PSD leader Luis Montenegro said this Monday that the government is “not serious” about regulating fuel prices and said that “it must compensate what it collects above the norm in the form of VAT.”
“From the very beginning, the socialist government has not been serious about regulating fuel prices,” said Luis Montenegro in Torres Novas, Santarem district, where another Sentir Portugal initiative launched this Monday.
According to the Social Democratic President, “The socialist government strengthened as soon as it began its functions, in 2016, ISP [Imposto Sobre Produtos Petrolíferos]”, since “from the very beginning, the decision was made to compensate for price fluctuations, especially since in the formation of fuel prices, when the cost of the product increases, the cost of tax also increases and the VAT increases.” [Imposto sobre o Valor Acrescentado] on these two components.”
“The government therefore makes money and makes a lot of money, including on that part of the VAT that applies to the price of the product and the price of the tax associated with it,” he said, given that the Minister of Finance Fernando Medina: “You are very good know what you need to do: you will have to reduce the cost of the Internet provider depending on the level of income that you receive in excess due to the impact of VAT.”
According to the Social Democrat, “this is what needs to be done now, since the government did not want to accept” the SDP proposal on fuel and energy made last year to at least temporarily reduce VAT to 6%.”
“If they are not serious, if they do not do what they promised, it is enough to have an automatic mechanism, there is no need to always invent regulations and always come up with orders,” Montenegro said.
Admitting that “for a while the fluctuations in fuel prices did decrease, but now this has been happening for many weeks in a row,” Luis Montenegro emphasized that “there is no longer any need to wait.”
The SDP chairman considered that “we are not talking about a temporary peak,” insisting that “we are talking about the presence of an automatic mechanism.”
“After a certain value, the government must compensate for the growth caused by market fluctuations, it must compensate for what it collects in excess of VAT by reducing the ISP,” he emphasized, recalling that “this has already been done.” in other cases”.
According to Social Democrat Fernando Medina, “there is nothing in training, the main thing is not to complicate the situation,” arguing that this is “at least a possibility that the government has at its disposal.”
“Waiting means, again, the desire to punish people, companies, institutions, the desire to first collect money and then, after some time, try to mitigate their consequences. This is, in essence, politics, which in this case is not serious. and in this case also he has no sensitivity,” he added.
On Saturday the government guaranteed it would keep an eye on fuel prices given recent increases, promising a “willingness to act to protect families” if “absolutely necessary”.
“We are assessing and must evaluate what will happen in terms of price dynamics, whether we are at an exclusively temporary peak that then returns or not,” Finance Minister Fernando Medina told reporters at the end of the Portuguese people. meeting of EU finance ministers, which took place in Santiago de Compostela as part of the Spanish Presidency of the EU.
The government official stressed that the Portuguese executive “has already demonstrated its ability and willingness to act to protect families when it becomes absolutely necessary.”
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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