The housing program was again approved only by the votes of the PS

The More Housing program was re-approved by Parliament with a vote of the Socialist Party.

Without changes, the program, vetoed by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, returns to Belem and must be made public. None of the amendment proposals were adopted by a majority vote.

The program was approved with 119 votes for the PS, 87 against the PSD, Cega, Liberal Initiative, Bloc de Esquerda and PCP. Livre and PAN abstained.

The most controversial and controversial measures of Mais Habitação include the suspension of the registration of new local housing outside of low-density areas and emergency contributions to this business, the forced rental of houses that have been empty for more than two years, and the introduction of caps on the cost of new leases of houses that are already in market.

The package also includes a capital gains tax exemption for owners selling homes to the government, an end to the new golden visas, an increase in the family IMI dependent deduction, changes to the stand-alone property income rate, and a tax exemption for owners who rent their homes from local housing by the end of 2024.

After vetoing the diploma, the President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, in August adopted a “serene negative analysis” and criticized the lack of party consensus on the Mais Habitação issue, but the minister responsible for it, Marina Gonçalves, reiterated the idea that there must be balance in the program , and the PS has said it will confirm these measures when parliament opens after the summer.

On Thursday, the opposition took advantage of another parliamentary debate over the program to renew its criticism.

PSD MP Marcia Passos said the measures had caused “social anxiety” and had already led to “huge negative consequences”, including rising rents and a decline in construction, accusing the government of remaining “proudly alone” in managing the housing crisis .

Still on the right, Andre Ventura from Chegi assured that the party will do everything to prevent the “encroachment on property” that Mays Habitasan represents, and speaking of the “absolute intransigence” of the executive power, supported by a “parliamentary dictatorship”. He believed that “PS is Portugal’s housing problem.”

On the left, MP Mariana Mortagua (BE) stressed that “the program presented by the government does not solve” the housing problem, and accused the PS of living “in another world”, and listed measures that could solve the crisis: introducing rent ceilings depending on location and type, forces banks to reduce loan installments and prohibits the sale of houses to non-residents.

Deputy Bruno Díaz of the PCP expressed disagreement with the Mais Habitação for “encouraging real estate and financial speculation” and, on the contrary, proposed, among other measures, the suspension of rent increases in new and current contracts, as well as evictions in cases of proven economic necessity.

Livre’s Rui Tavares said the government “could do much more” by providing public assets for student accommodation and stressed: “We don’t just need more housing, but better quality housing.”

PAN deputy Ines Souza Real believes that the plan “does not provide an answer” and is “too short for the scale of existing needs.”

Two dozen protesters from the “House to Live, Planet to Inhabit” platform interrupted the parliamentary debate as the PS was about to take the floor, shouting “homes to live in” from the galleries. The group was removed by the police.

Despite the veto of the package approved in Parliament, the President of the Republic promulgated a government decree that reforms and simplifies housing-related licensing, with Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa warning that he will pay attention to compatibility with the safety and quality of buildings. .

Thanks to this simplification, architectural projects will now be licensed only on the basis of design liability conditions, and public organizations will be subject to fines in the event of delays in issuing opinions.