Long-term financing of welfare

The plan states that tax cuts have drained welfare and demands increased redistribution from state to municipality and region and that income and costs be distributed solidarily across the country. The counter-proposal's demand for inflation-protected state grants and a guarantee model for welfare financing is precisely that kind of state financing responsibility. The plan furthermore demands that welfare must exist everywhere, which supports assistance to rapidly growing municipalities.

• state financing responsibilitydecisive»Omfördelningen från stat till region och kommun måste öka och särskild hänsyn ska tas till de många kommuner och regioner som idag inte får ihop sin ekonomi samtidigt som de redan har bland landets högsta skatter totalt sett.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Redistribution from state to region and municipality must increase and special consideration must be given to the many municipalities and regions that today cannot make their finances work while already having among the country's highest total taxes.”
• restored welfare financing»De massiva skattesänkningar som genomförts av högerpartier och socialdemokrater under många år har resulterat i att det nu finns 350 miljarder mindre per år till välfärden än 1990.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The massive tax cuts implemented by right-wing parties and social democrats over many years have resulted in there now being 350 billion less per year for welfare than in 1990.”
• solidary distribution»Inkomster och kostnader behöver fördelas solidariskt över landet.« (party programme ↗)“Income and costs need to be distributed solidarily across the country.”
• welfare throughout the country»Välfärden måste vara till för alla och finnas överallt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Welfare must be available to everyone and exist everywhere.”

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 explicitly promises to continue to increase state grants to municipalities and regions and to increase resources for welfare throughout the country, with the explicit reservation that large tax cuts make this impossible. Inflation-protected general state grants, a guarantee model for welfare financing in crises and a growth package for fast-growing municipalities are ways to fulfil precisely this state financing responsibility. The plan also emphasises that work and full employment are the foundation, which touches on the committee's reasoning.

• increased state grantsdecisive»Vi vill fortsätta öka statens bidrag till kommuner och regioner.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to continue to increase state grants to municipalities and regions.”
• more resources for welfare»Öka resurserna till välfärden i hela landet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Increase resources for welfare throughout the country.”
• welfare before tax cuts»Stora skattesänkningar omöjliggör det.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Large tax cuts make this impossible.”
• equivalent welfare throughout the country»Alla invånare i hela landet ska ha likvärdig tillgång till skola, vård och omsorg.« (party programme ↗)“All inhabitants throughout the country shall have equivalent access to school, health and care services.”

The party programme is prepared to increase public consumption through taxation when necessary to secure welfare and requires equivalent economic conditions for municipal services across the country. The election manifesto promises strong safety nets where no one is left behind. Inflation-protected state grants and a guarantee model for welfare financing follow from this state financing responsibility.

• the state secures welfare financingdecisive»Vi kommer sannolikt också behöva nya skattebaser och är beredda att genom skatt öka den offentliga konsumtionen på bekostnad av den privata när det är nödvändigt för att trygga välfärden och samhällstryggheten.« (party programme ↗)“We will likely also need new tax bases and are prepared to increase public consumption at the expense of private consumption through taxation when necessary to secure welfare and public safety.”
• equivalent municipal services»Ett väl fungerande skattesystem ska ge likvärdiga ekonomiska förutsättningar att bedriva kommunal service i hela landet.« (party programme ↗)“A well-functioning tax system shall provide equivalent economic conditions for conducting municipal services across the country.”
• strong safety nets»Vi vill bygga skyddsnäten starka så att alla kan vara trygga och ingen lämnas utanför.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to build strong safety nets so that everyone can be secure and no one is left behind.”
• society as guarantor»Därför måste samhället också stå som garant för en trygg välfärd« (party programme ↗)“Society must therefore also stand as guarantor for secure welfare”

Worldstate weighed in: Unemployment 9.8 percent — strengthens the case for state guarantee responsibility for welfare financing in weaker economic conditions

The election manifesto promises equivalent and reliable welfare regardless of location, that more money should be spent on the core of welfare and better state support for regions. Inflation-protected state grants and a guarantee model for welfare financing serve these commitments, as does more value from natural resources and new industrialisation remaining locally. The plan however says nothing about the construction of state grants, so the stance is derived and uncertain.

• prioritise the core of welfaredecisive»Mer pengar ska läggas på välfärdens kärna, mindre på bidrag.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“More money should be spent on the core of welfare, less on benefits.”
• equivalent welfare throughout the country»Alla invånare ska ha tillgång till en likvärdig och pålitlig välfärd oavsett var de bor, och den offentliga servicen ska finnas där när man behöver den.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“All residents shall have access to equivalent and reliable welfare regardless of where they live, and public service shall be there when needed.”
• better state support for regions»Vi vill skapa fler vårdplatser där det behövs med hjälp av en platsmiljard och bättre stöd till regionerna.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to create more care places where needed with the help of a place billion and better support for regions.”
• local revenues from industrial establishment»Mer av värdet som skapas från naturresurser — exempelvis vindkraft, vattenkraft och gruvor — ska stanna kvar lokalt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“More of the value created from natural resources — for example wind power, hydropower and mining — shall remain locally.”

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 establishes that municipalities' financial conditions shall be equalised for factors they cannot influence, that predictability in the state's conduct strengthens security and that welfare ambitions shall not be lowered. That bears the counter-proposal's requirement for inflation-protected state grants, a guarantee model ahead of crises and a growth package for fast-growing municipalities. The plan moreover wants to transfer financing responsibility for schools and LSS to the state, thus greater state financing responsibility.

• equalisation for uncontrollable factorsdecisive»utjämnas med avseende på faktorer som inte går att påverka.« (party programme ↗)“equalised with respect to factors that cannot be influenced.”
• predictable planning conditions»När förutsägbarheten i statens agerande ökar stärks också den enskildes trygghet.« (party programme ↗)“When predictability in the state's conduct increases, the individual's security also strengthens.”
• state financing responsibility»Vi vill skapa mer likvärdiga villkor och skatter genom att flytta finansieringsansvaret för bland annat skolan och LSS till staten.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to create more equivalent conditions and taxes by transferring financing responsibility for among other things schools and LSS to the state.”
• welfare ambitions valued»Skattesänkningar ska därför inte finansieras genom sänkta ambitioner i välfärdspolitiken.« (party programme ↗)“Tax cuts shall therefore not be financed through lowered ambitions in welfare policy.”

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 the financing principle shall be respected when the state imposes new tasks on municipalities and that it is a state task to support municipalities with insufficient tax base, with the goal that the whole of Sweden shall thrive. Inflation-protected state grants and a guarantee model respond to this responsibility. At the same time, the plan demands restraint in public expenditure, which makes the support conditional.

• the financing principledecisive»Finansieringsprincipen måste respekteras när staten ålägger kommunerna nya uppgifter.« (party programme ↗)“The financing principle must be respected when the state imposes new tasks on municipalities.”
• the state supports weak tax bases»Det är en statlig uppgift att stödja kommuner som« (party programme ↗)“It is a state task to support municipalities that”
• the whole of Sweden shall thrive»Målet är att hela Sverige ska leva« (party programme ↗)“The goal is that the whole of Sweden shall thrive”
• restraint in public expenditure»återhållsamhet i de offentliga utgifterna.« (party programme ↗)“restraint in public expenditure.”

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 safeguards the surplus target and requires that every new promise is financed or fits within the target, while at the same time the large needs within the justice system, defence and welfare place demands on priorities. Inflation-protected grants, a guarantee model and a growth package are binding spending commitments of the kind the plan wants to avoid. The plan's way to finance municipalities is instead more people in work and less waste.

• surplus target safeguardeddecisive»Överskottsmålet ska värnas och det är inte aktuellt att övergå till ett balansmål.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The surplus target must be safeguarded and it is not appropriate to move to a balanced budget.”
• everything must be financed»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 – need to be financed or fit within the surplus target.”
• tough priorities required»De stora behoven inom rättsväsendet, försvaret och välfärden ställer stora krav på prioriteringar under åren som kommer.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The large needs within the justice system, defence and welfare place heavy demands on priorities in the years to come.”
• combat public waste»Offentligt slöseri i alla former ska bekämpas.« (party programme ↗)“Public waste in all forms must be combated.”

The election manifesto states that the municipal sector in the long term is not assessed to have resources for the welfare mission and undertakes to redirect public funds to welfare so that school, healthcare and care work regardless of where in the country one lives. Inflation-protected state grants and a guarantee model for welfare financing respond to that commitment. The party programme's municipal financing principle points in the same direction, while the requirement for sound public finances sets a limit.

• reallocation to welfaredecisive»Se över offentliga utgifter och rikta om medel till välfärden och rättsväsendet« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Review public expenditure and redirect funds to welfare and justice”
• welfare throughout the country»medel som säkerställer att polis, sjukvård, skola och omsorg oavsett var i landet man bor« (2022 manifesto ↗)“funds that ensure that police, healthcare, school and care regardless of where in the country one lives”
• municipal financing principle»Den kommunala finansieringsprincipen är grundläggande« (party programme ↗)“The municipal financing principle is fundamental”
• financial policy framework»respekt för det finanspolitiska ramverket« (party programme ↗)“respect for the financial policy framework”

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.