This Monday, the PAN spokeswoman accused the Government of “lack of action” in the face of a possible increase in the price of energy, and proposed extending the social tariff for electricity and natural gas to more beneficiaries.
The PAN sees with some concern this lack of action by the Government in the face of statements not only by the president of Endesa, but also the successive warnings about the escalation in electricity and energy prices,” Inês Sousa Real told Lusa. agency.
The sole deputy of the People-Animals-Nature party considered that “leaving the problem to the consumer alone” would be “ignoring that we will have a problem of structural poverty in our country that implies that there is action and interference by the State”.
We cannot forget that, in addition to the rise in electricity and gas prices, and despite EDP’s statements, we know that in order to deal with inflation, it will be difficult to verify that there are no price increases until the end of the year. , since we know that the so-called Iberian solution is not enough to respond to Portugal’s problems”, warned Inês Sousa Real.
The sole deputy of the PAN delivered this Monday to the Assembly of the Republic a draft resolution (an initiative without the force of law), with the aim of recommend to the Government “the extension of the social tariff for energyboth gas and electricity, so that all people living below the poverty line have access to this same social rate, as well as people who receive an old-age social pension.
In this resolution, the PAN proposes “an extension of the conditions of access to the social electricity rate, which includes within its scope of eligibility those households whose total monthly income is equal to or less than the value of the poverty threshold” and also the “expansion of the conditions for access to the social tariff for natural gas, which includes in its scope of eligibility the beneficiaries of the old-age social pension, all the beneficiaries of the family allowance and households whose total monthly income is considered low ”.
and argued that “From the point of view of social and environmental justice”, it would be the “most appropriate measure at this time” CurrentIn addition, “this rate is assumed by the operators, not the State, so the cost to the State would be zero.”
It would be a way to help stop the escalation of price increases that mainly affects the most needy families and at the same time we are not feeding the polluting industry with tax exemptions or benefits, because then we would be in a countercycle with the fight against climate change. and it would be a social measure at the same time”, stressed the PAN leader.
Inês Sousa Real also pointed out that last week she presented a bill in parliament that “aims to tax the excessive profits of this type of company and that 70% of that tax reverts to social support for families.”
In an interview with Jornal de Negócios and Antena 1, broadcast this Sunday, the president of Endesa, Nuno Ribeiro da Silva, said that the Electricity will see an increase of around 40% in July bills.
On the same day, the Ministry of the Environment rejected the “alarmist statements” made by the president of Endesa, stressing that it sees “no justification” for this increase and that the free market has other providers.
Source: Observadora
