Free, CFP and BE ask for solutions and rejection of amendments to the rental law

Livre, PCP and Block of Left today asked for more solutions to solve the housing crisis and rejected the amendment to the lease law proposed by the government and which is in the specialty phase in parliament.

The spokesman and parliamentary leader of Livre Isabel Mendes Lopes, the coordinator of BE, José Manuel Pureza, and the PCP councilor in the Lisbon Chamber, João Ferreira, participated today in the demonstration for housing in Lisbon.

In statements to journalists at the beginning of Avenida da Liberdade, from where the demonstration began, towards Rossio, the spokesperson of the Free said hope that these protests will result in the rejection of changes to the rent law and considered that they have already provoked a “change of the type of speech” of the Government and the parties to the right.

In his opinion, the government should “reverse what has been its housing policy, which has contributed greatly to the increase in both purchase and rental costs”.

Isabel Mendes Lopes called for a “true dialogue” party and civil society to find “concrete solutions to the housing crisis”, particularly in the discussion of the State Budget for 2027, such as the increase in public supply or “end of real estate funds and tax benefits to those who profit from speculation”.

She also considered that the Prime Minister “should give a word of understanding” to the citizens and asked Luís Montenegro to “no longer trigger and no longer polarise society”.

Isabel Mendes Lopes also argued that “what is expected from the authorities and political leaders is a minimum of understanding regarding the difficult situation that the country is experiencing and never the choice of violence and repression”.

By the PCP, the city councilman of Lisbon João Ferreira argued that the solution to the housing crisis is “to combat real estate speculation, to give other security and stability to lease contracts” and not “to increase property speculation, creating even more instability and more difficulty in accessing housing”.

“ It is necessary to rebalance the rent law, provide stability and ensure greater accessibility to those seeking to obtain a home through the lease. We need to give another boost to the dynamization of public housing”, he added.

The member of the Central Committee of the CFP considered that, “more than words”, measures are needed that go in “exactly opposite to what the Government has announced”, namely in relation to the rental law, on the penalty that “indrage grows”, and said that the mobilization of citizens leads the parties to change their position.

Asked if the President of the Republic should be more interventional, João Ferreira stressed that the right to housing is inscribed in the Constitution, which the Head of State swore to comply with and enforce.

Also speaking to journalists, the coordinator of BE considered that the Prime Minister “is absent partly uncertain”.

“ No one knows where the Prime Minister is. The Prime Minister does not want to appear and I only explain this for one reason, he does not want to answer because there is a mobilization so strong for the struggle for housing”, he said.

José Manuel Pureza considered that the mobilization of the last days is having results and the government’s speech “has changed significantly” since the protests began because “he realized that he was losing on the streets and that every day is another defeat that is accentuated”.

“ I think these mobilizations that are big, peaceful, democratic and spread across the whole country, these concentrations are working and are paving the way for something that is essential, which is to defeat the law that was made by agreement between the PSD, the Liberal Initiative and the Arrivo and that increases the rents infinitely and facilitates evictions. She has to be defeated, I think this law will have the same fate as the work package”, defended the bloquist.

About the position of the Aquira, the leader of the BE said that the party has already accustomed the “permanent trucks” and considered that the speech of the parties that supported the Government in this matter “has changed significantly in recent times, and that has a reason, it is the street, it is the mobilization”.