The President of the Regional Government of the Azores (PSD/CDS-PP/PPM) this Saturday defended a “deep and supportive reform of the financial regime of local government” and considered that the new local finance law should become a “flagship” for local authorities. authorities.
“What is important now, in the case of the whole country and therefore also of the Azores, is that there is the possibility of introducing a constitutional revision that promotes the strengthening of power and the recognition of democratic local authority in Portugal in the actions of the government and in the fair distribution of wealth at the national level, it is necessary also carry out a deep and supportive reform of the financial regime of local authorities, including parishes,” said José Manuel Bolheiro.
The Chief Executive of the Azores spoke this afternoon in the village of Madalena on the island of Pico at the closing of the IX Regional Meeting of the Mayors of the Azores Parish, organized by the Azores Regional Delegation of the National Assembly. Association of Parishes (ANAFRE).
In his speech, he acknowledged that today, “reflections on a new financial regime for local authorities, a new local finance law, are probably more of an emergent exercise than an exercise in sharing responsibilities.”
“Because it is really important to say fairly and truthfully that (…) until today the financial regime has always been insufficient, inadequate and unfair, so that the responsibility currently assigned to local authorities, whether municipal, whether from the parish , benefited,” explained José Manuel Boleiro.
According to the president of the regional government of the Azores, “this should be a flag for the local authorities of Portugal.”
At the same meeting, the coordinator of the Azores delegation of ANAFRE, Manuel Antonio Soares, also defended “a new impetus in this process and decentralization in relation to the parishes, expanding their powers and competences and increasing the corresponding financial transfers.”
“In the case of the Azores and Madeira, the adoption of a specific decentralization process is justified with a law of powers and powers specific to the parishes of the Azores, justified by the existence of a level of authority – the regional authority -, between the central authority and the local authority,” he said.
The same official said that the Azores ANAFRE delegation and the mayors of the region are ready to take part in an expanded working group, which also includes the regional government, “to prepare a draft proposal for a law that will be presented to the Legislative Assembly, which is considering this intention.” “.
The official also stated that the parishes want the model of cooperation with the autonomous regional administration to be “adapted to the new administrative reality of the country and the region, more flexible in its execution, more ambitious in its goals and less bureaucratic in its operation, allowing for better management of financial resources and better response to the Azoreans.”
“The ANAFRE delegation in the Azores is looking forward to the new regime of technical and financial cooperation with the parishes, which will take time to be approved and put into effect,” he also noted.
Manuel Antonio Soares asked the regional government “to waste no more time and quickly present this legislative initiative to parliament so that it can be discussed and approved” and called for a “broad consensus” in the Legislative Assembly to approve the region’s budget. for 2024.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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