Eight years of governance have come to an end at the hands of António Costa and yet another socialist party that, like its European counterparts, no longer represents a truly democratic, social and transparent left. We urgently need a progressive and united left in Portugal.
It was about a year ago that the then prime minister António Costa took stock of his seven years in government, spreading a highly positive view of the work he had done in various social and economic areas. The day after Costa resigned due to suspicions of corruption, raised by the Attorney General’s Office, over lithium and green hydrogen deals, we revisit some of the points of this assessment, alongside the project for society on which DiEM25 bases all its actions.
“We’ve grown above the European average”: a statistic considered positive by the European Commission and other organisations that don’t take into account the economic stranglehold on Portuguese families due to low wages and unaffordable housing costs. We have a cost of living above that of many European countries with living conditions far below those same nations. We expect more from a so-called left-wing party, a fairer and more equitable distribution of wealth among all Portuguese citizens.
“Strengthening Portuguese incomes”: yes, it’s the same question as above, but it’s so important that we repeat, income increases have gone from a scandalous state to a state above, the state of “a little less scandalous”. We know that Portugal is still one of the countries in Europe with the lowest minimum wage, and one of the countries in Europe with a cost of living comparable, in Lisbon and Porto, to the largest European cities. And that’s why we repeat: there will be no social justice in Portugal until we have a better distribution of wealth among everyone. And DiEM25 has several proposals for measures that could make this ambition possible.
“Prioritising qualifications”: we are prioritising qualifications, we have top universities in Portugal but, because of the low salaries, few people stay in Portugal for long. We flee our country because we know that abroad we are paid more, we are more recognised and we can have a more balanced life between more humane working hours, less autocratic bosses, savings and the support we can give to those who stay back home. Focusing on qualifications without focusing on the economy of families only harms our society, because the investment of our public money does not bring about our well-being.
“Investment in and defence of the public health service (SNS)”: isn’t this the most blatant atrocity committed by our government in the last eight years? It is clear that they have directly assisted in handing over public health to the private sector, favouring the large companies for whom health is a business, and making it increasingly impossible for there to be a truly national and universal public health service. No, they haven’t defended the SNS, which is today in the worst crisis our SNS has ever known, with maternity wards and emergency rooms closed, a lack of equipment, doctors and nurses, forcing us and the hospitals to turn to the private sector for help. We want a truly public, healthy and universal NHS.
That’s why, under the current political deadlock in Portugal, we say: only a truly progressive, social and united left can pull our country out of this downward spiral, in which economic interests take precedence over all political priorities. And DiEM25 offers the vision we need to get on the right track. Read more at diem25.org/en.
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