Penalties and Sanction Fees

The plan sees economic crime in enterprises as a serious problem that drives out legitimate businesses and undermines tax revenue, and wants effective monitoring and greater public transparency. A toughened sanctions system with sanction fees for food fraud is a direct application of that line. The committee's grounds are that ongoing investigations should not be prejudged, which is a procedural question the plan does not take a position on.

• combat economic crimedecisive»Ekonomisk brottslighet i företag leder till allvarliga konsekvenser,« (party programme ↗)“Economic crime in enterprises leads to serious consequences,”
• effective monitoring of crime»Det behövs en effektiv uppföljning av den organiserade« (party programme ↗)“There is a need for effective monitoring of the organised”
• transparency in enterprises against fraud»Vi vill gå mot en större samhällelig insyn« (party programme ↗)“We want to move towards greater public transparency”
• economic crime distorts competition»Lönedumpning, ekonomisk brottslighet och utnyttjande är centrala hot idag.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Wage dumping, economic crime and exploitation are central threats today.”

The plan requires that fraud and all other economic crime be combated and that penalties be commensurate with the seriousness of crimes. It also wants to protect viable Swedish food production, which presupposes that cheating does not distort competition. Rapid proposals for sharpened sanctions, including a sanction fee for food fraud, therefore follow from the plan.

• combated economic crimedecisive»Bekämpande av bedrägerier och all annan ekonomisk brottslighet.« (party programme ↗)“Combating fraud and all other economic crime.”
• effective sanctions»Straff i paritet med brottens allvar.« (party programme ↗)“Penalties commensurate with the seriousness of crimes.”
• confidence in the food chain»Livskraftig svensk livsmedelsproduktion som stärker landets självförsörjningsförmåga.« (party programme ↗)“Viable Swedish food production that strengthens the country's self-sufficiency.”
• stop for misuse of tax funds»Skattefusk, välfärdsbrottslighet och penningtvätt ska stoppas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Tax fraud, welfare crime and money laundering shall be stopped.”

The plan establishes that everyone shall be able to feel secure about the food we eat and that oversight is needed so that no one gains competitive advantages by breaking the rules. A sanctions system where few violations lead to consequences conflicts with this, and the counter-proposal's demands for tighter sanctions including sanction fees follow from the plan's line that criminal profits shall be taken from those who break the rules.

• safe food and poison-free everyday lifedecisive»Alla ska kunna känna en trygghet med maten vi äter, vattnet vi dricker och alla produkter vi omger oss med.« (party programme ↗)“Everyone shall be able to feel secure about the food we eat, the water we drink and all products we surround ourselves with.”
• oversight provides fair competition»Tillsynen är också viktig för att skapa rättvisa mellan olika företag – ingen ska få ett övertag i konkurrensen genom att bryta mot miljöregler.« (party programme ↗)“Oversight is also important to create fairness between different enterprises – no one shall gain an advantage in competition by breaking environmental rules.”
• criminal profits shall be seized»Vi vill också stärka arbetet mot den kriminella ekonomin. Brottsvinster ska beslagtas och återföras till samhället.« (party programme ↗)“We also wish to strengthen the work against criminal economy. Criminal profits shall be seized and returned to society.”
• resources for prosecution»Domstolar och rättsvårdande myndigheter ska ha nog med resurser för att kunna hantera och lagföra miljöbrott.« (party programme ↗)“Courts and law-enforcement authorities shall have sufficient resources to handle and prosecute environmental crimes.”

The election manifesto demands action against crimes that harm businesses and wants to strengthen the competitiveness of green industries. Food fraud that rarely results in penalties distorts this competition and undermines confidence in Swedish food production. The party programme also states that criminal policy should both prevent and deter, which supports effective sanctions now.

• action against crimes against businessesdecisive»krafttag mot brott emot företag« (2022 manifesto ↗)“action against crimes against businesses”
• green industries' competitiveness»Vi vill stärka de gröna näringarnas konkurrenskraft.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to strengthen green industries' competitiveness.”
• deterrent sanctions»Kriminalpolitiken ska därför både förebygga och avskräcka från brott, stödja brottsdrabbade och stimulera dem som har begått olagliga handlingar till en ny livssituation utan brottslighet.« (party programme ↗)“Criminal policy should therefore both prevent and deter crime, support victims of crime and encourage those who have committed illegal acts into a new life situation without crime.”
• healthy competition»Konkurrens är en viktig drivkraft för utvecklingen av marknadsekonomin.« (party programme ↗)“Competition is an important driver for the development of the market economy.”

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 requires that oversight of compliance with national laws and EU rules is strengthened and that clear sanctions exist for violations. A sanctions system where few violations result in consequences also distorts the fair competition the plan protects. The counter-proposal's requirement for swift and effective sanctions, including a sanction fee, therefore follows from the plan.

• strengthened compliance oversightdecisive»Kontrollen av att nationella lagar och EU-regler efterlevs måste skärpas.« (party programme ↗)“Oversight that national laws and EU rules are complied with must be strengthened.”
• clear sanctions for violations»Det behövs tydliga sanktioner vid överträdelser av bestämmelser gällande utsläpp, vattenrening, transportsäkerhet och fiske.« (party programme ↗)“There must be clear sanctions for violations of provisions regarding emissions, water purification, transport safety and fishing.”
• consumer perspective in food policy»Jordbruks- och livsmedelspolitiken ska ha ett tydligt konsument- och hållbarhetsperspektiv.« (party programme ↗)“Agricultural and food policy shall have a clear consumer and sustainability perspective.”
• competition on equal terms»Lagar och regler ska slå vakt om äganderätt, konkurrens på lika villkor, rättssäkerhet och att enskilda människor har likvärdiga och goda möjligheter att nå sina livsmål.« (party programme ↗)“Laws and rules shall protect property rights, competition on equal terms, legal certainty and that individuals have equivalent and good opportunities to reach their life goals.”

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 requires that all crimes be effectively prosecuted without exception, including those that might be dismissed as minor, and wants to counteract unfair competition. Food fraud, which rarely leads to prosecution, distorts competition for Swedish agriculture, whose competitiveness the plan wants to strengthen. This supports the counter-proposal's demand for stricter and more effective sanctions.

• alla brott ska beivrasdecisive»Alla brott ska effektivt och utan undantag beivras« (party programme ↗)“All crimes shall be effectively and without exception prosecuted”
• mot illojal konkurrens»En effektiv konkurrenspolitik motverkar oligopol, monopol och illojal konkurrens.« (party programme ↗)“Effective competition policy counteracts oligopoly, monopoly and unfair competition.”
• lantbrukets konkurrenskraft»Regeländringar och kostnadslättnader för svenskt lantbruk för att öka Sveriges självförsörjning och stärka lantbrukets konkurrenskraft.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Regulatory changes and cost reductions for Swedish agriculture to increase Sweden's self-sufficiency and strengthen agriculture's competitiveness.”
• säkra livsmedel»Sverige bör ta till vara sina mycket goda förutsättningar för miljövänlig och säker produktion av högkvalitativa livsmedel.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden should make use of its very good conditions for environmentally friendly and safe production of high-quality food.”

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 hard work and honesty shall always trump cheating and that sanctions for rule breaches shall be tightened, and it gives the state the task to promote competition. Food fraud that rarely receives penalties distorts competition and undermines the food strategy the plan wants to strengthen. Prompt and effective sanctions therefore follow from the plan's principles, even though the factual question is not addressed explicitly.

• cheating shall never pay offdecisive»Där slit och flit alltid trumfar fusk och dåliga ursäkter, och där välfärdens skyddsnät finns till för den som behöver det.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Where hard work and honesty always trump cheating and bad excuses, and where welfare's safety net exists for those who need it.”
• tightened sanctions for rule breaches»Skärpa straffen för miljöbrott och nedskräpning och ge ordningsvakter befogenhet att dela ut böter för småskräp« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Tighten penalties for environmental crimes and littering and give law enforcement the authority to issue fines for minor litter”
• the state shall promote competition»institutioner, skydda penningvärdet, främja konkurrensen« (party programme ↗)“institutions, protect the value of money, promote competition”
• strengthened food chain»Förstärka livsmedelsstrategin« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strengthen the food strategy”

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 explicitly identifies food fraud as a problem that farmers face and requires increased measures against it, while crime affecting business owners should be combated and fraud prevented. The counter-proposal's demands for swiftly sharpened and effective sanctions, including a sanctions fee, directly respond to this commitment. The plan therefore supports the counter-proposal's cause.

• measures against food frauddecisive»Sverigedemokraterna vill därtill skapa förutsättningar för innovation och teknikutveckling och öka åtgärderna mot de problem som lantbrukare drabbas av, som t.ex. stora vildsvinsstammar och livsmedelsbedrägerier.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden Democrats further want to create conditions for innovation and technology development and increase measures against the problems farmers face, such as large wild boar populations and food fraud.”
• crime against business owners»Bekämpa brottslighet som drabbar företagare« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Combat crime affecting business owners”
• agricultural competitiveness»Öka det svenska jordbrukets konkurrenskraft och Sveriges självförsörjning av livsmedel« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Increase Swedish agriculture's competitiveness and Sweden's self-sufficiency in food”
• prevent fraud»Både fusk och sådana system som tenderar att locka till fusk och korruption ska motverkas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Both fraud and systems that tend to encourage fraud and corruption should be prevented.”

The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.