Latest news with #Chega
Euronews
a day ago
- Politics
- Euronews
Montenegro reappointed as Portugal's PM, rules out immediate reforms
Portugal's newly reappointed Prime Minister Luís Montenegro has ruled out constitutional reform in the near future, something demanded by the far-right Chega party which finished second in the country's elections earlier this month. On Thursday, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa confirmed Montenegro as the leader of Portugal's 25th government, following the end of the vote counting process. Montenegro's Democratic Alliance (AD) won 91 seats, while Chega came second with 60 and the Socialist Party (PS) finished third with 58. "The appointment and inauguration of the government will take place after the publication of the final election results and the constitutive meeting of the new legislature of the Assembly of the Republic," the president said in a statement. Speaking shortly after his appointment, Montenegro said he would dedicate himself in the coming days to forming a minority government. The prime minister, who also led the last government, confirmed that constitutional revision "is not a government priority". "Later on, we'll be able to discuss this issue. We're not going to do it any time soon and so we're not prepared to entertain that discussion," he told journalists. Instead, his new government would focus on plans to grow the economy, improve public services and transform the national health service, he said. Speaking to the media after meeting with the president, both Carlos César, from the PS, and André Ventura, from Chega, guaranteed that they would make an AD government viable. César noted that "the will of the people must be respected", while Ventura said he "will not support a motion to reject the government's programme". Montenegro's appointment came after the final results of the parliamentary elections were released late on Wednesday, once the votes cast by Portuguese citizens abroad had been counted. By finishing second, Chega upset the traditional dominance of the centre-right and the centre-left in Portuguese politics.
Euronews
a day ago
- Politics
- Euronews
Constitutional revision 'not a priority', says Portuguese PM
Portugal's newly reappointed Prime Minister Luís Montenegro has ruled out constitutional reform in the near future, something demanded by the far-right Chega party which finished second in the country's elections earlier this month. On Thursday, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa confirmed Montenegro as the leader of Portugal's 25th government, following the end of the vote counting process. Montenegro's Democratic Alliance (AD) won 91 seats, while Chega came second with 60 and the Socialist Party (PS) finished third with 58. "The appointment and inauguration of the government will take place after the publication of the final election results and the constitutive meeting of the new legislature of the Assembly of the Republic," the president said in a statement. Speaking shortly after his appointment, Montenegro said he would dedicate himself in the coming days to forming a minority government. The prime minister, who also led the last government, confirmed that constitutional revision "is not a government priority". "Later on, we'll be able to discuss this issue. We're not going to do it any time soon and so we're not prepared to entertain that discussion," he told journalists. Instead, his new government would focus on plans to grow the economy, improve public services and transform the national health service, he said. Speaking to the media after meeting with the president, both Carlos César, from the PS, and André Ventura, from Chega, guaranteed that they would make an AD government viable. César noted that "the will of the people must be respected", while Ventura said he "will not support a motion to reject the government's programme". Montenegro's appointment came after the final results of the parliamentary elections were released late on Wednesday, once the votes cast by Portuguese citizens abroad had been counted. By finishing second, Chega upset the traditional dominance of the centre-right and the centre-left in Portuguese politics. French Health Minister Catherine Vautrin announced on Thursday that a new smoking ban in outdoor public spaces where children are present will come into force from 1 July. Speaking to French newspaper Ouest France, Vautin said, "wherever there are children, smoking must disappear", adding that "a smoke-free generation is possible, and it starts now." A breach of the ban — which is part of France's wider National Tobacco Control Programme, announced in November 2023 — could be punishable with a €135 fine. In practice, smoking cigarettes will be outlawed in a range of public places — including beaches, parks, gardens, sports facilities, but also bus shelters and areas surrounding schools. Although the ban will not apply to the terraces of cafes and bars, France's health minister refused to rule out future similar bans in these spaces. Under the plan, electronic cigarettes will still be permitted in these spaces, but Vautrin emphasised that the government wanted to "lower the permitted nicotine content" in these devices, as well as reduce the variety of flavours available on the market by mid-2026. The detailed remit of the ban, which is being decided upon with France's Council of State (Conseil d'État) — the French advisory body tasked with advising the government on prospective bills and decrees — has not yet been revealed. The French Health Minister said the government was counting on"elected representatives to implement (the ban) pragmatically." The French government has made tackling the number of deaths caused by smoking one of its key missions. Every year, 75,000 people are estimated to die from tobacco-related complications in France. In 2023, France's National Tobacco Control Programme set out to develop 26 measures — which included raising the price of tobacco, introducing plain packaging and banning the sale of vaping products — in a bid to reduce smoking-related deaths. According to a survey conducted by NGO "La Ligue contre le cancer", nearly eight out of 10 of those questioned were in favour of a ban, while 83% backed similar legislation for electronic cigarettes. The measures unveiled by France follow Thursday's announcement from the Spanish government, revealing its plans to ban smoking in a wide range of places — including bar and restaurant terraces, university campuses, vehicles used for work purposes and outdoor sporting events.
Reuters
2 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Portugal's president invites caretaker PM to lead new government
LISBON, May 29 (Reuters) - Portugal's president named Luis Montenegro, head of the centre-right Democratic Alliance (AD) that won a snap national election on May 18, as the prime minister on Thursday and invited him to form his second minority government, the presidency said. The AD won 91 seats in the 230-seat parliament - 11 more than in the previous legislature, but still far from a working majority - in an election marked by far-right party Chega replacing the Socialist Party (PS) as the main opposition force. Montenegro, who first came to power in March 2024, has refused to make any deals with the anti-establishment, anti-immigration Chega, which garnered 60 seats, two more than the PS after the latter's worst showing in four decades. The office of President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said in a statement after he consulted the three main parties on Thursday that Montenegro would announce his new government after parliament convenes for its first session. No confirmation vote is required, although any party can present a motion of rejection. The election, the third in as many years, was called after Montenegro failed to win a vote of confidence in March when the opposition questioned his integrity over dealings of his family's consultancy firm. He has denied any wrongdoing and voters ended up punishing the PS for its role in bringing down Montenegro's government, in what many people saw as an unnecessary election. Parliament is expected to enable the new government on its return next week. PS's interim leader, Carlos Cesar, promised his support in that initial step. While the government's first big test is likely to be the 2026 budget towards the end of the year, no new parliamentary poll can be called until at least mid-2026 because Portugal will hold a presidential election next January. Although that doesn't guarantee political stability, the centre-left PS's weakened position is likely to make them a more amenable opposition with more affinities with the AD than with Chega, analysts say, seeing little danger of a legislative paralysis in the medium term.
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Portugal's president invites caretaker PM to lead new government
Luis Montenegro, Social Democratic Party (PSD) and Democratic Alliance (AD) leader, meets with Portugal President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa at Belem Palace, following the final results of the general elections in Lisbon, Portugal, May 29, 2025. REUTERS/Pedro Nunes LISBON - Portugal's president named Luis Montenegro, head of the centre-right Democratic Alliance (AD) that won a snap national election on May 18, as the prime minister on Thursday and invited him to form his second minority government, the presidency said. The AD won 91 seats in the 230-seat parliament - 11 more than in the previous legislature, but still far from a working majority - in an election marked by far-right party Chega replacing the Socialist Party (PS) as the main opposition force. Montenegro, who first came to power in March 2024, has refused to make any deals with the anti-establishment, anti-immigration Chega, which garnered 60 seats, two more than the PS after the latter's worst showing in four decades. The office of President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said in a statement after he consulted the three main parties on Thursday that Montenegro would announce his new government after parliament convenes for its first session. No confirmation vote is required, although any party can present a motion of rejection. The election, the third in as many years, was called after Montenegro failed to win a vote of confidence in March when the opposition questioned his integrity over dealings of his family's consultancy firm. He has denied any wrongdoing and voters ended up punishing the PS for its role in bringing down Montenegro's government, in what many people saw as an unnecessary election. Parliament is expected to enable the new government on its return next week. PS's interim leader, Carlos Cesar, promised his support in that initial step. While the government's first big test is likely to be the 2026 budget towards the end of the year, no new parliamentary poll can be called until at least mid-2026 because Portugal will hold a presidential election next January. Although that doesn't guarantee political stability, the centre-left PS's weakened position is likely to make them a more amenable opposition with more affinities with the AD than with Chega, analysts say, seeing little danger of a legislative paralysis in the medium term. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
‘Nothing will be the same again': Portugal's Chega may be spot on
As a former football pundit, columnist, seminarian and novelist, André Ventura is not a man given to understatement. But as the final results of Portugal's snap general election confirmed that his far-right Chega party had leapfrogged the socialists to become the second biggest party in parliament, his words may have been spot on. 'Nothing will be the same again,' the newly minted leader of the opposition promised after Wednesday's tally. Ventura also told the Portuguese people that Chega would not be seeking to emulate the centre-left Socialist party (PS) or the centre-right Social Democratic party (PSD) which have, between them, governed the country since its return to democracy after the Salazar dictatorship. 'Don't expect from Chega what the PS and PSD did for 50 years,' he said. 'That's why people now want a different party.' That much seems certain. Although the Democratic Alliance, led by Luís Montenegro of the PSD, finished first and increased its share of the vote, it once again fell well short of a majority. The PS, meanwhile, suffered such a humiliating collapse that its leader, Pedro Nuno Santos, announced his resignation even before the final results were in. Chega's triumphant performance offers conclusive proof that the era of Portuguese exceptionalism – the notion that the country's still-recent experience of dictatorship had immunised it against the far right – has come to an end. As in so many countries across Europe, social democratic parties are in retreat while strident populists have made once-unlikely breakthroughs. Chega's populist policies – which include stricter controls on migration and chemical castration for paedophiles – have certainly grabbed voters' attention, as has Ventura's demonisation of Portugal's Roma population. But how has the party, which Ventura founded just six years ago, managed to travel so far, so fast? 'Chega's success has to be understood in the context of the Portuguese electorate's attitudes over the past decade,' said Marina Costa Lobo, a professor at the University of Lisbon's Institute of Social Sciences. 'We've had a great deal of abstention – which was hiding a lot of dissatisfaction with the political system and a lot of frustration with the political elite – and fairly widespread populist attitudes.' All that was missing, she added, was the right party – and the right leader – to capitalise on that dissatisfaction: 'In 2019, André Ventura got elected to parliament and he's a very able leader in terms of articulating these grievances.' Costa Lobo said the PSD and the PS also bore some responsibility for Chega's rapid rise because of the number of elections the country had endured over the past few years – three snap general elections in three years. Rather than sensing that the weary and disillusioned national mood meant that more elections would only favour Chega's growth, the mainstream parties 'dropped the ball' and chose instead to focus on their own political squabbles. She added that Portugal's previous status as an outlier when it came to the rise of the European far right should have given the PSD and the PS pause for thought before they handed Chega repeated opportunities for electoral growth. Sign up to Headlines Europe A digest of the morning's main headlines from the Europe edition emailed direct to you every week day after newsletter promotion Both Costa Lobo and Vicente Valentim, a professor of political science at IE University, also point to the role that the media has played in all this. 'The media gave Ventura a lot of attention,' said Valentim. 'It's been reported that between 2022 and 2024, he got more than double the number of interviews that Luís Montenegro, the leader of the PSD, did – and he was the prime minister. The amount of media coverage he got was completely through the roof.' After initially refusing to touch the unpalatable issues that Ventura would go on to make his political staples, said Costa Lobo, the media had belatedly realised that 'that kind of speech gets a lot of clicks and audiences … and they have also contributed, as a multiplier effect, to his success and his ability to reach the electorate'. Valentim said while the Portuguese socialists were struggling with the same issues as their colleagues in other centre-left European parties, they also had to contend with a leader who never became as popular as the party hoped – and an ageing support base. What's more, having been in government from 2015 to 2024, the PS was ill-equipped to push itself as a fresh alternative to Montenegro's administration. 'The long-term story is that centre-left parties across Europe are losing many votes – it's not just the case in Portugal,' he said. 'In Portugal, the socialists have the oldest electorate of the main parties, so they do have an issue that their electorate is quite literally dying out and they've had a hard time capitalising on younger voters, which is where the far right is doing well.' The question now is whether Chega has peaked – or whether a spell in opposition will help them grow even more. 'I think Chega are in the best position they could be right now to keep growing because they're the opposition party,' said Valentim, 'which is where these parties are typically better because they're much better at finding problems than finding solutions.'
