Only PSD and CDS, the two parties supporting the government, voted in favour. With the exception of PS, all opposition parties voted against.
The Portuguese state budget was approved in a final vote in parliament, with the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the CDS – People’s Party, both supporters of the government, voting in favour while the Socialist Party (PS) abstained.
All other parties – Chega, Iniciativa Liberal, Bloco de Esquerda, PCP, Livre and PAN – voted against the budget, despite having succeeded in getting amendments approved prior to its finalisation.
The voting process was marked by protests on Chega’s part. When the budget was approved, the PSD and CDS benches applauded, while Chega MPs stood up and held up placards that read: “This Parliament has no shame.”
Before the session began, Chega had already hung banners on the façade of the Assembly of the Republic building with the message, “The 2025 state budget increases politicians’ salaries. Shame on you.”
The party, led by André Ventura, also put up banners of images depicting Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, Secretary General of the PS Pedro Nuno Santos, and leader of the CDS Nuno Melo with money in front of their faces. The banners were a reference to the reversal of a 5% reduction in politicians’ salaries.
The president of the Assembly of the Republic, José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, described the incident as “political vandalisation” and as “lacking respect for parliament.”
PS and Chega also responsible for the budget, says Montenegro
Luís Montenegro welcomed the state budget’s approval as a significant hurdle that had been overcome.
Emphasising the “difficult parliamentary context”, he spoke of the “strong commitment of the main parliamentary political forces to the state budget.” He stressed that Chega and PS are also responsible for its content, as many of the decisions taken in the budget were supported by these parties, including some that the government was against.
PS refuses to acknowledge support of the government
The Secretary General of the Socialist Party, on the other hand, emphasised that the state budget is the sole responsibility of the government.
“This is the government’s budget, and PS is making its intervention in the Assembly of the Republic. The government should present the proposals that it believes the PS would support,” Pedro Nuno Santos added, reacting to the suggestion that PS had supported the government.
“At no point has PS supported this government. It has not, is not, and will not do so. We abstained to ensure the state’s functionality” and because the government “made significant steps backwards in two key areas,” he emphasised.
Read the full article here
