“This reduction is clearly insufficient; it solves absolutely nothing in people’s lives,” stated the parliamentary leader of IL, Mariana Leitão, during a press conference at the Assembly of the Republic. This was in response to the Government’s proposal, approved on Wednesday in the Council of Ministers, which foresees an additional reduction in income tax of 500 million euros, with decreases ranging from 0.4 to 0.6 percentage points between the first and eighth brackets.
Mariana Leitão emphasized that, with the Government’s proposal, a person earning 1,200 euros a month would only gain four euros more, which she considered, “does not obviously satisfy people” in light of the rising cost of living and housing prices.
“For a couple with two children, where each earns 1,500 euros, the decrease is 11 euros per month, which means each is relieved by 5.5 euros. A couple with two children… Therefore, this is clearly insufficient,” she reinforced.
Mariana Leitão highlighted that IL’s proposal in this matter is “much more ambitious,” noting that a person earning 1,200 euros would experience a monthly reduction of 76 euros, “which is already a substantial difference in their ability to cover expenses.”
“This is what was demanded from the Government: the ability to stop penalizing people for their work and relieve them. When the reductions are as insignificant as this and have so little impact on people’s lives, it is just another maneuver to announce that taxes were lowered,” she criticized.
When asked whether IL intends to vote against this proposal, Mariana Leitão refrained from announcing a voting intention, stating that she wants to examine it in detail to see if “there is room for some adjustments.”
“We need to see if there is space to go a little further because this proposal is clearly insufficient,” she said.
During these remarks to journalists, Mariana Leitão was asked about the date IL considers best for holding local elections, following a meeting that morning in the Assembly of the Republic with the Government on the matter.
The parliamentary leader of IL stated that the party advocates holding the elections on September 28, a date also supported by the PS, contrary to PSD, Chega, PCP, and Livre, who are calling for it to be on October 12.
For Mariana Leitão, September 28 seems to be the most suitable date because “it is further from the date of the presentation of the State Budget,” as opposed to October 12, when the Government’s budget proposal would have already been submitted to the Assembly of the Republic.
“The parliament and the country will already be focused on that, so September 28 seemed much more prudent, especially as it is also further from the presidential elections,” she said.
