Government's Bill

The party programme states that aviation should begin to bear its socio-economic costs and that the investment plan for transport should include, among other things, an expansion of the railway. The counter-proposal requires that state support to the aviation sector is withheld and that the railway is prioritized for fossil-free transport. The election manifesto furthermore directs heavy transport to rail and sustainable shipping.

• aviation should bear its costsdecisive»stå för sina samhällsekonomiska kostnader. Det skulle sänka utsläppen« (party programme ↗)“bear its socio-economic costs. That would reduce emissions”
• expanded railway prioritized»som bland annat innehåller en utbyggnad av järnvägen.« (party programme ↗)“which among other things includes an expansion of the railway.”
• transport to rail»Tunga transporter behöver styras till järnväg och hållbar sjöfart.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Heavy transport needs to be directed to rail and sustainable shipping.”
• aviation as a transition challenge»Flygtrafiken är en av de stora utmaningarna i omställningen. Eftersom« (party programme ↗)“Aviation is one of the great challenges in the transition. Because”

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 counter-proposal wants to deny the aviation sector state support and instead prioritize railways. The plan stands behind massive railway investments, but it also builds on the fact that the whole country shall be able to live and that the state takes responsibility in crisis, which argues for temporarily covering the deficit in the security control fee system. The weighing therefore falls against the counter-proposal's demand, but the underlying basis is weak.

• responsible in crisisdecisive»Vi socialdemokrater står för ett ansvarstagande ledarskap för Sverige« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We Social Democrats stand for responsible leadership for Sweden”
• the whole country shall live»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 live and develop.”
• railway investments»Genom massiva investeringar i både ny och befintlig järnväg kommer fler att kunna resa klimatsmart med tåg.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Through massive investments in both new and existing railways, more will be able to travel climate-smart by train.”

The party programme explicitly says that airports shall not be subsidized with public funds and that aviation shall fully bear its environmental costs. The counter-proposal requires precisely that state support to the aviation sector be withheld and that the funds instead go to railways, which is also the election manifesto's line. The plan thus speaks directly against costs for security screening being covered other than through fees.

• no airport subsidiesdecisive»Flygplatser ska inte subventioneras med offentliga medel.« (party programme ↗)“Airports shall not be subsidized with public funds.”
• aviation bears its costs»Det är för oss självklart att flyget ska bära sina miljökostnader fullt ut.« (party programme ↗)“It is for us self-evident that aviation shall fully bear its environmental costs.”
• money from aviation to railways»Staten borde sälja SAS och investera pengarna i järnväg.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The state should sell SAS and invest the money in railways.”
• railway investments first»bygga ut och rusta upp järnvägsnätet för snabba tåg i hela landet och skynda på bygget av nya stambanor för höghastighetståg.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“build and upgrade the railway network for fast trains throughout the country and accelerate the construction of new mainlines for high-speed trains.”

The manifesto establishes that regional aviation holds Sweden together and that aviation infrastructure must function throughout the country, and wants to prepare the regional airports for electric flight. To completely reject support that keeps airport security checks running contradicts that commitment. The plan's railway investments are extensive but are not presented as an alternative to functioning aviation infrastructure.

• regional aviation throughout the countrydecisive»Det regionala flyget håller ihop Sverige. Flyginfrastrukturen ska fungera i hela landet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Regional aviation holds Sweden together. Aviation infrastructure must function throughout the country.”
• prepare regional airports»Vi vill säkerställa att de regionala flygplatserna står redo med rätt infrastruktur när elflyget utvecklas i snabb takt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to ensure that the regional airports are ready with the right infrastructure when electric flight develops at a rapid pace.”
• railway investments»Vi vill rusta upp regionala järnvägar, bygga nya stambanor från norr till söder, höja standarden på det nationella stambanenätet i hela landet och storsatsa på morgondagens tågtrafik — för klimatets och landsbygdens bästa.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to upgrade regional railways, build new main lines from north to south, raise the standard of the national main line network throughout the country, and make a big push on tomorrow's train traffic — for the sake of climate and rural areas.”

The plan wants to make aviation fossil-free rather than to reduce it, and it rejects climate policy measured in subsidies and symbols. Aviation security is furthermore a protection against crime and terrorism, a task the plan places on the state. To instead prioritize aviation away in favor of rail does not follow from the plan, which wants to remove railway bottlenecks without making it an alternative to aviation.

• fossil-free aviation, not less aviationdecisive»Fler flygresor ska göras fossilfria och all kollektivtrafik på väg och spår ska vara fossilfri senast 2030.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“More flights shall be made fossil-free and all public transport by road and rail shall be fossil-free by 2030 at the latest.”
• state responsibility for security»det är endast staten som ska bekämpa brott och ansvara för en fungerande« (party programme ↗)“it is only the state that shall combat crime and be responsible for a functioning”
• railway without mega-investments»Vi vill bygga bort järnvägsnätets flaskhalsar« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to remove the railway network's bottlenecks”
• rejected climate symbolism»En klimatpolitik som ersätter den symbolpolitik där bidrag betalas ut till klimatångest« (2022 manifesto ↗)“A climate policy that replaces the symbolic politics where subsidies are paid out to climate anxiety”

The plan states that a functioning domestic air service is necessary in a country with long distances and that the state has responsibility to maintain airports and regionally important air traffic that does not become viable on commercial grounds. The counter-proposal wants to deny the aviation sector state support and instead prioritise the railway, while the election manifesto chooses roads ahead of expensive rail investments. Therefore the demand is rejected.

• state responsibility for airportsdecisive»har ett ansvar att upprätthålla ett system av nationella och regionala flygplatser liksom regionalt betydelsefull flygtrafik som inte kommer till stånd på kommersiella grunder.« (party programme ↗)“has a responsibility to maintain a system of national and regional airports as well as regionally important air traffic that does not come about on commercial grounds.”
• domestic air services necessary»är nödvändigt i Sverige med dess långa avstånd.« (party programme ↗)“is necessary in Sweden with its long distances.”
• roads before expensive rail projects»Miljardsatsning för att rusta eftersatta vägar i hela landet - istället för att bygga dyra höghastighetståg.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Billion investment to upgrade neglected roads throughout the country - instead of building expensive high-speed trains.”
• whole country must function»Hela Sverige ska fungera och det ska gå att bo och verka även utanför de stora städerna.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Whole Sweden must function and it must be possible to live and work even outside the major cities.”

The plan explicitly embraces aviation's transition and wants to expand Arlanda to become the Nordic region's leading airport and invest in fossil-free aviation fuels and electric aviation. The counter-proposal instead wants to deny the aviation sector state support and instead prioritize railway investments. The plan moreover wants to upgrade the railway that already exists rather than make new large railway investments. The demand is therefore rejected.

• strengthened Swedish aviationdecisive»Bygga ut Arlanda med målet att Arlanda ska bli den ledande flygplatsen i Norden« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Expand Arlanda with the goal of Arlanda becoming the leading airport in the Nordic region”
• aviation's transition embraced»Flyget är mitt uppe i en snabb omställning med ökad användning av biobränslen, vätgas och utveckling av elflyg.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Aviation is in the midst of rapid transition with increased use of biofuels, hydrogen and development of electric aircraft.”
• investment in fossil-free aviation»Satsa på utvecklingen av fossilfria bränslen till flyget och utvecklingen av elflygplan« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Invest in the development of fossil-free fuels for aviation and the development of electric aircraft”
• upgrade before new construction»Rusta upp dagens järnväg i stället för att satsa på höghastighetståg som riskerar att vara omoderna redan innan de är klara« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Upgrade today's railway instead of betting on high-speed trains that risk being outdated before they are ready”

The plan states that all transport modes, including aviation, are important for society to function, and wants to preserve domestic aviation and regional airports and make them contingency airports. The counter-proposal wants to deny the aviation sector government support and allocate the funds to rail instead, which goes directly against the plan, which moreover rejects expensive new rail initiatives.

• all transport modes neededdecisive»Sverigedemokraterna anser att samtliga transportslag, inklusive bil och flyg, är viktiga för att samhället ska fungera.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden Democrats consider that all transport modes, including cars and aviation, are important for society to function.”
• regional airports as contingency»Bevara de regionala flygplatserna och att göra dem till beredskapsflygplatser« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Preserve the regional airports and make them contingency airports”
• preserved domestic aviation»Bevara inrikesflyget och Bromma flygplats« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Preserve domestic aviation and Bromma Airport”
• no to expensive rail projects»Stoppa planerna på dyr höghastighetsjärnväg mellan storstäderna« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Stop plans for expensive high-speed rail between major cities”