During the presentation of the PS candidate for the Mirandela City Council, José Luís Carneiro expressed to journalists his observation that the minister’s intent seemed to retract on certain issues and not hasten the process.
The matters in question involve parental issues, such as reducing the maximum breastfeeding period and ending gestational bereavement leave. The Secretary-General of the Socialist Party advocates that labor laws should “continue to protect workers, especially the younger, female, and more vulnerable individuals in the job market,” urging the Prime Minister to maintain dialogue with the PS and demonstrate “responsibility” to safeguard values and promote “labor dignity” over “precariousness.”
“I am particularly concerned about the younger generation, as if we want to retain our youth in the country, the approximately 40% of qualified youth leaving Portugal, we must focus not only on salaries but also on stability and the intersection between personal, professional, and family life. These issues are evidently crucial for how we view the future State Budget,” he emphasized.
He also highlighted concerns over the privatization of healthcare and social security, opposing “any attempts to revise the basic health law or open social security to private entities.” Carneiro stated that the PS has “clear” and “objective” proposals to improve and reform the justice system.
In addition to proposals for the 2026 State Budget, José Luís Carneiro discussed a new local finance law. He declared his commitment to “a new approach to public policies for the interior and valuing territories,” through policies “tailored to territories” via “developmental territorial contracts that identify the needs and vulnerabilities of territories and local communities, allowing the state to allocate resources, support, and social tools to enhance living conditions in these areas.”
The Secretary-General of the PS expressed his full support for the PS candidate for the Mirandela municipality, Vítor Correia, the current mayor, who replaced Júlia Rodrigues after her election as a deputy in the Assembly of the Republic in May.
