“It is very important that we have a strategy to help our industry, otherwise we will face serious problems in the coming years,” declared Pedro Nuno Santos to journalists during a visit to the Feira das Tasquinhas, held in Rio Maior, Santarém district, continuing until Sunday.
The socialist leader reiterated his criticisms of Luís Montenegro’s government, which he accused of failing to respond to the new tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Donald Trump announced on Wednesday new American tariffs of 20% on imported EU products, in addition to the existing 25% tariffs on the automotive, steel, and aluminum sectors.
“What we would have done is already adopted, announced, and presented a support package for our industry, particularly for the industry that will be or is at risk of being most affected by the tariffs,” stated Pedro Nuno Santos.
For the socialist secretary-general, “it is very important” that the country supports the national industry, especially “certain sectors that were already experiencing some difficulties, such as the automotive components industry, which may now suffer even more.”
For the Socialist Party, “the country must have an economic strategy, be capable of identifying the sectors and technological areas where it should focus as a priority,” with the goal of achieving “a more sophisticated, more complex economy, which should be the first priority of any government.”
Considering a lack of “economic proactivity on the part of the Portuguese government,” Pedro Nuno Santos stated: “what we have is a government that has always been much more concerned with small tricks, like those related to the IRS.”
Recalling that Prime Minister Luís Montenegro had promised “a tax cut without tricks,” the socialist leader mentioned that “today many Portuguese people are realizing” that, in fact, “there was a trick.”
The trick, he explained, “was to have altered the withholding tax table to minimize tax retention,” but now, as the time for IRS submission approaches, “many Portuguese who were used to receiving IRS refunds in April are now paying taxes and some receiving nothing.”
He concluded, stating that “it is a government full of tricks, furthermore, it is a government that is very insincere in its relationship with the Portuguese people and with Portugal.”
Pedro Nuno Santos was speaking in Rio Maior, Santarém district, where he visited the Feira das Tasquinhas, ongoing until the 6th.
