“I hope tomorrow [Thursday] to announce to the country that, regarding tax reduction and immigration, we have reached the minimum possible consensus to approve measures that will come into effect quickly in the country by Friday,” he said, indicating that he hopes to make this announcement with Prime Minister Luís Montenegro.
André Ventura spoke to journalists in Cacém, Sintra municipality, district of Lisbon, where he accompanied the party’s candidate for the Sintra City Council during a campaign event.
The Chega leader indicated that he was not present at today’s meeting with the Ministers of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, and Parliamentary Affairs, Carlos Abreu Amorim, as he will be meeting the Prime Minister on Thursday.
“I will be with the Prime Minister tomorrow, which I think is what a party leader should do. The meeting is now happening at the level of the parliamentary group with the Government, and tomorrow I think I will have the opportunity, if it happens, to announce this understanding with the Prime Minister,” he stated.
Asked about the time and place of this meeting, André Ventura said he did not have “much information on that.”
The leader of Chega indicated that “negotiations are still ongoing” and appealed to the Government to “show goodwill to reach an understanding either tonight or during the day tomorrow.”
Ventura said today’s meeting with the ministers “aims to articulate, prepare, and reach consensus on immigration and taxation matters,” with representatives from Chega, including Parliamentary Leader Pedro Pinto and the Chairman of the Budget and Finance Committee, MP Rui Afonso.
Questioned on Chega’s voting intention regarding the Government’s parliamentary proposals on IRS reduction and changes to nationality and immigration laws, which will be debated and voted on Friday, André Ventura did not provide specifics.
“We are currently negotiating with the Government,” he said, highlighting the differences between Chega’s proposals and those of the Government.
“We will wait for the meeting with the Government to see also how open the Government is to this path that is being undertaken. Now, it is also important that the Government decides which path it wants to take in this legislature” and shows “goodwill” to negotiate with the opposition, he asserted.
He admitted that the proposals might be relegated to the committee stage but warned that “the process would be longer and take more time.”
“I think that if there is goodwill, if there are leaders with goodwill and parties with goodwill, we can at least reach a common understanding in these sensitive matters and ensure that the laws come into force quickly. We should not spend months and months in discussions that people then stop following, resulting in nothing coming into effect,” he argued.
Asked about the Prime Minister’s intention to review strike laws, André Ventura stated that some laws can be revisited as long as they do not compromise fundamental rights, but ensure that individuals cannot inconvenience others without valid reasons.
“Chega is open to revisiting rights, but always with this focus. The focus should neither be to limit the right to strike nor compromise it; the focus should be on ensuring that the population who paid for the services, whether with taxes, passes, or other means, continue to have the means necessary for work, such as transportation, healthcare, or others, and when they do not, they are compensated for it,” he argued.
