the best model so this debate can proceed effectively and efficiently,” he stated.
Only BE, CDS-PP, and PSD yielded some time, totaling 4 minutes and 11 seconds, and the prime minister indicated he would respond collectively to the 27 clarification requests.
