2026-02-042025/26:SoU12 · p.13SoUHealth & social services
Action plan for mental health and suicide prevention
An action plan for mental health and suicide prevention
What's at stake: The decision affects people experiencing mental ill health, particularly groups such as young LGBTQI people, older men and people with intellectual disabilities, and whether they receive clearly targeted, trackable efforts. It concerns whether the strategy against mental ill health and suicide is turned into a new action plan or handled within existing structures.
Case texts and AI reasoning are AI-translated from the Swedish originals; the Swedish text is authoritative.
What the vote decides
The question is whether the government should draw up a new, multi-year action plan linked to the ten-year strategy for mental health and suicide prevention, with targeted efforts for particularly vulnerable groups, or whether the current action plan and general public health work are sufficient.
Yes Yes — the committee proposal
The committee points out that public health work is already required to pay particular attention to the groups at greatest risk of poor health, that the government has taken steps toward health-economic analyses and greater knowledge of preventive measures to help decide how they should be designed and carried out effectively, and that state subsidies are allocated to regions every year for healthcare and social care. With reference to this, the committee rejects the motion for a new action plan.
No No — the reservations
Reservation 14 (S, V, MP)
The reservation (S, V, MP) argues that the action plan the government has drawn up for the ten-year strategy against mental ill health and suicide is inadequate, and calls for a new, multi-year action plan that clearly ties in with the strategy's goals, can be regularly followed up, covers equal care, socioeconomic conditions and working life, involves municipalities, regions, agencies and civil society, and includes targeted efforts for particularly vulnerable groups such as young LGBTQI people, older men and people with intellectual disabilities.
Summarised from the committee report. Party labels in the summary come from the report, not from the vote.
What do the votes mean here?
Yes The committee proposal: rejecting the motions (keeping things as they are).
No Backing the counter-proposal: reservation 14 by S, V, MP.
Abstain The party marks a position of its own that is not one of the two final alternatives.
The decision would have gone the other way
Explicit commitments that contradicted the vote: MModeraterna, SDSverigedemokraterna
Ja 171–125Nej 51–245
Counterfactual: the parties above are moved to the position their own documents explicitly point at, carrying their whole contingent present. Every other party keeps its real figures, including dissenters and absentees.
How the AI parties would have voted
For each party: what its own plan – election manifesto and party programme – argues for in this case, next to how the party actually voted. The AI can only answer Yes or No; a party can also abstain.
| AI | Vote | Confidence | Evidence | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V | No | No 0/19/0/3 | match | confidence: high | derived |
| S | No | No 0/91/0/15 | match | confidence: medium | derived |
| MP | No | No 0/12/0/6 | match | confidence: high | derived |
| C | No | Yes 21/0/0/3 | differs | confidence: medium | not addressed |
| L | No | Yes 14/0/0/2 | differs | confidence: medium | derived |
| KD | No | Yes 14/0/0/5 | differs | confidence: medium | not addressed |
| M | No | Yes 58/0/0/10 | differsagainst own programme | confidence: medium | explicit |
| SD | No | Yes 62/0/0/9 | differsagainst own programme | confidence: high | explicit |
Committee proposal
Parliament rejects the motions 2025/26:3544 by Nils Seye Larsen et al. (MP) demand 9 and 2025/26:3645 by Fredrik Lundh Sammeli et al. (S) demand 54.
Original (Swedish)
Riksdagen avslår motionerna 2025/26:3544 av Nils Seye Larsen m.fl. (MP) yrkande 9 och 2025/26:3645 av Fredrik Lundh Sammeli m.fl. (S) yrkande 54.
Riksdag decision: Parliament said no to 105 proposals on public health. The proposals were submitted during the general motion period in 2025 and deal with, among other things, public health promotion measures, disease control and mental health. Parliament refers mainly to work already underway in the areas addressed by the proposals and to previous parliamentary decisions.
Counter-proposals
- The counter-proposal wants the government to investigate the conditions for a public health law with clear state responsibility for public health work. (S, V, MP) — Reservation 14
Plan vs actual vote
Every party, in chamber order: what its own plan pointed to, how it voted, and the reasoning behind both. Highlighted rows are where the two differ — but a vote that follows the plan is a result too, so the reasoning is there for every party.
The election manifesto points out that mental illness is increasing especially among women and young people without leading to expanded care or changed working environment, which are exactly the areas a new action plan should cover.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto · party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The election manifesto points out that mental illness is increasing especially among women and young people without leading to expanded care or changed working environment, which are exactly the areas a new action plan should cover. The plan requires broad investments in care and targeted interventions for vulnerable groups, including LGBTQIA+ people and people with disabilities. Referring to existing structures is insufficient when mental illness according to the plan is widespread.
Original (Swedish)
Valplattformen pekar ut att den psykiska ohälsan ökar särskilt bland kvinnor och unga utan att det leder till utbyggd vård eller förändrad arbetsmiljö, vilket är exakt de områden en ny handlingsplan ska omfatta. Planen kräver breda investeringar i vården och riktade insatser för utsatta grupper, däribland hbtqia+-personer och personer med funktionsnedsättning. Att hänvisa till befintliga strukturer räcker inte när ohälsan enligt planen är utbredd.
- expanded care for mental illnessdecisive»Stressrelaterade sjukdomar blir allt vanligare och psykisk ohälsa ökar särskilt bland kvinnor och hos unga utan att det leder till utbyggd vård eller förändrad arbetsmiljö.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Stress-related illnesses are becoming increasingly common and mental illness is increasing especially among women and young people without leading to expanded care or changed working environment.”
- young people's mental health»Alltför många barn far illa idag och den psykiska ohälsan bland unga är utbredd.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Too many children are suffering today and mental illness among young people is widespread.”
- broad care investments»investera brett i vården så att den håller hög kvalitet i alla delar.« (party programme ↗)“invest broadly in care so that it maintains high quality in all parts.”
- targeted interventions for vulnerable groups»Vi ser det som avgörande att stärka hbtqia+-personers rättigheter i en« (party programme ↗)“We see it as crucial to strengthen LGBTQIA+ people's rights in a”
The plan demands ambitious measures against mental ill-health and equal and gender-equal public health, and that barriers for persons with disabilities to participate in society are removed.
Plan documents: party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The plan demands ambitious measures against mental ill-health and equal and gender-equal public health, and that barriers for persons with disabilities to participate in society are removed. A trackable multi-year action plan with targeted measures for especially vulnerable groups is a means for this, in line with the fact that neither sexual orientation, gender identity nor disability shall determine people's living conditions. The plan does not, however, mention any action plan.
Original (Swedish)
Planen kräver ambitiösa insatser mot psykisk ohälsa och en jämlik och jämställd folkhälsa, och att hinder för personer med funktionsnedsättning att delta i samhällslivet undanröjs. En uppföljningsbar flerårig handlingsplan med riktade insatser till särskilt utsatta grupper är ett medel för detta, i linje med att varken sexuell läggning, könsidentitet eller funktionsnedsättning ska avgöra människors livsvillkor. Planen nämner dock ingen handlingsplan.
- measures against mental ill-healthdecisive»Ambitiösa insatser mot psykisk ohälsa, särskilt bland barn och unga.« (party programme ↗)“Ambitious measures against mental ill-health, particularly among children and young people.”
- equal public health»Jämlik och jämställd folkhälsa.« (party programme ↗)“Equal and gender-equal public health.”
- removed barriers»Undanröjda hinder för personer med funktionsnedsättning att delta i samhällslivet.« (party programme ↗)“Removed barriers for persons with disabilities to participate in society.”
- equal living conditions regardless of group»Klass och kön ska inte få avgöra människors frihet, och inte heller faktorer som etnicitet« (party programme ↗)“Class and gender shall not determine people's freedom, and neither shall factors such as ethnicity”
The plan wishes mental health to be prioritized equally with physical health and notes that support today is insufficient and unevenly distributed between regions and groups.
Plan documents: party programme · 2022 manifesto
Reasoning and quotes
The plan wishes mental health to be prioritized equally with physical health and notes that support today is insufficient and unevenly distributed between regions and groups. It requires long-term preventive work in school, working life and residential areas. A new multi-year, traceable action plan with targeted measures for particularly vulnerable groups therefore follows from the plan.
Original (Swedish)
Planen vill att psykisk hälsa prioriteras lika högt som fysisk och konstaterar att stödet i dag är otillräckligt och ojämnt fördelat mellan regioner och grupper. Den kräver långsiktigt förebyggande arbete i skola, arbetsliv och bostadsområden. En ny flerårig, uppföljningsbar handlingsplan med riktade insatser till särskilt utsatta grupper följer därför av planen.
- mental health prioritizeddecisive»Miljöpartiet vill skapa ett samhälle där psykisk hälsa är lika prioriterad som fysisk hälsa.« (party programme ↗)“The Green Party wishes to create a society where mental health is prioritized equally with physical health.”
- unevenly distributed support»Samtidigt är tillgången till stöd ofta otillräcklig och ojämnt fördelad, med stora skillnader mellan regioner och olika grupper i samhället.« (party programme ↗)“At the same time, access to support is often insufficient and unevenly distributed, with large differences between regions and different groups in society.”
- long-term preventive work»Det innebär investeringar i ett långsiktigt, förebyggande arbete – i förskola, skola, arbetsliv, bostadsområden och fritid.« (party programme ↗)“It means investments in long-term, preventive work – in preschool, school, working life, residential areas and leisure time.”
- increased access to psychiatric care»satsa på primärvården och öka tillgången till vård för psykisk ohälsa.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“invest in primary care and increase access to care for mental health problems.”
The election manifesto makes improved support in mental illness an explicit commitment, with a unified pathway into care, elimination of queues to child and youth psychiatric services and more prevention work, and notes that three-quarters of those who take their own lives are men.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto · party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The election manifesto makes improved support in mental illness an explicit commitment, with a unified pathway into care, elimination of queues to child and youth psychiatric services and more prevention work, and notes that three-quarters of those who take their own lives are men. The party programme requires that public health work permeates the whole of society. A multi-year, measurable action plan with targeted interventions for particularly vulnerable groups is an application of these commitments.
Original (Swedish)
Valmanifestet gör förbättrat stöd vid psykisk ohälsa till ett uttryckligt åtagande, med en samlad väg in i vården, bortarbetade köer till BUP och mer förebyggande arbete, och konstaterar att tre fjärdedelar av dem som tar sitt liv är män. Partiprogrammet kräver att folkhälsoarbetet genomsyrar hela samhället. En flerårig, uppföljningsbar handlingsplan med riktade insatser till särskilt utsatta grupper är en tillämpning av dessa åtaganden.
- improved support in mental illnessdecisive»Stödet för personer med psykisk ohälsa måste förbättras, inte minst för unga. Den som söker hjälp ska ha en enkel och samlad väg in till vården. Köerna till BUP måste arbetas bort.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Support for persons with mental illness must be improved, especially for young people. Those seeking help must have a simple and unified pathway into care. Queues to child and youth psychiatric services must be eliminated.”
- prevention work for young people»Den psykiska ohälsan hos våra barn och unga är alldeles för hög och vi måste arbeta mer förebyggande och skapa enkla vägar till vården« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Mental illness among our children and young people is far too high and we must work more preventively and create simple pathways to care”
- suicide particularly affects men»Dessutom hamnar fler pojkar efter i skolan och tre fjärdedelar av dem som tar sitt liv är män.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Moreover, more boys fall behind in school and three-quarters of those who take their own lives are men.”
- public health throughout society»Folkhälsoperspektivet måste genomsyra hela samhället för att ge resultat.« (party programme ↗)“The public health perspective must permeate the whole of society to produce results.”
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 states that mental health shall be an explicit public health goal and that the right to care is equally obvious in mental illness as in physical illness.
Plan documents: party programme · 2022 manifesto
Reasoning and quotes
The plan states that mental health shall be an explicit public health goal and that the right to care is equally obvious in mental illness as in physical illness. It also requires strengthened LGBTQI competence in healthcare, education and care and that politics prioritizes those with the least freedom. A multi-year action plan with follow-up and targeted initiatives for particularly vulnerable groups respond to these commitments.
Original (Swedish)
Planen slår fast att psykisk hälsa ska vara ett uttalat folkhälsomål och att rätten till vård är lika självklar vid psykisk som vid fysisk sjukdom. Den kräver också stärkt hbtqi-kompetens i vård, skola och omsorg och att politiken prioriterar dem som har minst frihet. En flerårig handlingsplan med uppföljning och riktade insatser till särskilt utsatta grupper svarar mot dessa åtaganden.
- mental health as a public health goaldecisive»Rätten till vård och behandling är lika självklar för både fysiska och psykiska sjukdomar. Psykisk hälsa ska vara ett uttalat folkhälsomål.« (party programme ↗)“The right to care and treatment is equally obvious for both physical and mental illnesses. Mental health shall be an explicit public health goal.”
- LGBTQI competence in care»Hbtqi-kompetensen i vård, skola och omsorg ska stärkas och ett lagskydd mot omvändelseterapi ska införas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“LGBTQI competence in healthcare, education and care shall be strengthened and legal protection against conversion therapy shall be introduced.”
- knowledge-based public health work»Folkhälsoarbetet och de förebyggande hälsoinsatserna ska vila på kunskap och respekt för individens självbestämmande.« (party programme ↗)“Public health work and preventive health initiatives shall be based on knowledge and respect for the individual's self-determination.”
- prioritize the most vulnerable»Politiken ska prioritera att öka friheten för dem som har minst frihet.« (party programme ↗)“Politics shall prioritize increasing freedom for those with the least freedom.”
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 requires that psychiatric care be characterized by accessibility and flexibility based on the patient's needs and that work against prejudice and shame around mental illness be prioritized, while the election manifesto highlights mental ill-health in the elderly particularly.
Plan documents: party programme · 2022 manifesto
Reasoning and quotes
The party programme requires that psychiatric care be characterized by accessibility and flexibility based on the patient's needs and that work against prejudice and shame around mental illness be prioritized, while the election manifesto highlights mental ill-health in the elderly particularly. A multi-year action plan with follow-up and targeted measures for particularly vulnerable groups is one way to fulfil these commitments. The plan also states that public health work requires cooperation between different societal actors, which corresponds to the counter-proposal's demand for broad participation.
Original (Swedish)
Partiprogrammet kräver att psykiatrisk vård präglas av tillgänglighet och flexibilitet utifrån patientens behov och att arbetet mot fördomar och skam kring psykiska sjukdomar prioriteras, medan valmanifestet lyfter psykisk ohälsa hos äldre särskilt. En flerårig handlingsplan med uppföljning och riktade insatser till särskilt utsatta grupper är ett sätt att infria dessa åtaganden. Planen säger dessutom att folkhälsoarbetet kräver samverkan mellan olika samhällsaktörer, vilket motsvarar motförslagets krav på bred medverkan.
- accessible psychiatric caredecisive»Psykiatrisk vård och omsorg ska präglas av tillgänglighet och flexibilitet utifrån patientens behov.« (party programme ↗)“Psychiatric care and services shall be characterized by accessibility and flexibility based on the patient's needs.”
- counter stigma around mental illness»Särskilt viktigt är att arbeta mot de fördomar och skamkänslor som i allt för stor utsträckning präglar attityderna till psykiska sjukdomar.« (party programme ↗)“Particularly important is working against the prejudices and feelings of shame that to a far too large extent characterize attitudes to mental illness.”
- mental ill-health in the elderly»Tid och resurser till demensvården och ökade kunskaper om demenssjukdomar och psykisk ohälsa hos äldre.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Time and resources for dementia care and increased knowledge of dementia diseases and mental ill-health in the elderly.”
- cooperation in public health work»Folkhälsoarbetet får därför inte inskränkas till hälso- och sjukvården utan kräver ett gemensamt ansvarstagande och samverkan mellan olika samhällsaktörer.« (party programme ↗)“Public health work thus cannot be confined to healthcare but requires a joint responsibility-taking and cooperation between different societal actors.”
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 commits to developing a national strategy against suicide with particular focus on children and young people, and to strengthening child and adolescent psychiatry and support lines.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto
Reasoning and quotes
The plan explicitly commits to developing a national strategy against suicide with particular focus on children and young people, and to strengthening child and adolescent psychiatry and support lines. The counter-proposal's requirement for a multi-year, traceable action plan linked to the strategy's goals aligns with that commitment. That the plan does not mention specific target groups does not change that it wants to see a comprehensive, traceable suicide prevention effort.
Original (Swedish)
Planen åtar sig uttryckligen att ta fram en nationell strategi mot självmord med särskilt fokus på barn och unga, och att stärka barn- och ungdomspsykiatrin och stödlinjerna. Motförslagets krav på en flerårig, uppföljningsbar handlingsplan kopplad till strategins mål ligger i linje med det åtagandet. Att planen inte nämner enskilda målgrupper ändrar inte att den vill se ett samlat, uppföljbart suicidpreventivt arbete.
- national strategy against suicidedecisive»Ta fram en nationell strategi mot självmord, med särskilt fokus på barn och unga« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Develop a national strategy against suicide, with particular focus on children and young people”
- strengthened child and adolescent psychiatry»Stärka barn- och ungdomspsykiatrin så att barn och unga som mår dåligt får hjälp snabbt« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strengthen child and adolescent psychiatry so that children and young people who feel bad get help quickly”
- prioritize mental health»Få saker är viktigare att prioritera än barns psykiska mående.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Few things are more important to prioritize than children's mental health.”
- strengthened support lines»Stärka Bris nationella stödlinje och andra stödlinjer så att de kan hålla öppet dygnet runt« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strengthen the Bris national support line and other support lines so they can be open around the clock”
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 establishes that Sweden needs a comprehensive and long-term plan against the growing mental health crisis and that individual, short-term investments are not enough.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto
Reasoning and quotes
The plan explicitly establishes that Sweden needs a comprehensive and long-term plan against the growing mental health crisis and that individual, short-term investments are not enough. It also wants to appoint a national coordinator for suicide prevention, see standardized follow-up of those at risk of suicide and direct special initiatives towards groups that are affected harder than average. The counter-proposal's demands for a new multi-year, follow-up action plan with targeted interventions directly address these commitments.
Original (Swedish)
Planen slår uttryckligen fast att Sverige behöver en samlad och långsiktig plan mot den växande psykiska ohälsan och att enskilda, kortsiktiga satsningar inte räcker. Den vill dessutom tillsätta en nationell samordnare för suicidprevention, se standardiserad uppföljning av självmordsnära och rikta särskilda insatser mot grupper som drabbas hårdare än genomsnittet. Motförslagets krav på en ny flerårig, uppföljningsbar handlingsplan med riktade insatser svarar direkt mot dessa åtaganden.
- comprehensive long-term plandecisive»Sverige behöver en samlad och långsiktig plan för att hantera den växande psykiska ohälsan.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden needs a comprehensive and long-term plan to handle the growing mental health crisis.”
- national suicide coordinator»Tillsätta en nationell samordnare med ansvar för suicidprevention« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Appoint a national coordinator responsible for suicide prevention”
- standardized follow-up»Verka för standardiserad uppföljning av självmordsnära« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Work for standardized follow-up of those at risk of suicide”
- targeted initiatives for vulnerable groups»Psykisk ohälsa har blivit ett omfattande samhällsproblem som drabbar HBT+ -personer i högre grad än genomsnittet. Sverigedemokraterna vill rikta särskilda insatser för att förebygga, motverka och behandla psykisk ohälsa och självmordstankar.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Mental health crisis has become a widespread societal problem that affects LGBTQ+ persons to a greater degree than average. Sweden Democrats want to direct special initiatives to prevent, counter and treat mental health crisis and suicidal thoughts.”
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.
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Sources and documents
- The committee report on riksdagen.se (2025/26:SoU12)
- Committee report full text (HD01SoU12)
- Per-MP voting data (API)
- Case status (API)
Documents under consideration
- Motion 2025/26:1080 — Inkluderande av TBE-vaccin i det nationella vaccinationsprogrammet av Sofia Skönnbrink (S)
- Motion 2025/26:1101 — Nationell hälsogenomgång för psykisk hälsa av Anna Lasses (C)
- Motion 2025/26:1161 — Avgiftsfritt TBE-vaccin för barn av Adrian Magnusson m.fl. (S)
- Motion 2025/26:1167 — Psykisk ohälsa bland unga av Adrian Magnusson och Aida Birinxhiku (båda S)
- Motion 2025/26:1261 — Gratis TBE-vaccin till barn och ungdomar under 18 år av Louise Thunström och Jessica Rodén (båda S)
- Motion 2025/26:1573 — Vaccinering mot bältros av Marianne Fundahn (S)
- Motion 2025/26:186 — Nationellt program mot digitalt beroende bland unga av Victoria Tiblom (SD)
- Motion 2025/26:1886 — Utökning av vaccinationsprogrammet för barn så att det också gäller TBE-vaccin av Magnus Manhammar (S)
- Motion 2025/26:1960 — Folkhälsolyft för jämlik hälsa och ökad motståndskraft av Mattias Vepsä och Mathias Tegnér (båda S)
- Motion 2025/26:202 — Ökad kunskap om fertilitet bland allmänheten av Nima Gholam Ali Pour (SD)
- Motion 2025/26:2032 — Nationellt stödcenter vid suicid av Ann-Sofie Lifvenhage (M)
- Motion 2025/26:2039 — Översyn av sexualbrott mot barn och hur barn och unga påverkas av pornografi av Ann-Sofie Alm och Ann-Sofie Lifvenhage (båda M)
- Motion 2025/26:2139 — TBE-vaccin i det allmänna vaccinationsprogrammet av Sten Bergheden (M)
- Motion 2025/26:218 — Krav på evidens i varje åtgärd gällande folkhälsofrågor av Elsa Widding (-)
- Motion 2025/26:2203 — Vaccinationsprogram för äldre av Sten Bergheden (M)
- Motion 2025/26:2356 — Utökande av vaccinationsprogrammet med TBE av Ann-Sofie Lifvenhage (M)
- Motion 2025/26:2438 — Åtgärder mot hälsofarliga kosttillskott av Saila Quicklund (M)
- Motion 2025/26:2471 — Lex Rebecka - uppsökande och förebyggande stöd för efterlevande vid suicid av Ann-Sofie Alm (M)
- Motion 2025/26:2750 — Om kampen mot TBE av Mathias Tegnér och Åsa Westlund (båda S)
- Motion 2025/26:2777 — En bättre hälso- och sjukvård av Nooshi Dadgostar m.fl. (V)
Source: The Swedish Parliament