Aljustrel, Portugal, June 16, 2026 (Lusa) - Portugal's prime minister said on Tuesday that Portugal’s financial health “would make any economy in the European Union green with envy”, but added that it takes “courage to change certain things and stand up to the voices of pessimism”.
“Portugal’s economic situation is better than the European Union average,” Luís Montenegro said in his speech during the presentation of a €400 million investment in the Aljustrel mine, in the district of Beja.
He continued: “Portugal’s financial health, and don’t be shy about telling anyone this, because it really is true, makes any economy in the European Union green with envy.”
“There isn’t a single one that can claim to be doing better than us,” said Luís Montenegro, but “there are some that are doing just as well as us,” he stressed, noting that Portugal is “at the forefront” of Europe in financial and economic terms.
The prime minister told the audience that the country “must have the courage to change certain things and, time and again, to stand up to the voices of pessimism and the reluctance of those who lack the courage to act”.
Portugal “must often confront the inertia of those who pretend they want to change a great deal, but, at the end of the day, want everything to stay the same and remain exactly where it is”, he stressed.
In a 25-minute speech, he responded to the chairman of the board of directors of the Aljustrel mine concessionaire, Humberto Costa Leite, who had called for less bureaucracy in the processes during his address.
“We are implementing a strategy for geological resources whose cornerstone is administrative simplification,” he noted, emphasising that the aim is to achieve “greater coordination between all stakeholders”.
Montenegro said that procedures must become “swift and streamlined”, so that “the decision-maker can have all the information and be confident in the investment they are making”, during prospecting and subsequently during the project’s development.
“When you have to say no, say no as soon as possible, and when you have to say yes, say yes as soon as possible too,” he said.
The prime minister said that the government had declared “war on bureaucracy and excessive regulation”, as well as on those who “think their department is the only one that exists and on those who believe their department’s interests take precedence over the general interest”.
“We have declared war on all of this, including within the government, within government structures and within the civil service, and those in the civil service who do not understand this will be sidelined,” he added.
SM/ADB // ADB.
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