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This research is based on the conviction that poverty and social exclusion are closely related. The current context of crisis resulting from the global pandemic caused by Covid-19, neoliberal policies and the lack of employment are generating large pockets of social exclusion, which has led to a debate on the need to implement more solid social protection measures and to reinforce existing ones. This study analyzes in a comparative manner the effectiveness of the Minimum Insertion Income (RMI) in Spain and the Social Insertion Income (RSI) in Portugal in the face of the phenomenon of poverty. The study opted for a qualitative methodology, choosing discourse analysis to analyze the empirical material obtained through the 26 semi-structured interviews and the 3 focus groups conducted. Priority was given to the information in which the subjects described their contexts, actions, values and representations. In general terms, it can be stated that users have a negative conception of both social policies, as a result of their dissatisfaction with three major common areas of conflict, the most frequently mentioned problems being: delays in the granting of benefits; the low amount offered; and the limitation of insertion mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores what happens when the term "austerity" becomes a global catchword. Specifically, we study how this term has been used in national policy making in the Portuguese and Spanish parliaments from the 1970s until recently. We show that although Portugal and Spain were in a somewhat different situation regarding the 2008 economic crisis, the increased popularity of the term austerity occurred practically simultaneously in the Portuguese and Spanish parliaments. This suggests that the term's popularity in political debates is not solely determined by a nation's political or fiscal situation. Rather, our contention is that employing the term austerity to discuss government policies became a global fashion after the fiscal crisis of 2008. The study also shows why austerity became an increasingly popular concept: the term changed from being mainly used in fiscal policy to being commonly used in other policy areas too. Related Articles: Exadaktylos, Theofanis, and Nikolaos Zahariadis. 2014. "Quid pro Quo: Political Trust and Policy Implementation in Greece during the Age of Austerity." Politics & Policy 42 (1): 160‐183. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12058 Monza, Sabina, and Eva Anduiza. 2016. "The Visibility of the EU in the National Public Spheres in Times of Crisis and Austerity." Politics & Policy 44 (3): 499‐524. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12163 Sager, Fritz, and Markus Hinterleitner. 2016. "How do Credit Rating Agencies Rate? An Implementation Perspective on the Assessment of Austerity Programs during the European Debt Crisis." Politics & Policy 44 (4): 783‐815. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12165 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]