PTRR: Montenegro does not exclude deficit

Executing the new program will not jeopardize the balance of public accounts. Amending budget is a possibility.

The Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro, stated that the execution of the will not put the balance of public accounts at risk, but without excluding “negative budget balances”, that is, deficits.

At the end of the meetings with all parties with parliamentary seats, at the Prime Minister’s official residence, in São Bento, about the program (Portugal Transformação Recuperação Resilência), Luís Montenegro made a statement without the right to questions, in which he once again addressed – without setting values ​​– the way to finance this program.

“We will have national financing for this program – which will come from the State Budget – financing that could come from the contraction of public debt. It will not call into question the balance of public accounts, but it does not mean that there cannot be negative budget balancesnegative public debt ratios”, he stated.

He added: “I’m not saying there will be, but I’m not ruling out the possibility,” he said.

Montenegro praised the stance of all parties: Everyone agrees that PTRR goes beyond short-term recovery. Now it will “continue the analysis of all contributions”. “We will hold the necessary meetings in the future, the Government’s door is open, it is open right away in parliament”, he assured.

“This does not mean adherence to the Government’s policies, this does not mean that the Government’s priorities and the Government’s program are naturally coincident with those of the political parties, but I think that democracy will give a great sign of vitality if we have the ability, in exceptional situations, parties be able to have a confluence of position on strategic objectives”, he analyzed.

After their meeting, Mariana Leitão stated that there was “a lot of openness on the part of the Government” for IL proposals: “This is not the time for political confrontationthis is not the time to get into political fights. It’s a time for us all to come together and be able to meet people’s wishes immediately, but also to help build the country’s future, to better prepare the country.”

And, according to the IL leader, the prime minister admitted the need for a rectifying budget: “The Prime Minister does not completely exclude this hypothesis, but there is a calendar, there is a set of values ​​that are still being determined, which will be presented, according to what we were told, during the month of March, and only then will that decision eventually be taken, or at least the Government will take that decision”.