Weapons offences

The plan concedes that certain sentences may need to be raised, but in the same breath establishes that much more focus must be directed toward preventing the recruitment of new children into gang crime. It explicitly warns against repression and harsher measures being lifted up instead of the problems being taken seriously, and identifies the fight against access to illegal weapons and against the deeper causes of crime as the way forward. Therefore, a doubling of the minimum sentence is not the plan's answer.

• prevention before sentence enhancementdecisive»Vissa straff kan behöva höjas men mycket mer fokus måste riktas mot att förhindra rekryteringen av nya barn till gängkriminalitet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Some sentences may need to be raised but much more focus must be directed toward preventing the recruitment of new children into gang crime.”
• repression does not solve crime»Alltför ofta lyfts repression och hårdare tag upp som lösningar istället för att ta itu med problemen på allvar.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Too often repression and harsher measures are presented as solutions instead of tackling the problems seriously.”
• fight against weapon access and causes»kamp mot tillgången till illegala skjutvapen och ett effektivt avhopparprogram, men framför allt med en kamp mot kriminalitetens djupare orsaker« (2022 manifesto ↗)“the fight against access to illegal firearms and an effective exit programme, but above all with a fight against the deeper causes of crime”
• gun violence must be stopped»Föräldrar ska inte behöva oroa sig över skjutvapenvåld och drömma mardrömmar om att deras barn ska drabbas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Parents should not have to worry about gun violence and have nightmares about their children being affected.”

The election manifesto explicitly promises to double the sentence for serious weapons crimes and to tighten sentences for gang-related crime to keep criminals off the streets. The counter-proposal's doubled minimum sentence and tightening for weapon use in public places is exactly that commitment. The plan thus also speaks against the committee's assessment that further tightening is not needed now.

• doubled sentence for serious weapons crimesdecisive»Vi vill fördubbla straffet för grova vapenbrott.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to double the sentence for serious weapons crimes.”
• tightened sentences against gang crime»Skärpa straffen för att hålla de kriminella borta från gatorna.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Tighten sentences to keep criminals off the streets.”
• tough action against illegal weapons»Vi vill ta krafttag mot införsel av vapen och narkotika, bland annat genom stärkt gränskontroll.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to take tough action against smuggling of weapons and narcotics, including through strengthened border control.”
• uncompromising approach»Kampen mot kriminaliteten ska vara kompromisslös. Samhällets fulla kraft ska mobiliseras för att trycka tillbaka de kriminella« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The fight against crime must be uncompromising. Society's full force must be mobilized to push back criminals”

The counter-proposal requires doubled minimum sentences for serious weapons crimes. The plan's key commitment is that crime prevention work is the foundation of a safe society and that marginalisation shall be reduced, while penalties shall be rehabilitative and criminal justice shall be humane. The plan calls for no sharpened criminal penalties for weapons crimes, which means it speaks against the requirement.

• prevention before punishmentdecisive»Det brottsförebyggande arbetet är grunden för ett tryggt samhälle med låg kriminalitet.« (party programme ↗)“Crime prevention work is the foundation for a safe society with low criminality.”
• reduce marginalisation»Det viktigaste brottsförebyggande arbetet sker genom att minska marginaliseringen och utsattheten i samhället.« (party programme ↗)“The most important crime prevention work occurs through reducing marginalisation and vulnerability in society.”
• rehabilitative penalties»Brottspåföljder har både ett brottsförebyggande och ett rehabiliterande syfte. Kriminalvård ska vara human och ha som mål att den som dömts inte ska återfalla i kriminalitet.« (party programme ↗)“Criminal penalties have both a crime prevention and a rehabilitative purpose. Criminal justice shall be humane and aim at ensuring that the sentenced person does not relapse into crime.”
• prevention push»storsatsa på det förebyggande arbetet i socioekonomiskt eftersatta områden.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“make a major push on prevention work in socioeconomically disadvantaged areas.”

The plan requires stricter sentences and tougher action against gang crime as part of not bowing to gangs, and that the entire criminal justice chain is strengthened. Doubling the minimum sentence for serious weapons offences and letting weapon use in serious violent crimes count as an aggravating circumstance aligns with that commitment. However, the plan does not specify sentence levels for weapons offences, which is why the support is derived.

• stricter sentences against gangsdecisive»Samhället ska inte vika sig för gängen. För att besegra dem krävs bättre insatser som förebygger nyrekrytering, mer resurser till polis, åklagare, domstolar och kriminalvården och strängare straff.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Society shall not bow to gangs. To defeat them requires better measures that prevent recruitment, more resources to police, prosecutors, courts and prisons and stricter sentences.”
• stricter sentences»Sverige behöver fler poliser, hårdare straff och bättre förebyggande insatser« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden needs more police, stricter sentences and better preventative measures”
• strengthened criminal justice chain»Vi behöver rusta Sveriges totalförsvar, stärka hela rättskedjan, satsa på förebyggande insatser och en likvärdig skola.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We need to strengthen Sweden's total defence, strengthen the entire criminal justice chain, invest in preventative measures and equal education.”

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 election manifesto explicitly requires tightened penalties for among other things weapons crimes and establishes that more serious criminality requires longer sentences. A doubled minimum sentence for aggravated weapons crime and weapon use as an aggravating circumstance are precisely such tightenings. The party programme also opens for raising penalty levels for specific crime types to mark seriousness.

• tightened penalties for weapons crimesdecisive»skärpa straffen för bland annat vapenbrott, våldtäkt och utpressning« (2022 manifesto ↗)“tighten penalties for among other things weapons crimes, rape and extortion”
• longer sentences for serious crime»En grövre brottslighet kräver längre straff.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“More serious criminality requires longer sentences.”
• stricter penalties for recidivism»Påföljdssystemet ska förändras så att återfall och upprepad brottslighet ger strängare straff« (party programme ↗)“The sanction system shall be changed so that recidivism and repeated criminality give stricter penalties”
• abolished volume discount»Vi vill avskaffa dagens mängdrabatt på brott« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to abolish today's volume discount on crimes”

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.

The election manifesto requires that the penalty for weapons crimes be increased to at least five years imprisonment, which is more than the doubling to four years the counter-proposal demands. The plan establishes that general prevention requires clear and predictable reactions and that the sentence shall provide insight into the damage. With a shooting every day according to the election manifesto's situation description, the plan clearly bears the requirement for increased penalties for serious weapons crimes.

• sharply increased weapons crime penaltydecisive»Skärp straffet för vapenbrott till lägst fem års fängelse.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Increase the penalty for weapons crimes to at least five years imprisonment.”
• general prevention through punishment»Allmänpreventionen, det vill säga att samhället gör« (party programme ↗)“General prevention, that is, that society demonstrates”
• the sentence shall mark the seriousness»Straffet ska vara så utformat att det ger brottslingen« (party programme ↗)“The punishment shall be so designed that it gives the perpetrator”
• the extent of serious gun violence»Det sker i snitt en skjutning om dagen och en dödsskjutning i veckan.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“On average there is one shooting a day and one fatal shooting a week.”

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.

The plan explicitly demands that the minimum penalty for serious weapons crimes be tightened from today's two years' imprisonment, and goes further than the counter-proposal by specifying six years. To double the minimum penalty and let weapon use in serious violent crimes at public places be an aggravating factor thus lies entirely within the plan's direction of tightened penalties.

• tightened minimum penalties for weapons crimesdecisive»Skärpa minimistraffen för grova vapenbrott från dagens 2 års fängelse till 6 års fängelse« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Tighten the minimum penalties for serious weapons crimes from today's 2 years' imprisonment to 6 years' imprisonment”
• harder penalties for gang crime»Införa dubbla straff för gängkriminella« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Introduce double penalties for gang criminals”
• tightened penalties for violent crime»Skärpa straffen för vålds- och sexualbrott« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Tighten penalties for violent and sexual crimes”
• severe penalties for serious crime»Grova brott ska leda till« (party programme ↗)“Serious crimes shall lead to”

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.

The plan commits to significantly raising sentences, especially for gang criminals, and that sentences should be proportionate to the crime and provide crime victims with reparation. A doubled minimum sentence for serious weapons crime and aggravating circumstances for weapons use in serious violent crimes in public places follows directly from this. The plan also wants to be able to sentence gang members to particularly long prison sentences.

• significantly raised gang sentencesdecisive»Kraftigt höja straffen för gängkriminella« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Significantly raise sentences for gang criminals”
• tightened sentences»Sverigedemokraterna vill kraftigt skärpa straffen och genomföra kraftiga satsningar på polis, åklagare och anstalter.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Swedish Democrats want to significantly tighten sentences and implement major investments in police, prosecutors and prisons.”
• long sentences for gang members»Den som finns i gängmiljö och begår brott ska kunna dömas till särskilt långa fängelsestraff eller förvaring på obestämd tid.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Anyone in a gang environment who commits a crime should be able to be sentenced to particularly long prison sentences or indefinite imprisonment.”
• proportional sentences»Kraftigt höja straffen samt avskaffa mängdrabatten vid allvarliga brott mot person« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Significantly raise sentences and abolish quantity discounts in serious crimes against persons”

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.