José Manuel Bolieiro advocates for "profound" and "supportive" reform of local government financial system - Communication

Presidência do Governo Regional

The President of the Regional Government, José Manuel Bolieiro, chaired today the closing ceremony of the inauguration of the governing bodies of the Azores Delegation of ANAFRE for the 2026-2030 period, which took place at the Teatro Ribeiragrandense.

Manuel António Soares was reappointed as Coordinator of the Azores Regional Delegation of the National Association of Parishes (ANAFRE), at a time marked by recognition of the work carried out and a renewed commitment to the future.

The head of the Azorean Government offered his congratulations to Manuel António Soares, highlighting his achievements and expressing confidence in the work that he will continue to carry out.

The President of the Regional Government also congratulated the newly elected governing bodies and expressed his gratitude to all those who, over the years, have contributed to establishing ANAFRE in the Azores.

For José Manuel Bolieiro, ANAFRE represents "a legitimacy that is representative of the people and the entire territory," playing a fundamental role in enhancing local government. Recalling his own experience as a local government official, he emphasised that local government is "decisive in developing the territory and transforming people," standing as a true agent of development.

"Mayors do a lot with very little," he pointed out, mentioning local mayors as providers for the needs of the population and the politicians closest to them, those who are at the forefront of providing practical responses to communities.

His speech focused on advocating structural reform of the local government financial system. The President of the Government considered the Local Finance Act "a key instrument for local authorities," defending the need for the fair distribution of national wealth among the country's democratic institutions.

"Decentralisation cannot be an empty word, something pleasant to say but absent in deeds," he warned, defending the need to quantify and clarify what share of national wealth should be distributed to strengthen local government effectively.

According to the President of the Regional Government, local authorities have taken on increasing responsibilities over the last 50 years without a corresponding increase in financial resources.

"It is not acceptable to justify an increase in transfers with an increase in responsibilities. We must first address this chronic deficit in providing local authorities with solid financial resources," he asserted, noting that only after this issue has been resolved should the expansion of powers be considered.

José Manuel Bolieiro also warned of the need to clearly distinguish between the Local Finance Act and the Regional Finance Act, considering that one cannot usurp funding from the other.

"The purpose of a finance law is to redistribute the national wealth created in an equitable and supportive manner. Those who have more should give more to those who have less," he advocated, warning that the opposite would mean fostering asymmetries and compromising territorial cohesion.

"We cannot give up on territorial cohesion," he stressed.

In this context, the head of the Azorean Government stressed the importance of the whole country, including the Azores, supporting, within the framework of an eventual constitutional revision, "the empowerment and recognition of local democratic power in Portugal." In this context, he reiterated ‘a profound and supportive reform of the financial arrangements of local government, including parishes," stressing that, to date, the financial system has been "insufficient, inadequate and unfair" in view of the responsibilities assigned to municipalities and parishes.

José Manuel Bolieiro also highlighted the importance of cooperation between municipalities and parishes, as well as the Autonomous Region's role in signing cooperation agreements with local authorities, increasing resources and improving capabilities.

However, he stressed that these mechanisms are complementary and do not replace the need to improve the legal and financial framework of local government at a structural level.

Furthermore, the President of the Government also advocated the approval of a new Budget Framework Law, along with a new Local Finance Act and a new Regional Finance Act, considering that the current legal framework is inadequate.

The President of the Government also emphasised the social mission of local authorities, both helping the most vulnerable families and responding to marginalisation. He pointed out the growing role of parishes in climate action, civil protection, urban planning and spatial planning, in a context where extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and intense.

"We must be able to respond to the destruction, but also to prepare the territory preventively," he said.

He concluded by highlighting the relevance of ANAFRE intervening with European institutions, particularly within the scope of the European Charter of Local Self-Government, thereby strengthening the voice of Azorean and Portuguese parishes in the European context.

The ceremony was attended by the President of the Board of Directors of ANAFRE, Francisco Branco de Brito, the Regional Director for Cooperation with Local Government, Octávio Torres, and mayors representing Azorean parishes.