The president of the National Association of Portuguese Municipalities (ANMP) admitted this Friday, February 17, that "to sustain the momentum for local housing" will inevitably involve "some conflict" and praised the Government's package of measures to respond to the housing crisis in Portugal
"It is necessary that those who have made investments in the area of local accommodation can have their rights safeguarded, but it is necessary that the country says that it is not local accommodation that should be a priority, but rather to give conditions so that people from the cities themselves can stay there. We are driving people out of the cities", said Luísa Salgueiro.
Speaking to Lusa news agency, the president of ANMP admitted that "it will not be without conflict" that the measures announced Thursday by the Government will be put into practice, because "some sectors may show resistance".
"In cities where the housing problem is felt more, which are the big centers, the metropolitan areas and the most attractive cities from a touristic point of view, this conflict has existed for a long time. We have to stop this impetus for local housing. We are displacing people from the cities themselves. This gentrification phenomenon that we have been witnessing must be stopped", he defended.
Luísa Salgueiro, mayor elected by the PS in Matosinhos (Porto district), praised the package of measures announced by António Costa's socialist executive and said that she will now wait for "the announcements to be translated into legislative diplomas".
"The ANMP will have the opportunity to participate in the legislative process. When the content of the diplomas is known, the ANMP will have the opportunity to give contributions and if necessary improve them", said the mayor.
Mayor of Matosinhos, Luísa Salgueiro gave the example of the municipality she manages to talk about the priorities in terms of housing in the country, reminding that there are houses that are unused and vacant properties that can be part of the market.
"The country has had this problem identified for a long time. I am mayor of a city council that, with some criticism, increased the IMI [Municipal Property Tax] for vacant houses," he summarized.
To Lusa, Luísa Salgueiro considered that "the objectives of this package of measures" are "correct", because "it is important that the country shortcuts the path to finally be able to reverse the path of difficult access to housing.
"The measures announced by the Government correspond to a need felt throughout the country at the present time when there is an enormous shortage of housing and it is difficult for people to have access to a constitutionally consecrated right that should already be universally fulfilled, now that we are about to complete 50 years of our democracy," he concluded.
On Thursday, the Prime Minister presented a package of measures, estimated at 900 million euros, to respond to the housing crisis in Portugal with five axes: increase the supply of properties used for housing purposes, simplify the licensing processes, increase the number of houses in the rental market, fight speculation and protect families.
The More Housing program was approved by the Council of Ministers and will be under public discussion for a month. The proposals will return to the Council of Ministers for final approval on March 16, and then some measures will still have to go through Parliament.
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