After the Socialist Party managed to approve, in the State Budget, the inclusion of Madeira and Porto Santo in the group of low-density territories, it is now up to the Regional Government to delimit the areas where these benefits will apply.
Something that has not yet happened and that it is essential that it happens as soon as possible, as challenged by deputy Miguel Iglésias at a press conference held this morning.
The parliamentarian elected by PS Madeira to the Assembly of the Republic expressed concern about the social and demographic indicators in the Region, which are deteriorating without any response from the Madeiran Executive. Referring that Madeira currently has 157 elderly people for every 100 young people, Miguel Iglésias realized that we are witnessing an exponential population aging and that, effectively, “we do not see any concern or priority on the part of the Regional Government in relation to this matter” . The socialist deputy recalled that, in the last decade, around 17 thousand people left Madeira – including many qualified young people who could not find opportunities here – something that, combined with the fact that we are the region of the country with the highest rate of poverty and social exclusion, makes us face “
In view of this situation, Miguel Iglésias explained that the PS presented a proposal, which was approved in the State Budget, so that the municipalities that are becoming depopulated and are undergoing an increasingly progressive aging can have access to tax benefits. much more competitive in relation to other municipalities, in order to mitigate or reverse this situation. At stake are the municipalities in the north of the island of Madeira and Porto Santo, which, in this way, will be able to enjoy tax benefits, namely in terms of corporate income tax, lower than the tax differential allowed by the Finance Law of the Autonomous Regions.
“Now, it is also necessary for the Regional Government to do its part. The PS approved this proposal in the State Budget, but it is the Regional Government’s responsibility to delimit the areas where this tax benefit will apply. hasn’t happened yet,” he warned.
The parliamentarian stressed that these matters constitute a priority, and, both at the level of the Assembly of the Republic and the Legislative Assembly of Madeira, “we will continue to work to present concrete proposals that go in the direction of trying to reverse this situation”. “Madeira will have no future, it will not have development and it will not make progress if we continue to have people leaving, if the population continues to age, if we continue to witness a complete desertification of some of its territories”, warned Miguel Iglésias.