Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal, July 26, 2026 (Lusa) - The Secretary-General of the Socialist Party (PS), José Luís Carneiro, called on the PSD/CDS-PP government on Sunday to use the new rise in fuel prices, which comes into effect on Monday, as an opportunity to support families and ease financial pressure.
«From tomorrow [Monday], the Portuguese will be paying more than 44 euro-cents per litre of diesel and more than 30 euro-cents per litre of petrol, and this will mean that the government is profiting from the sacrifices of the Portuguese people,» Carneiro said on the sidelines of a meeting with party members in Vila Nova de Gaia, in the district of Porto.
The figures José Luís Carneiro refers to cover the period from the start of the Iran war (in March this year) to the present day.
José Luís Carneiro insisted that Luís Montenegro's government continues «to dip into the pockets of the Portuguese people and make money» from the rise in fuel prices.
«From tomorrow [Monday], the government will earn more than nine euro-cents in taxes on diesel alone and more than six euro-cents on petrol,» he specified.
Over the past two years, since the PSD/CDS-PP government took office, Portuguese people have paid more than €1.048 billion in fuel taxes alone, he pointed out.
The Socialist MP emphasised that Portuguese families are experiencing financial pressure and facing significant challenges due to the rising cost of living, particularly the increase in the price of essential foodstuffs, house rents and transport costs.
«We put forward proposals, which Chega, the Liberal Initiative and the AD rejected in parliament, aimed at temporarily reducing VAT on fuel taxes,» he recalled.
In his view, the government must take temporary measures tailored to households' and businesses' economic needs.
On Friday, in Viana do Castelo, the minister for the economy said that the government «remains vigilant» regarding rising fuel prices and is «constantly assessing whether further intervention is justified», in addition to the discount on the Tax on Petroleum and Energy Products (ISP) currently in force.
The price per litre of diesel is expected to rise by 9 euro-cents and that of petrol by 3.5 euro-cents if the current trend continues, according to an estimate by the National Association of Fuel Retailers (ANAREC) provided to Lusa.
Based on current figures from the Directorate-General for Energy and Geology (DGEG), and taking into account forecasts of price movements based on Thursday's market close, the average price of regular 95 petrol is expected to rise to €2.009 per litre, whilst regular diesel is expected to reach €2.058 per litre.
Despite repeated questions from journalists, José Luís Carneiro once again declined to comment on the controversies surrounding Portugal's minister for Internal Affairs, Luís Neves.
SVF/ADB // ADB.
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