The PS secretary-general made an analogy between a relay race and the sustainability of social security on Monday, saying that the right-wing parties were silent when the government showed that it is possible to increase income by about 20%.
“Today we have a more solid Social Security system than we had in 2015, but our mission and our responsibility is not just to ensure the sustainability of Social Security for those who are already retired”António Costa said during a session to present the proposed state budget for 2023 (OE2023) to PS militants and sympathizers in Lisbon.
And continued: “Our mission is not only to guarantee the sustainability of social security for my generation, who will be retirees in a few years, but also to guarantee it for the generation of my children and the children of my children for whom the social security certainty must remain. be sustainable”.
The socialist leader then made an analogy between the sustainability of the social security system, which the government has been taking care of since 2015, and a relay race.
“As in a relay, each generation bears a testimony that will pass on to the next generation, will pass it on to the next generation and here is the obligation each of us has to receive and pass on the testimony of the previous generation to the next generation. the next generation a better testimony than the one that received, this is what we have reigned for since 2015″he said.
António Costa, who has been prime minister since 2015, assured that this is one of the goals of the executive, which will last “until October 2026”.
Costa said he hopes PS will return by then “earn the trust of the Portuguese to ensure more years of progress and sustainability for Portugal”.
During the nearly 30-minute speech, the socialist leader repeated what the finance minister, Fernando Medina, presented to the country a week ago, but in the meantime he left harsh criticism on the right.
Put the “weight of wages in the average national wealth of the European Union” it was a socialist plan that was only possible with an average wage increase of about 20%.
“When we said this during the election campaign, the right told us we were unrealistic, when we repeated it after the campaign, they said we were irresponsible and finally, when we signed, with UGT or with the employers’ federations, this goal, then they kept their mouth shut and said we were doing no more than our duty”he added.
This was the first of several sessions in all districts of the country to explain the objectives of the budget proposal to PS militants. Parliament will vote on the national budget for 2023 on October 27.
Costa stresses the need to “maintain financial stability” and reduce debt
The PS secretary-general insisted on the need to maintain “the financial stability” of the country, as it would be impossible by 2022 to support companies and families with the debt he inherited from the last Social Democratic Party. government.
“We are committed to deleveraging despite all the efforts we make to support businesses and families”be the PS leader and prime minister.
António Costa took the goal of reducing the national debt in the presence of socialist militants and sympathizers.
“It is very important in these times that we succeed in preserving the international credibility of our country and preserving the financial stability of our country”defended.
Costa, who has been acting prime minister since 2015, explained to the audience who heard him at the Capitólio cinema that “Portugal has a large debt” and at the moment, due to rising inflation, “central banks are reducing the rates of interest” . Hence the need to pursue a public debt reduction policy in order to reduce the state burden.
The resources the state has are not “wasted on paying off debt and paying interest” and can be used to “improve the National Health Service, public schools, social benefits,” he explained.
“These social support measures that we give… We couldn’t give if we paid the interest we paid when we joined the government”concluded Antonio Costa.
Source: DN
