Pedro Duarte, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, rejected this Saturday “fearing” the discussion of the State Budget in the specialty. In an interview with Rádio Observador, on the sidelines of the PSD Congress in Braga, the coordinator of the National Strategic Council of the PSD defended “a renewal of the party”, even before the announcement of the new leadership by the Prime Minister, Luís Montenegro.
“I think there are other responsibilities that have to be assumed by other people,” he defended, after also rejecting the promotion to vice president, which, in fact, did not occur. Instead, he focused on the work of the Government and the discussion on the State Budget in the specialty. “There is a discussion and as has always happened, it will be the subject of many proposals for changes. This is normal and natural. We must de-dramatize this process in the specialty and not speculate on more catastrophic scenarios.”, argument.
“We have reached this moment and I think we can all breathe a sigh of relief, because apparently we are not going to have a political crisis,” he continued, adding that the Government has not yet created new scenarios for the debate on the specialty and showing confidence “in the sense of responsibility” of the PS during this process, in a position similar to that of the other social democratic leaders.
“No one is going to ask the opposition not to highlight their differences, not to point out differences and to have their own program and path,” the minister acknowledged. “But it is very important that put emphasis on the constructive nature of what you want to present,” he added. In addition to expectations about the position of the Socialist Party, Pedro Duarte also anticipated the reaction of the other opposition party, Chega. Regarding André Ventura’s party, the minister admitted that he would be “surprised” if they tried to “set parliament on fire” and approve measures against the will of the PSD.
“For this to happen, there would have to be a combination of votes between the PS and Chega again and I would be very surprised. It is true that I have been surprised a couple of times in the past, but I hope they have learned their lesson, because it is a relatively irresponsible attitude to try to govern from parliament, in an unnatural connection, where it seems that the only thing that moves them is to harm the Government’s action,” he admitted.
Asked if the Government had also “learned the lesson” regarding the private meetings between Luís Montenegro and André Ventura and if these would be repeated, Pedro Duarte postponed the final options for the Prime Minister. “We have had institutional contacts and we will not reduce these efforts. It is different for the Prime Minister to have reserved meetings, which has always happened in the history of democracy. It is clear that a prerequisite is a minimum of trust between people.. It seems obvious to me that, without the ability to have trust, meetings have to happen in another way,” he stated, even so.
Looking ahead to the local elections, Pedro Duarte did not confirm that his political future could go through the Porto Chamber. Despite acknowledging that it would be “very honorable” to be the social democratic candidate for the position, the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs assured that he is “totally focused” on the functions he currently performs. “I could never have one foot in and one foot out,” he stated, rejecting that the next State Budget (for 2026) is so far from being viable or that his role is limited to negotiating the EO and, for this, “empty.” in time for local elections. “It’s not even a question I ask”, he concluded.
The Minister concluded by also defending the Prime Minister’s interventions on journalists last week. He maintained that Luís Montenegro’s statements were misinterpreted and sought, precisely, to promote the profession in the media.
Source: Observadora
