Contributor(s): António José Seguro | Since July 2011 António José Seguro (@ajseguro), leader of the opposition in Portugal has defended an alternative set of policies to be outlined and implemented while Portugal is under the Financial Assistance Program in order to prevent a deep recession and unemployment and to increase the economic activity. Being a strong critic of austerity policies, António José Seguro advocates a stronger role for the European institutions against the financial and economic crisis namely in the fight against youth unemployment and supporting new competences for the ECB in order to tackle the Eurozone rising public debt. Three months before the end of the Assistance Program, the Socialist Party secretary general explains his alternative for the Portuguese economy and the strategy for the EU after the next European elections. António José Martins Seguro is the leader of the Portuguese Socialist Party and a member of the Portuguese parliament. He was born on 11 March 1962 and has a degree in International Relations and a post-graduation in Political Science. In the national parliament, António José Seguro has already assumed the leadership of the Socialist Party parliamentary group. Between 2006 and 2011, he was president of the Parliamentary Commissions for Education, Science and Culture and also for Economic Affairs, Innovation and Energy. António Seguro also coordinated the reforming process of the Portuguese parliament. António Seguro was secretary of state for youth and secretary of state to the prime minister. In 2001, he was minister to the prime minister António Guterres. He was a member of the European parliament from 1999 to 2001 and held several parliamentary positions, which include among others being vice president of the European Socialist Party Group and co-rapporteur of the European parliament report about the Treaty of Nice and the Future of the European Union. He is vice-president of the Socialist International.