Pedro Delgado Alves, the coordinator of the Working Group on the Registration of Interests in the Portuguese Parliament, confirmed that he consulted the declaration of Luís Montenegro following notification from the Entity for Transparency (EpT) regarding changes made to it.
The socialist deputy stated that he reviewed the declaration “in accordance with protocol,” ahead of a meeting of the Working Group on the Registration of Interests. The group’s role involves assessing potential conflicts of interest or incompatibilities between declared activities and the exercise of public office.
“Subsequently, I spoke only with deputy Fabian Figueiredo [from the Left Bloc], a member of the working group, about the uncertainties the declaration raised, particularly entities that had no previous references,” said Pedro Delgado Alves.
When asked if he denies sharing this information with anyone outside the working group, Pedro Delgado Alves responded emphatically: “Precisely.”
He further expressed regret that individuals familiar with the procedural rules contribute to misinformation regarding the notification process, transparency assurances, and the nature of these declarations, noting that they are public by legal requirement. This response appeared to reference PSD deputy Hugo Carneiro.
On Wednesday, it was reported that Luís Montenegro submitted a new declaration to the Entity for Transparency, including seven new companies for which he worked under Spinumviva, a firm he founded and recently transferred to his children.
This revelation emerged shortly before a debate with PS representative Pedro Nuno Santos on Wednesday night, during which suspicion was raised that Montenegro might have influenced the timing to affect the debate.
Montenegro denied disseminating the document and on Thursday suggested that there are signs pointing to greater PS involvement in the disclosure of Spinumviva’s clients.
In light of the new details, PSD deputy Hugo Carneiro requested that the Parliamentary Registration of Interests Working Group solicit records from the Entity for Transparency to identify who accessed the prime minister’s data, aiming to discover who leaked the information to the media.
On Thursday, the PS, during a press conference, denied any responsibility for the leaking of Spinumviva’s clients and accused the government of maintaining a pattern of opacity and lack of transparency.
