More Paths to Jobs

The election manifesto makes it a security matter that people shall be able to stay and plan their lives without having to move from their home community, and requires that jobs and welfare be created across the country so that rural areas are not drained. A relocation allowance and strengthened incentives for mobility between regions are based on opposite logic: that labour should move to where jobs are. The plan's response to imbalances is instead investments that provide work and services where people live.

• security to be able to staydecisive»De flesta av oss vill ha en viss trygghet för att kunna planera våra liv, skaffa en bostad, kunna ta semester eller veta att vi lugnt kan sätta barnen i skola utan att behöva flytta från orten inom några år.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Most of us want a certain security to plan our lives, get housing, take holiday or know that we can quietly put our children in school without having to move from our home community within a few years.”
• rural areas must not be drained»Oavsett var i landet vi bor så har vi ett gemensamt intresse av att landsbygden inte utarmas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Regardless of where in the country we live, we have a common interest in rural areas not being drained.”
• jobs through investments across the country»Vi vill se en samlad strategi för full sysselsättning som bygger på stora,« (party programme ↗)“We want to see a comprehensive strategy for full employment that builds on large,”
• services must function everywhere»Skola, vård, omsorg och annan service behöver fungera överallt.« (party programme ↗)“School, healthcare, care and other services need to function everywhere.”

The plan's answer to regional imbalances is that the whole country shall be able to thrive and that all regions shall provide good conditions for work, combined with cheaper commutes and a travel allowance with a fairer rural profile, in other words commuting rather than moving. A relocation grant that rewards moving from regions with labour surplus does not fit that line. The plan does not mention relocation grants, so the conclusion is derived and uncertain.

• the whole country shall thrivedecisive»Alla har ett gemensamt intresse av att hela landet kan leva och utvecklas.« (party programme ↗)“Everyone has a common interest in the whole country being able to thrive and develop.”
• work in all regions»förutsättningar för arbete, företagande och studier samt erbjuda goda levnadsvillkor.« (party programme ↗)“conditions for work, business and studies and provide good living conditions.”
• support for commuting»billigare arbetsresor för dem som har långt till jobbet« (2022 manifesto ↗)“cheaper commutes for those with long distances to work”
• travel allowance with rural profile»Ett nytt reseavdrag ska förbättra möjligheterna att få avdrag också för mer klimatsmarta resor, och med rättvisare landsbygdsprofil.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“A new travel allowance shall improve the possibility to claim expenses also for more climate-smart travel, and with a fairer rural profile.”

The plan stipulates that there shall not be areas in Sweden where residents feel they must move to get a chance, and that everyone should be able to thrive and develop where they live. A relocation grant and strengthened incentives for mobility between regions build on opposite logic and drain labour from the countryside. The plan instead wants the labour market to function and that it is possible to work and live throughout the country.

• no one should be forced to movedecisive»Det ska inte finnas några områden i Sverige där de boende upplever att man måste flytta för att få en chans.« (party programme ↗)“There shall not be any areas in Sweden where residents feel they must move to get a chance.”
• labour market throughout the country»Arbetsmarknadspolitiken ska verka för en väl fungerande arbetsmarknad i hela landet.« (party programme ↗)“Labour market policy shall work towards a well-functioning labour market across the country.”
• work and live in the countryside»Kollektivtrafik i allmänhet och tågtrafik i synnerhet krävs för att vi ska kunna arbeta och bo även på landsbygden.« (party programme ↗)“Public transport in general and rail transport in particular are required if we are to be able to work and live in the countryside too.”
• jobs throughout the country»Ett fungerande samhälle bygger på välfärd, utveckling och högkvalificerade jobb i hela landet.« (party programme ↗)“A functioning society is built on welfare, development and highly qualified jobs throughout the country.”

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 core commitment is that the whole country shall live and that people shall be able to build a future where they want to live; the election manifesto moreover wants the commute deduction to a higher degree compensate the countryside's long distances, thus to facilitate commuting rather than moving. A relocation allowance that rewards mobility away from certain regions goes in the opposite direction. The requirement for better matching carries weight against it.

• right to live where you wantdecisive»Alla ska kunna leva och förverkliga sina drömmar oavsett var man vill bo.« (party programme ↗)“Everyone shall be able to live and realise their dreams regardless of where they want to live.”
• the whole country shall live»Hela landet behövs, från förort till industriort, från storstad till landsbygd.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The whole country is needed, from suburb to industrial town, from metropolis to countryside.”
• compensation for long distances»Det reformerade reseavdraget måste i större utsträckning kompensera för de kostnader som följer med de långa avstånden på landsbygden.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The reformed commute deduction must to a greater extent compensate for the costs that follow the long distances in the countryside.”
• better matching»Matchningen måste förbättras. Alla ska ha rätt till en effektiv matchningstjänst och det ska bli lättare att hitta medarbetare inom alla yrken.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Matching must be improved. Everyone shall have the right to an efficient matching service and it should become easier to find employees in all professions.”

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 is built on low thresholds and high mobility in the labour market, sets demands that the unemployed seek work even outside municipal boundaries and wants to lower the moving tax to increase mobility. The counter-proposal's aim to even out imbalances between labour shortage and surplus thus aligns with the plan's direction. That the instrument is a benefit chafes against the plan's line on fewer benefits, which makes support weak.

• high mobility in the labour marketdecisive»En socialliberal arbetsmarknad kännetecknas av låga trösklar och hög rörlighet i kombination med starka trygghetssystem som bidrar till att den enskilde kommer tillbaka i arbete så snart som möjligt.« (party programme ↗)“A social-liberal labour market is characterised by low thresholds and high mobility combined with strong security systems that help the individual return to work as soon as possible.”
• demands for geographic mobility»Kommunen ska ställa tydliga krav på den enskilde att genomgå praktik, utbildning eller att söka arbete, även utanför kommungränsen.« (party programme ↗)“The municipality shall set clear demands on the individual to undergo training, education or seek work, even outside municipal boundaries.”
• lower moving tax»För att öka rörligheten på bostadsmarknaden ska flyttskatten, reavinstbeskattningen, sänkas.« (party programme ↗)“To increase mobility in the housing market, the moving tax, capital-gains tax, shall be lowered.”
• fewer benefits»Fler måste bidra – färre måste gå på bidrag.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“More must contribute – fewer must receive benefits.”

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 regional policy goal is that the whole of Sweden shall live and that it shall be possible to live and work even outside the major cities, and the means shall in the first place be general stimulus measures rather than targeted grants. A relocation grant that rewards mobility away from regions with weak labour markets pulls in the opposite direction from that commitment. The conclusion is derived, since the plan does not mention relocation grants.

• the whole of Sweden shall livedecisive»Målet är att hela Sverige ska leva och att varje kommun och region ska vara ett fungerande samhälle« (party programme ↗)“The goal is that the whole of Sweden shall live and that every municipality and region shall be a functioning society”
• live and work throughout the country»Hela Sverige ska fungera och det ska gå att bo och verka även utanför de stora städerna.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The whole of Sweden shall function and it shall be possible to live and work even outside the major cities.”
• general means in regional policy»i första hand genom generella stimulansåtgärder.« (party programme ↗)“in the first place through general stimulus measures.”
• restrictive view of targeted grants»Direkta företagssubventioner avvisas.« (party programme ↗)“Direct business subsidies are rejected.”

The plan's crucial commitment is a major benefit reform with a benefit cap, so that combined benefits never exceed the wage from a job, and state spending shall decrease. A new moving allowance is yet another transfer and pulls in the opposite direction. The plan's method for increased mobility and more jobs is instead lower employment costs and reduced taxes on work. The demand is rejected.

• benefit capdecisive»Införa ett bidragstak så att de samlade bidragen aldrig kan bli högre än lönen från ett arbete« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Introduce a benefit cap so that combined benefits can never be higher than the wage from a job”
• benefit reform not new benefits»Genomföra en stor bidragsreform för att bryta utanförskapet« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Implement a major benefit reform to break exclusion”
• reduced state spending»Statens utgifter ska minska« (2022 manifesto ↗)“State spending shall decrease”
• incentives through lower costs»Kraftigt sänka kostnaden för att anställa långtidsarbetslösa« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sharply reduce the cost of employing the long-term unemployed”

The party programme makes the principle that all of Sweden shall live into a guiding point of departure, and the election manifesto wants to conduct a policy for all of Sweden rather than subsidize moves from regions with weak labor market. The plan is also explicitly skeptical toward subsidies without evidence-based results and wants to scale back unnecessary public expenditures. A new relocation grant is therefore not a measure the plan bears.

• all of Sweden shall livedecisive»Principen om att hela Sverige skall leva är mycket viktig för Sverigedemokraterna.« (party programme ↗)“The principle that all of Sweden shall live is very important to Sweden Democrats.”
• skepticism toward subsidies»Subventioner av anställningar, elcyklar och lyxbilar sker precis som mångmiljardsatsningar i integrationsprojekt helt utan evidensbaserade resultat.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Subsidies for jobs, e-bikes, and luxury cars happen just like multi-billion investments in integration projects entirely without evidence-based results.”
• away with unnecessary expenditures»Skala bort onödiga utgifter i det offentliga« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Scale back unnecessary expenditures in the public sector”
• policy for the whole country»Bedriva en politik för hela Sverige« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Pursue a policy for all of Sweden”

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.