Financing of culture

The party programme demands that culture reaches everyone and stands free from both political and commercial control, and that cultural policy creates good economic conditions for institutions and free culture. A patronage model that makes cultural creators less dependent on public financing instead shifts control over culture to private donors. The plan sees public financing as the foundation for culture's independence, so the demand is rejected.

• free from commercial controldecisive»samhället och står fria från både politisk och affärsmässig styrning.« (party programme ↗)“society and stands free from both political and commercial control.”
• public conditions for culture»Kulturpolitiken behöver skapa goda ekonomiska villkor för såväl« (party programme ↗)“Cultural policy needs to create good economic conditions for both”
• culture's independence»Det är viktigt att kulturen står fri från såväl kommersiell som politisk styrning och finns i hela landet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“It is important that culture stands free from both commercial and political control and exists throughout the country.”
• culture as a liberating force»kan vara en stark frigörande kraft som öppnar nya möjligheter.« (party programme ↗)“can be a powerful liberating force that opens new possibilities.”

The party programme makes the financing of culture a public responsibility: society shall support cultural life and culture needs meeting places without economic return requirements and without the governance such requirements entail. A patronage model that is to reduce cultural life's dependence on public financing goes in the opposite direction. The election manifesto's promise of a free and unbound cultural life rests precisely on publicly supported funding.

• culture without return requirementsdecisive»Kulturen måste ha mötesplatser« (party programme ↗)“Culture must have meeting places”
• public responsibility for culture»Samhället ska stödja kulturlivet« (party programme ↗)“Society shall support cultural life”
• free from market governance»utan ekonomiska avkastningskrav« (party programme ↗)“without economic return requirements”
• free and unbound cultural life»Sverige ska ha ett levande, fritt och obundet kulturliv som både stärker samhörigheten och utmanar« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall have a vibrant, free and unbound cultural life that both strengthens togetherness and challenges”

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 bases cultural policy on everyone being able to practise and participate in culture on equal terms, and the election manifesto wants to invest public funds in a broad recovery plan for the entire cultural life. A financing model whose stated purpose is independence from public funding goes against the plan's line on public responsibility for culture. The plan, however, does not directly address patronage.

• equal access to culturedecisive»utöva och ta del av kultur på jämlika villkor.« (party programme ↗)“practise and participate in culture on equal terms.”
• public investment in cultural life»satsa på en bred återhämtningsplan för kulturlivet i hela landet, som omfattar både offentliga, fria, professionella och ideella aktörer.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“invest in a broad recovery plan for cultural life throughout the country, which covers both public, independent, professional and non-profit actors.”
• artistic freedom»Kulturpolitiken ska grundas på respekt för den konstnärliga friheten och yttrandefriheten och stimulera en mångfald av kulturella uttryck.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Cultural policy shall be based on respect for artistic freedom and freedom of expression and stimulate a diversity of cultural expressions.”

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 holds that culture should be free and independent and that politics maintains arm's length distance instead of acting as taste judge. A patronage model with a culture fund that strengthens independent creators' independence from public financing is an application of that principle. The plan therefore supports investigation of the model.

• free and independent culturedecisive»Kulturen ska vara fri och oberoende, idrotten jämlik och inkluderande.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Culture should be free and independent, sport equal and inclusive.”
• politics no taste judge»Skaparglädje frodas i frihet. Politiken ska akta sig för att agera smakdomare och diktera kulturens innehåll.« (party programme ↗)“Creator's joy thrives in freedom. Politics must beware of acting as taste judge and dictating culture's content.”
• arm's length distance»Politiken ska bidra till goda förutsättningar men hålla armlängds avstånd.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Politics should contribute to good conditions but maintain arm's length distance.”
• support via civil society»Politiken kan stödja civilsamhället genom att involvera det i fler processer, finansiera dess infrastruktur« (party programme ↗)“Politics can support civil society by involving it in more processes, financing its infrastructure”

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 wants more foundations for cultural financing to be created and private financing to be stimulated through deduction rights for donations and favorable conditions for cultural sponsorship. The election manifesto wants the state to steer less and that cultural creators, not politicians, make decisions about support. An investigation into a patronage model with a culture fund is precisely the direction the plan indicates to strengthen cultural life's independence.

• more cultural foundationsdecisive»Fler stiftelser för kulturfinansiering ska skapas.« (party programme ↗)“More foundations for cultural financing shall be created.”
• stimulated private cultural financing»avdragsrätt för gåvor och gynnsamma skattevillkor för kultursponsring« (party programme ↗)“deduction rights for donations and favorable tax conditions for cultural sponsorship”
• less state steering»Därför vill vi att staten ska styra mindre och att det ska vara kulturskapare och inte politiker som fattar besluten om stöd.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Therefore we want the state to steer less and it should be cultural creators and not politicians who make decisions about support.”
• independent cultural institutions»Mångfalden i kulturlivet ska öka genom att fler kulturinstitutioner görs självständiga från staten.« (party programme ↗)“Diversity in cultural life shall increase by making more cultural institutions independent from the state.”

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 applies the subsidiarity principle to culture: activity conducted by civil society shall be supported by the public but not steered. It moreover wants donations to non-profit organizations to be tax-exempt, which is the very mechanism in a patronage model. To strengthen cultural life's independence from public financing also guards artistic freedom.

• support without steeringdecisive»civila samhället ska stödjas av det offentliga, men inte« (party programme ↗)“civil society shall be supported by the public, but not”
• tax-exempt donations»Gåvor till ideella organisationer bör vara skattebefriade.« (party programme ↗)“Donations to non-profit organizations should be tax-exempt.”
• artistic freedom»måste den omges av fri livsluft. Därför är det viktigt att slå vakt om den konstnärliga friheten.« (party programme ↗)“must it be surrounded by free air. Therefore it is important to stand guard over artistic freedom.”
• good conditions for the arts»Det offentliga har ansvar för att konstarterna får« (party programme ↗)“The public has responsibility for the arts to get”

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 the goal should be independent cultural institutions that stand free from state and politics, and that public financing and political ambitions constitute a risk. The counter-proposal's demand that a patronage model be investigated aims precisely at strengthening cultural life's independence from public financing. The plan's view on pluralism and balance of power between independent societal spheres points in the same direction.

• culture's independence from the statedecisive»Målet ska vara självständiga institutioner som i sin verksamhet står fria från stat och politik.« (party programme ↗)“The goal shall be independent institutions that in their activities stand free from state and politics.”
• pluralism and balance of power»Starka självständiga institutioner och en pluralism av samhällssfärer ger en viktig maktbalans i samhället.« (party programme ↗)“Strong independent institutions and a pluralism of societal spheres give important balance of power in society.”
• reconsidered public support»Reformera mediestödet för att stödja den digitala transformationen och omställningen« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Reform media support to support digital transformation and transition”

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 wants to reduce public economic control over contemporary culture and protect the independence of independent cultural institutions from political interference. A patronage model with a culture fund outside the public budget strengthens exactly that independence and broadens financing for independent artists. The counter-proposal's requirement for an investigation thus aligns with the plan.

• less public cultural controldecisive»Minska det offentligas ekonomiska kontroll över samtidskulturen och mediesfären« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Reduce public economic control over contemporary culture and the media sphere”
• culture's independence»Samtidigt ska oberoende kulturinstitutioners frihet från politiska pekpinnar värnas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“At the same time, independent cultural institutions' freedom from political interference should be protected.”
• citizen influence over cultural funds»Fördela offentliga kulturmedel och utforma offentliga miljöer med ett större medborgarinflytande« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Distribute public cultural funds and design public spaces with greater citizen influence”
• protect Swedish culture»Sverigedemokraterna vill värna, vårda och visa svensk kultur.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“the Sweden Democrats want to protect, nurture and showcase Swedish culture.”