Teachers and students

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! We now have to discuss the Education Committee's report number 7 during this parliamentary session, Teachers and students. I want to begin by moving for the approval of the proposal in the report.

Madam Speaker! Swedish schools face great challenges and a great need for reforms. It is about raising knowledge results so that more students pass school and so that everyone can learn more. This is necessary so that every individual can reach their full potential and be able to grow with knowledge and education.

A good school is also central for us to be able to manage other challenges we have in Sweden, not least when it comes to the rule of law, social inequality, and the high unemployment.

Today, 16,000 students leave primary school without eligibility for upper secondary school. Approximately every fourth 25-year-old in Sweden lacks a final grade from upper secondary school. These figures are alarmingly high. We also have extensive problems with rowdiness, school absence, disrespectful behavior, sexism, violence, and harassment in Swedish schools. This creates insecurity, fear, and mental ill-health.

According to the Skolinspektionen's school survey for 2022, a sixth of the respondents in grade 8 experience that they do not at all or only to some extent feel safe in school. The teachers' view of safety also corresponds with the students' view.

Who is hit hardest if there is chaos in the corridors, with bullying and very coarse language, and if students come and go as they please, do not listen to the teachers and so on? Such a school environment strikes mercilessly against the students who have it toughest in school. Those who are most vulnerable are always hit hardest if the school fails.

Madam Speaker! The students who do not succeed in school often also have problems outside of school. It can be about a difficult family situation or that the student has simply stopped going to school. An important measure is therefore increased cooperation between school and social services. Therefore, it is very good that the government is now initiating a state investment in social teams to contribute to safety and study. We are also investing in emergency and detention schools to better be able to manage and provide instruction to students who may pose a danger to other students and school staff.

Teachers shall also be given better opportunities and more tools to act against disruptions in school. We are making efforts to increase the number of special education teachers, strengthen the holiday school, and much more.

We focus very much, which is fully understandable, on the students who have difficulty reaching the goals and who need a lot of extra support. This is also mentioned in several respects in this report. But it should be said in the debate that we also have students in the Swedish school who are high-performing.

Those who are very, very good at, for example, mathematics or languages should be able to go really far already in primary school and in upper secondary school. That is why it is very good that the pilot projects with specialized classes in primary school and upper secondary school are now to become permanent and be developed.

Madam Speaker! I shall also raise another issue. When I read the motions belonging to this report, I was a bit taken aback. It concerns primarily the Center Party's motion on integration. They also have a reservation in favor of this.

Centerpartiet argues, however, that newly arrived children should be able to study all core subjects in school in their mother tongue in bilingual classes. I believe that this is misguided. Furthermore, I believe that it would lead to a – to put it mildly – formidable chaos in Swedish schools if this were to be implemented.

The most important contribution we can make for newly arrived children and young people is to give them access to the Swedish language. Language is the key to integration. It is the key to being able to communicate and to be able to explain and describe how one feels. It is the key to the labor market. It is the key to being able to understand Swedish society, to being able to follow the media, the public conversation and information flows, to being able to keep up with politics and much more.

It is also necessary to learn Swedish in order to be able to learn the other subjects.

Now I, Madam Speaker, have a bit of difficulty understanding exactly which subjects the Centre Party means that one should be able to study in one's mother tongue. In primary school, Swedish, English, and mathematics are considered core subjects. But what is the situation if one does not learn Swedish? One then reads those in one's mother tongue. And one must have passed at least five additional subjects to be eligible for a vocational preparatory program in upper secondary school, for example.

In the upper secondary school, they are no longer called core subjects. They are now called upper secondary common subjects, but it is the same thing. There are nine subjects. In addition to Swedish, English, math, and physical education and health, there is natural science, religion, social studies, and history. It is almost 700 credits we are talking about, which one then possibly, if that is what the Center Party intends, shall be able to read in another language.

Furthermore, Madam Speaker, we are talking about at least dozens of different mother tongues. Which teachers are going to teach in these languages and also be qualified to do so and also be bilingual? How many English teachers are there in the Center Party's school who are going to teach in Urdu, Tigrinya, Thai, Arabic, Polish, Persian, Portuguese, Azerbaijani, or any other language? We can hardly get the mother tongue instruction or the study materials to work in many places in Sweden.

Which teaching materials does the Centre Party intend to have used that are compatible with the Swedish curriculum? How will the quality be ensured? And how does the Centre Party intend for this to be financed?

Madam Speaker! I can understand that this may feel tempting for some Center Party members of Parliament. It is a bit of a "hejsan, hoppsan" – everyone can go to Swedish school and in whichever language they want. But there should be some kind of minimum requirement that the proposals one puts forward on the floor of the Riksdag, in at least some small part, are realistic.

If these proposals were to be implemented, Sweden would funnel generation after generation of newcomers into a deeper social exclusion. And these children would not receive education of the same quality as other students.

The solution, Madam Speaker, is to do the opposite. Newly arrived children and young people must learn Swedish as quickly as possible. This is best achieved by surrounding them with the Swedish language, and it happens fastest in a Swedish-speaking environment. If this, I hope, there is at least such a broad consensus in the Riksdag that we can continue with this very important work in order to be able to manage and combat the exclusion and the major segregation issues that we have in Sweden.

(Applause)

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! I think it was good that Member Malm - chairman of the Education Committee, should be added - clarified that we have a great deal of challenges in Swedish schools. It is almost a quarter who do not pass school. Violations occur almost every day. We have insecurity. We do not have enough teachers. All these problems we must discuss in this chamber.

Fredrik Malm chooses to discuss the Center Party. That is the reality we have. The government's primary representative in this room right now is you, Fredrik Malm. You are the primary representative for the government parties. It is the chairman of the Education Committee.

We are going to discuss teachers. We are going to discuss students. We can gladly discuss mother tongues. But the chairman of the Education Committee wants to discuss the Center Party. It is completely absurd. It is a joke toward all the teachers who are sitting out there and who are hopefully watching this.

In this chamber, we should be discussing the actual and most important problems for Swedish schools. Instead, the chairman of the Education Committee spends four minutes, I believe, discussing something that we say could be investigated. It is not even a sharp proposal. This is something that we think should be investigated. The Liberals themselves have been involved in the same ideas, it can be added.

It is clear that mother tongue instruction is not working right now. That is why it should be investigated. We know that it is not working well enough. This is something that could be looked at to more quickly get children who are not particularly good at Swedish to enter into the Swedish language. That is the purpose. The purpose is that they should more quickly enter the classes together with the other students.

Why are all the problems that Swedish schools have incredibly much less important for the Liberals than an investigation proposal from the Center Party? I would very much like to hear that.

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

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! I am not discussing the Centre Party. I am discussing a proposal from the Centre Party. It is in a committee motion from the party, which is also signed by the party's party leader. It is an issue that the party also drives and for which one also has a reservation.

It is a proposal from your party. And I mean that this would be very harmful for Swedish school. It would mean that we give up the idea that newly arrived students should really learn the Swedish language, that they should do it quickly and that they should be surrounded by the Swedish language. One says then: No, but you can read all core subjects in your mother tongue. But with which teachers? Where are these teachers, Niels Paarup-Petersen? How has the Centerpartiet planned for this to be organized?

If we are to carry this out, one must train thousands of teachers who are to teach in various subjects in all possible languages. Is it not better instead to use those funds to strengthen Swedish language instruction for newcomers?

If one does not have the language skills, it becomes very difficult to learn other subjects. And even if these students study, for example, mathematics in their mother tongue at the beginning, they will then enter upper secondary school, and then they will have to study mathematics in Swedish.

I believe that this is very, very misguided. And I believe that we are failing very many newcomers if we do not have a very clear focus on strengthening the Swedish language.

Furthermore, Madam Speaker, I have never experienced that there is any particularly large demand for this reform. I have sat in the Riksdag for four terms, and I have never once received an email from any voter who has said: I want to study all core subjects in a language other than Swedish.

Not even the English school, which we have, has Swedish lessons in English. They have them in Swedish, because they have understood that if one is to learn Swedish, it is good to do it in Swedish.

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! We consider it absolutely crucial that those who come here learn the Swedish language as quickly as possible. That they at the same time do not fall behind in mathematics I see as quite positive, if one were to succeed with that. Let us investigate whether this is the right way! It might be the wrong way. I consider that it can be good to investigate the matter, because this is something that exists in other countries.

But it is more important for Fredrik Malm to diss the Center Party than to talk about serious politics. It is not only Fredrik Malm who is here and talking about Swedish school. We had the Minister for Education in the chamber earlier today. He was to answer why the government is cutting back on Swedish school, because that is what is being done. One is cutting back on the school.

The only answer we get from the Minister for Education when we want answers as to why they are cutting back on Swedish schools—cutting back on everything, the entire education system, the university colleges and so on—is that the Center Party is cutting back in Stockholm and in Gothenburg. Yes, they are. In Malmö, the Liberals are cutting back on schools by 200 million kronor. In Malmö alone, the Liberals are cutting back more money than what is invested at the national level for the whole of Sweden. That is the reality, and that is how it looks.

All municipalities are having a very difficult time right now. For example, all 15 municipalities in Dalarna, regardless of government - where the Liberals are in Borlänge, Falun, Leksand, Ludvika, Malung-Sälen, Älvdalen - are writing to the government and saying: Please, we need help!

The municipalities have reached their limit. They have cleaned up after the work that the government has done time and again. Rules and requirements have been placed on the municipalities and ensured that it is the municipalities that have to pay for all newly arrived students, as the member just highlighted. And the member stands here and pretends that it is the municipalities that have made a mistake. It is the government that, this time, is not sending money as is usually done. It is a scandal!

(Applause)

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

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! This government is allocating historically large amounts to the Swedish school system. It is one of the largest and most extensive investments in Swedish schools ever, if we measure it as a percentage of, for example, GDP.

At the same time, we have a very tough economic situation. We all know that. Niels Paarup-Petersen knows it, I know it, and everyone else here in the chamber knows it. We have to deal with inflation. But we also have a responsibility, I mean as a liberal politician, to protect the school in these economically tough times.

Since Swedish school is unfortunately municipalized, it means that one cannot say that it is only the state's task to guarantee this. The municipalities have an obligation to prioritize their school. The municipalities have such an obligation.

For me, it doesn't matter much whether it is a red majority, a blue majority, a red-blue majority, a green majority, or any other majority. I think that all municipalities should prioritize the school. And it is very important that they do so. There are other activities that can be very pressing but not as pressing as the school. Then one must be forced to make these trade-offs.

Madam Speaker! I also note, regarding what the exchange initially concerned in any case, namely the Center Party's proposal, that Niels Paarup-Petersen believes that if one falls behind in a subject, one should instead be able to acquire this knowledge in one's mother tongue. I can understand that thought. I just wonder how this is to be organized. Which teachers shall teach these children? Which teaching materials shall be used? This is a massive reform that the Center Party is opening up for in Swedish schools, which I believe people do not quite understand the scope of. It will mean that generation after generation of newly arrived people will not get the same opportunities to learn the Swedish language and thus not get the same opportunities to acquire their education in school. That is what I am very afraid of.

(Applause)

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

Camilla Hansén (MP)

Madam Speaker! What a catalog we received, Fredrik Malm, of all the atrocities that exist at one of the country's largest workplaces, where all our children and youth are. We are quite familiar with what kind of problems there are. It is because it somehow lies like a wet blanket over the entire education debate in Swedish politics right now.

Teachers are Sweden's and perhaps the world's most important profession, of course together with all the other professions in the school, which lay the foundation for our children and young people to be able to have a good life and be able to be a part of building a sustainable Sweden and a part of keeping Sweden's flag as a knowledge nation high in the world.

I am curious about some things that I did not think came across quite clearly in the speech from the chairman of the Education Committee. I would like to hear about the Liberals' vision for the Swedish school and for education, and it can be all school forms. What is it that the students should long for? According to the Liberals' party leader, it might be to have as much boredom as possible, because that is when one learns better. What is it that the teachers should long for? Why should young people, or for that matter those who have some professional experience to bring into the school, become teachers? I want more people to dream of being teachers. But I found nothing to hook these dreams on in Fredrik Malm's speech.

Tell us about the vision and what we should dream about!

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

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! I do not dream so much. I am more interested in that we dig where we stand, that we implement reforms, that we implement changes and that we can lift the knowledge results in Swedish school. If we are to do that, it is actually as my party leader Johan Pehrson has expressed it. That is not something one comes from. It can be difficult for an environmentalist to hear this. But it is actually the case that not all aspects of school are always fun. It can be quite difficult to drill vocabulary. It can be quite difficult to sit still during lessons when your fingers are itching and you actually want to use your mobile phone or want to do something else. Not everything in school is fun. Not everything in life is fun. Not everything in work life is fun. I can admit one thing, and that is that it is not so fun to be a member of Parliament every single day either.

We must have high expectations in Swedish schools. It also means that we must expect that people make an effort. It is very important in order to be able to raise the knowledge results.

But the Green Party is partly on a different boat, Madam Speaker, because they think that the thing with grades is not so important and that the thing with tests and homework is not so important, and that one can be a bit more mañana, mañana, so to speak. I am not so sure that we lift Swedish school with the attitude that the Green Party has.

With this said, it should also be emphasized that we have a huge number of schools in Sweden that are fantastically good. We have masses, tens of thousands, of teachers in all different subjects who do a fantastic job. We have teachers who go to work every day and are very happy. But we also have quite large work environment problems, and we have quite a few students who do not enjoy being in school. And we must manage to also address these problems in order to be able to lift Swedish school and in order to be able to get the school that I believe we all in the end are still striving for us to get.

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

Camilla Hansén (MP)

Madam Speaker! I strive for a school that teachers dream of working in, a school that they seek out to work in, and which students long to attend because it is fun. It makes it easier to learn difficult things.

Skilled teachers who have time for their students, that is what I hear from researchers, from teachers and from school staff is what is important. One does not talk about detailed reforms, grading criteria and other things but about skilled teachers who have time for their students.

I believe this is an extremely important part for a successful Swedish school. But with this knowledge, which I imagine we can be quite in agreement on, the Liberals are putting Sweden's municipalities on a starvation diet. The funding is being eroded. This is not happening because the municipalities have prioritized poorly or because there is something else that is less important that the municipalities can ignore. In the aftermath of a pandemic and with an ongoing war causing price surges, one has increased costs in the school.

When the government refuses to provide this general support to the municipalities, how can one then get the skilled teachers to have more time with their students? Just yesterday in my own municipality, they spoke about needing to make cuts. It is not that there is money lying around or that people are lazy in the municipalities. It is something from outside coming in that makes it so there is no money. That burden should be something the state and the municipalities could share. But the Liberals do not want to give this support. Why?

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

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! It is very strange that the opposition, in all the exchanges concerning the school, is now arguing roughly as if the school had a state ownership today—as if it were the state that financed the entire school. I will admit one thing: I and my party want it. We desire it. The Green Party is cordially welcome to join that view, and so are the other parties in the opposition—except for the Left Party, which already thinks so.

The fact is, however, that the school in Sweden is municipalized. We have municipal politicians who also have responsibility for the school; approximately 8 percent of the funding in the school comes from the state. I would wish that all municipalities prioritized the school more, even those municipalities where my party is involved in governing and all municipalities where Camilla Hansen's party Miljöpartiet is involved in governing - and regardless of what majority those municipalities have. But it is unreasonable to stand in the Riksdag and assert that it would be the government's fault that there are municipalities in Sweden that do not prioritize the school sufficiently, because it is not.

We are making historically large investments in Swedish schools. As a share of the gross national product, this is one of the most extensive school budgets ever in our country's history. It has surely not escaped anyone that the trend in Swedish schools over the last 10-15 years is a gradual and step-by-step increased state responsibility through various different reforms, state grants and other investments in different educations, teacher reforms and a good deal of other things. The reason for this is that the municipalities have not taken their responsibility. It is therefore that the state must constantly increase its responsibility for Swedish schools.

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

Linus Sköld (S)

Madam Speaker! School in Sweden is good. The vast majority of teachers and students woke up this morning and went to school, where they taught, learned, played, created, and socialized - and had a good time, or at least were perfectly okay. It can be important to point out sometimes.

The Swedish school is, however, being dragged down by two other overshadowing problems. These are problems that are to some extent connected with each other and which it is absolutely crucial that we resolve. It is our responsibility to resolve them.

The first problem is sad, Madam Speaker: What is most decisive for how children succeed in school is their background. The impact of family background has also increased in recent decades. The school's ability to level out differences in people's life circumstances is being eroded, and that is serious. Segregation is increasing as a consequence of the school having become a market, and it is very different how school results, prerequisites, and school environments look at different schools.

The most important factor for how it goes for the country's schoolchildren is the teacher – the teacher's conditions, competence, and methods. At the same time, the school suffers from a teacher shortage. Far too few teachers are being examined for us to be able to meet the recruitment needs that exist in the coming decade. Furthermore, there are political ambitions from different parties in this chamber that can be expected to increase the need for licensed staff, for example, ideas about dramatically extending the teaching time and significantly increasing the teacher density, or about thousands more teachers being trained as special education teachers.

More must therefore be done, because more must want to become teachers. We Social Democrats have truly worked hard to address the teacher shortage during our years in power. We have, to begin with, significantly increased the resources to the school. More than 38,000 more people work in the school now than did in 2014. That has been important.

We have worked on creating more paths to the teaching profession, for example by introducing a shortened KPU on a trial basis and by expanding and strengthening further education for teachers who lack certification. We have invested in teacher assistants and other professional groups to relieve the teachers. We have invested in increased teacher salaries and developed a structure for merit and competence development for teachers. It is also pleasing that the government has now presented our proposal on professional programs for teachers and principals.

To the best solutions for the teacher shortage, it must be heard that introducing an aspirant system so that those who already work as unqualified teachers get the opportunity to become qualified. It is about people who have shown interest in the profession and whom a principal has judged as suitable. Offering them the opportunity to work and educate themselves simultaneously should be the self-evident solution to the teacher shortage.

The role of the teacher has simultaneously changed quite drastically in recent decades. When the school became a market, the official figure of the teacher, who had high status and a self-evident authority in their classroom, was reduced to a service provider whom the student – that is, the customer – can replace if they are not satisfied. This is bad for the work environment for both teachers and students. It has seriously damaged the attractiveness of the teaching profession.

Therefore, we must address the dysfunctional drivers that exist in the school market. But when it comes to the school market and its drivers, the Sverigedemokraterna government only wants to make cosmetic changes, so that their friends in the profit-driven corporations can continue to earn huge sums of money by segregating students and cutting costs on education.

The government needs to take over where we left off. More people need to become teachers, and therefore the teaching profession needs to appear desirable. The school market needs to be regulated, which we tried to do, and the teachers' administration must be reduced. Resources to the school must be increased further. But the government is cutting back on the school and has written a Tidöavtal that will increase administration and put hard ethical pressure on the teaching staff. The government wants to preserve the school market, and that is only to be lamented.

Madam Speaker! In the Education Act, we have established that every student shall have the guidance, stimulation, and support they need to reach as far as possible. If the support measures are not sufficient, it risks having lifelong consequences for the students. Therefore, I intended to dwell for a short moment on how important it is that schools can provide students with the support they need.

That interventions are made early, both in age and in a problematic course of events, is crucial. Therefore, in government position, we introduced the read-write-count guarantee in the preschool class and primary school. We made the preschool class compulsory and changed the rules so that more children should take part in the first step of the educational chain - the preschool.

We have made it mandatory for school administrators to offer two hours of extra study time every week for students who need it and remedial school for students who risk not becoming eligible. We have revised timetables and curricula so that assessment criteria become more useful and so that the core content of the subjects becomes more comprehensible.

We have invested heavily in the continuing education "special pedagogy for learning," which aims to provide teachers with better knowledge on how to organize good teaching for all students. We have introduced a new degree objective in the teacher education, so that all future teachers will take away knowledge on how to meet students with neuropsychiatric functional impairments.

We have tightened the legal requirements regarding the mandate of student health and the systematic approach in development work, as well as introduced requirements that there must be a special educator or special teacher in student health. We have increased the state's support for reinforced student health. We have clarified the rules regarding resource schools, including municipal ones, so that the support measures intended for students with the greatest support needs can be given somewhat more stable conditions.

We have recently introduced a government grant to support schools in creating adapted learning environments - a government grant that has been incredibly oversubscribed. The Government does, however, propose an increase of that grant, but it is a very marginal increase.

This work must continue. Therefore, the government must now resist Sweden Democrat impulses to punish the students who have the greatest need for support. Instead, better conditions are needed for the country's teachers and students. We Social Democrats will in any case not give up until all the country's teachers and students go to a school that is a good workplace for the teachers and a functioning institution for education and learning for all students.

We Social Democrats naturally stand behind all our reservations, but for the sake of time, I will content myself with moving for approval of reservation number 15.

(Applause)

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

Joanna Lewerentz (M)

Madam Speaker! Today we are debating the Education Committee's report 7 Students and teachers. And it is precisely students and teachers who play the main role in the school - without them, no school.

When I do not have the honor of serving here in the Riksdag, I have one of these roles. And without wanting to step on anyone's toes in here, I can only state that I have the world's best job: I am a teacher. And the reasons why it is precisely the world's best job are many. Let me give some examples.

When engagement bubbles in the classroom, when the class shows good cohesion and supports each other through thick and thin, when the student who is struggling cracks the code and gets everything flowing, when you suddenly reach the student who has been closed off and get to help and support, and when your colleagues, regardless of position, work towards the same goal and succeed – then, Madam Speaker, it is wonderful to be a teacher.

But when a student struggles and the steps forward are so small that they are not visible to the student themselves, when a student feels vulnerable and alone, when a student expresses sorrow and anxiety over not fitting in and over constantly making mistakes, when you as a teacher turn over every stone to reach out to find something that works but meet a dead end again, when you are forced to see a student experience failure after failure because you and other colleagues simply are not enough, and when you see the empty bench where the student who no longer has the strength to come to school should actually be sitting - then, Madam Speaker, it is terrifying to be a teacher.

In our elongated country, we have many fantastic schools. We have many fantastic teachers, educators, student assistants, principals, caretakers, leisure staff, canteen staff, janitors, cleaners and others who do everything in their power to create a safe and functioning school that maintains high quality for our children. But these people also find themselves daily in the dilemma that they are not enough.

It is about meeting students with needs for adaptations or special support – students who suffer from mental ill-health and students who act out and violate other students or staff. It can be about students who need extra stimulation and challenge in the teaching or students who perhaps have a bit of a hard time with math or reading. All these students are included and shall be included in the Swedish school. It is their statutory right and our duty to ensure that they receive the education they need to manage in life.

Madam Speaker! That this obligation actually reaches its goal is not always obvious in our elongated country. Students in need of special support are forced day after day into an environment that is not adapted to their needs. They are forced day after day to experience failures in school. And they are forced day after day to bear the consequences of our failure to live up to our obligations towards them.

10 percent of Sweden's population today suffers from some type of neuropsychiatric difficulty, such as ADHD, autism or dyslexia, to mention a few examples. In a class of 30 students, that corresponds to approximately three students. They are three students in a class where everyone is just a student. They are children in a context with the main purpose that they should learn things they do not know – children who are expected to learn new things from a single teacher.

In a classroom, a teacher may need to help with various things. It can involve getting started the student who has difficulty starting on their own. It can involve helping the student who has difficulty with the subject or challenging the student who finds the subject easy. It can involve helping and comforting the student who fell and hurt themselves during recess or resolving the conflict that arose on the football pitch. And in addition, the teacher must adapt the teaching for the student with special needs.

Madam Speaker! I know that teachers out there are struggling and straining to make ends meet. We suffer with our children when they do not succeed. But we cannot clone ourselves. We do not have eight arms. We do not have eyes in the back of our heads, even though many students would probably believe that we do.

But when 60 percent of students with autism do not pass the core subjects of primary school and over 50 percent have problematic school absence, we have failed. When people with neuropsychiatric disabilities constantly end up outside the labor market, we have failed. And when a single student feels that they cannot live up to the school's expectations because of their disability, we have failed. Something needs to change.

Madam Speaker! For far too long we have allowed the idea of inclusion to characterize Swedish schools, to such an extent that people no longer seem to respect that everyone is different. Not everyone takes in instruction in the same way. Not everyone is able to stay in a regular classroom environment. No matter how we try, not everyone will be able to adapt to what we consider to be the normal.

Get me right: All students who can stay in a regular classroom shall do so. It is desirable. But we must dare to have two thoughts in our heads at the same time and accept that not everyone is actually capable of living up to the expectations that characterize a regular classroom.

The idea of inclusion has gone so far today that it rather excludes. It excludes from the right to educate oneself, from the labor market, and from living a healthy and happy life. There must be a change in that.

The government has, in the 2023 budget and in the autumn supplementary budget, invested to ensure that education will reach all students. For students with NPF, it is of utmost importance that support is provided as early as possible, that there is staff in the schools who have the tools and knowledge to meet and teach these students based on their circumstances, and that the environment is adapted to their needs.

That the government is now investing in more special education teachers and the possibility of organizing smaller teaching groups is a very important step in ensuring that we create a school that is for everyone. These are investments that create inclusion for real.

These are some steps on the way, but we are far from finished. We also need to reform the curriculum so that it becomes clear and concrete with measurable knowledge adapted to the students' age, with clear knowledge requirements accompanying it. Today's abstract curriculum creates stress and uncertainty for all students, not least our students with special needs.

Early diagnostic tests need to be carried out to map students' knowledge in order to provide the right support where it is needed as early as possible. Early interventions are a very important key to a successful school career for all students.

The resource schools need to be strengthened, and long-term funding for the resource school's target group must be established. Even the adapted primary school and upper secondary school must be strengthened so that all students, regardless of circumstances, can develop to their full potential.

Finally, a national follow-up of the problematic school absenteeism is needed, together with a national action plan for how we can get our students back to school.

It is very pleasing that this government shows a willingness to address these issues, and I look forward very much to approving further measures in this chamber to ensure all children's right to education.

In conclusion, Madam Speaker, I would like to vote in favor of the committee's proposal.

(Applause)

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

Linus Sköld (S)

Madam Speaker! All students are accommodated and shall be accommodated in the Swedish school, says the member. I perceive it as the member feeling sympathy for students who have different types of difficulties or end up in difficulties in the school situation, not infrequently students with neuropsychiatric functional impairments.

At the same time, the member represents one of the Tidö parties. In the Tidö Agreement, there are very clear provisions that students shall have reduced influence, be thrown out more often and more frequently relocated and shut down, also for longer periods, or for that matter be placed in the Sweden Democrats' compulsory school.

I think it is worth asking the member how she views the risk that the students she wants to punish more severely are the same students who have concentration difficulties, difficulties controlling their impulses, or difficulties reading social contexts. How does she view this risk? If she, as I believe, those groups of students overlap quite a bit, she owes me an answer on how the harsher punishments and the tougher measures will benefit students with neuropsychiatric functional impairments.

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

Joanna Lewerentz (M)

Madam Speaker! I thank the member for the question.

The trade union Sveriges Lärare referred earlier in the week to a review showing that a secondary school teacher in the classroom is threatened by students, and many of them are also subjected to violence. At the same time, students are violated every day in school.

We have a huge responsibility to teach children and young people to take responsibility for their actions. Undesirable behavior must have direct consequences, but that does not mean that one leaves the individual to the elements. All students have a statutory right to education, and what "emergency schools" constitute is precisely that statutory right to receive education regardless of whether one has behaved badly or not.

We must dare to show that those who threaten, violate, and do wrong also have to face the consequences, while at the same time we do not turn our backs on them. If we instead send them home for two weeks, we leave them at the mercy of the waves at home, and we can do that time and again. If we instead send them to an emergency school where there is competent staff who can support and guide them while they receive the education they are entitled to, we help them on the right path.

At the same time, I understand the concern you express, Linus Sköld. But a school with order and clear expectations and requirements is a school that works to a greater extent for children with NPF.

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

Linus Sköld (S)

Madam Speaker! There are equivalent possibilities in today's legislation. I think that the wording in the Tidö Agreement is a signal that the penalties should become harsher. But honestly, I do not believe that it is through harsher penalties that more order and discipline is created, and there are already extensive powers for teachers and principals to take measures when things happen in the school.

Let me also bring up the teacher supply. As I said in my speech, we must get more teachers. The Moderates also want to increase the number of hours in primary school by one hour a day, which is an increase in teaching time of almost 30 percent. This leads to the conclusion that the teaching profession must become more attractive, because the Moderates must agree with my assertion that more people must want to become teachers.

Teachers' administration must be reduced for the profession to become more attractive, and I believe the Moderaterna agree with me on this. Still, the Moderaterna have agreed to the Tidö Agreement. Here, the Skolinspektionen's new mandate to ensure quality will require a completely new type of documentation. Furthermore, the duty to report crimes will trigger a flood of administration over the teachers, and when we are talking about the duty to report anyway, it is worth mentioning the deeply unethical duty that you want to introduce to force teachers to report their students.

How does the member mean that the teaching profession is to become more attractive when you increase the teachers' administration and introduce requirements that run contrary to professional ethics?

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

Joanna Lewerentz (M)

Madam Speaker! When we fulfill our duty to the students we move by providing them with the education they are entitled to, we also fulfill our duty to their classmates that they shall be in a safe school environment.

What is the member's answer to the girl who was raped by her classmate and who ultimately was forced to change schools to be able to manage to go to school at all? The Moderates' answer is clear: the victim shall be protected and the perpetrator moved - this while we fulfill our duty to ensure all students' right to education. What is the Social Democrats' solution to this?

Let me also inform the members that the read-write-count guarantee entailed an administrative burden for the teachers when they were forced to conduct many tests, document and report.

I also want to send the question to the municipalities. They have a huge responsibility to not place more administration on teachers. It is not about things that come from here, but other unnecessary things that teachers are forced to perform.

I want to see a pure teaching profession where the teacher focuses on instruction, student time, and planning.

The extra hours of homework help that were also introduced during the Social Democrats' time in power resulted in a lot of planning time being lost for the teachers because they were to help the students with homework. I did this with pleasure, but not all teachers have the ability to prioritize so that one manages to get everything done.

(Applause)

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! It was a pleasure to hear Member Lewerentz in the speaker's chair. I want to thank the Member for highlighting the positive aspects of Swedish schools – it is done far too rarely – and for the honest stories from the school world.

It was also good that the difficult question regarding children with NPF was raised, because it is extremely important. Many children have difficulties and do not always manage the school system we have today. The situation is pressured, and the teachers do not have much extra space. Let us say it as it is: the resources are sometimes quite small. I believe the member said that we cannot clone ourselves. Sheep have indeed been cloned, but it will probably take some time before we can clone humans.

When Swedish schools are in this situation, when the municipalities' finances are pressured and there is a lack of money, and when those who work in the schools say that this is a catastrophe budget, shouldn't the government act then? Shouldn't the government do something? Shouldn't one invest in Swedish schools instead of cutting back on the entire Swedish education system? That is the reality we see now.

I find it difficult to see how the children who are struggling the most would suddenly have it much better by the school receiving less money.

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

Joanna Lewerentz (M)

Madam Speaker! The inflation situation and the recession place high demands on priorities. This cannot be glossed over.

But one side of the coin that has not yet been mentioned in the debate is that for the last three years, the municipal sector has a collective surplus of 100 billion. This does not mean that all municipalities have a surplus, but many do. In these pressured times, it provides room to prioritize. I think that many municipalities in this situation need to show their hand and demonstrate that they safeguard the core mission. For me, the most important core mission is, of course, the school.

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! Yes, school is very important and must be prioritized. There are obviously funds in some municipalities, and I assume that many others are trying to find them. The municipalities undoubtedly have the primary responsibility for the school and also bear the greatest burden. But it is from the state that the rules, requirements, etc. come.

In the Tidö Agreement, there are no new requirements for schools, and then the question is: Should not more money be sent to cover these requirements?

Then I believe that Member Lewerentz raised a very important point, and it concerns the issue of absenteeism. We have a huge problem with very many children who are away from school a lot – some children are practically never in school – to such an extent that their schooling is actually not a schooling. It is a home-staying, not a schooling. I personally know children who have not managed school but are at home instead. This we see across the whole country, regardless of whether it is small schools or large schools. It is likely not any municipality or any single school that does not encounter this at some point.

We can surely agree that this is a huge problem. And the Center Party has on several occasions put forward a proposal to introduce a national absence register. This has already been investigated. With that, we would finally get a grip on how many there are and which children they are. We do not have a grip on the current situation; we are just guessing what the problem looks like. But the government does not want to tackle the problem. They do not want to introduce the national absence register that we have demanded. Can the government please come with this soon?

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

Joanna Lewerentz (M)

Madam Speaker! The government invested 12 billion kronor in economic reinforcement to municipalities and regions in the 2023 budget bill. I also know that the government is following the development closely, and as far as I know, they have not ruled out that they can provide more money to next year's budget. I can also remind the members that we are now presenting an investment in the year-end budget of 20 million kronor specifically to meet the needs of children with NPF. One of the requirements you set, we are actually already delivering on.

When it comes to the absence, I can only agree with you. My perception is not that the government does not want an absence register. It is very important that we collect facts and knowledge about these students and what we can do to get them back to school.

In conclusion, I just want to say that it is gratifying to see that many of us in this chamber care about these students, that initiatives have been made previously and that the Centerpartiet, for example, submits motions on the issue to bring it up in the debate, because the issue is incredibly important.

(Applause)

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

Jörgen Grubb (SD)

Madam Speaker! For the sake of time, we request approval only for the Sweden Democrats' reservation 8, but naturally, we support all of our own tabled reservations.

In this report, which concerns teachers and students, I would like to begin with some examples to illustrate how the conditions for teachers and students should be. The first concerns study environments in the classroom. There, the government base will now continue to work on introducing expectation documents regarding the school's rules of order, which students and parents are expected to sign. The rules of order shall include a consequence ladder explaining what happens in the event of rule violations and disruptions of order - entirely in accordance with the Tidö Agreement. The second concerns a reduction of teachers' administrative burden. A broad review of regulations is being conducted to submit proposals on how more of the teachers' working time can be freed up for planning, quality assurance, and teaching. Among other things, the School Act's extensive requirements for student-oriented documentation shall be limited, for example, regarding the requirements for individual development plans, IUP - entirely in accordance with the Tidö Agreement. The third concerns other staff. There shall be staff in the school to relieve teachers in their teaching assignments, for example, specially employed mentors, special education teachers, and a strengthened student health service - entirely in accordance with the Tidö Agreement. The fourth concerns a career service reform that shall enable skilled teachers to become head teachers and that more lecturers can be employed. This shall occur through further education in subject knowledge as well as in, for example, leadership and conflict management - entirely in accordance with the Tidö Agreement.

Madam Speaker! Clear consequences of the fact that we today do not have the completely right conditions in our school are, among other things, that we have a teacher shortage. It is admirable that some teachers, despite a poor working environment with constant fights and rowdiness in the classroom, continue to work. The same naturally applies to the students who want to educate themselves but who are forced to put up with fights and rowdiness.

Fortunately, it is not like that in all classrooms, but in far too many. Previous governments have been quite silent, especially regarding the issue of study rooms. It is one of the reasons—not the only one, but largely—why the situation is as it is today.

Now we must improve the conditions for both teachers and students. This is what the government base does through the Tidö Agreement, where we have the good proposals for reforms that I previously described. Possibly even more is required, but we will figure that out in the meantime.

Madam Speaker! Our school must be a safe and secure workplace, and most of the time it is. However, there are clouds of concern, for example, when it turned out that a school in my hometown Malmö hired a student assistant who, before he got the job at the school, was in prison for assaulting a woman and had previously been convicted of drug offenses. You heard correctly. It happened quite recently. Despite this, the school did not do anything wrong, rather the school act was followed, and the man had to present his extract from the criminal record which showed nothing about these crimes. Unfortunately, it turns out that the extracts from the criminal record that the school act requires are censored. They only show if a person is convicted of murder, manslaughter, aggravated assault, aggravated robbery, kidnapping, sex crimes, and child pornography crimes. It is actually quite astonishing. There are therefore people working with our students who are convicted of serious crimes, and no one seems to know about this until a tedious or tragic situation arises.

Madam Speaker! Last year we dealt with a government bill concerning exactly criminal record extracts, where the government at that time was careful that only an extract should be "presented" upon employment at a school and that a simple notation - a cross in a box - should suffice as proof that the criminal record extract is free of complaints. We naturally demanded that it should be submitted, as it was before, that the criminal record extract should be documented and that it should also be renewed annually. When we talk about criminal record extracts, we naturally mean a complete criminal record extract, nothing censored.

Madam Speaker! In recent years, in many municipalities and in individual schools, there has been a deprioritization of student health in favor of other things. When I began investigating this in 2011 in Malmö, I knew it was happening, but it has continued since then, and this in a time when insecurity and mental ill-health are increasing. This has been possible because there have been no exact guidelines for the scope of student health. As an example, it can be mentioned that there are places where a school nurse is expected to be responsible for up to 1,000 students - to compare with the more reasonable 400. We Sverigedemokrater have therefore long proposed that staffing levels for student health be introduced, where we base our minimum levels on what the profession has shown in its various investigations.

Madam Speaker! The previous Social Democratic-led government has, over eight years, failed to make any major improvements within school healthcare. Therefore, I am pleased that our current government base will work with student health to increase accessibility, to ensure that school principals have cooperation agreements with healthcare and cooperation routines with social services, and to ensure that a review is conducted regarding the responsibility for student health. Perhaps it should be as it was before, when it was the healthcare system that had it. We shall see. But already, an investment of 150 million has been made as a reinforcement for student health. More was certainly needed, but it is at least a good start.

Madam Speaker! Finally, we also want the students to receive daily physical activity during their school day and that the regulated outdoor days be reintroduced. All kinds of research in this area shows only positive factors for health and that the brain is also stimulated, which makes the acquisition of knowledge a bit easier. Can we say no to this? I do not think so.

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

Linus Sköld (S)

Madam Speaker! Jörgen Grubb returns to "entirely in accordance with the Tidö Agreement" as a refrain in his speech and then states that we have a teacher shortage.

In my speech, I made the connection between the school market system and the declining status of the teaching profession. The school market system shall, entirely according to the Tidö Agreement, be preserved so that profit extraction can continue, so that the teacher continues to be a service provider rather than a public official, and so that the student can continue to be a customer. As is known, the customer is always right, which shifts the power in the classroom from the teacher to the student. The Sweden Democrats want to keep this system – entirely according to the Tidö Agreement, as I said.

I just wanted to simply ask Jörgen Grubb: How does he mean that a school market system where the student always has the right should benefit the status of the teaching profession and be a help in solving the teacher shortage?

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

Jörgen Grubb (SD)

Madam Speaker! I thank you for the question.

I do not know if we have said that it would benefit. We have not said that it would complicate things either, so I do not really know what the member is implying.

Let me put it this way: That students get to decide and that there is a large amount of student influence even on grades does not make things better either, but what it is about for our part is naturally that the teachers shall be allowed to set their grades. The teachers shall not be influenced by what the students or the parents think, but they shall set clear grades for their students based on their performance. It is a fairly simple equation that I know can be misused in different ways.

We also have something called order rules, which we in the government base have clearly included in the Tidö Agreement. There can also be relational elements regarding how it functions in the schools. This applies, of course, regardless of which principal the school has.

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

Linus Sköld (S)

Madam Speaker! I do not perceive that I really received an answer to my question. I shall try to ask it once more.

I am very well aware that, strictly according to the Tidö Agreement, it is also Jörgen Grubb's view that student influence should be reduced. It states there that student influence shall be reduced, in particular during the drafting of rules of order.

But the ultimate student influence is that students and parents have the school fee with them and can choose to take it and leave when they are dissatisfied. That is the ultimate means of power against the teacher as an authority figure and against the school principal who is responsible for providing education. But there are also other means of power that teachers and parents can use, for example, to report to the School Inspectorate. The customer in a market system has the right because the supplier has a financial interest in the customer choosing them. That is the ultimate student influence.

I think that Jörgen Grubb might be able to answer the question if I pose it like this: Does Jörgen Grubb mean that the system does not lead to a declining status for the teaching profession? Does Jörgen Grubb mean that it does not damage the authority of teachers in the classroom that students and parents have the right to take their school money and leave at any time?

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

Jörgen Grubb (SD)

Madam Speaker! We safeguard a free school choice, and this applies to any school whatsoever. I hear that Member Linus Sköld only speaks about one type of school, namely the independent schools. One can switch between municipalities' schools if one wishes. One can switch in any way - that is the school choice itself.

I actually do not know on what grounds students and parents choose a school. I do not know if Member Linus Sköld knows either, but normally one chooses a school where one sees that there is good order and where one receives a good education so that one can develop and move forward in the different stages, from primary school and perhaps to upper secondary school and even higher studies. It should be this that one prioritizes. Then I do not know how every unique individual thinks.

When it comes to what you, Linus Sköld, call free schools, market schools, or whatever expression you have, we in the government base are clear that we are going to establish clear requirements. There will be an investigation that shows this, and later a bill will come that we will seek a majority for in this chamber.

The Tidö Agreement specifies, for example, a sanction ladder with increased fines and sanction fees as well as dividend restrictions in the event of quality deficiencies. Dividend distribution shall not occur during the first two years, and there shall be better oversight both legally, economically, and pedagogically.

We are doing something that has not been done during your time, that is, your eight years. We will do this soon. I cannot say an exact date, but it will happen here in the chamber. The member will not be able to miss it.

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! I thought it was excellent that MP Grubb from the Sweden Democrats in the speaker's chair raised the issue of less administration. In order for us to have less administration, it is important to have a grip on things, and I am sure that the MP can give an excellent answer to this question: How do the MP and the Sweden Democrats intend for the administration to look when a teacher is to report that one of their students is undocumented and is to be thrown out of the country?

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

Jörgen Grubb (SD)

Madam Speaker! Thank you for the question, Member Paarup-Petersen! I do not know what that manual would look like, but I guess a teacher would probably go to their principal and manager and talk to them about it. Then I think the principal would handle it in some way.

I do not know exactly which manual or which form it is, or if the form is called K70, K80 or T3. I actually have no idea about it. I am sorry that I cannot provide a better answer.

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! It is good - we can state that the Sweden Democrats do not really have any answers when it comes to how it would be implemented. But there are others who actually have answers as to what the consequences of this would be.

At the same time as the Sverigedemokraterna are standing at the rostrum and talking about the teacher shortage, the trade unions for teachers, school leaders, and counselors, who were also mentioned at the rostrum in connection with those who are doing poorly in school, and even the psychologists, say that it is an absurd idea that the employees who are in Swedish schools to help children should suddenly be given a duty to report or a reporting obligation as part of their job.

This duty means that it is they who are to make the most fateful decision for the children, namely to throw them out of the country. This is suddenly to become the teacher's or the counselor's job. This is what the Sverigedemokraterna want Sweden's teachers, counselors, school leaders etcetera to spend their time on. These are the clear demands that Sverigedemokraterna want to see in Swedish school. The clearest demand on Swedish school in the Tidö Agreement is that teachers shall ensure that children are thrown out of Sweden. That is the absolutely clearest demand.

I guess that is the only one of the requirements introduced by the Sverigedemokraterna, and I guess that the others primarily come from the Liberalerna. I hope at least that requirement does not come from the Liberalerna.

How does Member Grubb think that the reporting obligation is going to get more teachers, more school leaders, more counselors, more psychologists etc. into Swedish schools, make Swedish schools better, make children feel better and make teachers feel better at their workplace? I would very much like to know that.

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

Jörgen Grubb (SD)

Madam Speaker! Thank you, Niels Paarup-Petersen, for the remark!

I do not know if this is the clearest part of the Tidö Agreement, but it does reveal the member's focus on the Tidö Agreement and, above all, on that which deals with the school.

We have a very great focus on many things and see this as a side issue compared to much else. I simply do not think that one should stay illegally in Sweden, and I believe that is what it is about. Period.

There are plenty of things that Member Niels Paarup-Petersen should talk more about. When it comes to the problems we have in today's school, the member's party has actually supported a government and its budgets for several years, a government that has not managed to solve major school problems, for example grade inflation, which has existed for quite a long time and which we all need to do something about.

Studiero, as I mentioned before, it has been extremely quiet about in this chamber. It is something that we must do something about. It is what my eyes catch on in the Tidö Agreement - a huge reform that provides peace and quiet in the classroom, something that affects hundreds of thousands of students and, of course, their teachers and other staff.

When it comes to the lack of literacy, I know that the members very much want to talk about digital aids. One can have such things, but now it is emerging that paper and pen are needed. I wish for us to have a great focus on that.

We have also talked about the teacher shortage.

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

Mathias Bengtsson (KD)

Madam Speaker! Today we are debating teachers and students - the very core of the school.

Teachers are crucial for students to feel well. It is all the very skilled teachers we have across the country who build the school strong. They are teachers with a warm heart and a firm hand who speak about what is right and wrong and how to treat others. They are the ones who create a school for children to long for. They are the ones who lay the foundation for a safer society and a safer Sweden.

We can all think back to our school days and think of a single teacher who meant extra much for how we enjoyed school and who had a decisive importance for our development as human beings. Sweden has many fantastically skilled teachers who, thanks to their subject knowledge, inspire students to more knowledge, who lead the class forward and who keep order in the classroom.

The teachers make an enormous contribution to society. Teachers who see the children, who care about the children and who help the children are absolutely crucial for how the children feel and for how they will fare later in life. The teachers do not just build people, they also build Sweden as a country.

Madam Speaker! Sweden's future is entirely dependent on the fact that the teachers who are highly skilled stay in the profession, but also that more people want to become teachers. In that case, we need to raise the eligibility requirements for teacher training programs to increase attractiveness, and we also need to raise the status of the profession. We need to get more academics to switch paths to becoming teachers, and we need to develop the career service reform so that skilled teachers can take new steps within the profession.

We need to make the teaching profession attractive also by relieving teachers in different ways. Reducing administration is one way, having specific mentors so that the teaching teachers can focus on the teaching itself, or reinforcing with special education teachers and student health services are other ways.

If the best teachers are to choose to stay in the profession, we must also once and for all deal with the disciplinary problems and the disorder that unfortunately exist in schools. It is important both to improve the teachers' working environment and so that they can focus more on the teaching itself.

The teacher's powers also need to be clear. Disciplinary measures such as seizure of items, expulsion, detention, temporary relocation, or in the worst case, suspension, must also be able to be used to a greater extent, precisely to maintain order in the school so that the students who are in the school shall feel safe, seen, and cared for. It is about having high expectations that the students shall actually be able to show respect for one another and the teachers.

Madam Speaker! Besides being a workplace environment problem, the insecurity naturally also creates problems for the students. It is clear that students who feel insecure easily fall behind. They find it difficult to keep up with the teaching. Furthermore, it affects mental health.

Too many young people suffer from mental ill-health today, and we therefore need to ensure that there is better accessibility to school health services, health centers, and child and adolescent psychiatry. The Christian Democrats have long pushed for exactly a school health guarantee, where students shall be guaranteed access to school health services every day.

We have also pointed out that the responsibility for student health needs to be reviewed. There would likely be several positive effects if the regions were given a collective responsibility for medical and psychosocial student health, while school nurses, school doctors, counselors, and school psychologists would, of course, still remain in the school activities but with a different responsible authority. This would ensure that no one falls through the cracks and could create better conditions for early detection of students who are unwell and students with neuropsychiatric disabilities.

The least one can demand, Madam Speaker, is at least that all school principals, until the responsibility is moved, should have a functioning cooperation agreement with the regions to ensure that no students fall through the cracks. Strengthening student health is absolutely crucial if we are to succeed in creating a school where no one is held back and no one is left behind.

There is also a lot of talk about an equal school, and there may vary slightly what is meant by that. Some may mean that schools should be essentially uniform without internal variations, while others, for example we Christian Democrats, are open to the idea that the common goal can be reached in different ways. Since every child is unique, different pedagogical paths are needed to give an individual child the best possible conditions to achieve their full potential.

It is clear, at least, that all schools in the entire country must be given the best possible conditions to help students avoid falling behind. Far too many students have fallen behind in recent years. Students do not always get their due, and the rowdiness and harassment cause many children to suffer and fall behind. In the worst case, students stop coming to school. The growing school absenteeism is an enormous problem.

It is difficult to say exactly how many students have a long and problematic absence precisely because there is a lack of national statistics from the heads of schools showing valid and invalid absence. We must know how extensive the problem with students staying at home is, and therefore I share the view that the work to produce a national absence statistic is important.

The attitude from heads of institutions expressing that nothing can be done because the student is not in school must not occur. Society has a responsibility to ensure that these children and young people are given the opportunity to develop and reach their full potential.

This requires that we better adapt the school's teaching to the individual students' prerequisites and needs. The inclusion idea, which implies that all students should be taught in exactly the same way in the same class, has gone a bit too far and leads to students suffering. Instead, we need to invest in more special teachers and special educators. We also need to give our school managements greater freedom to expand and design special teaching groups. The students who have the greatest support needs must also receive the support they need.

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

(Applause)

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! Thank you to Member Bengtsson! I appreciate the Member's commitment to school issues and the fine attitude towards people that is also conveyed.

Therefore, I would like to ask a question to the representative of the Christian Democrats, and it is the same question that I asked the Sweden Democrats. The question concerns this matter that teachers shall report children in the class. The teacher's most important job is to take care of the child, educate the child and move the child forward in life. That is the core of the teacher's job.

Is it positive for the development of the teaching profession, for the attractiveness of the teaching profession – not to mention the child's best interest, but that is another matter – that the teacher is tasked with being a reporter, is given a reporting obligation? Should the teacher take the child to the principal, according to the Sweden Democrats, possibly directly to the police, to say that the child does not deserve to be here, does not have the right to be in Sweden? That is the task of the police to perform. But now the Sweden Democrats, the Christian Democrats, the Liberals, and the Moderates want to give the assignment to Sweden's teachers. This also applies to the school counselors. When the child says that they feel unwell, the counselor asks why they feel unwell – and, by the way, I have to deport you. Is that a task that should lie with the school's staff? Do the Christian Democrats really believe so?

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

Mathias Bengtsson (KD)

Madam Speaker! Member Niels Paarup-Petersen knows very well that it is an investigation according to the Tidö Agreement. We will see what it concludes and which professional groups will be exempted. We can have the debate in the chamber then.

But if we are to make the teaching profession more attractive, we must reduce the administration regarding the bureaucratic writing of less far-reaching disciplinary measures. That is an example of how the administration can be reduced.

The municipalities need to take greater responsibility to reduce the administration. We need to take a collective grip to see which administrative burdens have been placed on teachers that can be reduced in scope. Teachers must be able to maintain order in the classroom. The disruption must be stopped. Teachers must be allowed to be just teachers. The teacher shall be the one who decides in the classroom, and teachers shall be given the powers that are required. There are many parts that are needed to strengthen the status of the teaching profession.

We will have to return to the question that the member is requesting once the investigation is complete. It is unwise to anticipate the events.

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Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! I can in some ways understand the member's reluctance to answer the question. It is not a pleasant question to receive.

I can understand that the question should be investigated, but it is a question of a deeply fundamental moral perception. It is not an investigation that decides right and morality. It is the question of the view on the teachers' task and role, what type of people become teachers. The Christian Democrats who signed the agreement must have had a perception of this. It appears from the agreement that the starting point is that this shall cover teachers.

But maybe they shouldn't do this - who knows. If we complain enough maybe they will be exempted. That is what we can hope for.

As a starting point, one must nevertheless expect that when one considers it reasonable to include this in an agreement, if one does not set the limits here, one must have assumed that it can still be purchased. If that is not the case, one must have reflected on the question.

Therefore, I want to ask the member a question once again. Does the member consider it reasonable that the teacher should be a teacher and at the same time be a snitch? It is a simple question.

I regret that it was English words that we are not allowed to use. I believe it is called tjallare or something like that. I must learn Swedish properly!

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Mathias Bengtsson (KD)

Madam Speaker! I thank Niels Paarup-Petersen for the question.

Avoiding the question? It is highly hypothetical. In the Tidö Agreement, several parties have negotiated an agreement. We have agreed that the issue shall be investigated. It is clear that I stand behind it being investigated. Then we will see which professional groups are exempted in that case. I look forward to debating the issue when the investigation is complete. To debate an issue at this stage that is not on the table and where we do not know what the investigation will conclude is not serious.

I understand that the Center Party would like to raise such an issue to hide that the government they have supported has seen to it that 16,000 students do not receive eligibility for upper secondary school, that teachers cannot maintain order in the classroom, that students do not get study time, that students fall behind. There are so many problems in the school that have become worse and worse in recent years. It is those problems we must focus on solving, and it is those problems we need to debate in the chamber.

We can take up any upcoming hypothetical proposals or investigations when they land on the table.

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

Daniel Riazat (V)

Madam Speaker! I want to buy a residence permit, but it is not possible.

I want to buy a residence permit, but it is not possible.

Murhaf Hamid's words cut to the heart - at least for those of us who are not suit-racists and still have a heart left. The latest reports say that he has now collected approximately 5 million kronor in favor of Majblommans Riksförbund. These are incredible figures. But behind the figures, there are things we need to talk about.

When I think of Murhaf, that is to say a schoolchild, several things come to mind.

Firstly: A schoolchild should never have to feel the uncertainty that Murhaf feels because he has not been granted a residence permit. Ask me! I know what the consequences of that uncertainty are: to constantly walk around with a stomach ache when going to school and to be worried every time one sees a police officer on the street. Or why not all the physical and mental traces that begin to appear in adulthood due to the stress many of us were exposed to as refugee children in Sweden?

Secondly: The adults who today subject Murhaf to racism may have a party that governs the blue-brown government, but we who stand for decency, solidarity and humanity will never let them win, regardless of how many suit-racists represent them.

And the third thought: Reflect on why organizations like Majblomman are needed more than ever! It is because class inequalities are increasing more in Sweden than in any other country and because more and more children go hungry. It is because the bourgeoisie would rather give Axfood's owners extra profits than ensure that parents can afford to buy food for their children or that schools can receive money to distribute free breakfast. It is because the right would rather make it possible for banks to take out billion-dollar profits than ensure all children's right to not have to worry about whether the parents can pay the next month's rent or not, so that they can concentrate on their school assignments instead of on the household's expenses.

Madam Speaker! We stand here today to speak about the committee report Teachers and students, and I intended to raise a subject where the Left Party has submitted a reservation. I move for the approval of reservation 20.

Both the School Inspectorate and the National Agency for Education have highlighted that there are deficiencies regarding the practice of assessing whether a student should study Swedish as a second language or not. Today, it is the principal who is to decide whether a student who belongs to the target group, and who is in need of instruction, shall be given instruction in Swedish as a second language. The assessment of the student's need for the subject shall be based on what best serves the student's language and knowledge development. In a report that the School Inspectorate produced in 2020, where the inspectorate has reviewed 30 schools, it is noted that only 8 have good routines for making high-quality assessments.

At a couple of schools, the School Inspectorate has, for example, seen that standardized assessments are made based on the fact that students have a foreign background and should therefore attend Swedish as a second language, which becomes completely unreasonable.

The Swedish Schools Inspectorate also notes that once an assessment has been made as to which subject a student should study, Swedish or Swedish as a second language, that assessment generally remains in place throughout the entire primary school period.

Furthermore, the School Inspectorate notes that it is more common for boys than for girls to be decided to study Swedish as a second language, but that the schools have not reflected on why that is the case.

The problems with the handling of Swedish as a second language are many, and several years of cuts and fewer qualified teachers due to market experiments have led to the quality of this handling having fallen. In addition to this come the problems with assessment that I have just mentioned.

Therefore, we from the Left Party believe that an investigation should be commissioned regarding Swedish as a second language in order to increase the equivalence and equality in the assessment of who should be covered by the subject.

The parties in the Sweden Democrats' government have, it seems from the latest debates, decided not to take replies to my speeches. Perhaps it is a coincidence. Perhaps it is because they do not want to discuss why the market school model has such negative consequences for students and teachers. It could be because they do not want to discuss their enormous betrayal towards the municipalities regarding state funding. It could be because they do not want to talk about the racist undertones that they have in Swedish school policy today, partly to divert focus from the two previous points I mentioned.

But in debate after debate, I shall force them to listen to the truth and to fact-based arguments.

Debate after debate, I shall speak about how the corrupt market experiment in schools has led to catastrophic consequences for schools all over the country and why it should be illegal for politicians and private school corporations to be as intertwined with each other as they are today.

Debate after debate, I will remind them how their austerity policy leads to teachers and school staff being forced to go on their knees to an even greater extent than they already do.

Debate after debate, I shall expose the racism that always emerges, partly because they differentiate between children based on skin color and religious affiliation, but also because they always present these proposals when the focus is to be diverted from the cuts in welfare in favor of tax cuts for billionaires.

An equal school is not created by reporting systems where teachers are expected to act as police. An equal school is not created by a hunt targeted at undocumented children. An equal school is not created by students coming to school hungry because the government's policy creates child poverty.

An equal school is created by a policy of cohesion. It is created by a policy where we see all children for what they are - children - and where we view the right to knowledge as a right for all children, regardless of where in the country they live, regardless of what mother tongue they have, and regardless of their parents' wallets.

Madam Speaker! Just before I was about to take the floor, I saw that a report has been released from the Total Defence Research Institute, FOI. I quote from an article in the newspaper Vi Lärare:

"The Swedish independent school system poses serious security risks to Swedish democracy. That is the conclusion of a report on foreign ownership in Swedish schools."

"It sounds like a spy novel, but antagonistic actors are working to weaken society," says the lawyer Maria Refors Legge at the Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI).

In this article and in the report, one can read about the great threat that the market experiment in Swedish schools poses to our entire society.

Even authorities such as the Total Defence Research Institute are going out and speaking about this as a threat to Swedish democracy. If one does not want to listen to 90 percent of the population and 97 percent of teachers, and if one refuses to listen to the researchers and everyone who works within the school system about why the market experiment in Swedish schools is wrong, then perhaps one can start listening to an authority such as FOI.

I want to conclude with the words that I have said once before here in this speaker's chair but which I obviously must say again: No people are illegal, and no children are illegal.

That they are is the consequence of the Tidö Agreement that exists now, but I will refuse to submit to that rhetoric. That is the entire Left Party. We will never accept the hostile and racist undertones that exist in this agreement.

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! I want to begin by moving for approval of reservation 23. Then, of course, we stand behind all our policies.

In these days, it is the time for spring budget amendments. All parties are working and considering what needs to be invested extra much in this year to ensure that, for example, the school receives the extra investments that are needed.

Let me say that for the Center Party, it is very clear that Sweden's teachers need increased focus here and now. As we are now discussing teachers and students, it is very appropriate, one might think.

That is why we have invested in a competence billion. The reason for that is that we fundamentally have an economic model in Swedish school, a school voucher model, which is dysfunctional. We have talked about this in the chamber I don't know how many times, and we really want to start tackling that issue.

Unfortunately, the fact is that the government time and again and again just pushes this ahead of itself. Still, nothing is happening. You have been in for half a year, and you haven't even started an investigation. On every single question concerning independent schools, you just answer that it will be in that investigation which might come at some point. That does not help Sweden's teachers now.

We want qualified teachers to be rewarded. Unfortunately, it does not appear to be particularly important for the government. But the principals and the schools that take great responsibility in the Swedish school system must be rewarded. If one employs qualified teachers instead of unqualified ones, one takes on a greater expense, and that should be rewarded. One takes more responsibility.

Others who take great responsibility are those who ensure that there are schools across the entire country, because if the whole country is to live, there must also be schools in the whole country. This is absolutely crucial for the Center Party. Therefore, we also invest 300 million kronor in the small schools. The government invests nothing.

We also want to see an initiative on that which there are discussions and many words about from the government, both here in the chamber right now and every day on Twitter and in debate articles etcetera: that the digital is a problem in school.

Yes, there are challenges with that. And we are submitting proposals. It is a tip for the government: It is better to submit proposals than to write debate articles and tweet if you want things done. It could be a hot tip for the future.

We have submitted a proposal to introduce a textbook committee that can ensure that all teaching materials in Swedish schools are actually checked by skilled people who can say that this is good, and this is bad.

Since then, it is naturally the Center Party's starting point that the teacher in the classroom themselves shall decide, usually together with the principal, which teaching materials the teacher shall use. The government would prefer to enter the classroom and decide exactly which teaching materials shall be used for what. That is not what we believe in.

We also want to legislate on the right to learning materials, because a bigger problem than them being digital is that they often do not exist. The digital is one or zero. I can say that it is also that if you have learning materials or not. It is quite a lot of yes or no. If you do not have learning materials, it is, after all, a bigger problem than if they are digital.

We also want to remove the requirement to read and write digitally in the lower primary school. The government can gladly do this immediately; it does not require much.

These are concrete proposals. The Government can take them, but they prefer to write opinion pieces. That makes no actual difference. Those are harsh words, but they make no difference. That is where we stand right now.

We heard Fredrik Malm, my dear colleague and the chairman of the Education Committee, say that we should dig where we stand. Where we stand right now is in an incredibly tough economic situation for Sweden's municipalities. Swedish schools are having a very hard time. And unfortunately, we have to conclude that the government chooses to do - nothing. Nothing is being done from the government's side. The government is not digging - it is just standing still. And I would guess that one doesn't even dare to answer the question of why one is not investing any money in the schools. It is known to be true; one does nothing.

It is said that the school is primarily a municipal responsibility. Yes, it is, fortunately. The state does not invest in it. The government has the opportunity to invest right now but does not do so. Is the best explanation for why the school should be state-run that the state does not invest? In the areas where the state has responsibility, such as the university college, they are cutting back.

We have huge problems. We lack money for the transition study support. I know that all the government parties, who are gathered on the same bench here right now, were in a meeting with Saco just today and were told that there is a lack of money for the transition study support. It doesn't work. People are standing in line; they cannot start their educations. Let us look at the budget - how much money was there? Nothing! This is the reality. This is, therefore, the answer to why it would be better if the state took over the school. The areas where the cuts are most severe when it comes to education are the government's, not the municipalities'.

Let me read from the budget motion that the government submitted last autumn. You can find this on page 16 of the budget motion, if you wish. In the budget for 2022, which among others the Centerpartiet voted for, with agony, the amount is 95 473 000 000. That is quite a lot of money, about 95 ½ billion. In the budget that the Liberalerna and others have now submitted, the amount is 94 992 000 000, that is to say less than 95 billion. It is half a billion less in the 2023 budget than it was in the budget motion that was submitted in 2022. This is, therefore, in the government's own budget, on page 16. It is simply a matter of reading!

Then the Liberals say here: It is historical. Even the Minister for Education said this earlier: This is historical. In the previous budget for 2022, it was also pointed out what was to be done in 2023. What the old government submitted for 2023, which we voted for, was 300 million kronor higher in the education area than what this government has now submitted in its budget. It is historical.

What is it that is historical? Yes, it is certainly historical that the Liberals are cutting back on investments in Swedish school. It is surely the first time the Folkpartiet/Liberals have cut the funding for Swedish school; that is what I would guess.

What is completely incredible, in my opinion, is that the Liberals are not only dancing to a xenophobic tune, are silent when the government considers mass surveillance of the entire society, raise the tax on labor, hinder farm sales, and are not liberals—that we knew that—but now also cut into Swedish school and the entire education system. The Liberals are not even people's party members anymore! That is where we stand today. It is a disgrace.

We have so far in the debate heard things such as that mandatory reporting and informing are something hypothetical, according to the Christian Democrats, who do not even dare to say what the starting points are for the investigation that is to be appointed. One cannot answer questions about the investigation; I understand that, because it does not exist yet. But there are starting points. The investigation must be told what it is to come to. One could write in the investigation's directives that the starting point is that teachers shall not have this obligation. One can say that here in the speaker's chair, if that is what one thinks. But one does not dare to say it, because one surely does not think so.

It is according to the Sweden Democrats a trivial matter that all teachers should change their view of the students sitting in front of them in the classroom. They should not only see them as children and as vessels to be filled with knowledge. They should not only see them as persons they should take care of and comfort if they cry. They should also see them as persons they should report to society so that they can be kicked out of society. It is not a trivial matter for Sweden's teachers, which the union is very clear about.

This is the reality; that is where we stand right now. That is where we are digging. The government is currently digging a large pit under Swedish school.

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

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! The Centre Party has, in the report we are now debating, a reservation with the meaning that one wants newly arrived students to be able to study the core subjects in school even in their mother tongue. This is a fundamentally very important issue, I would say. It is about what view one has of the Swedish language and its role for integration. I believe it would be very unfortunate to do as the Centre Party wants.

It is also fundamentally important because it concerns the view on newly arrived students and their rights. They have, in fact, the same right as all other students to receive instruction from qualified teachers.

I have two questions for the Centre Party in connection with this proposal. We are talking here about perhaps between 50 and 100 different languages that the Centre Party believes the Swedish school should organize subject teaching in. In the reservation, it states that it concerns the core subjects, and on the Centre Party's website, it even says subject teaching, which is even broader. Who is going to teach these students? Do these teachers exist today? These students have the right to receive instruction from qualified teachers, who in addition must be bilingual – and it concerns all the different mother tongues that newly arrived people in Sweden have.

The second question, Madam Speaker, is: Why should the group that needs the Swedish language the most, namely those who have been here for a short time and have not learned Swedish, study Swedish the least in the Center Party's school?

I find it very difficult to see how this is supposed to work organizationally and why it would be desirable. I believe there is a very deep divide here regarding how we view the Swedish language, integration, and teaching.

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! I thank you for the question. We note once again that the Liberals do not focus so much on the policy that is actually to be pursued, the government's policy, but instead take up an individual committee motion - that is a specific terminology here in the Riksdag.

The purpose is stated in the motion: We must strengthen the education of newly arrived children and ensure that they learn Swedish faster. They need to meet students who have Swedish as their mother tongue, etcetera.

We are in complete agreement that it is absolutely crucial that all children attending Swedish schools learn Swedish as quickly and as well as possible. But the government has indeed appointed an inquiry into mother tongue instruction, because it is not working today. That is what we agree on. It does not work as it does today – it is not good enough. We are in complete agreement that there are problems with mother tongue instruction. And we want to increase the proximity to the Swedish language.

But okay, let's say it like this: It might be a bad idea. Then we make it so that I tear the proposal apart. Get rid of it! It is not important to me. I can throw it away. It is not crucial for me that we do so. What is completely crucial is that the children learn Swedish faster. If that can be achieved with other proposals, I am completely open to this.

It is very good that mother tongue instruction is being investigated. Let us look at what is concluded to be the best ways! These are the proposals that have been submitted; we are open to others as well. The decisive thing is that we move forward so that children who come here learn Swedish faster.

This is our priority - and that the school actually works overall, and then more money needs to come in. And Fredrik Malm and the government are cutting the money for Swedish school. It is still the core of what we are talking about here today.

So let us forget this proposal! Let us remove it - no problem at all - and instead look at how we can do this better! And then more resources are needed for Swedish school.

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

Fredrik Malm (L)

Madam Speaker! I thought that the Centre Party was a popular movement that makes its decisions democratically. But here, a decision is bypassed simply by tearing up a piece of paper.

I note, however, Madam Speaker, that Niels Paarup-Petersen only ten minutes ago stood in the other speaking chair and stated that he stood behind all the party's reservations. What is entered into the minutes is not about whether one tears up a piece of paper, but rather what one moves for approval in the speaking chair and what one says in one's speech.

It is also so, Madam Speaker, that Niels Paarup is mixing up two things here. Mother tongue instruction is one thing. It is about children who have a mother tongue other than Swedish being able to receive instruction in that language. What the Center Party proposes is something completely different, namely that newly arrived children should not have to read subjects such as Swedish, English, mathematics or other core subjects in Swedish but be able to read them in their mother tongue. I mean that it is a very large change of a very important principled character.

We are talking here about dozens of different languages. We do not have qualified teachers in all these subjects. We do not have teaching materials. How are we to quality-assure the teaching?

This Niels Paarup-Petersen waves away and says that the Liberals do not want to talk about what is important. No, I am talking about what is in the report. There happens to be a reservation from the Center Party concerning this. Therefore, I would like to know how the Center Party intends to proceed.

There is a subject in this context, namely the newly arrived children and young people. It is they who are important here. They actually have the right, just like all other students in Swedish school, to receive instruction from qualified teachers.

I wonder: Where are all these teachers? Can Niels Paarup-Petersen tell us where they are, who is training them, and which teaching materials are to be used? We are failing generations of newcomers if we were to carry this out. I think it is quite serious.

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

Niels Paarup-Petersen (C)

Madam Speaker! If Member Malm does not know who trains teachers, I can tell you that it is the teacher education college, which is under state responsibility. Criticism has been put forward regarding deficiencies in teacher training, which is also stated on the same page in the committee report.

No, we probably do not have enough teachers for this. Therefore, we need to investigate whether this is a good idea or not. But in contrast to Fredrik Malm and the rest of the Tidö government, we want to examine if it is a good idea. We want to check if it is something that is sensible. It might not be. It is not more dangerous than that.

It might be a bad idea. Then we do not carry this out. It is not harder than that.

We know that mother tongue instruction is not good. But those who take a long time to learn Swedish can be helped by also receiving mathematics instruction in another language. It is probably not so bad.

The difference when it comes to the newly arrived and those who cannot speak Swedish is that we are trying to find solutions that make Swedish school as good as possible for them. Therefore, we are also investing more money in specifically qualified teachers, which the member highlights concretely. We are investing money to get more teachers. We are investing in qualified teachers. We are investing everything we can to ensure that Swedish school is staffed by good and capable teachers.

We are trying to see what options exist so that mother tongue instruction can improve in order to ensure that the children who are here - they will stay here, regardless of what the Sweden Democrats think - actually learn the Swedish language as quickly as possible. If we have presented some ideas that are not perfect, we do not need to implement them. The decisive factor is the effect.

We are humble enough to say: Let us take what is best regardless of who it comes from!

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

Camilla Hansén (MP)

Mr. Speaker! The teaching profession is the most important profession we have. It is the world's most important work.

Each one of us sitting here in the chamber can, here and now, conjure up the image of a teacher who has meant something special and shaped us into the people we have become today. There may also be teachers out there – perhaps not now when the clock is past 9 – who know that they have a student sitting in the Riksdag's Education Committee, and they are, at best, a little proud of that too.

As a teacher, I can attest that it is also special for teachers. One remembers the students who shaped oneself into who one is today. It can be about having done something good. It can be moments where one could have been much better. But it is relationships that we have for our whole lives.

And this applies to all professions in the school. The consideration concerns teachers and students, but it applies to all professions in the school.

Miljöpartiet wants more people to dream of becoming teachers. It is about being the one who meets the children at the preschool and sees them grow and conquer a language and several languages, social skills, and knowledge about the world in the large and the small. It is about seeing them go from drawing stick figures to becoming full-fledged artists, as some young people are. It is about seeing them go via cardboard books and perhaps not the highest quality literature during the book-devouring age to become novel readers, poetry readers, and non-fiction book readers. It is about seeing someone carefully write their name for the first time, perhaps with some letter mirrored, to then develop into a person who can write to think and understand.

Preschool and school are for the students. Actually, one could say in a more lofty way that school is for building a sustainable society and that school is for all those who will meet today's young people when they are adults and use their knowledge to build our society. I want to say this so that we remember that education is a societal mission that concerns everyone, not just the teachers and students who happen to be in school right now. It is important so that everyone can get as good opportunities as possible to live a safe and good life. But that feels a bit too abstract, so I will get straight to the point: Preschool, school, and all forms of schooling are for the students.

Yesterday, Joanna Lewerentz and I invited [people] to a seminar together with the parents' network Rätten till utbildning, which has a campaign called En skola för alla. The one who made the biggest impression on me was the high school student Hanna, who told how she had been in school hell but has now ended up in school heaven at a school where she is seen for who she is and not for her diagnosis or her grades. She feels seen as a human being. She loves her school and longs to go there.

I thought that it is still the least one can ask for - to be able to feel that one longs for school and to be able to feel that one longs for work if one is a teacher. The seminar concerned children with neuropsychiatric functional variations, but what Hanna describes is something all students should be able to feel.

The government has, in the spring budget, allocated extra money to improve education for children and students with neuropsychiatric disabilities. That is good and important. But we all see the obvious risk that the investment will not reach all children and students who need to receive it. The government is starving municipalities and regions, and it will cost lives and health among our children and young people. The investment the government is now making is less than the cuts my own municipality told yesterday that it now needs to make in preschool and primary school.

Miljöpartiet wants to invest in student health. We want to invest in school healthcare, and we want to invest in the teachers so that they can provide the students with the support they need.

Mr. Speaker! The school shall give all students equally good opportunities, regardless of where they come from, regardless of which parents they have, and regardless of what strengths and interests they have. Miljöpartiet wants to give the school more resources and ensure that resources are distributed to a greater extent according to need.

We want, among other things, to establish an equality grant for preschools, similar to the one we have already pushed through for schools. Fully expanded, it shall come to all preschools but be distributed based on a socioeconomic index. These equality billions can be used to both hire more educators, raise wages, offer staff better professional development, and increase the availability of special educators based on local needs. More children shall get more time with skilled preschool teachers.

This is something else than the starvation diet the government gives the municipalities when one is not involved in sharing the burden that inflation and skyrocketing prices entail.

SKR pleaded before the spring budget for long-term decisions regarding state grants to enable long-term planning for municipalities and regions. Miljöpartiet was the only party that, in its budget for the current year, compensated municipalities and regions so that they could maintain the level of operations.

We do not want to cut back on welfare. Therefore, we have today announced that the general state grants in our autumn budget will be 24 billion during next year - what municipalities and regions say they need. It is about building a strong society together.

I also note in this debate that the party putting the most money on the table for Swedish schools is Miljöpartiet. I must assume that means if our budget had passed, it would have been a historic investment.

Finally, I want to speak about something that is not written much about in the report - student democracy. The school is, as I said, for the students. Education shall be designed in accordance with fundamental democratic values. There, the students' rights and opportunity for influence are important, but it is about more than that. It is about truly living and acting in an everyday life where one has influence over one's situation and where one learns democratic values not by reading about them in a printed book but by applying them and by living them. It is about being tested in discussions and with arguments and about being able to say one's opinion. It is about students being experts at being students, and we need their knowledge to organize the school in the way they need.

Mr. Speaker! I want more students to get time with skilled teachers. I want more students to look forward to the next school day because it is fun to learn and to develop. I want more to dream of becoming teachers and more to want to work in schools - Sweden's most important workplace.

I conclude by moving for approval of reservation 24 regarding investing in school health, school healthcare, and teachers so that they can provide the students with the support they need.

The deliberation was hereby concluded.

(A decision was to be made on 3 May.)

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