This Thursday, the President of the Republic said that more public housing is needed, that the private or social sector is not enough and that the state and local authorities must play a “fundamental role” in this matter.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa spoke at a lecture on April 25 at the Escola Secundária de Camões in Lisbon, where he spoke and then answered questions from students for almost two hours.
When asked about difficulties in accessing housing, the head of state replied that “housing is becoming very, very, very expensive” in Portugal and that “it is a problem for students, but it is a problem for the Portuguese in general.”
“In a country with so much poverty, there needs to be more public housing, it’s necessary,” he said.
“The problem is not only solved by the private or social sector. State and local governments have a fundamental role to play by building more, providing more housing,” he added.
According to the President of the Republic, prices have increased for “good reasons: there are more tourists and more foreigners who want to live in Portugal for security reasons, and therefore they increase the cost, choose better places and are willing to pay more.”
But also for “bad reasons: the ability to respond with more housing.”
Regarding the increase in the supply of public housing, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said that it should be recognized that “part of it has already started”, but in his opinion, “it started late and insufficiently, therefore not enough to meet the need.”
IEL // JPS
Lusa/The End
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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