Finance Minister Joaquim Miranda Sarmento stated on Wednesday that if there is “budgetary room,” the government “will again grant an extraordinary pension supplement.” The social democrat also dismissed the possibility of the Socialist Party (PS) voting against the State Budget for 2026 due to pension increases and described José Luís Carneiro as “much more moderate” than Pedro Nuno Santos.
In an interview with SIC Notícias’ ‘Negócios da Semana’, Miranda Sarmento emphasized that the government “will do everything to maintain the balance of public accounts and the reduction of public debt.”
“We will manage the budget as rigorously as possible,” he asserted. “It is a government goal to maintain the balance of public accounts.”
The Finance Minister highlighted the importance of continuing to reduce public debt, aiming at “90% this year and 87% next year.” “We must maintain this path of reducing public debt. This is the government’s commitment to the Portuguese people,” he stated.
When questioned about the approval of the State Budget, Miranda Sarmento mentioned that the government “engages in dialogue with all” parties, and the document “will be endorsed by those who believe it should be endorsed.”
However, he acknowledged that “parties understood that the country must maintain a path of balanced accounts and reduced public debt.”
He further noted that “if there is budgetary room,” the government “will again grant an extraordinary pension supplement,” but warned that “2026 will be the most challenging budget exercise.”
When asked about the possibility of the PS “demanding” an increase at the base of this supplement in the State Budget discussions, Miranda Sarmento declared that the Socialist Secretary-General is “more moderate” than his predecessor, Pedro Nuno Santos, and “will not take an irresponsible stance.”
“The Socialist Party cannot, in my opinion, criticize the increase of structural expenses and then take measures that increase structural expenses,” he argued.
He added: “It is true that this happened under the previous leadership of Pedro Nuno Santos, but I must recognize that José Luís Carneiro is a much more moderate, realistic, and centrist leader.”
Nevertheless, he rejected sending a “message” to the PS Secretary-General and reiterated that “José Luís Carneiro is much more moderate than Pedro Nuno Santos.”
“Pedro Nuno Santos is a poor leader for the Socialist Party, and it was proven, but he would have been a good leader for the Left Bloc,” he commented.
Local Elections? “There is an unequivocal victory for the AD”
The interview also touched on last Sunday’s local elections, in which the PSD, either alone or in coalition, secured 136 municipalities, while the PS obtained 127.
“There is an unequivocal victory for the AD. There was a strengthening of the AD, which won the five largest municipalities in the country,” he said in the interview with SIC Notícias’ ‘Negócios da Semana’.
“We were about 35 municipalities behind the Socialist Party. We turned this difference around, and today we have more municipalities than the Socialist Party. It is a clear signal that the country has chosen the AD,” he illustrated, emphasizing that “there is a feeling that the government is governing well.”
In both solo and coalition efforts, the PSD managed to elect the highest number of mayors, 136, according to provisional results from the Ministry of Internal Administration, with the social democrats governing with an absolute majority in 109 councils.
Of these, 78 were elected on PSD-exclusive lists, and 58 in coalitions. In total, the PSD garnered approximately 1.9 million votes, amounting to 34.31% of the total.
Compared to the previous local elections in 2021, the party gained 22 more municipalities (previously holding 114) and reversed the leadership in local governance, securing more municipalities and parishes than the PS (128 in total), which will allow it to lead the National Association of Portuguese Municipalities (ANMP) and the National Association of Parishes (Anafre), a goal set by PSD leader and Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro.
