Lisbon, Sept. 4, 2024 (Lusa) - Portugal's prime minister has praised Infrastructure Minister Miguel Pinto Luz, who he said is "strengthened by the excellent work" he has done. He also considered that the report by the General Inspection of Finance on TAP "has nothing new."
At the entrance to a meeting with PSD/Lisbon activists, as part of his re-candidacy for the party presidency, the media asked Luís Montenegro if he still had political confidence in the minister for infrastructures.
"We are governing the country to complete the entire legislature and, therefore, to take this government until somewhere in September or October 2028, with the expectation of taking all the government members on board," he said.
When asked whether the minister would be weakened, as the opposition has argued, to continue with the TAP privatisation process, Montenegro replied: "Miguel Pinto Luz is strengthened by the excellent work he has done as minister for infrastructure and housing".
As for the IGF report, he said that "it is nothing new compared to other reports" and emphasised that the government has sent it "both to the parliament and the Public Prosecutor's Office".
When asked if this report could jeopardise Maria Luís Albuquerque's appointment as finance minister in 2015 and the current government's choice for the next European commissioner, the prime minister did not give a direct answer.
"We are working to govern the country, to fulfil the government's programme, and we are also committed to having someone in the European Commission who values policies at the European level and the well-being of Europeans, and obviously can also be a quality representative - as is my expectation - of Portuguese interests," he said.
Regarding the TAP privatisation process, he said his concern as prime minister "is to offer Portugal a solution that serves the interests of the Portuguese, the Portuguese economy and the taxpayers".
Asked if this process could be jeopardised by the report now released, he insisted that the document "doesn't add any facts to those that have already been assessed previously".
"In any case, it's up to parliament to make the political assessment it sees fit about the document it has received. And it's also up to the Public Prosecutor's Office to take whatever steps it sees fit," he acknowledged.
And to the question of whether Pinto Luz is capable of leading the privatisation process, he praised his work in "very relevant" areas, such as the decision on the location of the new airport, the strategy for the railway or the mobility plan that will be presented "in the coming weeks", which includes the measure already announced for a national rail pass costing €20 per month.
"From the prime minister's point of view, the government will continue to govern, will continue to fulfil its programme and will count on the participation of all its members," he said.
According to the audit, published on Monday by SIC and to which Lusa had access, Atlantic Gateway, a consortium of David Neeleman and Humberto Pedrosa, financed the deal to buy TAP with a $226 million loan from Airbus in exchange for the national airline buying 53 aeroplanes from the European aircraft manufacturer.
Several parties, including the PSD, have submitted requests to hear the minister for infrastructures, Miguel Pinto Luz, who at the time was secretary of state for infrastructures, transport and communications in the second government led by Pedro Passos Coelho, who fell after his programme was rejected in parliament, but who concluded the TAP privatisation process in 2015.
The PS challenged the prime minister to clarify whether he still has political confidence in Miguel Pinto Luz to lead the privatisation of TAP, claiming that he had already participated in a similar process "shrouded in suspicion".
SMA/ADB // ADB.
Lusa
