At a conference held in Ponta Delgada called "25 de Abril Sempre" (April 25th Forever), the two PSD veterans warned of the risks of a common Regional Finance Law for the Autonomous Regions of the Azores and Madeira.

"We must have the strength to speak out in Lisbon, but beware: the specificity of each territory is another matter. I know that the President of the Government [of the Azores] has been coordinating with the President of the Government of Madeira on a common regional finance law. I always have many doubts," argued Alberto João Jardim, who led the Madeiran executive from 1978 to 2015.

He added: "I don't know if a common law won't end up harming one or the other. I have my doubts, but who am I but a rank-and-file member".

Mota Amaral (who led the Government of the Azores from 1976 to 1995) also highlighted the "identities" of each archipelago.

"Alberto João Jardim said that the best thing would be to make two regional finance laws. Maybe. In fact, I remember having summarized that notion. The autonomous regions are autonomous in relation to the continental territory of the Republic and are autonomous among themselves. This is fundamental for respecting their own identity and for each one to follow its own path," said the former President of the Assembly of the Republic.

In September 2022, the leaders of the Regional Governments of the Azores and Madeira, the Social Democrats Bolieiro and Miguel Albuquerque, announced that the regions would present a joint proposal for the revision of the Regional Finance Law.

In July 2023, the two regional governments met with lawyer Eduardo Paz Ferreira, who is responsible for coordinating the new proposal for a financing law for the Autonomous Regions.

Today, at the session, the former presidents of the executives of Madeira and the Azores revisited the context of the implementation of political autonomy and the challenges of the autonomous regions.

Mota Amaral highlighted the "great economic and social progress" of the Azores over the last 50 years, a "great qualitative leap", despite the fact that there is still "a long way to go".

"Development is the third 'D' of April 25th that has not yet been achieved, nor will it ever be, because society will always demand more," he said, arguing that "autonomy is progressive".

Alberto João Jardim insisted on the need for a tax system of its own for the autonomous regions and considered it "normal for there to be tensions" between the Regional Governments and the Republic.

"Autonomy has succeeded in giving a voice to populations that are so distant and that are suffering from their insularity and that have been left by the central state in a state of economic, social and cultural backwardness," he stressed.

The conference "25 de abril sempre" (April 25th Forever) took place at the Natália Correia Study Center, in the parish of Fajã de Baixo, and was organized by the Ponta Delgada City Council on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the revolution.

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