Membership in the European Union

The party programme drives the demand for Swedish withdrawal from the EU, opposes proposals that increase EU's power and rejects supranational bodies that violate the sovereignty of democratically elected parliaments. The counter-proposal wants to investigate expanded popular anchorage, alternatively referendums, and a veto option in unanchored matters, which is in the plan's direction of moving power back to the people and member states. The plan also emphasises that popular sovereignty is exercised through the national parliament.

• Swedish EU withdrawaldecisive»Vänsterpartiet driver kravet om ett svenskt utträde ur EU.« (party programme ↗)“The Left Party drives the demand for Swedish withdrawal from the EU.”
• national popular sovereignty»Överstatliga organ som kränker de nationella folkvalda parlamentens suveränitet är ingen hållbar lösning.« (party programme ↗)“Supranational bodies that violate the sovereignty of nationally elected parliaments are not a sustainable solution.”
• opposition to increased EU power»I det dagliga arbetet motsätter sig Vänsterpartiet generellt förslag som ökar EU:s makt« (party programme ↗)“In its daily work, the Left Party generally opposes proposals that increase EU's power”
• referendum as legitimacy basis»Vi respekterar resultatet i folkomröstningen 1994 men har inte« (party programme ↗)“We respect the result of the 1994 referendum but have not”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan establishes that for effective cooperation, it is necessary that member states transfer some of their power to the EU's decision-making bodies, and sees EU cooperation as the foundation for solving the most difficult problems of our time. A model with referendums and veto in matters not considered anchored pulls in the opposite direction. The plan instead wants to achieve popular influence through a more open and democratic EU and through the principle of subsidiarity.

• power is transferred to the EUdecisive»är det nödvändigt att medlemsländerna överlämnar en del av sin makt till EU:s« (party programme ↗)“is it necessary that member states transfer some of their power to the EU's”
• EU cooperation is the foundation»Vi är övertygade om att EU-samarbetet är grunden för att lösa många av vår tids svåraste problem.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We are convinced that EU cooperation is the foundation for solving many of the most difficult problems of our time.”
• more open and more democratic EU»Vi socialdemokrater vill att EU ska bli öppnare och mer demokratiskt.« (party programme ↗)“We social democrats want the EU to become more open and more democratic.”
• the principle of subsidiarity shall be followed»Den så kallade subsidiaritetsprincipen ska följas.« (party programme ↗)“The so-called principle of subsidiarity shall be followed.”

The party programme states that referendums shall be held on important questions if a certain proportion of citizens request it, that the EU's democratic shortcomings shall be countered and that popular influence in the union is far too limited. A developed anchoring process or referendum model for EU membership follows from these commitments and from the EU-critical, decentralist basic view.

• referendums on important questionsdecisive»Om en viss andel medborgare efterfrågar det ska folkomröstningar hållas i viktiga« (party programme ↗)“If a certain proportion of citizens request it referendums shall be held on important”
• counter the EU's democratic shortcomings»Vi arbetar för att motverka EU:s demokratiska« (party programme ↗)“We work to counter the EU's democratic”
• EU-critical decentralism»Utifrån vår decentralistiska grundsyn är vi ett EUkritiskt parti och därför arbetar vi för att förändra« (party programme ↗)“On the basis of our decentralist basic view we are an EU-critical party and therefore we work to change”
• insight and popular influence»Medborgarna ska garanteras insyn och kunna påverka« (party programme ↗)“Citizens shall be guaranteed insight and be able to influence”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The party programme's answer to lack of popular backing in the EU is increased transparency and citizens' direct influence, explicitly not new barriers between countries. A model with referendums and veto in matters not deemed to have backing is precisely such a barrier, and it would counteract the plan's requirement for stronger joint policy on climate, free trade and cross-border crime. The requirement is therefore rejected in substance.

• no new barriers in EUdecisive»Lösningen är inte att resa nya barriärer mellan länder utan att öka« (party programme ↗)“The solution is not to raise new barriers between countries but to increase”
• stronger common EU policy»På områden som klimatomställningen, frihandeln och den gränsöverskridande brottsligheten bör den gemensamma politiken bli kraftfullare« (party programme ↗)“In areas such as climate transition, free trade and cross-border crime, joint policy should become stronger”
• democratic control of EU level»demokratisk kontroll kommer ställa högre krav på vilka frågor som tillåts flytta upp på EU-nivå« (party programme ↗)“democratic control will place higher demands on which questions are allowed to move up to the EU level”
• narrower but sharper EU»EU måste bli smalare, men vassare, göra färre saker men göra dem bättre.« (party programme ↗)“The EU must become narrower, but sharper, do fewer things but do them better.”

The plan wants the veto right in the Council to be abolished and Sweden to participate fully and be part of the EU core, with a vision of a federal Europe. A model with referendums and the possibility of inserting a veto in matters not considered publicly supported goes straight against this commitment. The plan addresses the democracy question instead through an open and democratic union and stronger national parliaments, not through veto threats.

• abolished veto rightdecisive»vetorätten i ministerrådet bör avskaffas« (party programme ↗)“the veto right in the Council should be abolished”
• deepened EU cooperation»Europa behöver mer – inte mindre – samarbete.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Europe needs more – not less – cooperation.”
• federal Europe»Vår vision är ett federalt Europa« (party programme ↗)“Our vision is a federal Europe”
• democratic union»EU ska vara en union som är öppen och demokratisk« (party programme ↗)“The EU should be a union that is open and democratic”

The party programme wants referendums to be able to be used at the national level and that strong public opinion shall be able to be heard, and bases EU policy on a citizens' Europe with an understandable decision-making process and limited EU competence. That supports the idea that a developed anchoring process is examined. However, the plan's strong pro-EU stance makes the veto part of the requirement difficult to reconcile, which is why confidence is low.

• referendum as a tooldecisive»Folkomröstningar ska kunna användas både på nationell och lokal nivå.« (party programme ↗)“Referendums shall be able to be used at both national and local levels.”
• citizens' Europe»Vi vill skapa ett medborgarnas Europa« (party programme ↗)“We want to create a citizens' Europe”
• democratic control of the EU»Beslutsprocessen måste vara överblickbar för medborgarna och därmed ge möjlighet att utkräva ansvar.« (party programme ↗)“The decision-making process must be understandable to citizens and thus provide the opportunity to hold to account.”
• limited EU competence»vilka EU:s kompetensområden är, och vilka de inte är.« (party programme ↗)“which the EU's areas of competence are, and which they are not.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan establishes that EU cooperation is the core of Sweden's international engagement, that EU together with NATO is the most important cooperation, and that the party wants to deepen it. A model with referendums and vetoes on matters not considered to have popular support would weaken precisely that engagement. The plan's answer to the anchoring question is instead subsidiarity — that decisions are made at the lowest possible level — not new veto mechanisms.

• EU as the core of foreign policydecisive»EU-samarbetet är kärnan i Sveriges ekonomiska och politiska internationella engagemang« (party programme ↗)“EU cooperation is the core of Sweden's economic and political international engagement”
• EU the most important cooperation»EU är tillsammans med Nato vårt allra viktigaste internationella samarbete.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“EU is together with NATO our most important international cooperation.”
• subsidiarity before veto»Beslut ska fattas på lägsta möjliga nivå, så nära medborgarna som möjligt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Decisions shall be made at the lowest possible level, as close to the citizens as possible.”
• member states' sovereignty»Men EU ska aldrig utvecklas på medlemsstaternas bekostnad.« (party programme ↗)“But EU should never develop at the expense of the member states.”

The election manifesto explicitly requires a referendum instrument that gives the Swedish people the opportunity to make their voice heard before power transfers to Brussels are approved by the Riksdag, precisely to strengthen Sweden's negotiating position. The counter-proposal's requirement for a developed anchoring process or referendum model with veto possibility is the same thing in substance. The party programme also favors more binding referendums.

• referendum instrument on EUdecisive»Sverigedemokraterna vill stärka den svenska förhandlingspositionen i EU genom ett folkomröstningsinstrument som ger svenska folket möjlighet att göra sin röst hörd innan förslag på maktförskjutning till Bryssel godkänns av Riksdagen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden Democrats wish to strengthen Sweden's negotiating position in the EU through a referendum instrument that gives the Swedish people the opportunity to make their voice heard before proposals on power transfers to Brussels are approved by the Riksdag.”
• popular anchoring of EU choices»Stärka Sveriges förhandlingsposition i EU genom ett folkomröstningsinstrument som ger svenska folket möjlighet att ta ställning till avgörande vägval i EU« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strengthen Sweden's negotiating position in the EU through a referendum instrument that gives the Swedish people the opportunity to take a stand on decisive choices in the EU”
• intergovernmentalism and voter influence»Återupprätta mellanstatligheten och stärka väljarnas påverkansmöjligheter« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Restore intergovernmentalism and strengthen voters' influence possibilities”
• more binding referendums»Vi förordar också starkare inslag av direktdemokrati och ställer oss positiva till fler beslutande folkomröstningar på både lokal, regional och nationell nivå.« (party programme ↗)“We also favor stronger elements of direct democracy and are positive to more binding referendums at local, regional and national levels.”