Parental leave

The plan establishes that social insurance shall be individual and provide income-related benefits, and that anyone who has a child shall be able to rely on the benefit without having to struggle hard. A review that gives parents a larger share of income and a review of rules for saved days is therefore in line with the plan. An increased adoption allowance follows from the requirement to redistribute to low-income households.

• income-related social insurancedecisive»Socialförsäkringarna ska vara individuella och ge människor en inkomstrelaterad ersättning« (party programme ↗)“Social insurance shall be individual and provide people with income-related benefits”
• secure benefit for parenthood»När du blir sjuk eller föder barn ska du kunna lita på att få ersättning från Försäkringskassan utan att behöva stånga dig blodig.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“When you become ill or have a baby, you can rely on receiving benefits from the Social Insurance Agency without having to struggle hard.”
• equal parental insurance»individualiserad föräldraförsäkring och en stärkt lagfäst rätt till heltid« (party programme ↗)“individualized parental insurance and a strengthened statutory right to full-time work”
• redistribution to low-income earners»vi omfördelar resurserna från rika till fattiga människor« (2022 manifesto ↗)“we redistribute resources from rich to poor people”

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's central commitment is that social security shall provide good economic protection when earned income ceases, which argues that parental benefit should provide a larger share of income. The election manifesto also promises to strengthen the economy for Swedish families with children at a time of rising prices, and an increased adoption allowance with a redistributive effect is in line with that priority. Parental insurance is highlighted as a central equality and security reform, which makes a review of saved days and benefit level compatible with the plan.

• loss of income shall be replaceddecisive»Ett gott ekonomiskt skydd när den egna förvärvsinkomsten faller bort är grundläggande« (party programme ↗)“Good economic protection when one's own earned income ceases is fundamental”
• strengthened economy for families with children»Vi är beredda att stärka ekonomin för Sveriges barnfamiljer.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We are prepared to strengthen the economy for Swedish families with children.”
• strong parental insurance»en väl utbyggd barnomsorg och en föräldraförsäkring« (party programme ↗)“a well-developed childcare and parental insurance”
• parental insurance as an equality reform»I Sverige har viktiga jämställdhetsreformer som förskola och föräldraförsäkring möjliggjort kvinnors självständighet och frihet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“In Sweden important equality reforms such as pre-school and parental insurance have enabled women's independence and 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 plan states that families with children need both general support like parental leave insurance and need-based support, and that no child should grow up in poverty. A review that provides higher replacement rate in parental benefits, more flexible saved days and a raised adoption allowance aligns with the redistributive ambition and with family policy being able to cover all family types. However, the plan's own main line is three-way division of days, an issue the counter-proposal does not address.

• strong support for families with childrendecisive»barnbidrag och föräldraförsäkring och behovsinriktade stöd som bostadsbidrag och underhållsstöd« (party programme ↗)“child allowance and parental leave insurance and need-based support such as housing allowance and maintenance support”
• eliminated child poverty»I det nya gröna folkhemmet ska inte ett enda barn växa upp i fattigdom« (2022 manifesto ↗)“In the new green people's home, not a single child should grow up in poverty”
• family policy for all family types»anpassa familjepolitiken så att den blir könsneutral och stärka rättigheterna för stjärnfamiljer« (2022 manifesto ↗)“adapt family policy so it becomes gender-neutral and strengthen rights for rainbow families”
• three-way division of parental leave»varje förälder ska ta ut minst en tredjedel av föräldradagarna« (2022 manifesto ↗)“each parent should take at least one-third of the parental days”

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 that parental leave insurance be reformed and modernized so that it becomes simpler and clearer and adapted to today's family and working life, which argues for exactly the regulatory framework for saved days and benefit levels to be reviewed. The party programme adds that the insurance shall be designed according to the family's and children's best interests and that parents shall be able to choose the solutions that fit the family. Increased adoption allowance is not touched at all, and the plan's requirement to exercise restraint with taxpayers' money pulls partly in another direction.

• reformed parental leave insurancedecisive»Därför vill vi reformera föräldraförsäkringen för en mer jämställd, enkel och tydlig föräldraförsäkring anpassad till vårt moderna samhälle och arbetsliv.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Therefore we want to reform parental leave insurance for a more equal, simple and clear parental leave insurance adapted to our modern society and working life.”
• modernized parental leave insurance»Vi vill modernisera föräldraförsäkringen så att fler kvinnor kan komma i arbete och göra karriär, bland annat genom att införa en kraftigt förstärkt jämställdhetsbonus.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to modernize parental leave insurance so that more women can come into work and make a career, not least by introducing a significantly strengthened equality bonus.”
• family's and children's best interests»Föräldraförsäkringen ska utformas efter familjens och barnens bästa.« (party programme ↗)“Parental leave insurance shall be designed according to the family's and children's best interests.”
• parents' freedom of choice»Föräldrar ska ha rätt att välja de lösningar som passar familjen bäst.« (party programme ↗)“Parents shall have the right to choose the solutions that suit the family best.”

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's line is that the main part of parental leave days shall be taken during the child's first year, which argues against loosening the restriction on how many days can be saved after four years' age. Increased adoption benefit has no support in a plan that wants to reduce benefit dependence and introduce a benefit cap. The demand for higher replacement rate lies, however, close to the plan's commitment to a sufficiently high cap, hence the assessment is uncertain.

• days taken earlydecisive»Föräldraförsäkringen ska reformeras och huvuddelen av föräldrapenningdagarna ska tas ut under de första« (party programme ↗)“Parental insurance shall be reformed and the main part of parental leave days shall be taken during the first”
• benefit cap»Därför vill vi modernisera bidragssystemet genom ett bidragstak« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Therefore we want to modernize the benefit system through a benefit cap”
• work line before benefits»Fler måste bidra – färre måste gå på bidrag.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“More must contribute – fewer must go on benefits.”
• high cap in parental leave»Taket i inkomstbortfallsskyddet ska därför ligga tillräckligt högt för att omfatta den breda majoriteten« (party programme ↗)“The cap in income loss coverage shall therefore be set sufficiently high to cover the broad majority”

The party programme requires that adoption be facilitated by state or other public measures, which directly entails the requirement for increased adoption allowance. It also requires that support for families with children be organized so that it can be used flexibly, which supports a review of the restriction on saved parental leave days. That children's and families' needs are the starting point and that the benefit and social security systems should account for family situation also supports an examination of the compensation level in parental benefits.

• facilitate adoptiondecisive»Adoption bör underlättas med olika statliga eller andra offentliga åtgärder.« (party programme ↗)“Adoption should be facilitated by various state or other public measures.”
• flexible use of family support»samhällets stöd till barnfamiljer vara organiserat så att det kan användas på ett flexibelt sätt« (party programme ↗)“society's support to families with children be organized so that it can be used in a flexible manner”
• family's needs guide policy»Barnens och familjernas behov är utgångspunkten« (party programme ↗)“Children's and families' needs are the starting point”
• account for family situation»Skatte-, bidrags- och socialförsäkringssystemen ska sammantaget ta hänsyn till familjesituationen« (party programme ↗)“Tax, benefit and social security systems should together account for family situation”

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's commitment on parental insurance is to increase flexibility and make more days double days, which lies close to the demand to review the rules for saved days, and the party programme establishes that the right to choose one's own path belongs to everyone. The party programme also wants the welfare system to include greater protection against income loss, which supports a higher replacement rate. At the same time, the plan requires that new reforms are financed, which makes support conditional – hence low confidence.

• flexibel föräldraförsäkringdecisive»Öka flexibiliteten i föräldraförsäkringen och göra fler dagar till dubbeldagar« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Increase flexibility in parental insurance and make more days double days”
• skydd mot inkomstbortfall»som inslag av skydd mot inkomstbortfall« (party programme ↗)“as a component of protection against income loss”
• familjens egna val»Rätten att välja väg tillhör alla.« (party programme ↗)“The right to choose one's own path belongs to everyone.”
• finansierade reformer»Alla nya löften och reformer – som till exempel våra inkomstskattesänkningar – behöver finansieras eller rymmas inom överskottsmålet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“All new promises and reforms – such as our income tax cuts – must be financed or fit within the surplus target.”

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 a flexible and family-friendly parental insurance, facilitate for parents who are sole proprietors and allow parental days to be transferred to next of kin, which supports demands for review of the rules for saved days and of benefit levels. The plan is also generous in economic family policy, with extended pregnancy benefit and more paternity days. The adoption allowance is not affected, but the principle that families should gain greater independence points the same way. The committee's reasons regarding ongoing investigations and preparation work do not concern the plan.

• flexible parental insurancedecisive»Skapa en flexibel och familjevänlig föräldraförsäkring« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Create a flexible and family-friendly parental insurance”
• freer disposal of days»Vi vill underlätta för föräldrar som är småföretagare och föräldradagar ska kunna överlåtas till närstående.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to facilitate for parents who are sole proprietors and parental days should be able to be transferred to next of kin.”
• more generous family benefits»Införa en generös graviditetspenning och fler pappadagar« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Introduce a generous pregnancy benefit and more paternity days”
• families' independence»Sverigedemokraterna vill främja en utveckling som ger familjerna en större självständighet och ökad« (party programme ↗)“The Sweden Democrats want to promote a development that gives families greater independence and increased”