PM to announce new Covid-19 containment plans on Thursday
António Costa on Tuesday refused to announce new measures to contain the Covid-19 pandemic, referring a possible announcement to next Thursday.
The prime minister, António Costa, on Tuesday refused to announce new measures to contain the Covid-19 pandemic, referring a possible announcement to Thursday, when the cabinet meets, and after consulting the parties.
“Today is not the day to speak, today is the day to go and listen to the parties, tomorrow I will continue listening to the parties and Thursday I will speak,” António Costa said.
The head of government made this brief statement to journalists on the sidelines of the 9th National Congress of Economists, taking place today in Lisbon.
The prime minister receives, between today and Wednesday, the parties with parliamentary representation on the epidemiological situation in Portugal, at a time when the country registers a growth in incidence and transmission rates (Rt), before the government approves measures against Covid-19, which may happen in the cabinet meeting on Thursday.
At the end of last Friday’s Infarmed meeting, the president of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, said that there remains “total conjunction of the organs of political power” in the response to Covid-19, but declined to talk about measures, referring that decision to the government, after consultation with the parties.
As for the measures to be adopted, the head of state said that “the experts presented what they considered indispensable for this phase” and that “the decision on this matter will naturally belong to the government”.
Today, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa ruled out the idea of a new lockdown to respond to the increase in cases, stating that the “situation does not point to that” and “has no comparison” with that of “a year ago”.
