Asked about the idea put forward by Chega's president, André Ventura, at a rally on Tuesday night, in Guimarães, Paulo Raimundo highlighted “the great responsibility” of the right, “and, in particular, of Passos Coelho”, in the emigration of Portuguese people abroad, stressing that this “drama” eventually poses “a labour problem” for the country.

“Chega, IL, PSD and CDS and the absolute majority of the PS have in their hands a pact that has been in operation for decades. And this is the pact that needs to be broken: the pact of low wages, precariousness, the lack of conditions to respond to people's lives... this is what is pushing people out of the country. That’s the big problem we face, it’s not those who come knocking on our doors, who are missing work, they are looking for a better life,” he said.

Raimundo was speaking to the media after a visit to the City Council of Santiago do Cacém (district of Setúbal), accompanied by mayor Álvaro Beijinha (CDU), in a region of Alentejo where there is a strong presence of immigrants, many living in precarious conditions. In this sense, he dismissed the existence of an immigration problem and recalled that “slavery is a crime”, refocusing attention on issues of wages and living conditions.

“That’s not our problem [immigration], the problem is the thousands of young Portuguese who are being pushed away”, he observed, continuing: “We don’t need to be changing anything, slavery is a crime. It's not a problem of changing laws, it's a problem of complying with the laws. People who come here to work need to have rights, and once they have rights like the rest of us, we can demand duties. It’s not worth reinventing the wheel.”