Government approves measures for mobility and the environment

The Special Council of Ministers on Friday was held in Entroncamento and focused on a subject that cuts across all areas of governance: the green and energy transition. The Prime Minister Luís Montenegro started the briefing and presented some of the measures approved to the country.

Mobility

Under mobility, Luís Montenegro spoke about "measures to ensure greater mobility, greater comfort, greater capacity for people to travel in our territory", as well as "greater mobility for companies, greater capacity to carry freight that will add value to our economy and competitiveness to our companies." Goals that are connected to a third one, decarbonisation of passenger and freight transportation. 

"Decarbonise to grow" is the motto presented by the Prime Minister. "We have the capacity to have environmental and energy policies that ensure greater quality of life for people, more economic capacity for the country, and environmental care and protection", he added.

Secondly, the guarantee of the national rail card at €20 per month that will "enable access to the entire rail transportation system, except for the alfa pendular service" was one of the measures most stressed by Luís Montenegro.

Still on the subject of mobility, the Prime Minister announced the enlargement of the free youth travel card to all young people up to 23 years of age and not just students "because it is fair, (…) because many of them need more conditions because they are working and studying at the same time or are working to be able to study later on", he stated. 

Measures were also set on incentives to purchase electric vehicles and writing off light passenger vehicles. "Decarbonise to grow", Luís Montenegro claimed.

Environment and energy

In this scope, the Government will move forward with the creation of the new Climate Agency, which will manage the national funds in the field of the environment and energy. The 2030 National Energy and Climate Plan (PNEC) was also approved to be submitted to Parliament.

"More simplification, swifter responses offered to people, companies, and investors", Luís Montenegro continued. The Government is seeking an increase in energy sharing mechanisms and the reduction in energy costs in industry, "we want more autonomy, we want to foster green, environmentally-friendly energy, we are a country with huge renewable energy potential."

Lastly, the Prime Minister concluded that "this was a Council of Ministers whose decisions will have a huge impact on the country’s life in the coming years. It is very important to have a state budget. It is very important to have an instrument that is the possibility to execute policy, yet it is necessary to have policy, guidelines, paths, to decide. And this Government has decided and today did so in two fundamental areas for a more sustainable country."