Livre’s sole deputy will abstain from voting on most of the 2024 state budget proposal, warning of the need for “hard work” in the specialty, on which the party’s final position will depend.
“Livre will not turn down the opportunity to try to improve this budget, which it will do in good faith and with a constructive spirit, and will therefore generally abstain.” reads a statement from Livre sent to Lusa.
On Monday evening, Livre convened its General Assembly – the highest body between congresses – to complete the voting process on the majority of the OE2024 proposal, which takes place today in parliament and has secured the approval of the PS majority.
“The work that awaits us, on our part and on the part of the government and the PS, will be difficult, so that this general abstention will not result in a vote against in the final global vote,” warns the party, which believes that “the distance between this budget and the current needs of the country is very large.”
Livre said it found “worrying gaps” in the budget proposal “in response to the social emergency, especially in the areas of housing and child poverty, insufficient investment in the areas of education and health” and “a glaring inadequacy regarding the science and higher education policies, essential to prepare the country’s future.”
As positive points, Livre mentions “the increase in resources available for climate action (although against the background of the decrease in resources intended for nature conservation, environmental protection and the defense of biodiversity), as well as the creation of an investment fund to respond to this responds.” to Livre’s question about the use to be made of budget surpluses”.
“Finally, we take note of the declaration of availability, by the Prime Minister, to deepen the path that Livre has already taken in the creation of the National Rail Pass and in transport, and in general of the openness that the government has shown to to negotiate in the specialty “reads the statement.
The party believes that during this term it has “played a leading role in proposing innovative solutions and in the fight for greater environmental and social justice”, listing amendments proposed in previous budgetary processes, such as “the study and the experimentation of a four-day week, the National Rail Pass, the 3C Program – Home, Comfort and Climate, the increase in child benefit for single-parent families or unemployment benefit for victims of domestic violence.”
On the first day of debate on the bulk of the 2024 budget proposal (OE2024), Livre challenged the government to apply a property tax surcharge to buyers of “global millionaires”, “non-residents and non-residents” taxpayers’ – whose income is targeted to be channeled to help solve the housing crisis – with the Prime Minister refusing any “tax prosecution of foreigners”.
Later, during the debate, António Costa told the sole deputy that the government is available to negotiate some of its proposed changes to the budget, emphasizing that this has been done in previous budget exercises.
Livre abstained from the 2023 state budget proposal after it managed to get some of its special changes approved, namely a National Rail Pass for regional trains, worth 49 euros, which was already in force.
During the discussion of the 2022 state budget – in which she also abstained – the party received a ‘green light’ for the extension of unemployment benefits for victims of domestic violence, approved by the Council of Ministers on October 19.
The final global vote on the 2024 state budget is scheduled for November 29.
Source: DN
