The economy and marine minister pointed out on Wednesday that there are conditions for the economy to perform “much better” than last year, highlighting the boost in tourism, which he said was a case study.
“There are conditions for the performance of the Portuguese economy to be much better this year than at the end of last year,” António Costa Silva said at a parliamentary hearing in the Committee on Economy, Public Works, Planning and Housing.
The minister began his speech by recalling that 2022 was an “extremely difficult” year for the whole of Europe given Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, noting that Europe is “a unifying peace project”, now at the center of a geopolitical dispute .
Despite the fact that the war had conditioned the functioning of the world economy, the minister said there was already some recovery, indicating an improvement in terms of “European Union economic sentiment”.
According to the data cited by the minister, oil prices fell by about 15% in the first quarter of this year, with electricity and gas prices also showing “significant declines”.
“This is very important for the performance of the Portuguese economy. The cost of food commodities has also fallen significantly and there are trends to reduce inflation,” he added.
Costa Silva also stressed that exports increased by more than 13% during this period, highlighting the tourism sector, which he classified as “one of the great brand images of the country”, with growth of more than 15% compared to 2019 (pre-pandemic period).
January saw 2.5 million overnight stays and 1,300 million revenue, while the following month saw four million overnight stays and revenue was “in the same range”, up 42% from 2019.
In March, overnight stays reached five million.
“Tourism is the great engine of the national economy. In 2009 it had 6,900 million revenues and in 2022 21,100 million euros. It is a multiplication [cerca] of three times. It is a ‘case study’ [caso de estudo]which is due to the excellence of the market participants,” he concluded.
PRR: Ministry of Economic Affairs is doing everything possible to speed up implementation – Minister
The Minister of Economy and Sea assured parliament this Wednesday that his ministry is doing everything it can to speed up the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), noting that the payments made amount to 630 million euros.
“The Ministry of Economic Affairs is doing everything possible to accelerate the implementation of the PRR. We manage a package of €4,100 million and €630 million in payments have been executed, which corresponds to 15% above the average implementation of the PRR,” said António Costa Silva, during a parliamentary hearing before the Committee on Economy, Public Works, Planning and Housing.
Of the 53 mobilizing agendas, 29 are in the field and are executing and 15 have completed the terms of acceptance.
“We hope to have 44 of the 53 mobilization agendas up to cruising speed in a short time,” he stressed.
Still referring to the mobilization agendas, the official said payments of €300 million will be made, adding that initial payment needs were met with an additional 10% “because most of the investments are made up front”.
Payments to Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) beneficiaries through May 3 amounted to $1,799 million (11%) and approved applications totaled 124,969, according to the latest monitoring report.
This plan, which runs until 2026, aims to implement a series of reforms and investments to restore economic growth.
This plan aims not only to repair the damage caused by covid-19, but also to support investment and create jobs.
Housing: Costa Silva hopes for a balanced solution for local housing
The Minister of Economy, António Costa Silva, today guaranteed that he believes it will be possible to achieve a “balanced solution” for local accommodation, within the framework of the “More housing” package, arguing that it now it is up to parliament to intervene.
“We are working at the Ministry of Economy and Sea, especially with the Secretary of State for Tourism, to improve everything related to local accommodation. We have improved the original proposal and continue to work. Now it is time for parliament to intervene. Costa Silva, in response to the PSD, stressed during a parliamentary hearing before the Committee on Economy, Public Works, Planning and Housing.
The Economy portfolio holder reiterated that investors need predictability, so he defended that the rules cannot be suddenly changed.
“I think today there is a consensus and we will come to a balanced proposal for local housing,” emphasized Costa Silva, highlighting the role of this activity in Portugal’s interior.
The measures of the Mais Habitação program will cost approximately 900 million euros, in this estimate excluding the cost of renting, works to be carried out or purchases, but including the value of credit lines, and will call on funds from the State Budget, as already indicated by the Minister of Finance, Fernando Medina.
On March 21, the president of the association representing the sector in Portugal argued that the “More housing” program could kill local housing.
Eduardo Miranda, president of the association Alojamento Local Em Portugal (ALEP), warned at the time during a parliamentary hearing about “the disastrous consequences for the economy” of the new package presented by the government on February 16, which he believes is much higher than the ultimate benefit for the accommodation of the proposed measures.
The extraordinary contribution to local lodging businesses, which it sees as “abusive and coercive” double taxation, will make it “impracticable” to continue the business “in all areas where the rate is applied,” leading to “closure or even bankruptcy, of many operators”.
At the same time, the end of new licensing and the analysis of the current ones within seven years “is like saying that no restaurant will open or change management until 2030,” Eduardo Miranda compared.
Source: DN
