Electoral campaigns for local governments – whether municipal or parish – are, perhaps, the only ones in which proximity truly counts. The opportunity to talk to people about their activity, visit institutions, learn about their problems offers us valuable lessons, in government and even in life. Some are specific to that association, that neighborhood, that parish. Others, however, have a more general scope and deserve extended reflection.
Today I want to highlight just one of these problems, which I heard about repeatedly and which I remembered this Friday — International Day for the Eradication of Poverty — precisely on the same day that the Government celebrated, with enthusiasm, the promulgation by the President of the Republic of the new Foreigners Law, which severely limits immigration.
In many visits and contacts here in the municipality of Coimbra, I heard the worrying lack of people caring for elderly people, who are more fragile and have less autonomy. Social institutions face ever-increasing waiting lists and even when there is the will and capacity to open new responses, they are faced with a lack of caregivers. The departure of a cook, for example, can turn into a real crisis, so that the daily nutrition of dozens of users is not interrupted.
Portugal has one of the highest aging rates in the European Union, with around 2.5 million people aged 65 or over, with 38 elderly people for every 100 people of working age. To make the situation worse, more than one in five elderly people has an income below the poverty threshold. Many live alone or with families who also face difficulties, with it being estimated that around one in four elderly people is dependent.
This situation requires more public and social sector care institutions, and more staff at their service. I learned, in fact, that the lack of people available to perform demanding and relatively low-paid roles is not limited to the social sector. The same shortage, which today is largely ensured by immigration, is also felt in other essential professions, for example, waste collection or public transport. There is a silent labor crisis in areas that support the basic functioning of society.
Therefore, when that same day I heard the Minister of the Presidency state, with his usual arrogance, that Portugal needs “qualified immigrants”, I couldn’t help but think that, in addition to looking for brilliant diplomas and CVs, the Government should recognize the importance of also attracting those who discreetly sustain the real country on its foundations – the hands that feed, care for and shelter the most fragile and that guarantee the most demanding. We will still regret this sectarian carelessness.
Former Member of the European Parliament