A new consumer credit act

Anna-Belle Strömberg (S)

Madam Speaker! Today we are considering a new consumer credit act.

This is an important bill, because behind the legalities and the paragraphs are people – people who get trapped in debts they should never have incurred, families who are pressured by high interest rates and rising costs, and young people who encounter a credit market where loans are sometimes sold as easily as a mobile subscription.

Therefore, we welcome that the regulatory framework is now being modernized and strengthened. It is good that more forms of credit are covered by the law, that the credit assessment is tightened, that the consumer's right to information and explanation is strengthened, and that the rules are adapted to today's digital credit market.

The market has changed rapidly, and the legislation has not always kept pace. Now, however, several important steps forward are being taken.

Madam Speaker! The background to why we Social Democrats have submitted a specific statement is that, even though the bill strengthens consumer protection, we want to highlight the need to further strengthen the credit assessment in order to improve the possibility for creditors to obtain a comprehensive overall picture of each consumer's debt situation. In that context, access to a debt and credit register is of central importance. We see, in fact, how over-indebtedness continues and how people live with economic stress and debts that affect their entire lives – the possibility of obtaining housing, the possibility of obtaining a job, and the possibility of security.

Madam Speaker! Sveriges Konsumenter have been clear in their referral comments. They welcome stricter regulation but simultaneously emphasize that further measures are required to break the development of over-indebtedness.

We also note that the Council on Legislation has directed criticism towards parts of the law's structure and towards its clarity. The Council on Legislation points out, among other things, that it is not always clear what constitutes an actual right for the consumer and what is a supervisory rule. A strong consumer protection must also work in practice. It must be possible for people to understand and use the new rule.

We Social Democrats want to emphasize that a strengthened regulatory framework presupposes functioning supervision. Without sufficient resources and clear mandates for the relevant authorities, there is a risk that the legislation will not have the intended effect. If the authorities do not have the resources and tools to follow up on the rules, the protection risks being weaker in reality than on paper.

Madam Speaker! Consumer policy is about security, justice, and power in everyday life. Ordinary people should not be left alone against aggressive lending or business models that are based on people indebting themselves more than they can manage.

We Social Democrats support the bill, but we also want to be clear that we want to continue to combat over-indebtedness. We do not want to settle here, but that work must continue.

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Alireza Akhondi (C)

Madam Speaker! A colleague told me that it was my fault that we have this debate today. I will take the opportunity to say why we chose to introduce a follow-up motion in connection with the bill. The reason is 52 million, that is, the amount by which Swedes' debt mountain at the Enforcement Authority grows every day, 365 days a year.

Let me begin by saying that the Center Party welcomes several parts of the proposal. It is good that consumer protection is strengthened, it is good that the rules are modernized, and it is good that there is an attempt to address the growing over-indebtedness in Sweden. But we must also be honest that the government's policy in this area is both slow and incomplete. In the name of honesty, I shall say that this also applies to previous governments.

This is not just about law. It is about people. It is about people who get trapped in debt spirals and about young people who are lured into consumer credits whose consequences they do not understand – we have all probably seen Lyxfällan at some point. It is about families with children who have already been pressed hard by inflation, high interest rates, and increased living costs. I can promise Lars Beckman that they will not get better off from all the temporary election pork that the government is putting forward.

One must dare to say it as it is: The government has been far too passive, far too long.

The new law implements an EU directive in large parts. This is therefore not something the government has voluntarily chosen to undertake. It involves, among other things, stricter requirements for credit assessments, clearer information requirements, new rules regarding marketing, as well as that more types of credits, including certain interest-free installment payment solutions, are covered by the regulation.

It is important changes. But the question is why the government has been so defensive nationally. Sweden has for many years seen how the payday loan market has grown. We have seen aggressive marketing. We have seen lending that sometimes almost built on the fact that people should not manage the repayment. At the same time, the government has repeatedly reacted too late.

Madam Speaker! Over-indebtedness is not just a private economic problem. It is also a societal problem. Those who live with chronic debts find it harder to secure housing, jobs, and security in everyday life. Mental ill-health increases. Children are affected. People lose faith in the future. We have seen the consequences also in the committee's other policy area, housing policy. Very many children are evicted in the welfare state of Sweden.

Therefore, more than just technical legislative changes are required. A clear political will to prevent over-indebtedness from the outset is required.

Here I think the government still lacks a holistic perspective. At the same time as one now speaks of accountability, households have, for several years, had to bear large parts of the economic crisis themselves. Ordinary people have had to see their margins disappear. 25 years of real wage increases were erased overnight. Then the dependence on credits also increases.

Madam Speaker! The Centre Party believes that the credit market must function better, but also smarter. We need strong consumer protection, but at the same time, we must safeguard serious actors and innovation in the market. This is particularly relevant in a time when payment solutions and fintech are developing rapidly. Therefore, it is important that the regulation is proportionate and legally secure. We shall strike hard against unserious actors, but we shall not create a regulatory framework that makes it impossible for serious companies to operate or develop new services.

There are still question marks regarding how parts of the regulatory framework will function in practice, not least for smaller companies and actors that fall under new permit requirements and new supervision rules.

We also see risks with the government again presenting extensive regulations without having fully ensured that the authorities have the resources and conditions to carry out the supervision effectively.

Madam Speaker! There is another dimension here that I believe deserves a bit more attention: the digital development. Today, people can take out loans directly on their mobile phones in a few minutes. The marketing is algorithm-driven, just as large parts of our lives are now. Credits are integrated into purchase flows in a way that blurs the line between consumption and indebtedness.

This places completely new demands on the legislator, and it is not enough to just update old regulations. A much more offensive work is required regarding digital consumer policy, financial education, and protection for young consumers. Unfortunately, the government has also been more reactive than proactive in that regard.

Madam Speaker! The Centre Party supports several parts of this law because consumer protection needs to be strengthened. However, we do not intend to give the government a free pass, because the truth is that this work should have been started earlier and been broader and more forward-looking.

We need a policy that both protects people from over-indebtedness and strengthens people's economic empowerment. We need more paths to work and entrepreneurship. We need better personal finance education, a housing market that works, and a society where people are not forced to solve their everyday finances with expensive credits.

At its core, it is about exactly this – not just paragraphs or directives, but people's freedom and security in everyday life.

Madam Speaker! With all this said, I move for approval of reservation 1 in the report.

There are several reservations, and in short, parts of them are about also strangling the banks' possibilities to take out interest rate differential compensation in any way. It is also about how the credit reporting companies choose to interpret the relevant legislation.

We have several good proposals, and I hope that the government chooses to take in wise advice even from the opposition.

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Lars Beckman (M)

Madam Speaker! When it comes to the issue of over-indebtedness, I would like to assert that there is a broad majority in the Swedish Riksdag for us to simply combat it. Just as we heard the member from the Social Democrats say in his contribution, this is about people.

This is not the biggest area of conflict, but it is clear that one still reacts when the Center Party says that the government has done nothing to improve household finances. I would therefore like to have a short quiz with Alireza Akhondi regarding what it is that the Center Party is opposed to.

We can start with yesterday's announcement that we are to halve the cost of the monthly passes in public transport for buses and trains. Is the Center Party against this? It helps very many households that live on the margin.

Is it the petrol and tax cuts we have implemented that the Center Party is against? We have lowered the cost by 700 kronor per tank compared to if the red gang had been in power. A household in Vilhelmina with two cars thus saves 1,400 kronor a month, and if one fills up the car twice a month, one saves 3,000 kronor.

Is it that we have brought down the inflation and the cost crisis that existed, i.e., the cost increases that existed when we took office? Or is it the difference in interest rates between Norway and Sweden? The Social Democrats and the Centre in Norway have interest rates that are twice as high as we have in Sweden. This means, for example, that a villa owner or a housing cooperative owner would have double the interest costs if we had the Norwegian policy.

All of this – plus the reduction in the food tax – means that we have eased the pressure, not least for over-indebted households. Which of these measures is the Center Party against?

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ANDRE VICE TALMANNEN

I want to remind that this is a debate on the Consumer Credit Act. We should not drift off too much now.

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Alireza Akhondi (C)

Madam Speaker! I respond by posing a question to Lars Beckman: Who is paying for all the election pork that the government is going to the election with? This government has borrowed nearly 300 billion kronor this mandate period and spent it on unfunded election pork.

Now I will not quote the Social Democrat who said that the one who is in debt is never free, but there is something to what that Social Democrat said, because 300 billion kronor is quite a lot of kronor.

Yesterday's announcement of a six-month halved fee for public transport benefits Stockholmers. I do not understand how that household in Vilhelmina benefits from the fact that we Stockholmers temporarily get halved ticket prices. Perhaps Lars Beckman can answer that.

Can Lars Beckman also answer whether these investments are due to a desire to do something about the fact that we are 10 percent below the opposition in the voter polls?

Temporary solutions provide a temporary breathing space, Lars Beckman, but they do not help the people who today do not even have a roof over their heads or can sign up for a mobile subscription, an insurance, or anything else. The debts at the Enforcement Authority are increasing by 52 million kronor per day. Can you tell me what the government has done to tackle that?

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Lars Beckman (M)

Madam Speaker! This debate is about over-indebtedness, and I exemplified this. We heard in the member's speech from the rostrum earlier that the government is doing nothing. It was naturally why I stood up and asked which of the measures that help the over-indebted are C against.

In two minutes, Alireza Akhondi spoke without answering a single question about what the Center Party is against. Is it the reduced VAT, which allows the over-indebted family to buy slightly nicer food – or perhaps be able to buy food at all? Is it the investments in public transport? I now perceive it as that the Center is against these.

If Alireza Akhondi, for example, had read Arbetarbladet – western Gästrikland's newspaper – he could have seen the article series on exactly public transport prices. There, it was about families living in Torsåker or Järbo being able to afford to commute to work.

I understand that you in C are negative towards everything the government does, but I think it is good that we also take responsibility for a new consumer credit act. I also note that the Center Party stands behind large parts of this legislation, just as most other parties do.

I would still like to ask the question again. The Consumer Credit Act is, among other things, about protecting over-indebted households. I exemplified this with reduced food VAT, lower petrol and diesel prices, and lower inflation – everything we have done to improve things for the households that have the lowest margins. Those who have good margins do not need to worry about this.

The public debate has, strangely enough, been about billionaires for some months now, and they always get away with it, but it is about those who need society's support the most and about the measures to help over-indebted families – that is, the measures I have listed. Which of these measures does the Center Party think are wrong?

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Alireza Akhondi (C)

Madam Speaker! The member accuses me of not answering the question. I did not receive an answer from the member to my questions either: Who is paying for this election pork? Somewhere, someone must pay for the 300 billion that have now disappeared overnight and which have gone to measures that, moreover, do not lead to anything else.

Even though the exchange of remarks is over and the questions therefore become somewhat meaningless, I still choose to ask a few rhetorical questions. Why has the government not done anything regarding debt restructuring? Is it not better that the over-indebted person receives a debt restructuring and thus an opportunity to re-enter society than to receive two kronor in discount on a package of pasta?

Why has the government not chosen, for example, to increase educational efforts regarding personal finance for youth in schools? Why has the government actively avoided strengthening the municipalities' opportunities to provide consumer counseling?

There are very many questions about what the government de facto should have done but which one has actively chosen not to do. Instead, one hides behind meaningless loan-financed election promises, Lars Beckman, and thinks that one has done a good job. To me, it is a severe failing for a sitting government that one feels compelled to buy votes.

(Applause)

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Björn Tidland (SD)

Madam Speaker! Today, the Committee on Civil Affairs is debating a new Consumer Credit Act, Report 2025/26:CU26. The Committee's report is based on the Government's Proposition 2025/26:223. Why is the Government doing this now? Yes, it is to adapt Swedish law to yet another EU directive. This new EU directive is designated 2023/2225 and concerns consumer credit agreements.

Madam Speaker! The new Consumer Credit Act consists of several parts aimed at strengthening Swedish consumer protection and adapting it to the developments in consumer credit of recent years.

Madam Speaker! To get an understanding of the scope of the new law, one must refer to Annex 1 in the Committee on Civil Affairs' report. The new Consumer Credit Act means that a total of 17 other laws have been amended so that they do not contradict each other or contain ambiguities. The laws and their designations are carefully listed in Annex 1, as I mentioned earlier.

Madam Speaker! The new law contains nine chapters with a total of 128 paragraphs, which I now intended to go through in detail. Or rather, I refer instead to the report for details and will content myself with stating that the new law is both comprehensive and detailed.

Madam Speaker! I have full confidence in the government and trust that the Government Offices' competent staff have produced a purposeful legal text that can be applied in an effective manner to strengthen consumer rights in Sweden.

But the government could not have done all this without the Tidö Agreement and the Sweden Democrats. It is about trust and a collaborative effort that has achieved more than any other government in living memory.

Madam Speaker! Should anyone, against all likelihood, deny this fact, I can refer to the government's own website where the Tidö Agreement's conclusion is presented. It is 132 pages of useful reading that every eligible Swedish voter should take in and think through carefully before casting their vote on September 13.

Madam Speaker! With all respect for the rule of law, the Swedish legal system, and practicing lawyers in Sweden, I must nevertheless state that the report may not be such an exciting or interesting read for the general public.

Nevertheless, these are important matters. The Civil Affairs Committee's considerations regarding the government's bill are very extensive and are reported on pages 7–15. These pages, in turn, have 26 subheadings. It is order and structure, as it should be. Furthermore, I note that the law will enter into force on November 20, 2026, that is, already this autumn.

Madam Speaker! Now I intend to depart from the script. When I sat in the municipal council in Gothenburg, one of my colleagues said: Björn, you are so boring when you read your speech. You should speak from the heart. Then people see the glow in your eyes, and you gain strength.

I will try to do a brief overview of what has happened over the past year. On May 8 last year, we wrote our last committee motion. After this, we agreed with the Tidö parties that we will not write our own committee motions. One of them was about consumer rights.

Then came the debate on 19 February 2026 regarding An improved travel guarantee system. That was also delivered by the Tidö parties. There was also a debate on 11 March regarding Strengthened consumer protection in distance contracts. Finally, there was a debate on 1 April regarding Consumer rights etc. It was supposed to be a committee motion from SD, but with the Tidö Agreement and our cooperation partners, that did not happen.

Madam Speaker! I return to the script. This is my final speech here in the chamber during this parliamentary term. Perhaps there will be another term, perhaps there won't. Therefore, I would like to take the opportunity to thank all members of the Committee on Civil Affairs for all the debates and all the sharp rejoinders. Politics is best presented in symbiosis with well-read and rhetorical opponents, just as it should be in a democracy.

While I am standing here, I would also like to take the opportunity to thank everyone in the Speaker's Bureau. Perhaps we will meet here in the chamber after the election. It is still written in the stars.

Madam Speaker! I conclude by moving for the approval of the committee's proposal in the report and thank the Speaker for the floor, or perhaps it is more appropriate in the plural. I thank you for all the times I have been granted the floor here in the chamber. It has been a great honor to represent the voters who voted for my party. Once again, thank you!

(Applause)

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Lars Beckman (M)

Madam Speaker! I would like to begin by moving for approval of the committee's proposal in report 2025/26:CU26 A new consumer credit act and rejection of any motions.

Madam Speaker! The Government has taken a great responsibility in a difficult time. When we took office, we had inflation with cost increases of over 10 percent. It is now down to 2 percent. We had skyrocketing electricity prices so that we had to pay out electricity support to the Swedish people. We had a diesel price that was at 28.50 kronor at most, and so on.

We take responsibility for Sweden. Now we are doing so in one more area by creating a new consumer credit act. Infrastructure is important. I could remind you of the gigantic infrastructure investment that the government has made. But it is also important to have an infrastructure in structural issues in society.

The Moderate-led government with coalition partners wants to help. It might be wrong to say that it is about changing a behavior. But we want to go back to the order in society that was: Save first, shop later. That is, among other things, why we have removed the right to deduct interest on consumption credits. Save first, shop later.

In this area, we strengthen consumer protection regarding consumer credits. High requirements must be set for the protection of consumers in relation to businesses when it comes to credits.

Just as the Social Democrats said, very many are in a vulnerable situation and perhaps it can be solved with a credit. It is very important to understand that if I take a credit, it must be repaid.

The consumer shall be given good conditions to understand the credit agreement and their rights. It is also important that the consumer protection rules apply broadly and that high requirements are set on credit assessment. In this way, risky lending and over-indebtedness can be countered.

The Government proposes a new Consumer Credit Act aimed at strengthening consumer protection and adapting it to the developments of recent years. The new law shall regulate many different aspects of lending to consumers. This concerns information, the right of withdrawal, marketing, and interest and cost caps. To counter over-indebtedness, the Government also proposes stricter rules for credit assessment.

Another important element is that a new permit requirement is introduced, which means that more businesses that grant or mediate credits, among other things, shall be subject to supervision and comply with requirements for sufficient knowledge and competence.

The proposals in the bill implement an EU directive on consumer credits. Just as it has been stated previously, the law enters into force on 20 November 2026.

I had an interesting exchange with a member from another party. We were at the same oversight council at the Consumer Agency on Monday. There, it was stated from the Consumer Agency's side that they are, among other things, improving the information material for the country's school students to specifically make young people more aware of their personal finances. Perhaps it is with information we must begin. The government has also opted out of certain things in the new education plan. This involves, for example, removing questions concerning a more sustainable society and putting in such questions instead.

On the whole, Madam Speaker, we have improved Sweden step by step. I am proud, satisfied, and happy that Minister for Financial Markets Niklas Wykman has presented this bill, which we can decide on today and which will make a difference for many in Sweden.

The deliberation was hereby concluded.

(Decisions were made under § 14.)

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