This Wednesday, the Madeiran Parliament generally approved the proposals for the budget and investment plan for the region for 2024 with 21 votes in favour of the PSD and CDS-PP and ten votes against the JPP and IL.
PS, Chega and PAN, a total of 16 deputies, abstained.
The budget proposals amounting to 2.195 million euros and the investment plan (PIDDAR) with a budget of 877.9 million were the first presented by the PSD minority government and previously agreed with the opposition parties as part of the preparation of the Executive Programme for the Legislature for 2024-2028.
The final global vote is scheduled for Friday, following debates on special issues this afternoon and Thursday.
At the end of the general debate, Chief Executive Miguel Albuquerque explained that “the matrix that inspires this budget is that of the post-war welfare state”, highlighting the introduction of a progressive tax, equal access to public goods and support in terms of social cohesion, health and education.
“This is a document that responds to the fundamental problems of our population,” he said, warning that “societies without social cohesion are the most violent.”
Albuquerque said the 2024 budget takes into account several variables — economic growth, employment, inflation control, fiscal sustainability, control of public accounts and the national debt, and tax cuts — while stressing that the executive branch refuses to include opposition proposals that lead to “unsustainability” in the region.
At the end of the general debate, the parliamentary leader of PS/Madeira, the largest opposition party with 11 MPs, confirmed that the document presented was “far from the real needs” of the population, considering that it did not solve the problem of the Madeirans.
Paulo Cafofo noted that the PS would abstain “responsibly”, warning, however, that the direction of the vote in the final global vote would depend on the approval of the set of measures that the party proposed to include in the document, and that he considered the “priorities” to be improving the living conditions of citizens.
“The PS proposed to include in this budget only the most priority ones. Its adoption will now depend solely on the political will of the regional government and the parties that are on the side of the Madeirans and Porto Santos,” he stressed.
As for the PSD, whose college is made up of 19 deputies, Jaime Felipe Ramos stressed that the party is ready for dialogue and negotiations, but not “at any cost”, also noting that it gives priority to the parties that have agreed to negotiate the Government Program (PAN, IL, Chega and SDS-PP).
“We want to negotiate with everyone who wants to talk, and that is why we refuse to negotiate at any cost. Moreover, we will not be prepared to distort the budget by creating imbalances,” the leader of the Social Democratic parliament said.
Elvio Sousa of the JPP, whose panel consists of nine deputies, justified his vote against the budget by saying that it consists of “new patches on old clothes” and does nothing to reduce the cost of living, as it “continues to spare the wolf and sacrifice the sheep” because it “takes money from the poor and makes the rich even richer.”
“This is a summary of the budget,” said the MP, who is also the leader of the JPP parliamentary group, stressing that “these gentlemen [os membros do Governo Regional e os deputados do PSD] “they don’t want to lower the cost of living” and “they are wasteful and squander public money.”
Representative Miguel Castro of Chega justified his position by the “sense of responsibility” with which the party views the budget, highlighting the inclusion of some measures proposed by his panel, consisting of four elements, to promote oversight and transparency of executive actions, as well as support for families.
The sole IL MP, Nuno Morna, explained the vote against by saying that the budget was “heartbreaking” and pointed to a “socialising governance” because it “emphasises the dependence of Madeirans on subsidies” and “does not promote private initiative and economic freedom”.
From PAN, the only deputy, Mónica Freitas, stressed that for the first time in the history of the autonomous region, the budget does not come from a single party, including measures from different forces, and expressed readiness to continue the dialogue with “responsibility” in the sense of ensuring the “sustainability” of the region.
The board of the CDS-PP, the party that signed the parliamentary protection agreement with the PSD, also highlighted the “historic moment” surrounding the budget debate, with MP Sara Madalena highlighting the party’s contribution to improving the health sector, supporting young couples and valuing the agricultural sector, among other things.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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