Portuguese Minister Fails To Fulfill Education Promise

Minister José Luiz Carneiro stated that budget execution numbers fail to disaggregate investments by project, promoter, or financing line. He noted that the Socialist Party (PS) government implemented robust and rapid measures when inflation rose at the start of the war in Ukraine. These measures included the adoption of VAT reductions on food items. The minister's comments followed discussions with farmers in Beja regarding previous government actions. Luís Mira of the CAPT stated that current government measures do not guarantee the competitiveness of Portuguese farmers against Spanish neighbors. Mira noted that Spain allocated 500 million for fertilizer increases, which represents 4% of the amount compared to the Portuguese response. The critic argued that the Portuguese measures are insufficient and arrived two months later than the Spanish support. Portuguese Labor Minister Maria do Rosário Palma Ramalho accused the Socialist Party (PS) of obstructing legislation, stating she expected this outcome and attributed it to the PS. She claimed the PS had no interest in approving the legislation from the start and holds influence over the UGT union. Mariana Leitão, representing the liberals, insisted on their will and had previously asked the government to stop being stubborn in negotiations deemed unproductive. Artur Siqueira, from the National Federation of Public and Social Function Workers' Unions, stated that the Portuguese Minister of Education did not fulfill a promise regarding a competition for specialized technicians in schools. Siqueira claims the competition will not accommodate many specialized technicians.