Structural reform of the social sec. Report is “contribution”

A reaction follows the report “Reform Pensions in Portugal – For a Sustainable, Adequate and Fair System – a Contract between Generations”, presented by the working group created by the government to “propose measures to reform social security”.

In a reaction sent to Lusa, official source of the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security, he points out that the report “is a technical and independent study, independently prepared by this group, with conclusions and recommendations that are its sole responsibility”.

“ This is another contribution to the national public debate on public social security policies, which will soon be released, and which government, such as any other sovereign bodies or entities, will be able to examine”, add.

Nevertheless, the government reiterates that “maintains its commitment not to proceed in the current legislature to a structural reform of the Social Security System“and signals that “nor recent parliamentary proposals and debates, nor does the presentation of this study have the effect of opening a process that is closed for the government”.

At a regular hearing in early July, the Minister for Labour, Solidarity and Social Security had removed a “structural” reform of social security in this legislature, but admitted to introducing additional measures to improve the future of new pensioners.

In response to Socialist MEP Ana Paula Bernardo, Palma Ramalho recalled that the government’s programme does not foresee “the structural reform of the Social Security regime”, but admitted that it could be “beneficial to introduce one or another mechanism” that would enable, in particular, the promotion of financial literacy, by setting the example of the supplementary reform plans.

A structural reform is “outside the horizon” of the Government in this legislature, the goal is to go “introducing the theme, but everything with due care,” he added, during the regimental hearing in parliament.

In response to the Member and President of the Liberal Initiative, Mariana Leitão, Palma Ramalho signaled that the government “will be open to assessing the proposals” contained in the final report of the working group set up to study the sustainability of social security, as well as those coming from parties in matters related to “complementary schemes” and allowing “improving the future of new pensioners”.

At the same hearing, Palma Ramalho indicated that on the part of the Government there is no option “for individual capitalisation to the detriment of supplementary pensions”, stressing that both cases are not structural matters of the pension scheme.

The government has set up a working group to “propose measures to reform social security,” led by economist and professor at Nova Jorge Bravo University.

Its objective is to “define sustainable strategies and concrete measures to ensure the future” of the social security system, taking into account the government’s programme, the recommendations of the Court of Auditors recently published in an audit report and the recommendations of the Green Paper on Social Security (produced by a working group appointed by the previous government).

The report shall contain “proposals and recommendations, including an implementation plan, performance indicators and specific short, medium and long-term targets” according to the order of setting up the working group.

The final report was submitted to the Government in July and presented on Tuesday, and among the various proposals suggests the creation of new public debt instruments of the retail segment to serve as a supplement to the pension or the adoption of professional automatic membership pension plans, which allow the waiver.