Novo Banco commission final report needs more consensus

  • Lusa
  • 26 July 2021

The chairman of the commission of enquiry into Novo Banco says there is room for MPs to talk and reach an understanding on the final report.

The chairman of the commission of enquiry into Novo Banco, Fernando Negrão, on Monday called for a “rapprochement of positions” between members of parliament for the final report because “there is room to talk”, suspending the work until 3 pm for these negotiations.

The discussion and vote on the final report and respective proposals for amendments of the parliamentary commission of inquiry into the losses recorded by Novo Banco and imputed to the Resolution Fund began this morning and, after a round of interventions by the parties, the president decided to suspend work until 3 pm to allow time for negotiations among members.

“We have all listened carefully to the various speeches, and we can certainly come to a common conclusion. And the common conclusion is that there is room to talk,” said Fernando Negrão (PSD).

The president of the commission of enquiry asked deputies to “use the time well” until the resumption of work “for a rapprochement of positions”.

“There are two ways to press ahead with negotiations: one is to give a short time so that an agreement can be reached quickly. The other is to give plenty of time so that, with calm, reflection and tranquillity, and even time for lunch, an agreement can be reached, not to say an agreement, but an approximation of positions.

The committee of enquiry into Novo Banco will therefore resume at 3 pm.

At the beginning of proceedings, the rapporteur, socialist deputy Fernando Anastácio, showed a willingness to include in his version of the report a set of proposed amendments submitted by the different parties, considering that this is a “contribution to consensus”.