Lisbon, Nov. 28, 2024 (Lusa) — The additional 1.25 percentage point increase in pensions proposed by the PS, which will be added to the regular annual update of pensions, was approved today during the specialised votes on the State Budget for 2025 (OE2025).

The Socialist proposal was made possible by a majority of votes from opposition parties, with the PCP, BE, Livre and PAN voting in favour alongside the PS and Chega abstaining. The PSD, CDS-PP and Liberal Initiative voted against.

At stake is an extraordinary increase in pensions of up to three social support index (IAS) that will be added to the regular January update included in the law, with the PS estimating that its proposal has a budgetary impact of €265 million. However, a study of the measure's impact, requested by the PSD from the Technical Budget Support Unit (UTAO), indicates that this extra increase will increase pension expenditure of €273.8 million.

The PCP, BE and Livre had also presented proposals to increase pensions, but they were all rejected.

Since the PS announced the measure, the government and the parties that support it in parliament have contested it. PSD and CDS-PP leaders and MPs have emphasised that, unlike the supplement of between €100 and €200 that was paid in October to pensioners with pensions of up to around €1,500, the increase now approved will become a permanent expense.

Therefore, the government's position was to repeat that extra increase during 2025 if the budget margin allowed it.

This additional increase of 1.25 percentage points applies to all pensions paid by Social Security and Caixa Geral de Aposentações, including old age, disability and survivors' pensions.

LT/ADB // ADB.

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