A Sustainable Financial Market

The plan wants to move capital from polluting activities to climate-friendly production and use ownership power to actively steer the economy's structure towards long-term sustainability. Tightened climate demands on financial actors and steering of capital towards climate-robust activities are the same line. The plan additionally considers that banks' society-affecting activities need harder regulation and that the future cannot be left to the market.

• capital steered to climate-friendlydecisive»Vänsterpartiet föreslår en grön omställningsfond där staten använder sina ekonomiska muskler och där pengar förs över från företag som smutsar ner till miljö- och klimatvänlig produktion.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Left Party proposes a green transition fund where the state uses its economic muscle and where money is moved from companies that pollute to environment- and climate-friendly production.”
• harder regulation of banks»Tills dess behövs en hårdare reglering av bankernas samhällspåverkande verksamhet.« (party programme ↗)“Until then harder regulation of banks' society-affecting activities is needed.”
• ownership power for sustainability»Vi vill använda den ägandemakten till att aktivt styra Sveriges ekonomiska struktur mot samhälleliga mål som långsiktig hållbarhet och ordning och reda på arbetsmarknaden.« (party programme ↗)“We want to use that ownership power to actively steer Sweden's economic structure towards societal goals such as long-term sustainability and order and regularity on the labour market.”
• the market does not decide the transition»Det går inte att överlåta framtiden till marknadskrafternas godtycke, framtiden tillhör oss alla.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“It is not possible to leave the future to the arbitrary will of market forces, the future belongs to all of us.”

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 establishes that institutional capital shall be driving for responsibility for the environment and that instruments are needed that counteract short-term speculation and favour long-term investments. The election manifesto also wants to expand green credit guarantees and work for a global carbon price. Requiring that financial actors integrate climate risks and that capital be directed towards climate-robust activities follows from this.

• capital shall drive environmental responsibilitydecisive»institutionella kapitalet bör vara pådrivande i frågor som rör arbetstagares rättigheter,« (party programme ↗)“institutional capital should be driving in matters concerning workers' rights,”
• regulate the financial market»finanssystemen, motverkar kortsiktiga spekulationer och gynnar långsiktiga investeringar.« (party programme ↗)“financial systems, counteracts short-term speculation and favours long-term investments.”
• green credit guarantees»Vi vill utöka de gröna kreditgarantierna.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to expand green credit guarantees.”
• polluter pays»Vi ska verka för att ett globalt koldioxidpris införs med principen att förorenaren betalar.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We shall work for a global carbon price to be introduced based on the principle that the polluter pays.”

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 powerful economic policy instruments are necessary for climate goals and that state pension funds shall set ethics and environmental requirements on the companies they invest in; the financial system shall support the real economy. A sharpened green steering of the financial market with requirements that climate risks are integrated and capital directed to climate-robust activities follows from this. Individual financial market rules are not mentioned, therefore it is derived.

• powerful instruments for climatedecisive»Kraftfulla ekonomiska styrmedel är nödvändiga.« (party programme ↗)“Powerful economic policy instruments are necessary.”
• ethics and environmental requirements on investments»etik- och miljökrav på de företag de investerar i.« (party programme ↗)“ethics and environmental requirements on the companies they invest in.”
• the financial market serves the real economy»Det finansiella systemets uppgift är att stödja den« (party programme ↗)“The financial system's task is to support the”
• rapid climate transition»investera minst 100 miljarder per år i att ställa om så att Sverige blir ett fossilfritt välfärdsland senast år 2030.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“invest at least 100 billion per year in transitioning so that Sweden becomes a fossil-free welfare state by 2030 at the latest.”

The plan's principle is that environmental and climate values shall be priced and factored into economic decisions, and that pricing of emissions mobilises the market's transformation pressure. The counter-proposal wants financial actors to integrate climate-related risks and capital to be directed towards climate-resilient businesses, which is the same as pricing risk correctly. The plan's opposition to planned-economy guidance sets a limit on how that steering may be designed. The plan therefore supports the requirement.

• price natural capitaldecisive»Vi behöver sätta ett ekonomiskt värde på vårt naturkapital och på miljön.« (party programme ↗)“We need to assign an economic value to our natural capital and the environment.”
• environmental values into economic decisions»Beräknas värdet av de tjänster naturen tillhandahåller, så kallade ekosystemtjänster som pollinering och vattenrening, skapas bättre underlag för ekonomiska beslut.« (party programme ↗)“If the value of the services that nature provides, so-called ecosystem services such as pollination and water purification, is calculated, better grounds are created for economic decisions.”
• pricing emissions»Pris på utsläpp kan samla kraften från miljontals entreprenörer och mångfalt fler konsumenter« (party programme ↗)“Pricing of emissions can harness the force of millions of entrepreneurs and many more consumers”

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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 builds climate policy on real climate taxes and general policy instruments that are primarily coordinated at EU level, not on political steering of where capital is placed. The counter-proposal's requirement to steer capital away from climate-vulnerable activities is the type of measure the plan describes as symbolic politics rather than effective climate benefit. That climate aspects are integrated in the EU's regulatory framework is supported, however.

• real climate taxes instead of steeringdecisive»Därför är vi för riktiga klimatskatter i stället för att göra klimatpolitiken till en tävling i högst bidrag och flest symbolskatter.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“That is why we are for real climate taxes instead of turning climate policy into a competition for the most subsidies and the most symbolic taxes.”
• no to symbolic politics»Liberal miljöpolitik tar avstånd från symbolpolitik« (party programme ↗)“Liberal environmental policy rejects symbolic politics”
• policy instruments coordinated at EU level»ekonomiska styrmedlen bör i första hand samordnas på EU-nivå« (party programme ↗)“economic policy instruments should primarily be coordinated at EU level”
• climate integrated in EU policy»Klimataspekterna ska integreras i EU:s handelspolitik.« (party programme ↗)“Climate aspects shall be integrated in the EU's trade policy.”

The plan is based on a social market economy where environmental considerations are taken through pricing and the principle that the polluter pays, not through political control of where capital should be placed. To impose on financial actors to steer capital away from certain activities goes beyond the role the plan gives the state in the market. The requirement for stricter green governance of the financial market is therefore rejected.

• limited state market roledecisive»Statens roll i näringspolitiken är att övervaka att« (party programme ↗)“The state's role in business policy is to oversee that”
• priced environmental impact»förorenaren betalar, bör vara centrala i miljöarbetet« (party programme ↗)“the polluter pays, should be central in environmental work”
• general means rather than targeted control»Näringspolitiken ska bedrivas med generella medel,« (party programme ↗)“Business policy shall be conducted with general means,”
• market economy as foundation»Den historiska erfarenheten visar att marknadsekonomin är den bästa metoden för att skapa en god« (party programme ↗)“Historical experience shows that market economy is the best method for creating a good”

The counter-proposal demands tightened green governance of the financial market and that capital be politically directed from climate-vulnerable to climate-robust activities. The plan is built on the idea that prosperity rests on market economy and private ownership and that the solution to the climate threat lies in the transformative power that a free enterprise economy bears, not in expensive symbolic politics. Drivers for investment shall be strengthened rather than directed. The plan therefore rejects the demand.

• market economy as foundationdecisive»Grunden för Sveriges välstånd är en marknadsekonomi baserad« (party programme ↗)“The foundation for Sweden's prosperity is a market economy based”
• the transformative power of enterprise»den förändringskraft som finns i ett fritt näringsliv.« (party programme ↗)“the transformative power that exists in a free enterprise economy.”
• no expensive symbolic measures»Klimatpolitiken får aldrig reduceras till dyrbar symbolpolitik« (party programme ↗)“Climate policy must never be reduced to expensive symbolic politics”
• promote investment»Stärka drivkrafterna för investeringar, forskning och entreprenörskap, genom lägre skatter på företagande« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strengthen the drivers for investment, research and entrepreneurship, through lower taxes on enterprise”

The plan requires that climate goals be implemented based on evidence, results and Swedish competitiveness and not on the ambition to go first and furthest, and that measures be chosen after emissions reduction per krona. A stricter green steering of the financial market with requirements for capital allocation and sustainability integration within the capital market union goes in the opposite direction and moreover increases the EU's grip on economic policy, which the plan views very negatively.

• evidence-based climate policydecisive»Evidens, resultat och svensk konkurrenskraft ska styra genomförandet av klimatmål i högre utsträckning än politikers vilja att gå först och längst.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Evidence, results and Swedish competitiveness should guide the implementation of climate goals to a greater extent than politicians' desire to go first and furthest.”
• no to EU-steered economy»Vi ser mycket negativt på flera planerade initiativ som ökar EU:s grepp över den ekonomiska politiken samt på förslag på införandet av nya EU-skatter och avskaffad vetorätt inom utrikespolitiken.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We view very negatively several planned initiatives that increase the EU's grip on economic policy and proposals for introduction of new EU taxes and abolished veto power in foreign policy.”
• stop symbolic politics»Stoppa symbolpolitik som går ut över möjligheten att bedriva industri och näring« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Stop symbolic politics that comes at the expense of the ability to conduct industry and enterprise”
• cost-effective climate measures»Satsa på åtgärder som minskar utsläppen mest per satsad krona som t ex internationella klimatinvesteringar« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Invest in measures that reduce emissions most per spent krona, such as international climate investments”