Govt will continue to take risks even if not always successful – PM

Perhaps not the best thing to say as thousands of parents wring their hands in despair at news of the digital marking shambles, but Portugal’s prime minister has come out an said it anyway: the government will continue to “take risks,  even if things might not go quite so well here and there”.

This is, in fact, the first time the executive has admitted that embarking on digital marking for secondary school exams, with a platform they were planning to do away with anyway, was ‘a risk’.

Before this it has been described as a much-needed reform.

But however we like to perceive it – now that it has been in the headlines, and on the news, for over two weeks – it is a lesson, according to the PM, for a country that apparently has a fear of failure.

“The country must overcome its fear of failure”, he said today, at the 1st Science and Innovation 2026 Conference, at the Lisbon Congress Centre, where Minister for Education, Science and Innovation, Fernando Alexandre – the brunt of many criticisms over the last few weeks – was also present.

In a speech in which he never directly referred to the problems currently being experienced with the digital marking of secondary school exams, the prime minister began by using the example of science as a metaphor for the strategy he advocates for the country, writes Lusa.

“The country must take risks. Research means taking risks. The country must be bold. Innovation means being bold. The country must lose its fear of failure, because only those who are not afraid of failing can truly succeed,” he said.

Later on, the PM acknowledged that, just as in the scientific sector, in the political arena too “we do not always need to be in complete agreement”.

“I’m not going to say that in politics we seek scientific validation for what we decide, but we always strive to ensure that what we decide is the most appropriate and best grounded in reality – in the reality we face today and the reality we want to build for tomorrow,” he went on.

And, in the political arena too, he reiterated the principle of ‘embracing risk’.

“We don’t mind taking risks. Even if things might not go quite so well here and there, we’ll take the risk all the same. Not least for moral reasons, because if we encourage society to do so, we must also be the first to set an example,” he said.

In his speech, which lasted about half an hour, Montenegro also took the opportunity to respond to those who believe that the strategy for the enhancement of the status of the civil service is merely an electoral ploy.

“Unlike those who, in a hasty and often superficial manner, believe that the enhancement of the status of the civil service is merely a kind of benefit granted to those closest to those in power – and who are being courted in the hope of securing an electoral return later on – I wish to state here, in no uncertain terms: our investment in the civil service is an investment in the service provided to citizens, to businesses and to society,” he said.

On arrival, the prime minister was approached by representatives of a gathering of scientific researchers (several dozen were demonstrating some distance from the entrance to the Lisbon Congress Centre) calling for an end to precarious working conditions in science.

The media was unable to follow the conversation, says Lusa (not explaining why) “but it was audible that they conveyed to the head of government their concerns regarding budgetary funding for science and the situation of research fellows who have been in precarious employment for 20 years.”

On leaving, the prime minister made no statements to journalists – so they were unable to enquire further about the protesting scientific researchers.

The prime minister also used the moment to issue a challenge to the national scientific community to make the most of the next European Union framework programme, which begins in January 2028, Lusa adds.

“There is no doubt that the next investment cycle of the European budget will be directed towards factors of competitiveness, towards Europe’s strategic autonomy, and towards deepening what can create value,” he said.

According to Montenegro, all countries will be in “direct competition with one another, with preference being given to merit, excellence and the demonstration of the added value of each project”.

The prime minister emphasised that Portugal already stands out when its projects involve partnerships between academia and business, but considered it possible to “go even further” by creating consortia between various national and European institutions, and conveyed a message of confidence.

“I am very calm; I have that restlessness of someone who always wants more, but I am calm because I know that your capacity is very, very great and we are going to make the most of it,” he said.

The fact that scientific researchers are complaining did not quite sit easily with this sense of calm, but the PM ensured, by touching on so many different subjects at the same time, that this was lost in the general mélange of inspirational words.

Source: LUSA