The Government asked this Wednesday for a “widest possible consensus” on the new location of the Lisbon airport and, faced with criticism from the opposition about the dialogue between PS and PSD, responded that there will be a “plural debate” once the studies are completed. finished.
“The Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) will be completed before the end of 2023. After the final report is delivered to the Government, that is, after the analysis, study and comparison of alternatives is finished, the moment of decision will come. . yes, the decision, on the option that can best serve the Lisbon region and the country”, defended the Secretary of State for Infrastructure, Hugo Santos Mendes.
The person in charge was speaking in the urgent debate requested by Chega on the location and construction of the new Lisbon airport, in parliament, after some parties criticized during this debate and last week that the Government and the PSD had reached an agreement between two on methodology.
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“At that moment [concluídos os estudos], The entire country and all political parties will be able to appreciate the report prepared and express their opinion by participating in a plural debate”, he is stressed.
Hugo Santos Mendes stressed that “since it is an infrastructure that will serve the country for the coming decades, going through different generations and multiple governments, it would be important for this decision to have the broadest possible political consensus.”
“It is important not to confuse the moment of analysis, study, comparison of alternatives, with the moment of decision. Before deciding, it is necessary to collect all the information, work on it, analyze it and make a technical and scientific judgment on it. That is what an instrument like the Strategic Environmental Assessment will allow”, he maintained.
The Secretary of State stressed that this procedure “follows a specific legal regime” and “has rules.”
The official stressed that “as much as everyone wanted something faster, a Strategic Environmental Assessment cannot be done in two weeks, nor in two months.”
“That same SEA was exactly what Parliament instructed the Government to do when it voted, in the process of the 2021 State Budget specialty, the reform proposals of the PAN and the ‘Os Verdes’ Ecologist Party,” he said, adding that “All the parties, with the exception of the one that supports the Government, voted in favor of these proposals.”
The Prime Minister announced this Tuesday that the Government will approve this Thursday the initial diplomas of the decision process on the new Lisbon airport, modifying the powers of the municipalities on aerodromes of national interest.
Source: Observadora
