Montenegro says it will continue building a new airport even without consensus with the PS

On Tuesday, the AD leader accused the government of “lacking the courage” to force concessionaire ANA to carry out work at the current airport and assured that it would quickly make a new decision, even without consensus with the PS.

“My commitment at the start of the government is that we will take the final result, which has not yet been received, from the Independent Technical Commission and make a decision. We will make a decision, we will try to reach a consensus with the PS, which will be the largest opposition party at that time. If we do not succeed, we will move forward,” assured Luis Montenegro at a lunch organized by the Portuguese Tourism Confederation (CTP).

Luis Montenegro also accused the current PS government and in particular the former Minister of Infrastructure and current PS leader Pedro Nuno Santos of being satisfied with the company that manages the airports, ANA, recalling that the agreement signed between the PSD and the head provided for immediate works that need to be carried out at the current Lisbon airport.

“We did not break the agreement in terms of national responsibility (…) ANA is at fault and the government is at fault to the country because it did not force ANA to do what it was obligated to do,” he said. .

And he also left a message for those who suggest that there is closeness between the current PSD leadership and the ANA president, former Social Democratic leader José Luis Arnaut.

“There is even someone who is trying to say that there is a person in the ANA associated with the SDP, I don’t care, he doesn’t even talk to me. Do the work,” he urged.

In the same speech, the leader of the Democratic Alliance (a coalition uniting PSD, CDS-PP and PPM) promised that if he became Prime Minister, he would renegotiate the current revenue agreement, given that it was signed “in the context of some enforcement of social partners,” a few days before the presentation of the state budget for 2023: “Either they will sign, or they will face increased difficulties,” he suggested.

Montenegro said he then warned that the government’s failures, which CTU leader Francisco Calheiros had complained about, were not a surprise.

“My commitment is to review this agreement and update it,” he said, acknowledging that the issue of individual time banking could be back on the table.

In a 40-minute speech, the PSD President reiterated commitments to 100% privatization of TAP and the removal of measures restricting local placement introduced by the current government.

Regarding the management of the TAP file, Luis Montenegro considered it “another example of incompetence and incompetence” of his opponent Pedro Nuno Santos.

“When I hear my main opponent say that he likes to make decisions, that he is better made than perfect, I would say that was not very prudent,” he said, repeating the accusation that the airline was being politically controlled in recent years “has been a crime.” political and economic.”

Regarding his commitments for the future, he confirmed his intention to completely privatize the airline “on the basis of a specification that protects the strategic interests of Portugal and could include provisions requiring the maintenance of a ‘hub’ in Lisbon.”