On the right, Chega, through deputy Filipe Melo, acknowledged that "there was an effort to bring the government closer" to the parties in this package and that his party will vote in favor of the bill if it meets its ideas, which, he says, "were received with great pleasure" by the Minister of Infrastructure, Miguel Pinto Luz.

Chega proposed, among other things, the reduction of VAT on construction for controlled-cost housing, the obligation for investors benefiting from 'golden visas' to allocate 10% of the investment value to affordable housing, and the end of the age limit for the IMT exemption on the purchase of the first house, which the government wants to cover only young people up to 35 years old.

IL also joined the criticism of the limitation of the IMT exemption proposal for the purchase of first homes, as it wants an extension of the age limit, stating that it has a "different view" on this proposal and that it would like the government to go even further.

"We believe that IMT is a tax that doesn't make much sense, (...) people already pay IMI their whole lives, and therefore, we have a different view", defended Mariana Leitão, parliamentary leader of the Liberal Initiative.

The liberals admit to voting in favor of some of the measures, stating that there are matters on which the government and IL are getting closer, but that the vote will "depend on how the matters are presented and submitted to parliament.

On the left, the Bloc joined the PS's criticism and regretted the repeal of measures by the previous executive aimed at limiting new Local Accommodation licenses. They also criticized the lack of proposals "to control housing loan interest rates".

Regarding the proposed benefits for the purchase of first homes, Fabian Figueiredo expressed concern about the possibility of generating "a new avalanche of debt in Portugal". "We want to make sure that any public guarantee is in the direction of access to housing and that it does not mean a new wave of debt", added the parliamentary leader of the BE.

Livre, through Isabel Mendes Lopes, joined the criticism of the repeal of the previous executive's measures regarding Local Accommodation, arguing that this decision "has a direct implication on the increase in house prices and the reduction in the availability of houses".

The party conveyed to the government the need to make an inventory of the public housing stock and opposed the IMT exemption for the purchase of first homes, saying that the executive was open to hearing Livre's proposals.

Paula Santos, from the PCP, summarized the meeting with Miguel Pinto Luz with the "great distance" that separates the communists' proposals from those presented by the government and called for an increase in public investment in housing, which could reach 1% of the gross domestic product (GDP).

PAN was the only party on the left that praised the repeal of the measures that limited the activity of local accommodations. The party presented in this meeting with the government measures to "improve the Porta 65 program", with support for the first rent, and also to improve access to student accommodation.

The government met during the morning with all the parties with parliamentary representation with a view to including their proposals in the housing program "Construir Portugal".

This program, announced last Friday, includes, among other measures, the creation of a public guarantee for young people to buy their first home, the reformulation of the Porta 65 program, and the repeal of the Extraordinary Contribution on Local Accommodation (CEAL) and the expiration of the license and transferability. "Construir Portugal" also seeks to "restore flexibility and confidence to tenants and landlords".

Also Read: IL welcomes "rapprochement" and "dialogue" with the government on housing matters (Portuguese version)