Dear Editor,
Time Magazine recently published an interview with President Cavaco Silva, about the Euro crisis and his solutions for the Portuguese economy who, as an economist and President of Portugal, felt qualified to give an opinion. I make the following comments:
To resolve the challenges Portugal faces, Cavaco claims “the locomotive of the Portuguese economy is exports. Investment is going to improve but that depends on confidence and the trust of the investor”.
My question is, how can he so completely ignore tourism, the vital role it plays in the Portuguese economy and the need to provide important incentives, which Spain is already doing, to stimulate and encourage its growth?
In fact, the very opposite has happened with the Portuguese government introducing new legislation which, in fact, penalises and damages the tourist industry as a whole and the Algarve in particular, recently signed into existence by President Cavaco himself and by so doing, jeopardising Portugal´s chances of economic recovery!
As an Algarvean born in Boliqueime, little does he as President appear to know or care about this province which in fact has contributed so much to Portugal in past years and yet is so poorly treated, thus the government continues to shoot itself in the foot!
For example the tolls introduced on the Via Infante and the ridiculously complicated system of payments involved!
JOSEPH FERRADA, by email
