The Secretary-General of the Socialist Party (PS), Pedro Nuno Santos, emphasized on Thursday that the “most significant political challenge” in Portugal is the transformation of the Portuguese economy into a more sophisticated, complex economy capable of generating greater added value.
“We can exchange some ideas here about what I believe is the greatest political challenge we have in Portugal, which is transforming the Portuguese economy into a more sophisticated, more complex economy that can produce greater added value. This is an old challenge,” he began by contextualizing during sessions for the electoral program for the Legislative elections on May 18.
The socialist highlighted a “series of mistakes we have been making over the years,” advocating for the selectivity of the incentive system.
“The country does not have infinite budgetary and financial capacity, and we must be able to use the public resources under the responsibility of the Portuguese government intelligently, taking advantage of what our economy already has,” he argued.
Pedro Nuno Santos pointed out that Portugal has “an economy with scientific, technological, and business expertise, which allows us to see that there is significant potential in some sectors, in some technological areas,” which “should receive special attention so that we can achieve a more accelerated transformation of our economy than is currently happening.”
“It is underway, but we need to accelerate. It is one of the most important ways to achieve an economy capable of providing better wages for the Portuguese. That is our main objective: for the Portuguese people to live better, for our companies to produce better value, but also for our workers to have better wages,” he said.
Over five days, each session will involve approximately 12 guests and will focus on ideas and contributions for the drafting of the 2025 Legislative Manifesto, with which the PS will present itself at the anticipated elections.
According to information advanced to Lusa by official sources, the sessions will be closed, with only the initial interventions by the PS leader open to the media at each session.
On Wednesday, the morning focused on housing, while the afternoon was dedicated to the National Health Service.
On Thursday morning, the discussions centered on work, wages, and social security, transitioning to the “transforming economy” in the afternoon.
On Friday, there will be only one session in the afternoon concerning “International Relations, Europe, and Defense.”
As next week begins, Monday morning will address the topics of territory, local government, agriculture, and the sea, while the afternoon will focus on environment and climate.
The final day, Tuesday, will feature a panel on “Democracy, Transparency, and Fundamental Rights” in the morning, with debates on justice and internal security in the afternoon.
The PS has also opened this process of updating its electoral program to civil society, creating an email address to receive contributions and planning to hold several district sessions to gather insights from members and sympathizers.
The first of these sessions will take place on Thursday in Baixo Alentejo, with subsequent meetings in Porto, Lisbon, Aveiro, Guarda, and Leiria on Saturday.
On Friday, Pedro Nuno Santos announced that the party would present an electoral program resulting from an updated version of what was presented in the last elections. To accomplish this, five days of sectoral sessions will be conducted, with the coordination of this update led by PS deputy and former JS leader Miguel Costa Matos.
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