AD shoots the ER: “It’s easier to say ‘no’ than to work on a solution”

Othe parliamentary leaders of AD today returned to the PS the accusations of intransigence in housing, with social democrat Hugo Soares accusing the socialists of trying to deny reality.

“It’s easier to say no than to work on a solution,” said the president of the PSD bench, at the end of a meeting in São Bento with the Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, in which finance ministers, Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, and Housing, Miguel Pinto Luz, were also present.

A few hours earlier, during the same meetings, PS Secretary-General José Luís Carneiro had regretted that an agreement was not possible to “build from scratch” a new rent law or the concept of moderate income, having accused Montenegro of intransigence.

“What I think is that a party that puts as a negotiating condition withdraw everything that has been done so far, demonstrates this yes, would not say an intransigence, but an absolute denial of reality,” Hugo Soares replied.

The leader of the PSD argued that “the country is not expecting to enter a logic of past-guilty, which generates childishness in politics that is not good for anyone”.

Hugo Soares questioned whether the PS, which was Government for eight years, “thinks that everything is fine and that nothing should be changed”, again stressing that the current lease regime is the responsibility of socialist executives.

“If the price of rent is too high with the current law, the law must be changed. The government brings to parliament a bill that aims to reduce rents and government and parties supporting this majority in parliament make themselves available to negotiate,” he said.

And he added: “It is not we who are saying that there is no negotiation. If we are not saying that there is no negotiation, it is not us, I think, that we are being intransigent”, he said.

Before, also the MP leader of the CDS-PP, Paulo Nuncio, had returned the charges to the PS.

“The PS, despite having come to the meeting, despite discussing the proposals, showed at the end a huge intransigence to create almost insurmountable obstacles to reaching a comprehensive housing agreement,” he said.

The two parliamentary leaders of AD reiterated “total openness” to continue to discuss in parliament the legal regime of the lease in the specialty phase with all parties, based on the proposal contained in the request for legislative authorisation of the Government.

“ I think the Portuguese will not forgive politicians who do not take advantage of the climate that is installed in civil society to discuss, but to find a common ground in legislation that can aim to lower income prices ", defended Hugo Soares.

Already on the proposals made by the Aquis leader to the Prime Minister, the PSD parliamentary leader refused to comment on them, saying he did not hear them, since he entered the meeting with the Government before André Ventura spoke to the media.

The Prime Minister received today afternoon the leaders of the Aquida and the PS, respectively André Ventura and José Luís Carneiro, in São Bento, after weeks of protests in the streets against the cost of housing, and the so-called camped in Lisbon and Porto, which have already generated several police charges.

On Friday, there are meetings in parliament with the other parties (except for the JPP that will be received on Tuesday) and the Ministers of Infrastructure and Housing, Miguel Pinto Luz, from State and Finance, Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, from the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, and from Parliamentary Affairs, Carlos Abreu Amorim.