Bruno Gonçalves, current secretary-general of the International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY), has achieved the best-ever place for a young person on the PS lists for the European elections by occupying the fourth place on the party's candidacy this year, headed by Marta Temido.

In an interview with  Notícias ao Minuto , the socialist, aged 27, is honoured by the vote of confidence from the party's secretary-general, Pedro Nuno Santos, also considering that this choice reveals that the PS "is determined to show  that it wants to invest in young people who have a broad understanding of politics”. 

Although he points out problematic challenges for the country and Europe, if elected, he hopes to "represent Portugal in the best possible way" in the European Parliament and "meet the ambitions of a youth that cannot be left behind". 

Bruno Gonçalves also understands that politics in Portugal and Europe "not only should but must attract more young people", given the "growing alarm of social tension from inflamed political speeches", observing that the "only way" to do this is "by ensuring that the promises made are kept".

To this end, he argues that it is necessary to “renew communication with youth” and “invest in solid solutions”, which he says are PS bets. On the contrary, "the differences are very clear" in the AD's commitment to youth. “We are not interested in presenting new faces with old ideas,” he stresses.

Faced with the growth of the far right in Portugal and Europe, the socialist also highlights that it is necessary to present “the best solutions” in the European Parliament in order to “effectively improve people's quality of life in their daily lives”.

We have a generation of better prepared politicians in Portugal and we have to know how to take advantage of it

At just 27 years old, Bruno Gonçalves appears fourth on the list of European elections for the Socialist Party (PS). How do you feel about occupying this place, which is the best-ever place for a young person on the party's European lists? 

It is above all an honour, but it comes with a level of responsibility. What the PS is determined to show is that it wants to invest in young people who have a broad understanding of politics, who have a broad and firm understanding of the European Union, in a generation that is not only committed, prepared, but who must have a set of opportunities. 

We have a generation of better prepared politicians in Portugal and we have to know how to take advantage of it because politics must be a noble action and must always be an action aimed at helping people's political lives.

Therefore, a party that invests in young people must be a party that communicates with them, that conveys a very objective message to them, and in the case of the European elections, this is decisive.

The European elections, the European Union and the European Parliament decide much of national politics but decide almost everything of collective politics, namely in terms of freedom, in terms of strategic autonomy, in terms of equality by citizens and by human respect.

It is this peace project, this development project and, above all, this collective integration project that we also want to develop within the European Union, not as something distant but as something of which Portugal and the Portuguese are part.

The party is interested in renewing its message to the country

And how do you analyse this party choice? Do you think it reveals that the PS is looking to understand youth and give them answers also in a European context?

Of course. I think the PS has always been with the youth. And the fact that it includes more highly placed young people on its lists also means that the party is interested, more than in renewing its ranks, in renewing its message to the country.

We know that there is a set of expectations that have been created in the country and in Europe, as a result of socialist and social-democratic policies. Today we have not only a continent of peace, but of prosperity, which for many young people worldwide is the epitome of humanist values, but also from the point of view of technological progress.

Now, what we want to ensure is that this youth, this new generation, who are educated here, who qualify here, also have opportunities to settle here. 

This focus is one of the pillars of this campaign. The freedom that a young person has to be able to stay on European soil, to be able to stay in Portugal and, there, not only to exercise their profession but to fully realise themselves and emancipate themselves. And, for that to happen, the European Union plays a fundamental role.

It is no coincidence that the PS is betting heavily on these European elections with Marta Temido as the head of the list, with Francisco Assis, with Ana Catarina Mendes, with my name, with very capable and very broad names in civil society and with political experience, which is also very important. 

It is not enough to be young, you also need to have this experience in order to then, within the scope of the functions in the European Parliament, have a set of tools that allow us to achieve an agenda that is not only more progressive but that defends the interests of the country. There the PS was decisive and quite assertive in the bet it made on the list it presented to the European Parliament.

The challenges for the party are inherently the challenges of the country and the challenges of Europe

And what do you think are the challenges for the PS in trying to achieve a more progressive agenda?

The challenges for the party are inherently the challenges of the country and the challenges of Europe. But, of course, what we understand as challenges are different from the challenges that the classical Right and the far right understand for the European continent.

First of all, we have a strong commitment to the issue of climate change and climate transition. Climate transition can not only generate better jobs, it is necessary.

The fact that Europe may be late in combating climate change, may be late from the technological point of view of development in some functions that allow achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 is, first of all, not only a sign of emergency, but of urgency of what we need to do in industry.

But then, for the market in general and more specifically for young people, there is a major investment that needs to be made, which has to do with housing. The PS has a firm commitment - and has always said so - to wanting to solve the housing problem from an integrated point of view. And, for that, it is necessary to think about transnational solutions. This is a problem that must also be taken to the bosom of the European Union.

There will be other problems that tell us a lot, but another challenge is also income policy. This is a key problem for more than one generation, for several generations, and, above all, for future generations. We need a Europe focused on the present and the future and that means that Europe and the European Union cannot, as a single market, as an industrial market, continue to lose space in economic markets.

Europe was able to pioneer the first industrial revolutions and has to know how to keep up with this new industrial revolution, which is the digital revolution. Only in this way will we also achieve what we achieved in past revolutions >