The initiative was validated during the third day of specialty voting for the State Budget proposal for 2026 (OE2026).
With the newly approved measure, the government is set to review the results of the National Strategy to Combat Poverty Action Plan 2022-2025 in 2026 and carry out “a broad public consultation to develop a new action plan to be implemented in the 2027-2030 cycle.”
This plan, as outlined in the Livre text, should include objectives, measures, and implementation indicators, specifically aiming for “the reduction of the poverty risk rate in Portugal,” “intervention for particularly vulnerable people: children and young people, women, and those with low education levels,” “reduction of income distribution inequality,” “mitigation of regional disparities,” and the “combating of energy poverty.”
In the justification for the measure, the party emphasizes that, according to the 2024 social balance report, there are “nearly 1.8 million people living below the poverty line in Portugal, including the elderly, people with low education levels, immigrants, and rural residents,” and “more than two million people remain at risk of poverty or social exclusion.”
Another initiative, authored by PAN, was also approved today to strengthen the Independent Living Support Model (MAVI), a project the party describes as having “a crucial role in improving the living conditions of the disabled population.”
With this measure, the government must ensure “the provision of the necessary human, technical, and financial resources to guarantee the planning, execution, and coordination of national policies aimed at promoting the rights of people with disabilities or incapacity and the responsibilities associated with them, within the framework of Independent Living Support Model projects, in accordance with ordinance no. 415/2023, dated December 7.”
Explaining the objectives of the measure, PAN highlights that in September 2023, during the pilot phase of MAVI, “a total of 1042 Individualized Personal Assistance Plans” were active.
PAN advocates for the revision of the ordinance and also emphasizes the need to “ensure the provision of the necessary human, technical, and financial resources to guarantee the planning, execution, and coordination of national policies aimed at promoting the rights of people with disabilities or incapacity and the responsibilities associated with them.”
