Lisbon, Sept. 25, 2026 (Lusa) - The Portuguese Parliament has rejected the 14 proposals aimed at mitigating the rise in the cost of living, including the bills tabled by Chega to reduce VAT on fuel and food, and the PS's resolution on the same issue.
Parliament debated 14 draft laws and resolutions (recommendations to the Government, which have no force of law) in a debate on Thursday lasting more than two and a half hours, called at the discretion of Chega, in the absence of the Government.
The two bills tabled by the Chega parliamentary group to reduce VAT on fuel from 23% to 13% and to exempt a range of essential foodstuffs from this tax – which were due to come into force with the next state budget, i.e. in January next year – were rejected.
The PSD, PS and CDS-PP voted against, the IL, Livre and PCP abstained, and only Chega and the sole MPs from the BE and the JPP voted in favour. The sole MP from the PAN abstained on the fuel proposal but voted in favour of the VAT exemption for the food basket.
The PS's draft resolution was also rejected for the third time, with votes against from the parties supporting the Government and abstentions from Chega, IL and PAN.
The PS had recommended a temporary reduction in VAT on fuel from 23% to 13%, a measure with a «quarterly timeframe» and subject to monthly review – as well as a temporary VAT exemption on a basket of food products, initially for three months.
José Luís Carneiro's party also proposed that the Government make permanent any extraordinary supplement that it might grant to pensioners, suggesting a mechanism to offset this against corporation tax rates.
The rejection of Chega's proposals had been anticipated, but during the debate André Ventura repeatedly challenged the PS to approve its initiatives in exchange for supporting the Socialists' resolution.
Bills were also rejected from Livre, seeking to reduce VAT on gas to 6%; from the BE, seeking to exempt essential foodstuffs from this tax; and from the PCP, which aimed to remove VAT from the Tax on Petroleum and Energy Products (ISP).
Parliament also rejected several resolutions from the IL, Livre, PAN, BE and JPP, which likewise contained measures to help the country cope with the rising cost of living.
This debate also included a bill from the PCP and a resolution tabled by Chega aimed at ending tolls on the 25 de Abril and Vasco da Gama bridges, which link Lisbon to the south bank of the River Tagus; these were also rejected.
During the votes, some people in the public galleries stood up and turned their backs, but sat down again following a warning from the Deputy Speaker of parliament, Marcos Perestrello, who was chairing the proceedings at the time.
FM/AYLS // AYLS
Lusa
