The Kingdom's Board

Matheus Enholm (SD)

Madam Speaker! I begin by moving to approve the committee's proposal for a decision.

KU may not be the committee that has the most debates here in the chamber. This is my first for this autumn and probably also my last before Christmas. Therefore, I want to start by thanking all colleagues in the committee for a good job during the year. I also want to extend a big thank you to the administrative staff for a very skillful job.

When expenditure area 1 is debated, it is sometimes pointed out that area 1 in this context has a rather small amount of money, but that for that reason it is not unimportant. I truly agree with that.

What we are talking about is the state's management, i.e., the part of the state apparatus that includes the parliament, the government, the head of state, and other related functions. If the resources for these bodies are not well-balanced, how can the other parts of the public sector function? At the same time, it is true that we as politicians should not give more money to ourselves - or to authorities whose tasks one can question - than what is actually needed. Every wasted tax crown is, as everyone knows, a theft from the people.

That the opposition and the government base prioritize and justify differently is not strange, but that is how it works and should work in a democracy. That the budget proposals year after year are quite similar in size of expenditure can still be said to be an indication that Swedish democracy is alive and is quite healthy.

Madam Speaker! I want to make a few observations regarding the budget that has now been negotiated by the Tidö parties.

The monarchy constitutes a central part of Sweden's cultural heritage and plays an important role as a unifying symbol for our society. We should be proud that in this ever-changing world we can preserve our traditions, as a cornerstone for a stable and secure society.

During 2023, the King and the Royal Family carried out a total of 982 program points. An important event was, for example, the commemoration of it being 500 years since Gustav Vasa was elected King and 50 years since the King became head of state.

In order to be able to carry out necessary security measures in the Royal Court and Palace Administration's activities as a result of the deteriorated security situation, and in order to be able to carry out measures aimed at preserving and managing cultural heritage and environments within the Royal Court and Palace Administration's activities, the appropriations are increased so that they amount to 190 million in 2025 and 194 million in 2026.

The Swedish Royal Court is unfortunately not the only one that needs to strengthen security. We also need to do so here in the Riksdag, which we unfortunately notice a need for more and more often. The Riksdag Administration is therefore allocated funds for this. IT security, property management, and surveillance will be strengthened.

A slightly happier piece of news is that Sweden will hold the presidency of the Nordic Council next year. To meet the requirements that this entails, an increase of the grant by 3.4 million is proposed. It is both good and important that the Nordic cooperation is deepened.

Another small but happy piece of news is that the travel grants for schools are increasing. In context, it might be a small amount of money, but this leads to more young people being able to come to the Riksdag and experience the democratic process that takes place here on-site.

Participation in the democratic process is very important. Democracy begins with the young. But democracy is realized through the general elections. We therefore strengthen Valmyndigheten with 95 million kronor. This shall primarily go towards making the IT systems robust and secure and towards making the new hires that are needed. After changes in the electoral act aimed at making the general elections safer and more accessible, a further reinforcement of approximately 13 million was also needed, which we are adding to the agency.

Madam Speaker! I have now gone through some of the points I wanted to raise and which we coalition parties have agreed upon in the budget in our area. My colleagues in the committee will surely tell more about their – or our – priorities in their statements. But I will stop there.

(Applause)

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

Ida Karkiainen (S)

Madam Speaker! The Social Democrats are presenting their own budget alternative which is to be seen as a whole. Therefore, we now refrain from taking a position and instead present a specific statement regarding the expenditure area we are now debating. This concerns expenditure area 1 The State's Administration.

Before we go into that, I want to say a few general words about where we stand.

It is the midpoint of the parliamentary term. From the government parties, they highlight how things are brightening on the horizon, how inflation has been fought, how the work line is being strengthened, and how growth is set to pick up. From us in the opposition, you will hear how gang violence is creeping down into the younger ages, how the government has created a national healthcare crisis, how unemployment is at a record high, how Sweden's growth is among the worst in all of Europe, and how irresponsible it is to, in a severe cost-of-living crisis for ordinary people, invest in unfunded tax cuts for the most well-off.

From the party politics, it is nothing new. Sometimes it can be reassuring with an honest left-right conflict in Swedish politics, especially when the rest of the world is shaking.

If we lift our eyes slightly, we can observe that 120 million people are fleeing war, armed conflict, and persecution. Every fifth child in the world lives in or flees from conflict. The economic consequences of the pandemic weigh on many people even today. Democracy has retreated in the world, and authoritarian forces are spreading.

In this context, a budget debate within expenditure area 1 may seem insignificant. The state budget totals approximately 1,400 billion, and the very area we are now discussing covers just over 20 billion. It is small but fundamental. Therefore, we are also, broadly across party lines, in agreement on many things in the budget. This provides a stability in perhaps our democracy's most fundamental institutions. But on some points we are not in agreement, and those I wish to account for.

Madam Speaker! I return to the economic situation in Sweden. As has been said, it continues to be economically tough times. Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson said in a debate last week here in the rostrum: "A household must plan its expenses and cannot use more money than it has, and in difficult times many need to turn over every krona for the economy to balance. The state must also do this, and therefore we make tough prioritizations, such as reducing aid." She further said: "We are also streamlining the state's operations and reducing the number of agencies. This ability to prioritize is lacking on the other side of politics, which I regret."

Let me then, Madam Speaker, state that savings do not apply to the government's own activities. In the budget, there are large appropriation increases for the Government Offices. The budget for 2025 is almost 700 million kronor higher than the one for 2024. One can look at this over the parliamentary term. The appropriation increase that has been announced for 2025 is, compared to the budget appropriation for 2022, 2.3 billion higher. It is an increase of almost 30 percent. Even if an increased appropriation can be justified, not least as a consequence of increased security requirements and of the general wage and cost calculation, a 30 percent increase over a parliamentary term appears too large against the background of the economic situation, which places large savings requirements on welfare when it comes to municipalities and regions, which are under heavy economic pressure.

Madam Speaker! Another point where we are not in complete agreement concerns minority policy. Minority policy has long been sidelined and left without increased resource allocation. We see, unlike the government, a need for strengthened resources. One starting point is an increase of 10 million kronor in basic grants for 2025, so that the minority organizations can at least have employed staff. That is one thing.

The second thing, which is truly serious, is that the government is drastically reducing the appropriations for language centers for the minority languages. The uncertainty regarding the future is great.

Madam Speaker! I was born in Tornedalen. Here live people who still carry a shame over having Finnish or meänkieli as a mother tongue - because of the prevailing Swedishification policy. It prohibited people from speaking Finnish or meänkieli, for example during school breaks, and in its extreme forms, it punished children with violence. Many of us in my generation have lost the language as a result of it. It is a great sorrow.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission for the Torneviens, Kvens, and Lantalaiset has performed solid work in collecting stories and confirming the Torneviens history, but now the state must show that it is prepared to settle the history. It is not enough to print the truth commission's work in a popular version as a brochure. More actions are required.

Madam Speaker! Many civil society organizations experience an increased threat against their activities, against premises, and against representatives. Religious communities, in particular, are exposed to threats and violence. There is information about congregations that allocate as much as 25 percent of their budget to security measures. World events and ongoing conflicts have also affected the security for religious groups in Sweden. Protecting civil society organizations is obviously primarily the police's task, but there are many simpler security-enhancing measures that can be taken to make the activities safer. Here, the organizations themselves have many good suggestions. We therefore want to strengthen them in that work by providing more support for precisely that security-enhancing work.

Madam Speaker! Last week, the Committee on the Constitution visited the Jewish Central Council and the Jewish community here in Stockholm. We touched upon the issue of freedom of religion but also what measures are needed to promote Jewish life in Sweden. Freedom of religion is an absolute right and has a strong protection in our constitution. When it is threatened in the form of those who, for example, want to disturb a holiday or threaten people on their way to a synagogue, the state must do everything it can to strengthen the activities and security.

That antisemitism in 2024 still occurs and is furthermore increasing in society is completely unacceptable. We therefore propose, as said, that additional funds are allocated to security-enhancing measures but also to the preventive. So that more people can create an understanding of history, so that it never repeats itself again, we want more people to be able to participate in the memorial trips to the sites of the Holocaust.

Madam Speaker! We oppose the reduction of media support that the government proposes in the budget bill for 2025 and propose instead that an additional 50 million kronor be allocated to media support. In many parts of the country, the economic conditions for advancing journalism are challenging. Therefore, it was good that a new media support was put in place some time ago. At the same time, we see that the risks we warned about when the support was introduced now appear to have become a reality. The emphasis on geographical distribution has led to the media diversity at a national level being deprioritized and that several media outlets that previously received support have now been left without. Kvartal, Hemmets vän, and Altinget are just a few examples of media outlets that have contributed to journalistic diversity with different socio-political perspectives, angles, and news valuations. We also see how a large part of the local newspapers, which was the central thing to protect when the new support was established, have made decisions to shut down their operations. We therefore see a need for the evaluation that is to take place in connection with the budget bill for 2027 to be moved forward, so that media outlets that could have survived do not disappear unnecessarily.

Madam Speaker! In our budget alternative, there are also proposals to fund the Institute for Human Rights to the level that was intended for the institute. The Government lacks 18 million for this purpose. Strengthening human rights should be a priority for the Government, especially as we see a negative development in several areas, including when it comes to rights for persons with disabilities.

Madam Speaker! Corruption eats human rights for breakfast, it is often said. Sweden belongs to the world's top countries with the least corruption when comparisons are made, but we are not exempt. The work against corruption must constantly proceed, and there are worrying trends, not least linked to organized crime that infiltrates the welfare systems. Recently, we have been able to read how criminals run HVB homes, how contracts in public procurements are awarded to unscrupulous companies, and how personal assistance is exploited as a money tap for the criminal economy. Letting the market into the publicly tax-funded activities has entailed great risks, and we now see how our money feeds organized crime. We must put an end to the failed market policy.

Madam Speaker! I have one last thing I want to say, and I apologize for exceeding the speaking time. Despite our political differences, which are often portrayed as great, I want to emphasize that the Committee on the Constitution is a committee where we speak to each other in a respectful manner and even try to bridge the differences. In a strong democracy, we show divisions but are also able to compromise. So far, we are doing that, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank my committee colleagues and the committee secretariat.

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

Louise Meijer (M)

Madam Speaker! Let me begin this speech on expenditure area 1 The Government's Administration with a somewhat broader perspective. Our budget area in the Committee on the Constitution is one piece of many that make up the entire state budget. Let me therefore begin by commenting on the whole just like this halfway through the parliamentary term.

Just over two years ago, the Moderaterna and the coalition parties took over responsibility for a country that was facing several severe crises simultaneously. Double-digit inflation, sky-high electricity and fuel prices, and high interest rates pressured households. We inherited an exclusion that had been allowed to grow for decades and a school system in crisis. We inherited a Sweden with a system-threatening gang criminality that had just hit its record in fatal shootings. It was a Sweden that had for a long time become both poorer and more dangerous.

Madam Speaker! Since the autumn of 2022, we have worked hard step by step to implement the Tidö Agreement and thereby make Sweden wealthier and safer. With the budget that the Moderate-led government is now presenting, we strengthen the idea that every person who is in Sweden shall be self-sufficient. A survey shows that one in four adults of working age does not support themselves through work. Therefore, we strengthen the incentives to work and increase the requirements for self-sufficiency. It is well worth mentioning that a family consisting of a police officer and a nurse will receive approximately 9,000 more in their pocket next year.

We are making massive efforts and investments to push back crime, gangs, and violence against women. Effective crime fighting, more police, and higher penalties are important for this – and of course, choking the criminal economy and stopping the recruitment of young people through preventive measures. Added to this are investments in fossil-free energy, defense, and not least Ukraine.

Madam Speaker! The Moderate-led government is now presenting a budget that, quite simply, makes the streets safer and the wallet larger. We took over government power in a Sweden that had become poorer and more dangerous. The growth rate was among the lowest in the EU, and the rate of violence development was among the highest. We received the voters' mandate to reverse that development. Step by step, reform by reform and budget by budget, we are doing just that.

How does this then relate to the government board, expenditure area 1 and the Committee on the Constitution? Well, with the Tidö Agreement, we secure the principle of popular sovereignty: that all public power in Sweden emanates from the people. It is a principle that the Committee on the Constitution is accustomed to discussing and analyzing. For this purpose, in order to be able to implement this budget and in order to be able to implement the reforms for which we received a mandate, we are allocating an extra 300 million kronor to the Government Offices.

Madam Speaker! What does expenditure area 1 look like exactly? In this expenditure area, one finds the money that the government spends on the Head of State, the Riksdag Administration, the Parliamentary Ombudsmen, the National Audit Office, the Sami Parliament and Sami policy, the Government Offices, the County Administrative Boards, democracy policy, human rights and national minorities. In total, we spend approximately 20 billion on this. This is a budget area that in many ways maintains and develops our democracy and the rule of law. From an international perspective, we would see that democracy and the rule of law in many cases are heading in the wrong direction. Not least, we are closely following the developments in Georgia.

Madam Speaker! Here at home, one of our constitutions, the Instrument of Government, turned 50 years old this year. When the new Instrument of Government was introduced, arguments were made as to whether it would contain a separation of powers or not. The Committee on the Constitution had at that time, as it does now, a Social Democratic chairman, Hilding Johansson. He said then: "It definitely belongs to the past to build up a constitution so that different state organs shall balance each other to prevent extensive state activity or that the central part of the constitution shall be to protect the individual against state activity."

The Moderate Party's chairman Gösta Bohman, on the other hand, had a different view on the separation of powers. He said: "Every exercise of power must be controlled and balanced, even the democratic one. And the democratic power must be monitored not only through the democratic system itself but also by building in specific restrictive rules within it."

The Moderates' position, that is, that Sweden shall offer a strong protection for fundamental freedoms and rights, still applies. That is precisely why it is worth noting that already in 2021, that is before the change of government in 2022, the Moderates wanted to add 10 million more than the Social Democrats to the Government Offices to finance an inquiry into individuals' freedoms and rights and the independence of the courts.

Both of these investigations have now been initiated, and the work on these is intended to strengthen our individual freedoms and rights and thereby strengthen democracy and the rule of law. And I am proud of the Moderate-led government's work to strengthen precisely the Swedish rule of law.

Mr. Speaker! Under expenditure area 1 lies also the minority policy. Since October 7 last year, it is a minority here in Sweden that has suffered seriously. No other minority or group in Sweden has seen such an acute deterioration of their opportunities to live an open and free life in such a short time as the Jews.

Racism and intolerance are naturally reprehensible regardless of against whom or which groups this is directed. But antisemitism holds a special position. No other group faces hatred and threats from so many sides simultaneously – from neo-Nazism, right-wing extremism, and autonomous violence-promoting left, but also from Islamism and an antisemitism with roots in the Middle East.

Due to this situation, large parts of the membership fees that the organizations receive are used to manage just the security. That was also why the government in the previous budget, i.e., the one applicable for the current year, allocated money for security-enhancing measures. We are doing that again now. Now we are adding an additional 10 million kronor in permanent funds that are earmarked for Jewish organizations for work with security in the short term. We are also adding 10 million to strengthen Jewish life here in Sweden. The government also continues the investments in memorial trips to the sites of the Holocaust in order to provide deepened knowledge about the Holocaust and about the Nazi regime's crimes against Jews, Roma, and other groups.

In the short term, we need to work with security and safety regarding the Jews' situation in Sweden. But in the long term, we must strengthen the possibility for the Jews to live a free and open life in Sweden. Let us hope that next year's 250th anniversary of Jewish life here in Sweden becomes just such a turning point.

Mr. Speaker! The last thing I want to comment on is the appropriation to the county administrative boards. We are now increasing it by 180 million, and the majority of these funds go towards strengthening the work with civil defense. In the time we live in, total defense and therein civil defense is completely necessary, and the investments in this are therefore urgent.

With this said, I would like to wish everyone in the committee, both colleagues and members as well as the secretariat staff, Merry Christmas and thank you for a good cooperation. Just as the committee chair recently said, I hope that the spring's work will also be characterized by consensus and a search for agreements and mutual understanding as we enter the exciting spring review.

I vote in favor of the proposal in the report.

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

Jessica Wetterling (V)

Mr. Speaker! Not so long ago, I had dinner with an acquaintance in Gothenburg. After a pleasant dinner, we were to part ways at the central station. Then she began to adjust her coat and tied it tightly. Then she asked me if her collar was visible.

To be honest, I was quite taken aback. I couldn't really understand why she asked the question - in Gothenburg, in a place where everyone is nice and where I have always felt safe.

Mr. Speaker! When one has experienced and been questioned as a national minority throughout one's entire life, and when one the day before has listened to a seminar on whether one is a privileged minority or a vulnerable indigenous people, it is perhaps not so strange that one feels insecure and vulnerable in our public spaces in a way that many of us in the majority society find difficult to relate to.

Many testimonies come from our minorities regarding both the vulnerability that is felt and the racism that is directed towards them. Most recently last week, as mentioned, the Committee on the Constitution visited the Jewish congregation here in Stockholm and met with Jewish representatives. It was a meeting that felt particularly important given the antisemitism in society and how it has increased over the past year and been directed broadly towards the Jewish minority.

One thing of many that I took away from this meeting was the importance of knowledge and education, because it gives us in the majority society the tools to resist the racism and the prejudices that individuals spread against our minorities. Our national minorities and other minorities in our society should never have to stand alone in the vulnerability they find themselves in.

In the Left Party's budget proposal, we also allocate the funds required to implement the proposals from the investigation National strategy to strengthen Jewish life in Sweden.

Mr. Speaker! The goal should be, and must be, that everyone who lives in Sweden should, of course, feel safe and included in our society, where our diversity and our differences are seen as the strengthening wealth that they are and where our different cultures are met with respect.

Almost exactly 25 years ago, this Riksdag decided that Sweden would join the Council of Europe's Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. It was in December 1999. In Sweden, we have had five nationally recognized minorities since then and also a recognized indigenous people - the Sámi. It is binding. And the state has special obligations towards them, especially when it comes to protecting and developing the minorities' languages and culture. Especially the difficult situation for our minority languages requires proper efforts from the state. The state has, in fact, successfully pursued a policy of assimilation historically, just as the committee chairman previously spoke about.

Unfortunately, one cannot say that this government holds the banner particularly high, despite a 25th anniversary. The language centers that exist for each minority are now facing a very uncertain future. And the government chooses to withdraw the language initiatives of over 40 million that have existed and simultaneously tries to claim that the total new sum of 8.5 million is in practice intended to be an initiative. Furthermore, the Sami language center is to be included and share these 8.5 million. Previously, they received their own grant.

I find it difficult to believe that those who belong to our national minorities and the employees at the language centers, who are now becoming fewer, agree. Furthermore, the government also withdrew the funding for the pan-Nordic linguistic organization Sámi Giellagáldu, which is run by the Sami Parliaments in Norway, Finland, and Sweden. For next year, the activities are saved, as the Sami Parliament instead uses a part of its meager grant for funding. This action is actually quite embarrassing and shameful. I can quote the Chairman of the Sami Parliament's Board, Håkan Jonsson, who said this: "These are catastrophic figures being reported by the government. This will mean major cuts to the language work."

Mr. Speaker! One cannot say that it was not known what consequences this budget would have and how it will affect all national minorities. We in Vänsterpartiet believe that the work for the national minorities must be developed, not dismantled, and therefore reject the substantial cuts that the government is making. In total, we are investing over 150 million more in the appropriation for measures for national minorities.

It can be stated that the priorities of the government and the Sweden Democrats in the budget after two years in power are clear: Instead of facilitating things for households, healthcare, schools, and elderly care, they are implementing tax cuts for the rich. Point by point, the government fails to handle the serious societal problems we are in the midst of, and large groups seem to be invisible to the government's base. They completely ignore the problems that affect those who have difficulty making their everyday finances work.

With the government's and the Sweden Democrats' budget, inequality increases. The growing unemployment is left without measures, and the climate transition is put on hold. Furthermore, the cuts within welfare continue. The Left Party's budget proposal stands instead for a policy that truly handles these social problems and protects those who are in the worst position.

Mr. Speaker! I think the chair of the committee went through the investments that the government chooses to make in its budget in an exemplary manner. I can only agree and say that from the Left Party's side, we also reject the horrible increases in the appropriation to the Government Offices.

We as a party naturally also need to make priorities in our budget proposal, and one of the priorities we choose to make is to lower the salary for members of Parliament. Instead, we allocate funds to strengthen the Sámi Parliament, establish a national stage for Sápmi and, as mentioned, implement the strategy to strengthen Jewish life in Sweden.

We also maintain the special appropriation for the national minority Roma. If we are to fulfill the goal that Sweden has set regarding achieving Roma inclusion by 2032, this government needs to speed up its work. That criticism can unfortunately also be directed at the previous government, which reduced the appropriation to essentially only cover one position at the County Administrative Board in Stockholm County - which was to conduct an evaluation of why the work had not progressed. It is a bit embarrassing.

I see that my speaking time is running out. The last thing I particularly want to highlight in the Left Party's budget is the issue of media support. In our budget, we allocate half a billion more than the government to media support, but more than money is required. New guidelines are obviously also required to strengthen the diversity criterion. It is sad that what we from the opposition warned about is now being implemented.

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

Larry Söder (KD)

Mr. Speaker! I would like to begin by moving for approval of the committee's proposal so that I have done that.

The subject of today's debate is the budget for the state's administration, an area where we actually take large parts for granted. Here one finds a large part of our country's democratic system: the head of state, the government and the Riksdag, as well as the support for both the political parties and the election organization as well as the independent oversight institutions the Parliamentary Ombudsman, the Chancellor of Justice, the National Audit Office and the Institute for Human Rights.

So, it is largely about things that safeguard our democracy and important values such as human rights, the protection of minorities and the remembrance of, for example, the Holocaust – values that are absolutely crucial for us to have a vital democracy and a democracy worthy of the name.

In the chapter in the budget bill's expenditure area 1 that deals with democracy policy and human rights, the portal section reads as follows: "The goal for democracy policy is a living democracy that is sustainable, characterized by participation and where the opportunities for influence are equal."

Participation is something we take for granted - perhaps a bit too much. On June 9 this year, elections to the European Parliament were held, and contrary to what we all hoped for, it could be observed that voter turnout in Sweden fell by 1.88 percentage points compared to the 2019 EU election and landed at 53.39 percent.

It is strange that only just over half of those eligible to vote cared to vote, given that the laws and directives from the EU form the basis for a large part of our laws. According to the Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies, it concerns 20-30 percent of all Swedish legislation. In Sweden's municipalities and regions, approximately half of the items on the council's agenda are directly or indirectly influenced by the EU. I do not think the citizen or the elected official in the municipality and region has a handle on that.

In this context, I want to highlight the threat against Sweden's Jewish population. It is one of the national minorities but has a special position, not least due to the escalating antisemitic sentiments that have prevailed since Hamas's terror attack against civilian Jews in the areas near Gaza on October 7 and the war that broke out as a result of this.

It is a direct expression of antisemitism when individual Jews living in Sweden are held accountable for what Israel's government does. They experience problems with threats and hate despite the fact that they are actually in Sweden and not in Israel. I am ashamed as a Swede when Jewish children cannot go to school without harassment, when many Jews no longer dare to stay in Malmö, when Jews are forced to hide their identity, and when Jewish congregations have been forced to cancel holiday celebrations and memorial services because it has not been possible to guarantee safety.

The number of reported hate crimes with antisemitic motives has increased sharply in Sweden. This is nothing I can call democracy. This must not go unchallenged, and it is alarming that even a political party represented in Sweden's Riksdag only after strong pressure from outside managed to get rid of representatives who spread antisemitic hate online and at demonstrations. We must all show leadership and not back down in the fight against antisemitism. That those who gather to demonstrate for Palestine are allowed to harass journalists and others in their path without consequences is inexcusable in a democratic society.

The Jewish minority has put forward security as a central issue. In this year's budget, the government's appropriations for security-enhancing measures for religious communities were increased by 30 million kronor to 74 million annually. This is an important complement to the police's work to maintain security, but it cannot replace the police's work.

To counter antisemitism, educational initiatives of various kinds are also needed, not least those aimed at the younger generation. It is necessary for a strong and enduring democracy that every generation is equipped with knowledge and the ability to find answers for themselves, as well as to understand and evaluate information. The Government therefore extends, among other things, the grant of 6 million kronor for memorial trips to the sites of the Holocaust. Funds are also added to Forum för levande historia to increase knowledge about antisemitic attitudes in Sweden and about the spread of antisemitism online.

I do not hope that a turning point will come next year, which is the year that the Jews have been in Sweden for 250 years, but I hope that it happens this year. I think it is outrageous that we have a situation where a minority feels so threatened that it cannot even remain in Sweden.

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

Catarina Deremar (C)

Mr. Speaker! To debate expenditure area 1 The State's Governance is to be reminded of the importance of safeguarding liberal democracy. It is a democracy that delivers the same justice and the same freedoms to everyone and which gives every human being the opportunity to shape their own life. It is a democracy with civil rights that protect the individual against state oppression and limit the majority's power over the individual.

Unfortunately, the development globally is very worrying at this point. Democracy has been in decline in the world for a number of years. As recently as yesterday, we were met with shocking news from the democratic South Korea that the president there had declared a state of emergency and the immediate introduction of martial law. This is something that would prohibit all political activity and put all media under state control.

They managed to gather the parliament, and soon came the other, more reassuring news: The parliament had rejected the president's war laws. Right now, it looks as if South Korean democracy has stood firm against this attack - at least this time.

Mr. Speaker! To safeguard the freedoms and rights that we are guaranteed in our constitution in Sweden, an effective administration is required that upholds the rule of law and treats us all equally. Within expenditure area 1, there are a number of institutions that shall ensure that our authorities live up to this. Here are the appropriations for the National Audit Office, the Parliamentary Ombudsman, and the Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection, among several others. Here are also appropriations to the County Administrative Boards and to the Government Offices.

Furthermore, we have the media support, which was introduced this year after the previous rules for support to the media industry were revised. Before that change, there was great uncertainty in the industry regarding who would actually receive support and how the new regulation would hit. Now we can state that far from the entire grant of over one billion kronor was distributed during the first year. According to the Swedish Media Council, the reason was that not enough media outlets qualified for the support.

We in Centerpartiet already pointed out before the new media support was introduced that it was important to follow up on the support to assess its effects. When the media support was then adopted in the Riksdag, KU agreed on the importance of following up on the outcome once the new regulation had been in force for a few years and the older supports have been phased out.

I want to emphasize that we in Centerpartiet will continue to follow this to see if the media support is directed to those who actually need it. It is absolutely crucial for a vibrant democracy to have media that monitors and scrutinizes, and a media support that is accurate.

Mr. Speaker! Since the majority in this Riksdag has adopted a budget with a different direction than what we in the Center Party have proposed, we abstain from taking a position regarding how the appropriations shall be distributed within expenditure area 1. We do, however, submit a special statement regarding our policy in the area.

First, it should be said that the Centre Party agrees with the government on the resource allocation regarding a majority of the items, but on some points we differ.

Above all, we are reacting to the appropriation for the Government Offices. A total of just over 20.1 billion kronor is distributed within expenditure area 1. In the government's budget, more than half of that sum, a total of approximately 10.4 billion kronor, goes to the Government Offices. This means that the Government Offices have received a significantly larger appropriation since this government took office – the appropriation is just over 2 billion kronor larger than three years ago.

As reasons for this expansion, the government states, among other things, that the money is needed to complete the government's reform agenda. This occurs at the same time as the government has imposed savings requirements on a number of agencies, which are those that are to practically implement the government's policies and reforms.

In light of this, it is almost offensive that the Government Offices are being expanded to such a great extent. The Centre Party understands that reinforcements are needed, partly due to the security situation and Sweden's entry into Nato, but it is not justified with such a large expansion. The Centre Party wants to reduce the appropriation to the Government Offices by 600 million kronor for next year compared to the government's budget.

Furthermore, we want 50 million kronor of the appropriation to be used to establish a crisis commission for infrastructure. We cannot accept that Sweden today has trains that stand still and roads that deteriorate. Something must happen as soon as possible here. The government must produce a plan to solve the serious problems that affect travelers and commuters - and thus also the business sector - in large parts of our country when the trains do not run and the roads are not passable.

Mr. Speaker! There is no time to lose when it comes to the green transition. Faster permit processes are crucial for the competitiveness of Swedish companies and for retaining investments in Sweden. Unfortunately, some processes are being halted due to long processing times at the county administrative boards. Measures must be taken to shorten the times. The government is indeed investing some resources in strengthening the county administrative boards' work with efficient permit processes, but the Center Party believes that it is not enough. In our budget, we are allocating an additional 10 million kronor to this work.

We also want to give an additional 10 million kronor to the county administrative boards for another purpose. This is not about trivial matters. I do not want to hear that we in Centerpartiet are now splitting hairs - that is, that we would focus on trivial matters.

This matter regarding mosquitoes is actually no small thing. I come from Uppsala county. I have the lower Dalälv area in my vicinity and therefore know how it can be there during the summers.

For those who live in the area around lower Dalälven, it is absolutely necessary that the biting midges are controlled. This must be done so that people can live a full life there. The state must take its responsibility and ensure that state funds are in place, so that the affected municipalities can purchase and receive delivery of pesticides that work. Therefore, we in Centerpartiet include in our budget motion an extra 10 million annually to the county administrative boards to ensure permanent resources for mosquito control.

Mr. Speaker! There are strong forces that want to divide and destabilize the democratic world. These forces win on a high tone in the political debate, with sharpened formulations that promote confrontation instead of dialogue and consensus.

We must not be naive about the forces that are strategically working to increase the level of conflict in our country. These forces do not want what is best for Sweden.

We live in a time when we cannot take democratic gains for granted. Defending Sweden in turbulent times is necessary. This involves defending our fundamental rights and our constitutional laws. This includes strengthening our constitutional laws and our institutions so that they can guarantee democracy, security, human rights, and protection for minorities now and in the future.

These are words that commit. I also agree with previous speakers on everything that has been said from the rostrum regarding antisemitism.

It is up to each and every one of us to ensure that this is set in order.

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

Malin Danielsson (L)

Mr. Speaker! The expenditure area we are now debating constitutes the basis for the government's and the parliament's work and for the work with the national minorities, democracy policy, human rights policy, the media, and the scrutiny carried out by, among others, the Parliamentary Ombudsmen and the National Audit Office. This area in the budget concerns, in other words, crucial parts of a vital liberal democracy.

I will bring up a couple of things that I want to highlight a bit extra.

KU has during the autumn had the privilege of both meeting the county governors when they visited the Riksdag, and making a county visit in Skåne where we, among other things, visited the county administrative board. The county administrative boards have a complex mission. As the state's extended arm, they shall, among other things, work with cooperation, manage the goal conflicts that arise in permit assessments, and exercise supervision. High-profile areas are often reflected in the county administrative boards' missions. So too in this budget proposal.

Mr. Speaker! Sweden is in a more serious security situation than most of us have previously experienced. This week, we were reminded of everyone's role regarding preparedness with the brochure that landed in our mailboxes. The County Administrative Boards also have an important role when it comes to strengthening civil defense, as part of the total defense, and therefore more funds are allocated to this in the budget.

The energy issue also makes an impact on the budget. An increased need for electricity leads to more applications for offshore wind power, which needs to be handled efficiently and thus also requires more resources. The green transition also poses higher demands. An efficient permit process is needed for Sweden to be a leader in the rapid green transition, which also makes an impact on this year's budget.

During the Committee on the Constitution's trip to Skåne, we also had the privilege of visiting the Institute for Human Rights, also called the MR-institute. Human rights are one of the cornerstones of liberal democracy and should be covered by a strong protection. Therefore, it is pleasing that this newly established institute received A-status during the year, which is the highest grade for national human rights institutions. This means that the institute lives up to the Paris Principles, i.e., the internationally leading framework for the institutions' mandates. During the year, the institute has released a number of readable reports highlighting human rights in Sweden.

Mr. Speaker! Sometimes one can hear someone sigh and express that not everything can be a human right, and that is obviously true. Far from everything is a human right, but the right to freedom and protection against deprivation of liberty for those living in an elderly care home or an LSS-housing is a human right. This is highlighted in the MR-institute's report *Hemma är någon annanstans* where they have studied the rights of the elderly within elderly care. A woman in the report says: "I have lived here for over a year, and the times I have come out are few and far between. It is damn boring." For internees in our prisons, it is regulated that they have a right to outdoor time, but that is not the case for people in elderly care homes.

Another human right highlighted in the report is the right to dignity. A former self-employed person who now lives in a senior housing facility describes how her right to dignity is met: "If I call for help because I need to urinate, I might have to wait two hours, and by then it is too late."

It is also a human right not to be subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment, which, translated into rights within elderly care, means not being neglected and, for example, being left with a wet diaper all night.

With increasing age, people are all too often seen only as their age and not as entrepreneurs, chefs, members of parliament, stamp collectors, or any of the other things that have previously defined them. They are reduced to being elderly and not people with fundamental rights, which is actually discrimination and ageism.

A previous speaker raised the discussion from 50 years ago when the Instrument of Government was updated and it was established that all power derives from the people. But the mandate of the Riksdag and the government is also to ensure that human civil and political rights are met, not least for those who have difficulty making their voices heard.

Mr. Speaker! Finally, a few words on Jewish life in Sweden. Next year we celebrate that it was 250 years since the first Jew was allowed to settle in Sweden without being forced to convert. This jubilee should be joyful, but unfortunately, it is clouded by a rising antisemitism. Therefore, more funds are added to the budget for security-enhancing measures for the Jewish minority. In Sweden, one should be able to feel safe regardless of background or religion. Anything else is a threat to the fundamental values our democracy is built on. I hope that all the important activities planned during next year to highlight Jewish life in Sweden lead to increased tolerance and understanding, for that is something we need more of in Sweden.

Mr. Speaker! With that, I move for approval of the committee's proposal. I wish my colleagues in the Committee on the Constitution and the Chancellery a Merry Christmas and thank you for good cooperation during the year.

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

Jan Riise (MP)

Mr. Speaker! We are talking about the government's administration, expenditure area 1. It is indeed a subject that is demanding and which must be treated with the utmost respect. The decisions we make based on the various budget debates mean a great deal for many people.

Miljöpartiets budget proposal exceeds the government's proposal by just over 200 million kronor. We allow ourselves this because we believe that the necessary climate transition cannot be achieved within the ordinary budget and requires loan-financed measures. It also means that our budget proposal should be seen as a whole, and given the framework that has been decided, we refrain from taking a position and refer to a separate statement.

Mr. Speaker! Let me begin by speaking about our indigenous people, the Sámi, and about our national minorities. On Monday, it was 25 years since the Riksdag made a decision on the recognition of Sámi, Torneviens, Swedish-Finns, Roma, and Jews as national minorities. That decision also included a recognition of the minority languages and, as a consequence of that, also a promise of support so that the languages shall be kept alive. I will return to that.

The Sami people have inhabited the northern parts of Sweden, Norway, Finland, and the Kola Peninsula in Russia for thousands of years. The Sami are, at least currently, Europe's only recognized indigenous people. It is something we should safeguard and be proud of, and yet we have a long history of oppression, forced assimilation, and structural racism towards the Sami. The past policy has for a long time undermined the Sami's own social, cultural, and economic structures, which has damaged many Sami communities and their traditional ways of life. Even today, Sami life is subjected to serious pressures from several sides. To recognize and realize the Sami rights is part of Sweden's obligations to respect human rights.

The Green Party's budget proposal includes an increased allocation to the Sami Parliament of 52.5 million kronor. This is a reinforcement so that, among other things, they can organize for the scope of the so-called consultation procedure, which has become significantly larger than expected. We also earmark 2.5 million kronor for the repatriation of human remains and objects.

The primary international law instrument for the protection and strengthening of indigenous peoples is ILO Convention 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples. It was adopted by the International Labour Organization, ILO, in 1989 but has not yet been ratified by Sweden despite criticism from several international bodies and despite the fact that the convention is significant for Sweden, which has been pointed out many times.

In the Supreme Court's judgment in the Girjas case, the court states that ILO 169 is already binding for Sweden in parts because the convention expresses general principles of international law, which underscores the convention's importance. We spoke about this as recently as last week at the seminar on increased judicialization in Sweden, that is, the phenomenon that politics is increasingly being moved over to the realm of law. We are, therefore, already bound by ILO's convention 169.

Mr. Speaker! Certain rights cannot be opted out of. We have them. There are global, comprehensive rules and commitments that have been developed and that we need to allow ourselves to be bound by.

Mr. Speaker! During the Green Party's time in government, a three-year support was introduced for the construction of centers for the national minorities' languages. Our intention was, of course, that the support should be extended or transition into a more permanent form after 2024, but the government has chosen in the budget bill to end that support and instead introduce a much smaller support, which, with the infallible logic of politics, is therefore called an "initiative." It is approximately one-tenth of the support we spoke about from the beginning.

In another appropriation, there were resources for the Sámi language center Giellagáldu. It is allocated funds jointly from Sweden, Norway, and Finland. The government also chose not to extend that contribution, which led to the entire center's existence being put at stake. It was resolved by the Sámi Parliament being able to make a temporary redistribution within the culture budget, but the issue will certainly come back next autumn.

In our budget proposal, we have extended the previous supports in their entirety so that Sámi, Tornevians, Swedish-Finns, Roma, and Jews can continue with their important language work. Interest in the different languages has increased in various ways during recent years, and we would like to support that.

For the Tornedalians, Kveners, and Lantalaiset, we have, in addition to the language centers, allocated resources for the repatriation of remains and objects.

For the Jewish minority, it is entirely about language, but unfortunately increasingly about security issues. Our support is essential, and I completely share the view expressed by all my fellow speakers here. What we see and have seen during the past year is both sad and upsetting.

We have also for several years allocated funds for Roma inclusion in society. That work continues.

We support, among other things, initiatives on cultural issues such as access to library services and opportunities to participate in cultural activities in more places in the country for Swedish-speaking Finns.

Some of these investments are under expenditure area 17, that is, culture, but I think they deserve to be mentioned here as well.

Mr. Speaker! I will, of course, also say something about other points within expenditure area 1, where we have a differing view on a number of areas. To begin with, the government's so-called reform agenda should not be implemented at all. We propose that the appropriation of 300 million kronor be removed.

We want to add 75 million kronor to establish new foreign missions in order to increase mutual understanding and understanding and develop the dialogue with other countries. The Government has during 2024 closed embassies in Mali and Afghanistan. We think it is unfortunate and that the right way to proceed in this situation is rather to open than to close foreign missions.

We propose increased appropriations to the county administrative boards. It is primarily an appropriation of 100 million kronor to strengthen the implementation of the climate and energy transition.

We also want to finance a democracy-promoting mission. This concerns the fact that the action plan for the defense of free speech should be updated and some other, smaller items. Efforts to strengthen public elections and democracy need to be increased.

The Institute for Human Rights was formed in 2021 and is still very new. They are to promote and ensure human rights in Sweden based on our constitutional laws and the European Convention on Human Rights and other international law-binding agreements. There is a calculation and a target regarding the Institute for Human Rights and its scope. It involves an increased workforce. We propose that the appropriation be increased by 25 million to meet this and further strengthen the work of promoting, protecting, and monitoring compliance with human rights in Sweden.

The State Board

Mr. Speaker! The media support was, as is known, reformed a year ago, among other things with the commendable purpose of strengthening local monitoring and publishing. It has not been possible to evaluate it yet. It has been said that it needs to be done a bit earlier, because clouds of concern are sensed among, for example, newspapers with target groups other than local ones – i.e., other areas of interest – and naturally among so-called secondary newspapers.

Media support is important, not least in times of various forms of disinformation, troll factories, and everything else that makes it necessary for us to devote all our efforts to information that is as accurate and good as possible. We have therefore proposed that the grant be increased by 50 million kronor. I say this even though I know that this year's grant has not been fully utilized.

We also believe that the Medical Products Agency should be allocated 2.5 million to work on a proposal for strengthened resilience against disinformation and propaganda.

(Applause)

In this speech, Jacob Risberg (MP) agreed.

The deliberation was hereby concluded.

(Decisions were made under § 14.)

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