“Half of what he says about what we’ve done is true. The other half is false, we didn’t promise everything, but the other half is true for everyone,” stated Pedro Nuno Santos on Saturday night during the presentation of João Azevedo’s candidacy for the Viseu City Council.
Pedro Nuno Santos emphasized that the PS’s policy measures “are for everyone, unlike the policy measures of Luís Montenegro.”
On Saturday, in Póvoa de Lanhoso, during the presentation of Fátima Alves as the candidate for the PSD/CDS-PP coalition — Together For Our Land in the local elections, Luís Montenegro compared the current PS, which presented its electoral program for the upcoming legislative elections, to that of former Prime Minister José Sócrates, alleging they “promise everything to everyone.”
Pedro Nuno Santos considered this to be “another illusion trick,” because, according to him, Luís Montenegro was not present at the PS electoral program presentation, as he was “seated in an audience elsewhere.”
“He tried to convey the idea that what we were presenting was not affordable, that we were being irresponsible. We, who left the country with a historic budget surplus,” he stated.
According to the General Secretary of the PS, the proposals presented on Saturday “cost roughly the same as what Luís Montenegro decided to forgo in corporate tax, which is set to benefit some enterprises, amounting to 1.5 billion euros.”
Concerning tax matters, Pedro Nuno Santos stated that what separates his party from the PSD “is not the reduction of taxes,” but rather how this reduction is executed.
“Our measures, which are for everyone, cost roughly the same. The difference is that ours are for all,” he highlighted.
The socialist leader assured that the taxes the PS intends to reduce are those paid by all Portuguese citizens, “but which especially burden those earning less,” hence “the concern to increase household income, through the increase of the minimum wage, the average wage, but also through what depends on the State.”
“When the PS wins the elections, we will have zero VAT on essential food items in Portugal again,” he added.
Pedro Nuno Santos expressed confidence that his party would win the legislative elections, “because Luís Montenegro has exhausted his credibility, his Government in ten months has shown incompetence in various fundamental areas,” and the PS has “the best project for Portugal.”
