“I must start by saying that during this crisis, similar to others, there was a great insensitivity, an inability to anticipate, and an unpreparedness to respond. From the outset, there was insensitivity for not understanding that it should have done the same as in 2024 when the PSD Congress was postponed,” criticized José Luís Carneiro, representing the PS, during the parliamentary debate on “The situation of fires in Portugal” with the presence of Prime Minister Luís Montenegro.
The PS leader argued that the PSD party event in Pontal should have been postponed because “the population was suffering and experiencing very dramatic moments.”
“The Prime Minister has the right to his vacation and all members of the Government have the right to their vacations, but for the Portuguese population, it was incomprehensible how such an insensitive sign was given to those suffering in the territory,” he condemned.
Towards the end of the debate, José Luís Carneiro questioned Luís Montenegro on whether he was “available to ensure that the operation of aerial means will be conducted by the Air Force in the future.”
The PS leader ran out of time during this phase of his intervention but continued speaking with his microphone turned off, prompting the parliamentary president to ask him to end his intervention. Carneiro continued to speak for a few moments, although he could not be heard in the room.
Carneiro noted that the Prime Minister proposed a 25-year pact, agreeing on the need for a long-term commitment to combat territorial asymmetries, inequalities and to promote economic and social cohesion.
“But before that, I have the duty to tell the Portuguese: where is the plan for valuing the interior, approved by the PS governments? Where is the plan for the revitalization of Serra da Estrela? At what stage is the land registration? Where is the reform of rustic property? Where are the landscape protection areas? Where are the village condominiums? Where is the reform of the National Firefighters School that was left in the transition folder? Where is the revision of the financing law for humanitarian associations?” he questioned.
[News updated at 16:36]
