PS accuses government of undermining Portugal’s credibility in terms of tax breaks

The parliamentary leader of the PS accused the government this Wednesday of having lost confidence and undermined the relationship of trust with the Portuguese on the issue of tax breaks, considering the “purposeful exploitation of voluntary ambiguity” to be a deception.

At the start of an urgent parliamentary debate requested by the PS on “changes to the IRS” following the controversy arising from the Prime Minister’s announcement of cuts to the IRS, Alexandra Leitan began by criticizing the absence of the Minister of Finance, accusing the government of having just taken office and already shirking “giving explanations to parliament and the Portuguese.”

“All this would already be a cause for serious concern. But that is not all. And what’s more, it’s even more serious. This is a government that, less than two weeks after coming to power, has already lost credibility and undermined the relationship of trust with the Portuguese,” he accused.

According to the parliamentary leader of the Socialist Party, “the deliberate use of voluntary ambiguity is in fact deception.”

“After all, 88% of the SDP measures belong to the PS and have already been implemented,” he said. Alexandra Leitan criticized the fact that the government had become a victim of itself and said that “everyone is wrong except the government.”

“Be careful, minister: anyone who goes the wrong way usually causes an accident, and this accident is another blow to the credibility of politicians and trust in democracy,” he warned.

The PS leader then asked the minister to explain the SDP proposal on the IRS “now and without subterfuge.”

In the absence of Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pedro Duarte, the Secretary of State for Financial Affairs Claudia Reis Duarte and the Undersecretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs Carlos Abreu Amorim are present on the government bench.