Business, capital and property

Fredrik Ahlstedt (M)

Madam Speaker! The report concerns some of the most central parts of our tax system and thus a very large part of the state's revenues and the financing of the welfare system.

Taxation of companies, capital, and real estate are simultaneously some of the tax areas where there is absolutely the most research and clearest results, but this seems to be ignored by the opposition's motioners. Instead, a dangerous mixture of harmful wealth taxes, inheritance taxes, property taxes, and gift taxes is proposed. It never seems to end with the taxes that one wants to introduce.

With ten years of low growth and five years of virtually non-existent growth, we must be pragmatic and implement tax reforms that favor entrepreneurship and investments. This year, we find ourselves in an even worse economic situation. We are in the middle of a recession, and unemployment is increasing.

Company, capital and property

The government has understood this, and as we establish in the Tidö Agreement, corporate taxes and capital taxes must be made more competitive to promote new and existing companies. This is also clarified in the government's economic plan, which primarily consists of three parts. As the Minister for Finance has said several times, we must fight inflation and support households, tackle the recession through a restored work ethic, and accelerate growth through new structural reforms.

Madam Speaker! This is what is needed, not punitive taxes on ownership or increased taxation of already earned money. A number of the opposition's motions in the report contain proposals of such a nature that they are socio-economically inefficient and would with great probability harm our economy and welfare if they were implemented.

Those who are hit hardest by the significantly increased taxes being proposed are not some wealthy class, but it is all the hard-working Swedes who are in need of a secure welfare and a strong state.

Those who are not fully convinced by my and the Moderates' arguments can simply follow and see how it has gone in Norway. There, they have reintroduced wealth tax with not so successful results, and right now they are investigating whether they should also introduce inheritance tax again. Right now, entrepreneurs and investors are fleeing to other countries with their capital, which means that Norway is losing tens of billions of Norwegian kroner in investments.

Madam Speaker! The Social Democrats clearly seem to have shifted their position on the tax issue since they themselves were in government. In their committee motion, they propose that the war tax, which they themselves abolished as recently as 2020, should be reintroduced, and they open up for reintroducing the property tax, the abolition of which was initiated by an S-led government.

The wealth tax is one of the most consistently criticized taxes we have had - a tax that, according to the Social Democrats' motion, is intended to increase tax revenues by up to 8 billion kronor. In reality, the workers are hit with 8 billion kronor in increased tax, while the state hardly earns anything from the tax.

Instead of increasing tax revenues, punitive taxes such as the Social Democrats' new defense tax and readiness tax result in people working fewer hours, for example our doctors and entrepreneurs, who often choose to work less. In a number of studies, among others conducted by IFAU, one can read that this would be the consequence of introducing this type of taxes.

Madam Speaker! Swedish companies constitute the backbone of our economy. By growing and developing, they create jobs and higher tax revenues. In order to be able to maintain and develop our standard of living, growth is a necessity and thus a favorable environment for corporate development.

It is crucial to have a robust, predictable and fair tax system. It is particularly important that Swedish taxes are competitive on the global market, where many Swedish companies, but also employees, operate internationally.

Instead of increasing the taxation of companies and employers, we need to go in the opposite direction to stimulate investments in our existing Swedish companies and attract new investments to Sweden.

Small and medium-sized enterprises are central to ensuring long-term growth and development. Sweden has successfully produced skilled entrepreneurs and vibrant companies with thousands of employees. It is precisely within these small and medium-sized enterprises that the majority of new jobs are created. Promoting the transition from small to large companies is an important part of a restored work line and enables more people to get their first job.

Madam Speaker! To drive development and growth throughout the country, the entrepreneur tax plays an important role. An attractive entrepreneur tax should strengthen entrepreneurship, create more jobs, and increase Sweden's competitiveness. Such a taxation also benefits the green transition. To emphasize the importance of this, the government has given new directives to the ongoing investigation on the taxation of small-scale companies.

In January 2023, the commission was tasked with analyzing how the 3:12 rules, including the outsider rule and the provision on same or similar activities, can be improved to promote growth opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises. The commission examines how the rules can be simplified to facilitate ownership changes, both between relatives and to employees. We look forward with great confidence to the commission being submitted in May this year.

Madam Speaker! It is through increased growth in Sweden that we achieve increased welfare and higher prosperity and manage the green transition. It is not possible with punitive taxes and symbolic politics. Many of the proponents in the report seem to want to take us back to the tax policy of the 1980s, where work did not pay off and entrepreneurs were few. With that, capital and Swedish companies were once again driven abroad.

Madam Speaker! I hereby move to approve the committee's proposal regarding the motion proposals.

(Applause)

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

Mathias Tegnér (S)

Madam Speaker! Member Ahlstedt's speech can be summarized by saying that he is satisfied and that the Social Democrats are wrong, and then there were a number of factual errors.

Initially, I must say that I am almost a bit stunned by the almost religious faith in dynamic effects and the fact that there should be a direct link between taxes and growth.

An interesting observation that many have made is, for example, that periods of high growth have often been combined with periods of quite high taxation. Let us look at the USA, which I assume the member sees somewhat as an example.

During the period 1930-1980, that is, the epoch when enormous prosperity was created in the USA and when the increase in productivity was higher than in all other countries in the world, the marginal taxes for those with the highest incomes were also on average over 80 percent. How is this possible if it is the case that there is always a connection between high taxes and low growth or vice versa? I would very much like the member to answer this.

Then I thought I heard the member mention that there would be proposals regarding property tax in the Social Democratic motion. That is not the case, and I want to be clear about this for the record.

When it comes to the wealth tax, I believe the member said something along the lines that it is ordinary people who pay it, and I want to remember that the Finance Minister has spoken about nurses. My picture, when I look out over the world, is that it was people like the member and I who paid wealth tax, but ordinary nurses, for example my brother, did not pay wealth tax in the normal case.

My question is quite simply: How has the member calculated this, and how does the member view examples such as the American one when it comes to growth and taxes?

(Applause)

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

Fredrik Ahlstedt (M)

Madam Speaker! I actually spent most of my time trying to describe and explain how things look in Sweden. It is quite complicated to compare American economic policy with Swedish economic policy. In that case, one should rather compare American economic policy with some form of European economic policy. As the member knows, these magnitudes are not entirely comparable.

Anyone who looks at Sweden can observe that growth has been very low during the last 10-15 years, especially during the last 10 years. This is linked to the fact that we have received increased taxes. The strongest connection - I believe Member Tegnér agrees with me on this - is that it has an effect on growth if one limits the possibilities for capital and limits investments. Growth can, of course, occur through consumption, but it can also occur through investments. If one limits the availability of resources and means, one also gets limited growth.

In these debates, I am usually very careful to say that there are, of course, also other factors that affect growth, for example, what measures are taken on the education side and within labor market policy. However, there is a very clear connection. Taxes on higher incomes are particularly harmful from a growth perspective because they cause the number of hours worked to decrease.

(Applause)

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

Mathias Tegnér (S)

Madam Speaker! Let us stick to growth and taxes, above all capital taxes, which I thought was what we were talking about. I mean that there is no direct connection between growth and taxes on capital. On the other hand, it is important that there is investment-ready capital in the economy; there is no doubt about this. Therefore, the previous government worked extremely intensively to channel capital to small and medium-sized enterprises. We know, for example, that the Stockholm region is the region in the world with the most risk-tolerant capital after Silicon Valley.

There is nothing to indicate that the capital that one is prepared to invest disappears simply because there are taxes on capital. That connection does not actually exist.

It is clear that the member has a point in that we should look at Sweden. But that taxes would have increased dramatically during the last ten years is actually not correct. The tax ratio, i.e., tax in relation to GDP, was 42.2 percent in 2014. In 2022, it was 41.8 percent. There had therefore been a decrease in relation to GDP.

When it comes to GDP per capita, it is not the case that it took off during the eight bourgeois years between 2006 and 2014 to then decrease. The development regarding GDP per capita was quite good before the pandemic. After that, it has been worse.

What is important here, which we reasoned about a year ago, is what is usually called the deep determinants of growth. What is it that leads to growth in the long term? It is trust between individuals, low corruption, high education and infrastructure. These are things that are financed by taxes.

(Applause)

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

Fredrik Ahlstedt (M)

Madam Speaker! I suspected that Member Tegnér would respond to me - I had almost anticipated it. That is why I thought it was important to include this example, which does not only allow me as a Moderate to convince Member Tegnér.

I wanted to include the Norwegian example because it shows that access to capital is incredibly important for a country. Access to capital enables one to make investments. If one has a misguided tax policy – I would like to call it an incorrect tax policy, but perhaps I cannot say that – and introduces, for example, penalty taxes on ownership and taxation of already earned money, one gets a situation where capital can easily leave the country. I related this to the motions being discussed in the report.

I believe it is very important that we are vigilant, hold back, and do not get a dangerous mixture of harmful wealth taxes, harmful inheritance taxes, harmful capital taxes, and harmful gift taxes. It is this that is important. Instead, we should focus on being pragmatic and ensure that we strengthen growth in Sweden through tax reforms that favor entrepreneurship and investments.

(Applause)

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

Helena Vilhelmsson (C)

Madam Speaker! I thank the member for the speech.

As a representative for an opposition party here in the chamber, I can say for the record that the Center Party does not support the introduction of the taxes that the member said the opposition is generally pushing for.

I want to bring up another important matter. Two years ago, the Chamber decided on a notice to review the rules for sponsorship deductions, which the Moderaterna voted against. I think that was remarkable. The member is welcome to explain why the Moderaterna voted against this.

I think it is important that there are rules for sponsorship - preferably based on legislation, which is not the case today - that benefit both grassroots sports and elite sports and that benefit both individual sports and team sports. The rules should also, in an equal and equitable way, benefit both men's sports and women's sports.

With current legislation, a billboard at an arena is valued when it comes to counter-performance. However, no consideration is given to other forms of advertising or visibility, such as websites and so on. This leads to arena sports being easier to sponsor than, for example, orienteering or other sports practiced outdoors. If nothing is done about this, it can be concluded that one thinks this arrangement is perfectly okay from an equality and gender equality perspective. Companies and associations are forced to act as tax experts instead of doing what they are good at, namely sports.

When we debated this last year, it stated in the committee report that the Government Offices were preparing the issue. It says the same thing this year. Can the member tell us what is happening with the issue and when we can see some proposal for a change to this, so that the Riksdag's decision is followed?

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

Fredrik Ahlstedt (M)

Madam Speaker! This is a very pressing issue. Everyone who has been involved in a sports club, whether it has been arena sports or something else, knows that the rulebook is extremely tricky and that it is difficult to do the right thing. We have all the time wanted the opposite, namely that it should be easy to do the right thing in these matters.

Sponsorship is a very important part of the Swedish sports movement. It has always been the case that one has built an association with voluntary efforts and had membership fees, but one has also had sponsorship of the sports activities. Especially for somewhat more advanced elite sports activities, the sponsorship has been crucial for Sweden to be able to have this type of elite clubs.

We also see a strong will and a major change. Many who want to sponsor are very careful regarding the gender equality perspective and set requirements that the sports movement should have both women's and men's teams and also children's and youth activities so that the sponsorship, in a broader perspective, hits the activities.

The matter is still being prepared in the Government Offices. Discussions are ongoing. There is a related investigation that also looks at how gifts should be handled in this type of context. It is therefore not just about sponsorship with consideration, but also about how gifts should be handled.

I also look forward to seeing the result when it arrives. Unfortunately, I cannot say that there is any date today for when it is to be finished.

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

Helena Vilhelmsson (C)

Madam Speaker! I do not have a recent figure, but in 2020, the ten largest associations together brought in sponsorship revenues of over 500 million kronor.

This is a problem. The criticism does not only come from Centerpartiet, but club after club one meets says that this must be addressed. We had, some years ago, a very well-attended and important seminar on how one can resolve this.

When I say that there is no regulatory framework, I really mean regulatory framework. As I mentioned, there are no provisions in the legal text regarding sponsorship. It is truly not reasonable that decisions back and forth should have to be made in court when it concerns activities involving so much money. This is therefore very important. Today, there are clear examples in the legislation regarding deductions for representation, research and development, but not for sponsorship.

Sometimes it can be good for things to go to court. But if one can establish without that which the effects of today's system are not good, one cannot wait for a court ruling every time, but instead must step in and construct changes. One cannot just say that it is up to the justice system to decide this. This is a political issue, because it strikes unequally. The government does nothing about it because it is a policy that is unequal.

That this is ongoing in some related investigation is always something. I hear the member say that it is not possible to get any answer on this. I can have respect for that. But the member is welcome to provide a little more information and tell a little more about how he thinks this aligns with the related investigation regarding gifts or whatever it was.

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

Fredrik Ahlstedt (M)

Madam Speaker! If one wants to go in and make changes or additions or regulate this, it is also important to do it correctly. I believe that one must think about that. As Member Vilhelmsson himself knows, this is a system that is, if not complicated, at least quite complex with different types of sports venues, clubs, and activities. Above all, there is a very large difference between different sports when it comes to how much money one brings in through sponsorship, what constitutes children's and youth activities, and what is closely related to commercial activity.

I have full respect for the government wanting to take some time to really work through these different issues. That is also why there is such a formulation in the report. But as I said earlier today, I actually have no further information on at what point this could be completed.

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Mathias Tegnér (S)

Madam Speaker! The Committee on Taxation's report 12 deals with a number of motions and requests in a large number of different issues. The report is titled Business, Capital and Property, which indicates the breadth of the issues. The report deals with motions concerning everything from ISK, bank tax and forest accounts to equal deduction rights for sponsorship, which we have just heard about. Instead of trying to touch upon all these aspects of taxation, I would like to try to say something more fundamental.

Social democratic economic policy strives to achieve full employment. Social democratic industrial policy is a means of achieving full employment, financing the welfare state through successful companies and letting people realize themselves. Social democratic tax policy is a way to finance the welfare state, create a fairer society and provide good framework conditions for entrepreneurship, which in turn leads to a growing pie. That is how it hangs together: economic policy, industrial policy, tax policy and welfare policy.

It is important to have guiding principles for the tax policy. For the system to have legitimacy among Swedish citizens, the taxes should be general, the tax bases as broad as possible, and the design of the taxes well-balanced.

Madam Speaker! It has been a long time since the major tax reform in the 90s. We Social Democrats believe that a new major tax reform was needed with broadened tax bases and increased capital taxation, but the tax on work for those who earn the least should be held back. Put differently, lower tax rates, broader tax bases, and a more neutral and uniform taxation of incomes, investments, forms of savings, and different parts of private consumption were needed. But we know that the share of taxes of GDP needs to increase in total for us to be able to strengthen welfare, increase equality, and reduce insecurity. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister has dismissed the need for a major tax reform. We Social Democrats regret that.

Madam Speaker! Since large parts of the tax policy are affected by the motions in the report, our Social Democratic criticism today resembles the criticism we had toward the budget that was passed during the autumn. The government's policy makes Sweden both poorer and more dangerous. Our country faces great challenges: recession, low growth, a cost crisis for welfare and households, and escalating gang violence. At the same time, we hear how representatives for the government, but also my parliamentary colleague Fredrik Ahlstedt, appear very satisfied with how things look today in Sweden.

We Social Democrats believe that the economic policy does not reflect the seriousness that the situation requires. The tax policy has prioritized high-income earners over ordinary people and over welfare. Regarding the taxes addressed in this report, we Social Democrats argue, for example, that a temporary bank tax could have financed a temporary increase in the child allowance, as has occurred in Denmark, Norway, and Finland. It would have helped Sweden's families with children through the crisis.

Now we face a welfare crisis that is currently leading to layoff notices and savings in, for example, healthcare. We Social Democrats have both in the budget and in this report pointed out that we prioritize differently. We put ordinary people and welfare first, and we know that Sweden can do much better than this. But then a tax policy was needed that increases revenues, a tax policy that does not prioritize Sweden's high-income earners.

For example, we have been critical that the exit tax investigation was discontinued. Regarding the question of whether that type of tax leads to tax evasion, I want to be clear that rules corresponding to an exit tax exist in the entire Nordic region, in Holland, in Spain, as well as in Canada and the USA. There is nothing to indicate that an exit tax would have led to the relocation of capital. The investigation was discontinued, but the billions that an exit tax would have brought in would have been extremely important, for example, to increase the number of healthcare beds in Sweden instead of, as now, reducing them before our eyes.

Madam Speaker! The report is partly about tax on entrepreneurship. It is extremely important to have good conditions for entrepreneurship, as such lead to growth, as I and member Ahlstedt reasoned about a short while ago. If one looks at international surveys, one sees that the framework conditions are good for entrepreneurship in our country. For many years, we have subscribed to top-ten placements in, for example, the OECD's ranking of competitiveness. This type of index measures, for example, infrastructure, health, higher education and innovation power, but also taxes.

Those who believe that Sweden's competitiveness is solely a matter of and determined by individual tax rates here and there are mistaken. Then we are back to the fact that taxes cannot be discussed in a vacuum. Taxes also finance something. Taxes finance, for example, an active industrial policy. Taxes finance the welfare, which is extremely important for Sweden. In this case, it is important for Swedish competitiveness that we have taxes that go to higher education and a functioning infrastructure.

Sweden has historically shown, and I believe a new, future government will show, that Sweden is a knowledge-intensive nation that is at the forefront when it comes to technological development, digitalization, and green innovation. But if we are to continue to be at the forefront, we need a proactive policy. We need a policy that creates conditions for growth in our entire country.

Here the parties differ. Here there are different opinions in Sweden's Riksdag. An active industrial policy for, for example, green innovation, or for that matter, a growing export industry, is not achieved through lowered taxes but rather through an active industrial policy, a policy to channel risk-tolerant capital but also a policy that repairs the cracks in the welfare system.

In this situation, we Social Democrats do not believe, in any case, that lower taxes on entrepreneurship is a priority. In fact, it is not what most entrepreneurs I meet are requesting either.

Madam Speaker! Even though I, when we debated these issues a year ago, made just this same observation regarding the deep determinants of growth, I would like to make it once more. I believe, in fact, that it is important, both for me and for other members of the Swedish Parliament, to consider what leads to growth in the long term.

The research is not unambiguous. It is difficult to compare different periods and different countries with one another. Only the ideologically blind believe that there are simple answers to difficult problems. There are, however, some factors that are always pointed out when it comes to how growth is created over time.

Growth is driven by important phenomena such as high education, well-functioning infrastructure, high trust in authorities and between citizens, and low corruption. Statistically, we know that both high trust and low corruption are usually linked to more equal societies, for example here up in the Nordics.

My personal political conclusion is that there are probably no simple and clear correlations between tax levels and growth because what is decisive is what the taxes are used for. What we do know, however, is that Sweden and actually the entire Nordic region, which have built robust welfare societies and promoted equality, are also countries with high growth over time. These are things that I believe we must take with us when we discuss corporate taxation.

In conclusion, Madam Speaker, I would like to say something about the taxation of capital. We know that both Sweden and the world are insanely unjust and unequal. Capital is volatile, and that means that capital taxes need to be well-balanced. But for this government to strive to lower taxes for the richest is actually unreasonable.

Here I am thinking again about the shelved exit tax investigation. I am thinking about how the government has opposed a bank tax on excess profits. I am thinking about how the government dragged its feet when it came to the EU's tax on the energy companies' excess profits. I am thinking about how one does not provide the necessary resources to Skatteverket for the work against tax fraud. I am thinking about how one does not handle the issue of coupon tax.

I am also thinking about how one does not ensure that the Swedish Tax Agency can work with new information from international collaborations. Instead, the government has told the Swedish Tax Agency that it is not necessary to come back every year, as it has been previously, with the total tax error, without it being okay to come back when the mandate period is over.

In area after area, the government has shown that it does not think it is important that the absolutely richest pay a little more in tax. I mean that we Social Democrats find it completely unreasonable.

Madam Speaker! I would like to move for the adoption of reservation 5 and reservation 23. We naturally stand behind all the motions in our committee motion, but for the sake of time, I choose only these two proposals to be submitted as a government bill.

Reservation 5 concerns the 3:12 rules, which we believe need to be reviewed. This is an issue that was investigated earlier by the S-led government, but the Tidö government abandoned the investigation - or changed it, one might say if one wants to be honest. We believe that there are episodes, for example where auditors have changed their form of employment for tax reasons, which demonstrate a tax injustice that affects ordinary people.

Reservation 23 concerns the temporary tax on the banks' interest net, which I have previously mentioned.

With that, Madam Speaker, and with a hope for a new government that sees ordinary people, that prioritizes welfare, that pursues an active industrial policy and that lets the absolutely richest pay a little more in tax, I dream myself toward 2026 and thank you for the floor.

(Applause)

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Cecilia Engström (KD)

Madam Speaker! The Christian Democrats' economic policy rests on the insight that it is a strong and competitive business sector that creates opportunities for people to get a job. It is one of the most important tasks of politics to create conditions for economic growth and thus tax revenues that can be used for our welfare.

Taxes and fees shall contribute to fair competition, and the regulatory burden affecting entrepreneurs must be reduced. Several of our agencies have therefore been tasked by the government to look into regulatory simplifications in their operations. This government wants a fair tax system with general and clear rules.

We Christian Democrats are pleased that the 3:12 rules are being investigated, contrary to what the Social Democrats just said. The investigation deals with the owner's distribution and capital gain upon the sale of shares in small companies. It needs to take special consideration of the small business owner's situation and facilitate changes of ownership. The investigation has received several additional directives, most recently regarding relief in the taxation of employee options so that one can maintain good competitiveness and the competence that exists in the company, and has therefore been extended until May 31 this year. We look forward very much to the investigation's proposals for improvements for our small business owners.

Madam Speaker! Investeringssparkonto is something we have discussed here before. It is the most common account type for active fund savings for ordinary citizens. The savings form was introduced to facilitate for ordinary, private savers to place their money. The account has a flat-rate tax on the entire deposit but no other fees. It increases mobility, and savers can move their holdings smoothly between different securities and funds without tax on each capital.

The previous government raised the tax on ISK interest for redistributive reasons. It was a completely misguided decision. If there is any group that needs to be encouraged to set aside a bit for the future, it is low-income earners. Furthermore, inflation has caused the tax, the tax increase included, to be driven up. High inflation and price increases always hit low-income earners and families with small economic margins the hardest.

Thanks to this government's perseverance in bringing down inflation, both low-income earners and ISK savers can breathe a sigh of relief. The lower inflation contributes to the tax on ISK savings being lowered and restores the form of saving as the long-term stable form of saving it was once intended to be.

Madam Speaker! In order to further strengthen the character of ISK savings as tax-advantaged savings for ordinary people, the government has additionally prioritized the work of introducing a tax-free base amount within ISK of 300,000 kronor for individuals. The proposal has now been referred so that progress can be made with this form of savings.

A saved coin in the bank means economic security and is something that should be encouraged, not least for economically marginalized groups. An economic buffer that gives individuals and families incentives to stand on their own feet and become less dependent on society's goodwill and support should be encouraged.

The previous red-green government raised the tax on savings for ordinary people. This government with the Christian Democrats, instead, removes the tax on ordinary people's savings. The contrast could not be clearer.

Madam Speaker! The housing situation is in many cases difficult for residents in both larger and smaller localities. We Christian Democrats believe that housing construction must increase. The underlying problems with lack of efficiency within the construction sector in combination with old negligence in carrying out actions within housing policy affect the new production of housing in a negative direction.

In the long term, the Christian Democrats are prepared for reassessments within housing policy with the aim of creating security between generations, increasing efficiency within housing, increasing the construction pace, and creating housing that is adapted for life's different stages. Different types of lock-in effects must be addressed to ensure that the housing stock is utilized in the best and most efficient way.

A functioning housing supply is a hygiene factor for functional urban planning and a strong social construction. It is, together with a functioning social welfare, part of the good society that the Christian Democrats strive for.

The current tax system means that mobility in the housing market is not encouraged, and the chains of relocation that we wish to see are difficult to realize. We need sufficient incentives to create housing adapted for life's different stages. Capital gains taxation creates lock-in effects for elderly people who, due to high taxation, choose to stay in an excessively large villa instead of moving to a more suitable residence. We want instead to increase families' opportunities to realize the dream of their own home. To break the development, the chains of relocation need to get moving.

The government appoints a special investigator to review the system of owner-occupied apartments and the introduction of a legally regulated model for rent-to-buy of housing. We Christian Democrats also want the standard deduction for the rental of private residential properties to be raised from 40,000 kronor to 50,000 kronor to stimulate an increased rental of housing that enables an efficient utilization of the housing stock.

Madam Speaker! I also want to say something about the tonnage tax. We Christian Democrats have long advocated for the tonnage tax. It enables shipping companies to pay tax in Sweden with fixed rates instead of paying based on how much they load each time. After many years, this tax was finally introduced, but it needs to be changed and made more competitive. We must ensure that the de-flagging of Swedish ships ceases and that the ships return.

An investigation has been conducted which has resulted in the memorandum Vågade skatter - Navigering i sjöfartens förutsättningar, which was recently presented. The conclusions are many and important. We are interested in looking at them, and the government is prepared to proceed with the proposals.

I vote in favor of the committee's proposal in the report.

(Applause)

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David Lång (SD)

Madam Speaker! The economic policy that is now being driven by the government in cooperation with the Sweden Democrats aims to address Sweden's most acute problems. This includes, among other things, combating inflation and increasing Sweden's defense capacity.

In the Committee on Taxation's report 12, which we are now debating, the motions from the general motion period regarding taxation of companies, capital, and property are addressed. The Sweden Democrats have seven reservations in the report, and before the vote, I move for approval of reservation 10.

When it comes to companies, the Sweden Democrats have over the years presented a long series of different proposals to facilitate, above all, small and medium-sized enterprises. It has long been said that four out of five new jobs are created in small and medium-sized companies that are growing. It is therefore important to enable that type of company to precisely grow and hire new employees.

Fundamental to all investments, whether they are made in real estate, companies or other assets, is that someone, at some point, started as a small saver and over time was able to take that first step to invest in an investment project. The Sweden Democrats therefore want to safeguard the conditions for small savers.

Companies constitute the basis of the tax base, meaning that the companies' activities are what support society economically. When Sweden was one of the world's wealthiest countries, it was not due to oil resources, as for other countries that were at the same economic level, but it was due to companies that produced goods and services that were in demand on the international market. Even today, it is such companies that constitute the basis for the prosperity we have.

When the situation of companies leads to them feeling forced to move abroad in order to be able to compete, Sweden loses tax revenue. We must therefore have a tax system that makes it attractive for entrepreneurs to locate and develop their business in Sweden.

I mentioned small-scale savings earlier. It is positive to have a broad stock savings among the population, partly to strengthen the individual's financial situation, partly because it is important for the country as a whole to have high domestic ownership of companies that primarily operate in Sweden.

That is why it is important to expand investment opportunities through improved deduction possibilities and restored tax increases on, for example, investment savings accounts, while we simultaneously stimulate savings in general and counter over-indebtedness at the other end. That is how we Sverigedemokrater believe that Swedish households should be strengthened, and our vision is a broad popular ownership of parts of the Swedish business sector.

Investeringssparkontot was introduced as a flat-rate taxed savings form in 2012. It is important that the tax rules facilitate active saving for individual small savers, which can reduce bureaucracy, not least during declaration. There are many aspects of direct investments that constitute obstacles or difficulties in, for example, stock saving, such as new share issues, fund issues, and redemption procedures.

When the investment savings account (ISK) was introduced, none of the eight current parties in the Riksdag had any other opinion on how the flat-rate revenue from the investment savings account would be calculated. This was probably a very clear signal to the small savers who opened the account that there were long-term, predictable rules for how their holdings would be taxed and in what forms it would occur.

In the budget bill for 2016, however, the previous government chose to, very shortly after the introduction, change the conditions for the savings form and add a supplement of 0.75 percent of the entire fee base. That the conditions were changed so shortly after the introduction was something that many perceived as a bit of a betrayal. The small savers who, for example, then wanted to return to their savings in a regular share portfolio as a consequence of the long-term conditions having changed, or even been missing, were forced to divest all securities because securities cannot be moved out from the investment savings account.

Fortunately, the Ministry of Finance, as the previous speaker mentioned, has referred a proposal which entails that a tax-free base level of 300,000 kronor for individuals' savings in investment savings accounts is introduced. The referral will serve as the basis for upcoming budget negotiations. The referred proposal is part of the Tidö Agreement and means that persons who have an investment savings account, a capital insurance, or an agreement on savings in a so-called PEPP product do not need to pay tax on the first 300,000 kronor saved.

The proposal covers over 3.5 million savers with investment savings accounts (ISK). Three-quarters of these have savings below 300,000 kronor, and with the submitted proposal, they would not have to pay any tax on their savings. For the median saver, the proposal would mean a tax relief of approximately 800 kronor per year.

Madam Speaker! Sweden's tax system needs to be competitive in the globalized world we live in. Sweden needs to continue to be a country where it is attractive for entrepreneurs to realize their business ideas and thereby create jobs and the tax base needed to, among other things, finance our welfare.

Sweden is, despite the fact that the tax burden has decreased, still a high-tax country. Therefore, it is important that we politicians use the citizens' paid tax funds in the responsible manner that they deserve.

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Mathias Tegnér (S)

Mr. Speaker! I agree with Member Lång that it is important that it is attractive to be an entrepreneur in Sweden. On that point, we agree.

However, I have some questions linked to the business policy. This concerns, above all, when Member Lång speaks very clearly about small and medium-sized enterprises. The budget that has been passed through changes, in some respects, the conditions for entrepreneurs nonetheless.

The old government introduced, for example – in the name of honesty, very much pushed by Centerpartiet – a reduction of employer contributions for young people. That reduction has now been removed.

The old government also introduced a growth support which meant that when one hired the first employees, one received reduced employer contributions. It was also a support that was developed over time because it has shown to be a good way to get companies to hire the first employee.

My question to Member Lång is partly: If it is indeed the small and medium-sized companies that one wants to protect, why has the reduced employer contribution then been removed? Furthermore, you have not proceeded with expanding the growth support (växa-stödet), which could have been an opportunity.

I also wonder why the work against tax evasion is not being moved forward. In my world, many of the smaller companies are hit very hard when the tax rules look different for different companies.

Finally, the S-led government introduced a sickness benefit. They reduced the sickness benefit responsibility for small and medium-sized companies. It was also abolished now for the smallest companies.

In area after area, things are being made worse for small and medium-sized entrepreneurs. How does that square with what the member states?

(Applause)

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David Lång (SD)

Mr. Speaker! Most of the proposals put forward by the opposition, including those that Mathias Tegnér's party has in their consideration, are such that they are either under investigation, have been announced to be put under investigation, or are such that the Riksdag has already, quite recently, voted down.

We are currently in a very tough economic situation where we are trying to manage the most acute problems. The most acute problems have concerned the fight against inflation. It is also a matter of investing in defense and at the same time avoiding worsening the possibilities for the Swedish economy to recover when economic cycles and other factors allow.

It is no easy task. The investigations that are ongoing, I believe Member Tegnér certainly appreciates. But some action reasonably cannot take place until they are completed.

Regarding tax fraud, it has naturally been a high priority to combat it, and it is still a high priority.

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Mathias Tegnér (S)

Mr. Speaker! Thank you for the answer, Member Lång!

I still think that the member is liable for the answer. I am otherwise pleased that we agree that it is important to combat tax evasion.

However, I do not understand why the Sweden Democrats have accepted that the government, in the regulatory letter for the Swedish Tax Agency, gives the Swedish Tax Agency the possibility of not accumulating and compiling the total tax fraud annually, as has been the case previously. The next time it needs to be reported is when the mandate period is over. I cannot help but become a little conspiratorial when the regulatory letter is changed in that way. But we can leave that aside, and we can all be glad that we think tax fraud is something bad.

What I do not understand concerns the questions I asked the member regarding employer contributions. Again: It is primarily the Center Party that has pushed for reduced employer contributions for young people. I still want to be clear about that. But with the starting points that the member himself described from the rostrum: How is it that one raises the employer contribution for young people? How is it that one does not prioritize a growth support if one now believes that that type of proposal is important to strengthen entrepreneurship? If one now thinks that small and medium-sized enterprises are important, how is it that one increases the sickness benefit liability, which one actually does?

One is moving away from a system where companies paid approximately one week's sick pay. The high-cost protection did not look exactly like that. But fundamentally, it was about less than one week for small companies and up to two weeks for larger companies.

How is it that one completely abolishes that system, which means that the companies will have to pay much more of the sickness benefit responsibility, if one now believes that the new jobs are emerging in the small and medium-sized companies?

For me, it becomes a bit strange when the member speaks in general terms about the importance of entrepreneurship and the importance of small businesses, and one then, in practice, implements a completely different policy.

(Applause)

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David Lång (SD)

Mr. Speaker! Now I understand a bit of the starting point from which Mathias Tegnér is asking the questions. From a Social Democratic perspective, one often speaks of the SD government or the SD-led government. If one has that starting point, I understand that Mathias Tegnér is wondering why we in the Sweden Democrats do it in one way or the other.

I just want to remind those following the debate that the Sweden Democrats are not a governing party, but we have a cooperation with the government. In the same way that we have championed small business issues all the time we were in full opposition here in the Riksdag, we naturally also champion small business issues in our negotiations with the government.

When it comes to combating tax evasion, the priority has probably been that combating tax evasion is more important than the completely ongoing statistics, I could imagine. Otherwise, Mathias Tegnér may well have to ask a government party why the government has given other directives to Skatteverket.

Finally, it is also about making it worthwhile to work. With the proposals that have been put forward by the government in cooperation with the Sverigedemokraterna and the budget that has been adopted by the Riksdag, we have ensured that it pays off better to work.

(Applause)

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Patrik Karlson (L)

Mr. Speaker! As we have heard here before, several members in the speaker's chair have already mentioned that Sweden is currently in economically tough times, even though, of course, several of us have been reached by the positive reports that the situation is beginning to brighten somewhat. It should, however, be said that we are coming from the highest level of inflation the country has had in three decades, and we are still judged to be in a recession.

The high inflation has hit both the entrepreneur and the wage earner, yes, in large part all citizens. Consequently, it has also had a major impact on our common welfare. Therefore, it is important that we here in the chamber begin a discussion and a focus on how we can get Sweden's growth to start developing in a positive direction again, at a faster pace than what is the case today.

We therefore need to start looking forward and act now to get growth moving again. In that work, we must, of course, take advantage of the business sector and the ingenuity and creativity it possesses to find solutions to difficult problems. As politicians, we simply must not be an obstacle for the business sector to reach its full potential. On the contrary, we must start being enablers so that more companies can grow and thrive. That is how we ensure that Sweden continues to be a wealthy country.

To manage this, it is necessary that we ease the bureaucracy and administration. The Government has already signaled that processes for granting permits shall be made faster, more efficient, and more predictable. Initiatives have been taken to reduce the bureaucratic burden and the administrative costs for companies. They have also begun to look at measures to improve the authorities' processing efficiency and shorten processing times. I consider all measures to be very good, and they are welcomed by many.

Mr. Speaker! Sweden has a relatively extensive public sector with high ambitions regarding publicly funded welfare, something that clearly needs to be financed. Therefore, it is important that the direction of the tax policy is that the taxes that hold back companies, jobs, and employment are clearly lowered overall so that we get more funds for the common cake that is our welfare.

In the long run, we as a party want a tax burden as low as possible, but it is important to emphasize that the tax cuts in the comprehensive reform that we Liberals believe the Swedish tax system needs must be fully funded and implemented when so permitted.

Mr. Speaker! That people start companies and work hard to realize their ideas is what builds Sweden strong and something that should be encouraged. Corporate tax is a central tax for Swedish competitiveness and for the growth of the companies in our country.

Sweden has gradually lowered the formal corporate tax rate, but so have competing countries in our global environment. As we are in a global economy and in a global market, it increases the risk that we will not hold our own in the competition and that investors choose to invest and build up companies in countries other than Sweden. A lower corporate tax should contribute to more jobs, higher employment and self-sufficiency and free up more capital for investments so that we reach a higher GDP.

Strengthening the work line and getting more people into work is something we strive for. It means that more people become self-sufficient and independent, and it contributes, as I have previously mentioned, to our common welfare. When more people achieve self-sufficiency, their opportunities also increase to save for a new home and perhaps for their pension or to create a buffer for unforeseen expenses, something that has been much-needed for many lately. It is a saving that the government has indicated they want to encourage further by lowering the tax on ISK by making the first 300,000 kronor tax-free. It is also something that increases the individual's own empowerment.

In addition to the economic situation, there are major societal problems to address, such as the fight against exclusion and breaking down gang crime. Being self-sufficient is of great importance here, as it leads to economic independence and reduced exclusion. Having a job to go to is fundamental. Therefore, a well-balanced and effective tax policy is needed to, among other things, achieve a favorable business climate, for it is the companies and the people behind them who create the jobs and contribute to our country's prosperity. They are simply the heart that keeps the body of society running.

Therefore, we should let companies and the business community be the force they can be. Let us pursue a policy that strengthens competitiveness, the will to hire, and the incentives to work! In this way, we counteract exclusion and break up the gangs.

Mr. Speaker! Now it is a matter of us aiming for the future and implementing the measures that Sweden needs. Our capacity to maintain a good welfare and finance investments in, among other things, infrastructure is dependent on economic growth. This growth is, in turn, driven by the conditions for working and running businesses.

I want to emphasize how important it is that we pursue a well-balanced and effective tax policy so that we, through high growth, can make our welfare grow larger.

With that, I move for approval of the committee's proposal.

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Ilona Szatmári Waldau (V)

Mr. Speaker! The gaps in Sweden have increased in recent years. The difference between those with low wages and those with high wages has become larger. Those who already had difficulty making ends meet before the crisis are those who are hit hardest. Decades of tax cuts and subsidies for the rich have resulted in growing gaps, and we now have an economic system that needs to be repaired so that more people can have it better.

Taxes should level out income inequalities, not increase them. Important areas to address are the eroded capital taxation and the extremely uneven wealth distribution that we have in Sweden. If we are to have a society that holds together, we cannot maintain the class society and the large differences that exist in people's living conditions.

Vänsterpartiet has submitted several motions that are being addressed under this item, but I intend to start with a proposal that we had in our budget motion.

The four major banks made a profit of around 200 billion kronor in 2023, of which 120 billion is paid out to the owners. This is more than the budget for the entire Swedish defense, to give an idea of the magnitude. This is fundamentally a completely sick distribution of society's resources. While welfare is on its knees, the banking sector is cutting gold with a pocketknife, and it is the most vulnerable households that pay with higher interest rates on their loans and low interest rates on their potential savings.

To address this, Vänsterpartiet has proposed that the state's bank, SBAB, should be used to put pressure on other banks. We proposed that SBAB's return requirement should be lowered from 10 to 5 percent. If such a proposal is realized, it may take time before it has full effect, and until then, we must tax the banks' excess profits. In our budget motion, we proposed a tax of 50 percent on the banks' excess profits.

Since we have a somewhat different construction than the Social Democrats have in their motion, we will not support reservation 23, but we agree on the need for a bank tax.

It is not only the banks and their owners who are carving gold with a pocketknife. The wealthy in Sweden are only becoming more and more numerous. From 2019 to 2021, the number of billionaires in Sweden increased from 206 to 542. In 2010, 32 people were dollar billionaires. Now there are 43. Most have inherited their wealth.

Sweden belongs to those countries in the world where total wealth is most unequally distributed. During the last ten years, 61.5 percent of all wealth created in Sweden has ended up with the richest hundredth of the population. This is, therefore, under eight years of Social Democratic rule and two years of right-wing rule.

In Sweden today, it is easier to build a fortune through capital investments than through work because we have removed the inheritance tax, the gift tax, the property tax, and the wealth tax and furthermore lowered the corporate tax.

We in Vänsterpartiet have therefore, in our budget motion, a number of proposals to reduce the gaps. Some of the proposals also appear in this report.

Mr. Speaker! A central thought behind the tax reform of the 1990s was that equal incomes should be taxed equally. This principle was to be applied consistently as far as possible. Through the reform, a separate and proportional taxation of capital income was introduced with a uniform tax rate of 30 percent.

Since the reform's implementation, a number of different exceptions have been introduced. Therefore, Vänsterpartiet proposes a reformed capital income taxation. We want dividends and capital gains from unlisted shares to be taxed at 30 percent. A cap of 2 million kronor on savings in investment savings accounts (investeringssparkonto) shall be introduced. Savings exceeding the cap shall be taxed with the regular tax on capital income. Dividends and capital gains from small companies (fåmansbolag) shall be taxed at 30 percent, according to our proposal.

Inheritance is also a clear example of how capital affects an individual's life chances. Inheritance flows have also increased in significance in Sweden, especially during the last 25-30 years. Inheritance and gift taxes exist in many OECD countries, and Vänsterpartiet therefore proposes that an inheritance and gift tax be reintroduced in Sweden as well.

Today's property fee has no visible connection to return, other capital taxes, or interest deductions. The average tax becomes lower the more the value of a property exceeds 1.2 million kronor. The property fee is therefore strongly regressive. Vänsterpartiet therefore wants to complement the municipal property fee with a state property tax that only applies to properties with high market values and owners with higher incomes.

Both the abolition of property tax and inheritance and gift taxes, as well as the reduction of tax on dividends and capital gains, have contributed to Sweden moving from being one of the world's most equal countries to being one of the countries in the world where total wealth is most unequally distributed. Vänsterpartiet wants to see a Sweden that is equal, where everyone has food on the table. And for that, we need to tax capital.

I naturally stand behind all my reservations in the report, even those I have not mentioned in my speech, such as the tonnage tax and fixed place of business, but I choose here to move for approval of reservation 8 regarding inheritance and gift tax.

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Helena Vilhelmsson (C)

Mr. Speaker! The motion's report addresses many incredibly important issues for both companies and civil society. You know that it is the companies that create four out of five jobs in our country.

I will begin by saying a few words about forest and forestry, which is also addressed in the report. Forestry is, according to the Center Party, one of the most important industries, perhaps even the most important industry, for the transition to a fossil-free society. It is also an industry that has enormous significance, is a backbone, for Sweden's economy and export net.

In the Swedish tax legislation, there is today something called a forest account. This means that money from a logging operation carried out once during the forest's rotation period, that is, 80 years or more, can be disposed of over time and does not have to be withdrawn and taxed exactly at the time of logging. These are wise economic conditions for Sweden's forest owners, which are also completely crucial for the forest owner's economy.

In the forest proposal, which we decided on during the previous parliamentary term and which was a measure within the January agreement, it was established that similar conditions should also apply to other forms of infringement compensation, for example for nature conservation purposes or expropriation for roads, power lines, etc. Today, for example, a nature conservation agreement lasts for 50 years, and it is unreasonable that it should be a matter of a one-time compensation and be taxed at one and the same time. But that is how it is today. Those funds should, naturally, also be able to be deposited into a forest account.

The Swedish Tax Agency has since June 2022 had a mandate to analyze and submit proposals on how such tax rules can be made more favorable in order to increase incentives for, among other things, voluntary nature conservation set-asides, while the administrative burden shall be taken into account.

In August 2023, the Swedish Tax Agency submitted a memorandum, More favorable taxation in, among other things, the protection of forest, and in which proposals are submitted to tax infringement compensation and severance pay in a more purposeful way and that compensation for, for example, nature conservation agreements under certain conditions shall be able to be periodized. The memorandum is currently being prepared within the Government Offices. No one has spoken about it in any speech, and therefore I appeal to the government to ensure that the proposal is developed. It is extremely important for the forest owners' economy and for Sweden's economy.

The investigation that has been mentioned here regarding, among other things, the 3:12 rules is also incredibly important, as is the previous supplementary assignment from the government. I look forward to them being presented in May this year.

Something that has also not been mentioned from the rostrum is the fact that in order to strengthen public finances, keep public debt at a lower level and create room to handle a future financial crisis, a risk tax for credit institutions was introduced in January 2022. In connection with its establishment, the Riksdag issued three announcements to the government, including that the government would return during the previous year with proposals exempting Kommuninvest and other locally owned and operated banks from the tax. This is also very important for the viability of local banks. This has also not been mentioned from the rostrum, and it appears that the issue is being prepared, as it was last year, within the Government Offices. I also appeal here to the government to deliver on the announcements.

Let me finally say a few words about equal sponsorship. It is not just a matter of simply rewriting the tax legislation. I realize that it is complicated, but it is so necessary. A rich sports and cultural life is a prerequisite for attractive communities where people want to live and reside. Sports clubs all over the country, large as well as small, are incredibly dependent on sponsorship to be able to conduct and develop their activities. For many companies, sponsorship of, for example, sports activities is a very important part of sustainability work and for policies. But as has been mentioned today, the problem is that there is a lack of clear legislation on how it should be taxed.

Mr. Speaker! What governs the right to deduction is an outdated patchwork of precedents and interpretations. Market value is assessed based on the number of visitors or other more traditional parameters, and it is not adapted to today's meaning of market value. Exposure via both social and traditional media means that market value cannot be measured in the way it traditionally has been measured. The Riksdag therefore, during 2021, at the initiative of Centerpartiet, issued a notice to review the regulatory framework for sponsorship.

Today, from a branding perspective, it is just as attractive for a company to sponsor an all-Swedish men's football team as a women's team in the same division or a smaller club without elite ambitions. It is not the number of physical visitors that is central. Sustainability issues are in focus. The problem with the rules that exist today is that they provide incorrect economic incentives and steer towards sponsoring sports that still have a high number of spectators on-site who have purchased a traditional entrance ticket. Therefore, it must be changed as soon as possible.

Member of the Board Fredrik Ahlstedt previously said that it is good for the government to take some time, but one has taken two and a half, soon three, years, and I hope that a change will come soon.

Mr. Speaker! I move for approval of reservation 17.

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Annika Hirvonen (MP)

Mr. Speaker! On Maundy Thursday, I went to the dentist in Gävle - on a study visit. I did not think that the study visit to the dentist in Gävle would be relevant for the Committee on Taxation's debate on companies, capital, and property.

After we had talked for a long time about fluoride in schools and home visits to new parents, I asked a concluding question: What is the most important thing we politicians can do to improve the dental health of both children and the very elderly? The dental hygienist answered: an equal society.

An equal society implies exactly the same parameters as those that would also improve the work against the recruitment of young people into criminal gangs - the same parameters that could improve health generally and contribute to better school results.

Mr. Speaker! There we have questions of the highest relevance when it comes to the taxation of companies, capital, and real estate. The gaps in Sweden have indeed increased significantly. The difference is great between those who have the least and those who have the most. Every fourth single parent has, in the last half-year, had to borrow money to manage to meet their children's most basic needs. Many have not been able to eat their fill every day.

At the same time, the big banks are distributing enormous profits from the increased interest rates, which they extract from people who borrow. At the same time, they have not raised the interest rates for those who can afford to save. And at the same time, the child allowances remain stagnant, and the rents are skyrocketing.

Mr. Speaker! We need a tax reform. We need to ensure that those who have the most contribute more, especially now in times of crisis. Therefore, Miljöpartiet proposes, in line with the Socialdemokraterna, a special tax on the banks' excess profits, on the difference between the increased interest rates for those who borrow money and the interest rates that have not been raised as much for those whom the banks borrow money from, i.e., all of us who save.

Mr. Speaker! Healthcare is being hit by cuts. We see that teaching assistants are being laid off in schools. Food prices have skyrocketed, and the big food giants have received more in dividends.

My little brother, who is currently studying at university, dreams of not having to work, of being able to earn money just by owning shares. He knows, after all, that the tax is lower on money earned from owning than on money earned from working. What are we actually saying to our youth? Shouldn't it pay off better to work than to just be rich from the start? These differences actually also lead to those who have the most continuing to earn more and to the gaps pulling our country apart.

Mr. Speaker! Therefore, I move for approval of the Miljöpartiets reservation 9. In it, we highlight not exactly dental health, but rather that the differences in taxation on capital and labor also lead to a decrease in equality between men and women because men own more than women.

Mr. Speaker! The report contains many different issues. I intend to raise one more. Just like many others, when I am a customer and consumer, I strive to use my consumer power in various ways to support, for example, environmentally sustainably produced products or fair wages.

Companies, capital and property

I also gladly put a few extra items in the basket when I visit the local Icahandlare, whose logo adorns the training jerseys for the local football team where my children play. Companies that in that way contribute to the team funds for children's and youth sports contribute to a socially sustainable local community.

We in Miljöpartiet think it is time to review the rules for all the companies that in different ways want to contribute to a socially sustainable society, to children's and young people's sports, and to cultural life. It cannot only be the big laws that are seen on TV that one knows one has the right to sponsor from a tax law perspective.

We need to ensure that sponsorship is viewed in a somewhat more modern way. It is not just charity to sponsor also that type of sport that does not fill all the stands - my five-year-old daughter's football match did not really do that, even though there were some of us enthusiasts who were there. We are also very many who see the team jerseys and think: How nice that specifically that company is involved and contributes to children and young people having a meaningful leisure time - especially in times when very many parents, in the wake of the crisis, cannot afford to pay for children's and young people's leisure interests.

Company, capital and property

I naturally also stand behind our other reservations, but for the sake of time, I am content to move for approval only of reservation 9.

The deliberation was hereby concluded.

(Decisions were made under § 14.)

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