The parliamentary leader of Iniciativa Liberal (IL), Mariana Leitão, criticized the government program during the conclusion of the debate on the XXV Constitutional Government’s agenda, stating the country “does not have time for empty programs” nor “room for governments lacking ambition.” She emphasized the need for an ambitious program, which she felt was replaced by a “timid, vague text that avoids major decisions and reiterates past failed formulas.”
“This program is merely a political balancing act, a catalog of intentions crafted not to offend anyone. Yet, it is precisely this that makes it offensive. By avoiding difficult choices, it relinquishes leadership,” remarked Leitão, also a candidate for the liberal leadership.
Leitão noted Portugal needed a “break” but instead received “yet another patch,” asserting IL as the “clearest and most consistent opposition to this Government” and accusing the executive of lacking courage in its program.
According to the IL leader, the country requires a “management shock to the State” focused on transparency, accountability, and demand, and which knows how to “step aside when unnecessary.”
Leitão also stated that “the current State is an obstacle to progress” and as long as the PSD manages the system, “Portugal will remain stuck in decades of delay” because, she argued, the social democrats “do not wish to reform the State,” only providing “more competent management of immobility.”
“The State as it stands is the greatest hindrance to Portugal’s future. The country can no longer endure governments afraid to challenge the system that sustains them. The country needs reforms, not inconsequential plans,” she declared.
In education, IL accused the Government of repeating the mistake of “ignoring the lack of autonomy in schools.” In housing, they criticized the reliance on the State as a promoter of construction. Leitão lamented the government’s failure to initiate a “gradual and consistent” reduction in IRS, maintaining a “fiscal stranglehold.”
Mariana Leitão highlighted that what separates the liberals from the Government is the “courage to cut what is unnecessary” and in the “part of the State that is useless” to “free up resources for what matters” such as “swift justice, demanding education, universal health, and effective security.”
