Alcohol, drugs, doping, tobacco and gambling

Johan Hultberg (M)

Madam Speaker! Now we have to debate the very important ANDTS issues, that is, issues concerning alcohol, drugs, doping, tobacco and gambling. These are issues that have interested me for a long time and which I have also been deeply involved in. This has been especially true since 2018, when I became a member of the Committee on Social Affairs.

There are many reasons for my great interest and deep commitment to these issues, but my strongest driving force is and has been my firm conviction that very large social problems can be prevented and that many lives can be saved with a different policy and a developed healthcare and treatment system. I am referring specifically to the drug policy and addiction care.

Alcohol, narcotics, doping, tobacco and gambling

Sweden has a very high drug-related mortality, perhaps even the highest in Europe. It has led me and my party to conclude that substantial reforms are needed.

It is about reforms to strengthen preventive work so that fewer become trapped in substance abuse and develop addiction. Furthermore, it is reforms to develop care and treatment so that the quality of care improves and so that sick people do not fall between the cracks of social services and healthcare. Then it is reforms to improve the accessibility of addiction care so that people are not denied help but quickly receive adequate care and treatment. Finally, it is about reforms to strengthen harm reduction work so that fatal overdoses and serious drug-related illness and ill health can be avoided.

Therefore, Madam Speaker, we Moderates have submitted numerous proposals for reforms on just these very issues. We have submitted proposals to strengthen preventive work, to strengthen the care guarantee for addiction, on the introduction of a national overdose strategy, on strengthened addiction care within the Prison and Probation Service, and much, much more. And I am pleased that many of the proposals that we Moderates have submitted over the years have won the Chamber's support and that we together in the Riksdag have pushed for important reforms and raised ambitions. Today, a united Riksdag stands behind the fact that we shall have a zero vision regarding drug-related deaths.

Madam Speaker! Now we have a new Moderate-led government that has a strengthened addiction care as an important point on the to-do list that we four coalition parties call the Tidö Agreement. From the Tidö Agreement, a clear direction emerges. Persons with addiction problems and addiction diseases shall be given coherent care and treatment. And the responsibility for the care shall lie with the regions. This is completely in line with the announcement that a unanimous Riksdag made in 2019 regarding a unified primary responsibility for persons with co-morbidity.

Madam Speaker! Much is happening right now in the area of narcotics policy. Several investigations as well as a long series of agency assignments are underway. Particularly worth mentioning is the investigation into a Swedish narcotics policy adapted to the challenges of the present and the future. That investigation has the mandate to carry out a much-needed evaluation of Swedish narcotics policy as well as to provide proposals on how the policy can be developed. The investigation shall, among other things, propose a national program to reduce the number of deaths resulting from drug and narcotics poisoning. The investigation thus has the mandate to produce proposals for what I and the Moderaterna have persistently argued for, namely a national overdose strategy.

To save lives, both an enhanced access to care, including LARO, i.e., medication-assisted rehabilitation for opiate addiction, and pure tax-reducing measures in the form of, among other things, improved access to the drug Naloxone were needed. It is a drug that can be directly life-saving in the event of an overdose of opioids.

Madam Speaker! During the previous parliamentary term, the Riksdag failed the red-green government's ANDTS strategy and demanded, following a proposal from the Moderaterna, among other things, a new overarching goal for ANDTS policy. It shall be a goal that takes into account the fact that different tobacco and nicotine products cause varied harmful effects. To lump all tobacco and nicotine products together is counterproductive from a public health policy perspective. The focus must be on reducing harm, and it follows from this that the most important thing is to continue to reduce life-threatening tobacco smoking.

Therefore, it is very welcome that the new government has clarified that the Public Health Agency, the National Board for Medical and Social Evaluation, and the National Board of Health and Welfare, within the framework of the mandate the agencies received from the previous government, shall now also describe the harmful effects of different products in relation to one another. That type of basis was needed in order to be able to design an effective and fact-based policy.

Madam Speaker! That we now have a new government means that there are finally conditions in place to establish a new ANDTS strategy with a new overarching goal. With a new government, there are also finally conditions to introduce farm sales of alcohol in Sweden. Very reluctantly, the previous red-green government commissioned a farm sales investigation. It was an investigation that concluded that a strictly regulated farm sale is compatible with EU law. But the Social Democrats are clear despite that. The Social Democrats say no. It is no to farm sales, no to better conditions for small micro-producers of alcohol, and no to better conditions for the countryside and the tourism industry.

Madam Speaker! Sweden needs a modernized alcohol policy. This includes the introduction of farm sales but also a major review of the rules for serving licenses. During the last parliamentary term, a parliamentary majority approved a motion from the Moderaterna to investigate the abolition of the so-called food requirement and to broadly review the rules for serving licenses in order to create a simpler and less arbitrary regulatory framework. We believe it is unreasonable that a serving establishment must have its own kitchen and provide cooked food to obtain a permanent serving license. Therefore, it is good that an inquiry now has the mandate to review if and how the requirements for serving licenses can be modernized. This inquiry has many other mandates, including to submit proposals on how the distribution of tobacco and nicotine products can be prohibited as well as to propose regulation of nitrous oxide used for intoxication purposes.

In conclusion, Madam Speaker, I can state that the new opposition does not have much to contribute to this committee report. Most of the reservations in the report concern work that is already underway, and several of the proposals for announcements are shots in the dark. It seems as if neither S nor C have a handle on which announcements the previous Riksdag has already made.

With that said, I would like, Madam Speaker, to move for the approval of the committee's proposal.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Karin Sundin (S)

Madam Speaker! I appreciate Member Hultberg's emphasis that there is a broad consensus on large parts of the Swedish drug policy. But I note that one of the areas where we as legislators are struggling to keep up is what the member touched upon briefly, namely the rapid development of new nicotine products. The sale of white snus and e-cigarettes, so-called vapes, has increased dramatically in recent years. The target group is clearly children and young people, not least girls. The advertising is on social media targeted at young people, and with colors and flavors taken from the candy shelf. It is licorice, hubba bubba, and peach.

CAN's investigation from last spring showed that 40 percent of students in year 2 of upper secondary school had used snus. It is certainly more in 2023. 20 percent of ninth graders and 24 percent of students who were in their second year of upper secondary school had used e-cigarettes during the last month. This figure is certainly significantly higher this spring than last spring.

These products are marketed as tobacco-free, and MP Hultberg himself says that it is tobacco we should focus on. But these products contain very high levels of nicotine from tobacco itself. Furthermore, they contain a number of substances whose effects we actually have no idea about – what happens when they are put under the lip or inhaled into the lungs of our children and youth?

Madam Speaker! There is every reason for concern. I wonder what Member Hultberg thinks about the fact that the tobacco industry is currently carving gold out of our children's and youth's health.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Johan Hultberg (M)

Madam Speaker! As Member Sundin says, there has been a very strong development of new tobacco and nicotine products. This development has truly been enormous over the last five years.

I can only state that the previous government was very late in these matters. I asked questions here in the chamber to the responsible minister about why no legislation or regulation was introduced regarding these new products. It took far too long. I truly regret the sluggishness that the previous government showed when it did not introduce a regulation, Madam Speaker, because I think it is very important that we have a regulation of all tobacco and nicotine products.

I do, however, think it is important that we have a regulation that distinguishes between the danger and harmfulness of different products. It is justified to have significantly stricter requirements for traditional smoked tobacco because that is what claims lives. It is not reasonable to, as the previous government proposed, ban self-service of snus in displays or introduce a general flavor ban. I and the Moderaterna oppose that type of grasping regulation.

What is important moving forward is that we have a functioning supervision. Another proposal that the Moderaterna have championed is to ban the distribution of tobacco products. Today, it is actually not criminal for a private individual to distribute tobacco or new nicotine products. This is devastating if we are to succeed in what the member Sundin and I agree we should do, namely to protect our children and young people. Then we must have legislation that is based on that. I am pleased that this issue is part of the investigation that I mentioned in my speech.

An important starting point for the new government is to strengthen the preventive work. We want to do everything we can to ensure that children and young people never start using the types of products that contain tobacco or nicotine.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Karin Sundin (S)

Madam Speaker! Unfortunately, the Moderate-led government does not make the situation any better in this area. Just as Member Hultberg explained, the previous government tasked the authorities with compiling and disseminating knowledge about various products. Hultberg thinks it is good that the new government has given a new mandate according to which these products shall be placed in relation to one another. It is desired that it should clearly appear that some products will be less dangerous and that others are more dangerous.

Exactly this is what we have heard before. Once upon a time, Lucky Strike cigarettes were marketed as being healthier because the tobacco was roasted. Cigarettes with filters were healthier than cigarettes without filters, and light cigarettes were healthier than regular cigarettes. But people have continued to die from smoking.

The fact is that we do not know the effects of the products that children and young people today are inhaling into their lungs. We know that the levels of nicotine are sky-high, but we do not know the consequences of the rest. We should do everything we can to stop smoking, and we should do everything we can to stop snus. We should not give new marketing arguments to a tobacco industry that does everything to sell more to more people.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Johan Hultberg (M)

Madam Speaker! This was a contribution from Member Sundin which well describes the principled difference that exists between the Social Democrats and the Moderates when it comes to tobacco and nicotine policy. My and the Moderates' starting point is always that we shall save lives and reduce harm. In that case, it is, I think and the Moderates think, unserious to treat all products equally. It is not serious to send a signal that it would be equally harmful to snus as it is to smoke.

That is not to say that tobacco, snus, or the new tobacco-free products with high levels of nicotine are harmless, because they are absolutely not. They are harmful. It is well-researched that nicotine has negative health effects, and it is these effects that the authorities now have a mandate to describe in relation to one another.

We have not given this assignment to the tobacco industry, but to independent state agencies. I think it is important to obtain this basis. I think more facts should be welcomed. I think it is concerning that the Social Democrats do not have the attitude that it is good to have facts and with correct basis.

Madam Speaker! I think it is important that a tobacco and nicotine policy is designed with a clear aim of reducing tobacco-related harms. That is why we want to see a new overarching goal for the ANDTS policy where the objective corresponds to the one that exists in the alcohol area, which is about reducing medical and social harms. Therefore, it is the highest priority for the Moderaterna to reduce tobacco smoking and to prevent children and young people from starting with any kind of tobacco or nicotine product. That is why the preventive work is so important, and that is why we want to invest in producing more evidence regarding the methods that work. This government will work diligently on this.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Karin Rågsjö (V)

Madam Speaker! To the member, it almost sounds as if it is the Moderaterna who have taken the lead when it comes to, for example, needle exchange and harm reduction. Historically, that is not how it has been, I would like to assert. On the other hand, it is actually the member who has ensured the modernization of the Moderaterna's drug policy, and for that, I thank you.

My first question concerns alcohol, which for me is not just any commodity but a product that can cause people to suffer very badly. There is talk here about modernizing the alcohol policy, and I wonder anxiously what this could mean. In some motions from the Moderates, for example, there are proposals regarding takeaway for alcohol and regarding farm sales, which is an issue that has been investigated for quite a long time in Sweden. Farm sales will hardly contribute to people becoming addicted, but it is about how one views Systembolaget.

It will be interesting to see the development. I think you have a very cavalier view of the alcohol issue as a more commercial issue and not a public health issue.

My second question concerns drugs. This is an issue that we have discussed very much together, and we have also done a great deal in the committee in connection with it. I am glad about that – we have put forward the questions in a different way.

There is, however, one thing that the new government, just like the previous government, refuses to look at, namely what the criminalization has led to. There is no real investigation into this. I see it this way myself: If an investigation were to show that the criminalization has been fantastically good for Sweden, we will proceed on that line.

Madam Speaker! I wonder if Member Hultberg knows why the new government does not want people to look at criminalization in the narcotics investigation that is being conducted.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Johan Hultberg (M)

Madam Speaker! The Moderates do not have a light-handed alcohol policy in any way. The Moderates do, however, think it is extremely important to weigh the different interests that exist here. We shall protect those who are vulnerable and those who suffer from addiction. We shall, above all, do what we can to protect our children and young people.

However, we shall not introduce unnecessarily far-reaching restrictions on freedom of enterprise or on people's freedom. Therefore, the Moderaterna have reached the conclusion that it is important to introduce farm sales because it is something that would mean incredibly much for the actors concerned. I would like to say that these actors, Madam Speaker, are involved and contribute to developing Swedish alcohol culture.

We have historically had a culture in Sweden that has been anything but healthy. There has been a very extensive binge drinking. The new actors that have emerged in Sweden contribute to us moving from binge drinking to an increased focus on experiences, quality, craftsmanship, and so on. I think that is healthy.

The investigation that has looked at farm sales has concluded that a strictly regulated farm sale where the sale is secondary and where one primarily consumes an experience – a tour, a guided tour, or whatever it may be – is compatible with a continued retail monopoly. In that case, we think it is right and proper to introduce it.

I will return to the drug policy in my second post, but I can honestly say that the Moderaterna, like all other parties in the chamber, have reason to be self-critical when it comes to drug policy. We have failed significantly in Sweden, and therefore major reforms were needed in this area.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Karin Rågsjö (V)

Madam Speaker! I think everyone in the chamber has reason to be self-critical. Vänsterpartiet has championed issues such as syringe exchange since the beginning of the 2000s, so we feel quite fair. But we can have that discussion another time.

Farm sales sound nice, and I wouldn't mind it if it didn't jeopardize the monopoly.

Speaking of interests, I wonder which interests you are guarding, Johan Hultberg. Is it the small producers on the farms, or is it the large alcohol producers? There is an incredible lobbying going on for this from the alcohol industry; there is no doubt about that. They see that other things can happen there on the farms that do not involve the wine or the beer from the farm. Suddenly, something else could appear there from a larger producer. Therefore, I am still skeptical.

Drugs, drug care etcetera is a huge problem in Sweden. Socialstyrelsen conducted a study this summer which shows that 75 percent of the underage children who are convicted for personal use are already known to the authorities. Often it concerns completely different problems, such as mental health, poor school results etcetera. Police interventions do not seem to contribute to early detection, and the study also showed that 70 percent of the children are convicted again within three years. The hunt for those on the street is therefore not sufficiently effective.

I think that one should investigate everything one can investigate. If the investigation shows that something is great, but as a party one thinks exactly the opposite, one must back down. It is not just us and Centerpartiet who want to investigate the criminalization. Socialstyrelsen, Folkhälsomyndigheten, SKR and the whole group of researchers also want to. Why is this not being done?

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Johan Hultberg (M)

Madam Speaker! The inquiry that is to evaluate the Swedish narcotics policy was commissioned by the previous government. Naturally, there is an opportunity for a new government to issue new directives, amendment directives, or supplementary directives, or to scrap the inquiry and commission a new one. But in the other balance, there is the fact that it would lead to the inquiry being delayed, and I think it is important to promptly carry out reforms in this area.

That this government, like the previous one, is deeply skeptical of decriminalization is nothing to be coy about. That is how it is.

We Moderates think, just like Karin Rågsjö, that one should not hunt people who have an addiction. They must be given care and treatment, and therefore it is important to look at how the consequences can be changed. Everyone here understands that the person who is stuck in an addiction is not helped by a prison sentence or another fine, but that person needs to receive care and treatment. Therefore, it is important to look at how more can receive contract care and if one can use a warning of penalty in more cases.

But of course, it is an advantage if the police can take urine samples to detect if a person is under the influence of drugs for the purpose, and it truly must be for the purpose, of providing this person with early interventions.

The government has, as stated, landed on the position that it is important that this investigation looks at drug policy but does not bring in the question of decriminalization. Should this question be brought in, there is a risk that it will take all the oxygen and that there will be no discussion about all the other important reforms that are needed to save lives, in the form of developed care, developed harm-reduction interventions, and other things.

I believe there is a danger in there becoming an all-too great focus on this, which is in itself a principle-wise important issue, but which in context perhaps is not the most important for saving lives. It is instead about improving care, making it more accessible, and continuing to develop the harm-reducing interventions.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Christofer Bergenblock (C)

Madam Speaker! I thank Johan Hultberg for the presentation.

I am pleased that the member raised the issue of farm sales as one of the important issues for the Moderaterna to implement. This important reform would contribute to new jobs, strengthen rural development, help food production, increase tourism, and so on. Just as the member said, it is discussed in the investigation that the reform will only affect public health marginally and that it is compatible with EU legislation.

After the election, we have a clear majority in the Swedish Riksdag to introduce farm sales. Of 349 mandates, 200 should stand behind the proposal on farm sales, at least if one believes what was said during the election campaign.

But the question is whether it looks like that in reality? It has almost been six months since the new government took office. The materials in the investigation were ready on the tables, and it should have gone relatively quickly to draft a proposition on the issue. However, it has still not been done.

How united are the Tidö parties? If this issue is as important as the member just emphasized, why is it not taken up as a priority area within the Tidö Agreement?

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Johan Hultberg (M)

Madam Speaker! Farm sales are important, among other things to provide producers who operate on the Swedish market and who are involved in developing the tourism industry and rural areas, create jobs and develop the Swedish alcohol culture, with better conditions.

Contrary to what Member Rågsjö argued, I believe that the large producers absolutely do not want to see farm sales. They think it is fantastic if the small producers are not given better conditions to operate.

I and Member Bergenblock, however, share the view that it is important to give the small producers better conditions, and in that regard, farm sales are an important part of it.

There is an investigation on the government's desk, and the Vice Prime Minister was crystal clear last week that the farm sale shall be carried out.

Mr. Speaker, we must also be honest that Sweden has many major challenges regarding crime, an all-too-great exclusion, and a significant safety crisis. In the social policy area, there is a great need for a substantial reforming of the social services. We need to achieve a more effective climate policy and energy policy that creates conditions for jobs and entrepreneurship.

In this context, it is reasonable that the government, during its first six months, has prioritized a strengthened justice system, functioning energy policy, improved integration, and other matters over the sale of farms.

But Member Bergenblock can be completely assured that I and the Moderaterna will continue to push for the introduction of farm sales in Sweden. Just as Member Bergenblock, I feel confident that it is possible to introduce a strictly regulated farm sale in Sweden without jeopardizing Systembolaget and the Swedish monopoly, which has been a starting point for the broad support in the chamber.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Christofer Bergenblock (C)

Madam Speaker! I am confident in the Moderates' commitment to this issue. Farm sales are actually the single issue within the social area that engaged the most Moderates during the general motion period. Six motions from the Moderates concerned farm sales.

I am not as confident about what the overall picture in the Tidö parties looks like. Of course, the new government has had to devote time to appointing inquiries and the like; that is not much else and nothing strange about it. But at the same time, the Ministry of Social Affairs has been staffed with four ministers. More ministers than ever before shall share the areas that exist there. Here we have a completed inquiry that is on the department's table. It should be very simple to handle it in the Government Offices, arrive at a sharp legislative proposal and place a proposition on the Riksdag's table, but until now, they have not done so.

It cannot be the case that this issue was not included in the Tidö Agreement because there was no such consensus as is being suggested here? And it cannot be the case that the six motions on farm sales from the Moderaterna are based on the fact that they themselves within Moderaterna doubt that the issue will actually reach a conclusion under the current ministers' leadership?

My final question to Member of Parliament Johan Hultberg is: Why does the bill on farm sales not reach the Riksdag's table when the Tidö parties have such a clear majority - together with the Center Party in this case - to introduce farm sales in Sweden?

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Johan Hultberg (M)

Madam Speaker! It is pleasing that Member Bergenblock has noted the great commitment of us Moderates for the introduction of farm sales. I believe that the Moderates will motion, argue, and debate about this until the day it is introduced in Sweden. I am glad about that, because it is an important issue. I am firmly convinced that a government bill will come to the Riksdag's table, but the question is, of course, when. That question is better posed to the government, which has the ultimate responsibility to answer regarding the exact priorities and in what order things will occur.

But I think Member Bergenblock is possibly a bit facetious in his description of the simplicity of the issue. Certainly, there is a clear investigation that has submitted a proposal. The proposal is, I must say, fundamentally much more strict and limited than the type of farm sales I would have wished to see, but it is very possible that it is what is required for it to be compatible with EU law. That has been the starting point for the investigation, and it is a prerequisite for the broad support in the chamber. The parties in here are not ready to give up the Swedish monopoly to introduce farm sales, and then it must be reconciled.

Now there has been a broad consultation process of the investigation that the previous government commissioned - following pressure from the Centerpartiet, it should be said. In that case, it is of course very and truly important that the government carefully takes in the responses that have come in the consultation process and goes through them thoroughly before submitting a bill to the Riksdag.

We are going to do a serious, proper and good job so that we can introduce a farm sale that proves to work in a good way, which does not draw criticism from the EU Commission and which gives the Swedish producers better conditions to create jobs and growth and contribute to what both I and Member Bergenblock are passionate about, namely a living countryside.

(Applause)

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Karin Sundin (S)

Madam Speaker! I think that the Social Affairs Committee's report on alcohol, tobacco, drugs, doping and gambling, which we are debating here today, should actually have had a different heading. Because what is stated in the report and what we are going to debate is actually about caring for one another, our fellow human beings and our society. The heading Alcohol, drugs, doping, tobacco and gambling is a rather clumsy summary of a broad area that concerns public health and the fact that people suffer, become ill, and even die as a result of abuse of addictive substances or of gambling. It is also about what we can do about it together.

One can, of course, make other interpretations of what the heading is about, or what it should be about – we have already heard another interpretation from Member Hultberg. But I think it is worth reminding of the care for one another in a time when we see how in country after country it is said that the use of narcotics is a matter of freedom, where the individual freedom to use cannabis has become more important than the protection of the many who risk suffering harm in the wake of the increased use.

I also think it is worth reminding of the care for one another when the debate is about the individual producer or business owner getting the right to sell more alcohol to more people, directly from their own premises. And I think it is worth reminding of the care for one another when we see how our children are bombarded by advertising in social media for nicotine-containing products, such as white snus and cigarettes with hubbabubba flavor.

Madam Speaker! We know what the consequences of what we label as alcohol, drugs, doping, tobacco, and gambling can be: various forms of cardiovascular diseases, lung diseases, accidents, mental illness, mental ill-health, poverty, violence, crime, and premature death. And those who are affected are not only those who abuse it themselves. We know through research studies that 320,000 children - 15 percent of all Swedish children - have been negatively affected by parents' or guardians' alcohol consumption. Fear and anxiety, lack of care, and violence negatively affect these children's health today but also over a long period. Children who grow up under the influence of alcohol perform worse in school and risk having problems with alcohol and mental ill-health themselves. Around the people who are affected by disease due to their addiction, there are relatives, friends, neighbors, and colleagues who are also affected.

To this come the costs. Alcohol consumption is estimated to cost society more than 100 billion kronor every year. The latest figure on the number of healthcare incidents related to alcohol that I have found is 660,000. 660,000 healthcare incidents! The cost for the care then, in 2017, was 7.4 billion kronor, which corresponded to the wage cost for 14,500 nurses. Think what we, in this time of nursing shortage, could have achieved with 14,500 nurses who had time to do something else!

I could stand here for as long as I want and rattle off the known negative effects of alcohol, drugs, doping, tobacco, and gambling. One only has to dig into the research. There are infinitely many examples. And we here in this chamber know that we must be on our toes to keep up with the development of new substances and new forms of abuse. Right now, it is white snus and e-cigarettes that are increasing exponentially among our middle and high school students. It is also nitrous oxide, which, among other things, causes hallucinations and nerve damage. There are currently examples of young people who cannot walk after having used nitrous oxide repeatedly. We need to talk more about how we, out of care for our children and young people, can prevent this from happening. Regarding this, we Social Democrats have submitted proposals.

Madam Speaker! Political debates, investigations, and new legislation are blunt tools when it comes to people's lifestyle habits, the trend-sensitivity of young people, the mechanisms of addiction, and not least the large economic interests that exist in addictive products. But they are the tools we have.

Therefore, it is important that we stick to what we know works. Systembolaget's sales monopoly and public health mandate are a cornerstone of Swedish alcohol policy. It is a state-owned company that has care inscribed in its mandate. This is something we must be careful about. Therefore, all proposals for changes to the retail monopoly should be preceded by consultations with the EU Commission and by a request for a binding advance ruling on whether farm sales risk ultimately affecting Sweden's opportunities to independently steer the development in the alcohol policy area.

We shall use the tools of politics to show care for one another and do everything we can to limit the harmful effects of all types of abuse. We shall stop the flow of drugs and prevent doping and gambling addiction, but we shall not use tools that primarily increase the business opportunities for those who, for their own profit, want to sell more addictive products to more people.

Madam Speaker! I, of course, stand behind all the Social Democrats' motions in this area. But in order to save time, I move for the approval of reservation 4.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Dan Hovskär (KD)

Madam Speaker! I would like to begin by expressing my support for the committee's proposal.

The Christian Democrats want all people to be able to grow up and live without the risk of being harmed due to their own or others' use of alcohol, drugs, doping agents, tobacco, or gambling. Sweden therefore needs a clear ANDTS strategy and a national competence center for ANDTS prevention.

The Christian Democrats stand up for a solidary, public health-based and restrictive Swedish alcohol policy that promotes a society with moderate alcohol habits. We therefore safeguard Systembolaget's sales monopoly and an active price policy that, through excise taxes, makes alcohol more expensive than other drinks.

Together with strong preventive work, these measures can reduce the medical and social harms of alcohol, which are extensive, as well as the related socio-economic costs. We believe that all new cars should be equipped with technology that reveals the driver's alcohol influence. Within primary care, the issue of addiction should be a natural part of the care's responsibility for public health work, argue the Christian Democrats.

Alcohol can be a source of joy and pleasure but also of great costs. Illness, crime, and accidents that can be related to alcohol are estimated today to cost our society over 100 billion kronor per year. But behind the costs there are also countless human destinies.

Tobacco use is one of our largest individual public health problems that can be prevented. The tobacco prevention work is a prerequisite for equal health, reduced tobacco use, and the phasing out of tobacco smoking.

Smoking in Sweden continues to decrease, which is positive. Among young people, however, the use of e-cigarettes and other nicotine products is increasing. This is shown by the latest statistics from Folkhälsomyndigheten and CAN. It is urgent to stop this development and to safeguard children's right to freedom from nicotine and tobacco.

The Christian Democrats want a drug-free society and work to stop all tendencies toward drug liberalization. The efforts should be primarily directed at those who profit from the drugs - the smugglers and the sellers. Preventive work is needed, good care and treatment if one has become trapped in addiction, and also crime-fighting efforts from customs and the police. The police and customs have the right to seize preparations they suspect are dangerous, and prosecutors can decide that the goods shall be destroyed. Until now, society has often lagged a step behind, but we do not give up the fight against online drugs.

Madam Speaker! I want to emphasize clearly that we in Kristdemokraterna stand firm by our line that a legalization of cannabis is not an option, and no other drugs either in that regard. My and Kristdemokraterna's assessment is that a decriminalization of cannabis would lead to an increased drug use in Sweden and also to an increased abuse that affects both individuals and their families.

Sweden's drug policy needs to be developed. Mortality must decrease, and care must become better. The work to reduce both supply and demand must become more effective. The stigmatization of people who have an addiction must decrease and preferably cease. All too often we hear that there are simple interventions that are claimed to solve the problems.

That golden ticket to a society where significantly fewer people suffer because of drugs simply does not exist. The solution lies rather in seeing and understanding how complex reality is. We need to adjust legislation, enforcement, preventive methods, and coordination within care and treatment until we see better results. The Government has many good proposals on the table, and there we must hold on and continue to make efforts.

The speech at riksdagen.se, in Swedish (opens in a new tab)

Christofer Bergenblock (C)

Madam Speaker! Thank you for the speech, Dan Hovskär!

I also intended to ask the Christian Democrats about farm sales. When Ebba Busch visited the Visita Stockholm Summit on February 21, she was crystal clear that Sweden shall have farm sales. There was no talk about the matter, but it was stated clearly in the statement. She also said that the Christian Democrats before the election were not entirely sure where they stood in relation to microbreweries and small wine producers, but that it was now clear that Sweden shall have farm sales.

Ebba Busch also suggested that she felt the process in the Government Offices took too long. The Christian Democrats, which the member represents here, have the responsible minister in the Government Offices, Jakob Forssmed. He owns the issue and has it on his desk, and it is he who is to produce the bill. The Christian Democrats also hold the chairmanship of the Social Affairs Committee, with the opportunities this can entail for pushing on the issue.

What struck me when Ebba Busch spoke before Visita was that one had not decided before the election, but that one was now in favor of farm sales. However, I am not entirely convinced about where the Christian Democrats stand. Therefore, I would like to hear the member's opinion on where the Christian Democrats stand on the issue of introducing farm sales in Sweden.

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Dan Hovskär (KD)

Madam Speaker! Thank you, Christofer Bergenblock, for the question!

We have protected Systembolaget's monopoly, and EU law is an important entry point in the discussion. We have seen many positive aspects. One can strengthen rural development, small business, the tourism industry, small producers and so on. Before the election, we discussed that there are some disadvantages to releasing the monopoly and that many small producers are in the cities. There are different parts of the issue that one can reflect on, and that is what we have done.

What we have concluded through the investigation is that the government is positive towards enabling this. As Ebba Busch has also expressed, we stand for it.

Now, the referral responses regarding the investigation must be processed so that all parts are included and that EU law is not challenged and so on. As far as I understand, everything is in motion. But I do not know exactly when the bill will be submitted. But the sale of farms is something that the government, and also Ebba Busch, stands behind.

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Christofer Bergenblock (C)

Madam Speaker! I am nevertheless pleased to hear that it is a clear position from the Christian Democrats that they support that farm sales is something that should be introduced in Sweden. And the party leader has also been very clear on this issue.

The member of Parliament speaks about the government standing behind this. But I still perceive it as the member - he can correct me if I am wrong - also meaning with this that the Christian Democrats stand behind this issue.

What I am still wondering about is this time span to arrive at a bill. I find it a bit difficult to see why it should take such a long time. The investigation was finished in December 2021, and the referral responses were on the government's desk in June 2022. Then, for the most part, not much happened during the remaining months for the Social Democratic government. But after that, the new government has had six months. And as has been said, there are plenty of ministers at the ministry, and it should be possible to produce a bill on this issue relatively quickly. But it is dragging on.

Now the Christian Democrats have both a responsible minister and the chairman of the Social Affairs Committee, and it is clear that this creates new opportunities to push. And I still hear that even from the Christian Democrats, they are keen on getting this in place.

My final question to the member is: Are the Christian Democrats prepared to submit a committee initiative to put further pressure on the government on the issue and ensure that something happens regarding the sale of farms?

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Dan Hovskär (KD)

Madam Speaker! That is not how we work when we have a proposal in progress, Christofer Bergenblock. It must be worked through so that it becomes as good as possible. There are, as mentioned earlier in the debate, an enormous number of major issues on the government's table that they are working on. And there are major challenges when it comes to the justice system, integration, the economy, and so on. There are many major issues that the government is also working on within the Ministry of Social Affairs. There are very many issues that are in motion there. Therefore, work is being done so that this will also be presented. I do not, therefore, believe that the member needs to be so worried that this issue is not being worked on. I can sign off on the fact that it is being worked on. But one wants to produce a good proposal in the end.

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ANDRE VICE TALMANNEN

I want to remind the members that we have a speaker and not a chairman in the chamber.

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Karin Rågsjö (V)

Madam Speaker! The Centre Party talks a lot about farm sales. I am going to talk a lot about drugs. We have different paths today.

There is no party in this Riksdag that is pushing for the issue of a legalization of drugs. It is completely obvious. On the other hand, we want to look at decriminalization, which is something completely different. That has also been looked at in a number of countries.

My first question is which research the member refers to when he says that the current narcotics policy has worked very well and also the criminalization. I want to assert that there is no abundance of this type of research.

It shows in various surveys - I mentioned one earlier - that criminalization is mostly directed at street addicts, if I may put it that way. That means that very many police interventions occur precisely there.

When one looks at underage children, who are often the targets of these types of interventions themselves, it turns out that they also have completely different problems that no one seems to have cared about previously - mental health issues, poor school results and so on. The police interventions do not seem to contribute to early detection to any significant extent, and 70 percent of these children are convicted again after three years.

Does the member not think there is another way to conduct drug policy? The drug policy we have had has not been directly successful. The whole world can see that. Not even the UN thought so. That is not what people think. We have had an enormous number of deaths. Now the number is down to around 400, which we think is very good. So it has gone down. It has been up at 600, 700, and 800. So the drug policy we have had for a number of years has not been successful.

Then I ask: What does the member think about that?

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Dan Hovskär (KD)

Madam Speaker! I thank Karin Rågsjö for the question.

I did not express that the narcotics policy has worked very well. That was not quite what I said in my speech. What I pointed out, among other things, was that we do not want to legalize cannabis and that it would not be a good path to take.

What I rather said was that Swedish narcotics policy needs to be developed, that mortality must decrease and that care must be improved. It was these positions I had in my speech.

We see that there is an enormous amount more to do in this area. I think we all agree on that. This was what I emphasized in my speech. I pointed out, among other things, that the stigmatization of people with addictions must decrease and that we must work with the problems. Then we must work in very many different ways. The police have a part. But a much larger part concerns healthcare interventions that must be implemented, and one must provide support and help. That was my starting point in the speech.

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Karin Rågsjö (V)

Madam Speaker! I wish that the new government, with SD as a supporting pillar, had taken a slightly broader approach to the drug issue and dared to investigate decriminalization. If it had only been Vänsterpartiet and Centern who wanted it, I would have understood if one had backed down a little. But it is actually the Public Health Agency of Sweden that has looked at this issue and thinks it is strange that this is not being investigated. Sveriges Kommuner och Regioner has been steadfast on this. And a relatively united body of researchers also thinks so.

I believe it is research that should govern this type of policy within the ANDTS area. It should not be some kind of general opinion with slightly moralistic undertones.

I wish that one could look at the research and dare to investigate things and dare to listen to relevant researchers when one is to design some kind of better drug policy than the one we have had. I think we have a very polarized debate on this.

Yesterday I was at a webinar. It was one of the first times that all types of opinions were brought to the table. That is very rare. Otherwise, one receives invitations to different meetings where everyone thinks alike, which hardly develops these issues. But I think it is unfortunate that, for example, the Kristdemokraterna, which is a party that has nevertheless been very socially engaged, do not dare to lift this stone when it comes specifically to investigating criminalization and seeing what it has led to. I believe that it would have been important. It is also possible to appoint an investigation, so to speak, separately from the investigation that is currently ongoing.

But this is an important issue. If we do not make any further steps, I believe we will come back to this issue. There are many who think that this is an important issue, not just us.

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Dan Hovskär (KD)

Madam Speaker! The commitment to the issue cannot be underestimated. I hear that you also have a very great commitment to these issues, Karin Rågsjö. I have myself worked within addiction care and thus have a fairly strong background there.

What I see now, however, is that we must await the investigation that is underway and which is expected to arrive on October 31, I believe that is the date. Then we will see how we can take this further. Then we must work on many different parts - it is very important not to only work on one track but to try to work broadly, with, among other things, preventive measures.

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Anna-Lena Blomkvist (SD)

Madam Speaker! ANDTS is a large area that encompasses many types of addictive diseases and challenges. We, as politicians and members of the Swedish Riksdag and the Committee on Social Affairs, have a great responsibility for these challenges. It is about directing interventions and creating incentives for a safer everyday life.

Addictive diseases such as alcoholism, drug addiction and gambling addiction each have a great impact on those who fall into addiction - but also on everyone in their vicinity. There is much within the area of addiction that is concerning. Many of us know someone who has been affected, indirectly or directly. Addiction affects the individual, it affects families and it affects society.

One can see, among other things, that at least one-third of children and young people who have been placed outside the home by social services come from families with some form of substance abuse. This is something that we in Sverigedemokraterna take seriously, and it must be countered and prevented by all available means.

In Sweden, we drink an average of nearly 9 liters of pure alcohol per year per inhabitant who is 15 years and older. This is lower than the average for the EU, as well as for Europe as a whole. Previously, Sweden was a country with high spirit consumption. This has however changed, and today wine is the most common alcoholic beverage.

Something else that has changed is alcohol consumption among school-aged youth, which has more than halved during the 2000s. Sweden has seen a decline in alcohol and tobacco use among young people, but it remains important to prioritize and develop interventions to prevent addiction and abuse. The work to prevent and counteract children and young people's contact with drugs must take place at an early stage and have the purpose of promoting good upbringing conditions among children. Safe children with opportunities to develop and make their own choices for the future simultaneously counteract crime and social exclusion.

It is possible to prevent abuse of drugs, medicines, or alcohol, but both acute and long-term measures are needed in many areas. ANDTS is an area that is enormous and which affects our situation on many levels within school, work life, healthcare, and criminal justice. This costs society large sums of money, but above all, abuse means suffering for the affected person and their relatives and friends. We must work actively to improve and develop the work of prevention and assistance.

Madam Speaker! I want to particularly highlight and move for the adoption of reservation 17 from the Sweden Democrats, even though we naturally stand behind all our reservations.

Gambling addiction affects the sick person and also their surroundings to a great extent. To hide their addiction, it is common to start lying, even to family and friends. Eventually, it is often relatives who need to resolve the financial crisis that the addict has caused, which damages many relationships. When gambling becomes the only thing that matters, it is easier to commit crimes to get hold of money. The lifestyle can make it so that one can no longer manage their work or their studies.

The municipalities have a responsibility under the Social Services Act to prevent gambling problems. Despite some measures having been taken recently, the work to prevent gambling needs to be prioritized, especially among children and young people. At the same time, the government should review the possibility of ensuring that municipalities and regions seriously implement and continue the work with supportive and gambling-prevention measures since the legislative change came into force in January 2019. It is important to actively work to minimize the risk of the individual developing an addiction.

Alcohol, narcotics, doping, tobacco and gambling

Finally, Madam Speaker: Dependency problems are something that affects us all. I would therefore like to conclude my speech by highlighting that future ANDTS policy must take greater responsibility and that we must prevent it as early as possible - while at the same time we must work long-term.

(Applause)

(cont. § 16)

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