Porto, May 3, 2026 (Lusa) – The Socialist Party (PS) reiterated on Sunday its call for a reduction in VAT on fuel, ahead of a further price increase scheduled for tomorrow, intending to summon oil company associations to parliament.

Speaking to journalists in Porto, MP João Torres said that "a further very significant increase in fuel prices" is expected on Monday. He challenged the government to lower VAT on fuels from 23% to 13%, a measure the PSD/CDS-PP executive has repeatedly rejected.

"This is an absolutely necessary measure for the state to provide a sign of support during this period of greater difficulty," he said, adding that "it is in times of greatest difficulty that the state must be willing to support families and businesses."

During the press conference, the socialist MP announced a proposal to hold hearings in parliament with "associations representing fuel retailers and oil companies" to allow them to "share their vision and concerns regarding the current price situation" in a parliamentary setting.

He accused the government of showing "enormous insensitivity towards the impacts of this crisis" and of "viewing this crisis as a fiscal opportunity."

Torres said that in the first quarter of this year, "the Portuguese paid an extra €36 million in Tax on Petroleum Products," which "corresponds to double the average increase in tax revenue."

"This stubbornness from the government only proves that, through the political choices of the Democratic Alliance (AD), the state is using this crisis to bolster its coffers," he said.

Torres said that the government has "ignored the proposals that the Socialist Party has been presenting", considering them "reasonable and sensible."

He insisted on another measure the party has repeatedly proposed: zero VAT on the basic food basket.

He said that the government can "work with measures that were tested and proven in the past."

"The reduction of VAT on fuels to the intermediate rate and zero VAT for a basket of food products are measures that have proven themselves in the past. This is a national heritage, not the heritage of any single government," he said, adding that "the government can and should follow the recipe that was successfully applied in the past."

He called on the government to "understand that the worsening of this crisis will force the adoption of more and newer measures."

"If it refused measures in the past, it would be sensible to re-evaluate those measures," he said, warning that the cost of living "is reaching unbearable levels."

Fuel prices in Portugal will rise again next week, with diesel increasing by an average of 10 cents per litre and 95-octane petrol by 6.5 cents.

FM/RYOL // ADB.

Lusa