The head of Portugal's Socialist Party attended a lunch in the Algarve this weekend and spared the coalition government nothing in a damning résumé of its failures.
António Costa took the opportunity to talk of a new poverty within Portugal as being a statistical reality and that the Government’s austerity programme has failed to promote growth or pay down public debt as promised
Speaking at a Sunday lunch with party activists in Tavira, António Costa said that the country needs a new policy and that the Socialist Party needs to mobilise itself to fight and to provide an alternative to the austerity programme imposed by the coalition government.
Costa said that the current government wanted to convince the country that it had a strategy, a strategy that, along with a large decrease in people’s rights, an austerity policy and collective impoverishment, was stimulating the economy.
“What we know today is that there is one thing that they have achieved - it is indisputable that they have managed to impoverish the country," said Costa.
The leader of the Socialist Party cited the National Statistics Institute in justifying his position and gave as an example of poverty the "human resources who were forced to emigrate" and the "450,000 Portuguese who are now at risk of poverty."
Costa said that poverty is also visible among children and young people, where "25% are at risk," and so the government has not only "created a problem for today, but also a huge risk for the future."
Costa added that 50% of businessmen says that they will not invest in Portugal because the Government's strategy "did not give confidence to entrepreneurs, in fact it undermined confidence."
"The truth is that they did not control the debt, the debt continues to increase and after three years we now have a huge tax burden, with a paralysed economy, with increased poverty and an increased debt," said Costa.
If the Socialist Party Costa now could come forward with some financially sound alternatives, the next election is there for the taking.
Comments
As Costa points out. Another 8bn was added to the debt last year and any sensible business investor, unless state sponsored Chinese, staying away.
But elsewhere the other EU Latino Club Med countries are fundamentally questioning the two party system they have survived under since 'allegedly' shaking off their previous elite facsist leaderships. And making themselves a fresh start.
With Podemos next door coming from nowhere to now be the most popular party in Spain - can Portugal's Socialists be that certain of being the new alternative to PSD ?
In a more developed and less damaged society both PSD and PS would be seen as contaminated by corruption, greed and self interest. And a new political party with new faces would have sprung up already.
Sad that Portugal is so backward that we will wait in vain for any new energy and ideas. Any new party would soon be swamped by the old elite joining it. And then running it and the country just as they did the old parties.
Why does Portugal have a big debt? Is it anything to do with the massive spending by the PS and PSD governments 1986 - 2010? On infrastructure such as the empty roads and toll roads that criss-cross the country?
But you are right Ed. People are fed up with the lack of leadership of the present government. Costa merely needs to keep his nose clean, and it will be a shoo-in.