Opening of the Riksdag
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
The King argues that Sweden's Nato membership strengthens defense capabilities and promotes international security 1. The Prime Minister (M) argues that Sweden now has firmer ground after inflation and security policy limbo 2. The Government (M) claims that they are carrying out a crime policy offensive by toughening penalties for young criminals and introducing youth prisons 2. (M) wants to tighten the requirements for citizenship 2. (M) is pushing for increased healthcare capacity, a national healthcare mediation, and a strengthened healthcare guarantee 2. (M) wants to eradicate cervical cancer, improve the high-cost protection for dental care 2, introduce mobile-free school days and lower taxes 2. (M) wants to secure the electricity supply through wind and nuclear power 2. (M) considers the support for Ukraine to be the primary foreign policy task 2.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
TALMANNEN
I move that Your Majesty declare the parliamentary session open.
HANS MAJESTÄT KONUNGEN
Mr. Speaker! Honored members! Today we gather to begin a new parliamentary year.
We live in a restless time. The Russian aggression against Ukraine is now in its third year, and the conflict in the Middle East is very serious. The developments lead to almost unimaginable human suffering and extensive material destruction.
These conflicts affect us all. For Sweden's part, a new security policy era has begun through the entry into Nato. The membership was decided in broad political agreement. It strengthens our defense capability and paves the way for even closer cooperation with our Nordic neighbors and other allies.
NATO's primary purpose is to ensure peace. Here, Sweden can play an important role. Our membership gives us increased opportunities to promote freedom and international security. It is not just a question of what we can get, but also what we can give - a protection, a support, and a voice for the values we cherish. We should be proud of that.
With this responsibility comes also a duty to defend democracy so that future generations may enjoy the same freedoms and rights as we do today.
Honorable members! In January 1975, I opened the Riksdag for the first time according to the order prescribed in the then entirely new Instrument of Government. It is based on the principle that all public power in Sweden derives from the people. In a 50-year perspective, we can state that it has served us well, but there is no lack of challenges. The unrest in our world, climate change, economic pressures, a strained healthcare system, and gang crime are some of those. These are difficulties that require political trade-offs where different societal interests must be balanced against one another.
What you decide in this chamber will affect the Swedish people for many years to come. My hope and conviction is that you conduct respectful debates, that you listen to one another and that you make the best decisions for Sweden.
With these words, I wish you strength, courage and wisdom for the coming parliamentary year.
TALMANNEN
I move that the Prime Minister delivers the government statement.
Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)
Your Majesty, Your Royal Highnesses, Mr. Speaker, honored members of the Swedish Riksdag, ladies and gentlemen! It is brightening on the horizon. Sweden is leaving behind some trying years marked by high inflation, shocks and explosions, an energy crisis and a prolonged security policy limbo. The situation in Sweden and in the world is still difficult in many ways, but we have firmer ground under our feet. Sweden is a member of Nato, the fight against inflation is won, more and more crimes in gang environments are being solved, a criminal policy offensive without equal has been launched and the number of asylum seekers is historically low.
In area after area, Sweden has received a new start, from energy policy to school policy and social policy. The four coalition parties sought and received the mandate from the voters to set the country on a new course and get Sweden in order. And we are doing what we said. As we now enter the second half of the mandate period, the results are beginning to show. This is a government that gets things done.
Sweden became poorer and more dangerous for a long time, and now we have begun the journey toward becoming wealthier and safer. We have come some way, but much remains to be done. Almost everyone understands that problems that have built up over a long period also take a long time to solve. This summer's wave of violence serves as a reminder that the fight against organized crime will require extraordinary measures for a very long time. Turning around school results, building new nuclear power, and upgrading roads and railways also takes time. A wealthier and safer Sweden is not finished after one parliamentary term, but today we lay the foundation so that we in Sweden tomorrow will be more renowned for our fantastic innovations than for dangerous child soldiers.
Mr. Speaker! Now the second half of the parliamentary term begins. Politics enters a partially new phase. When inflation is defeated, the government's economic policy will focus on future investments and growth reforms. When migration has decreased to more sustainable levels, more focus is placed on managing integration and creating a social community that gives everyone an honest chance and which emphasizes that everyone also has their own responsibility.
When Sweden has become a member of Nato, the security policy shall shape the Nordic Nato that is now emerging. At the same time, the intensive work continues to implement the political course change that the government received a mandate for. A very large number of investigations shall now be handled and form the basis for sharp reforms that make a difference in people's everyday lives.
I hope for broad support behind our policy for a wealthier and safer Sweden, but it cannot be those who want the least who set the pace. The government has driven up the pace of reform for a reason. It is urgent to get Sweden in order. So we will continue to govern - with perseverance and with impatience, with Sweden's best in mind and inspired by the task of building a better future for our children and grandchildren.
Mr. Speaker! The Government has now launched the largest offensive ever against organized crime. Month by month, it is becoming harder to be a criminal in Sweden. During the past year, the police and prosecutors have received a number of new tools to prevent and investigate crimes. This concerns preventive coercive measures, security zones, and stay bans, and this autumn it will become easier to seize criminals' proceeds of crime, such as money, cars, and expensive watches. It will hit the gangs' leadership hard. The Government will continue to implement pattern-breaking reforms at the same high pace.
No task is more important than pushing back against system-threatening crime. To break the culture of silence and solve more crimes, a bill regarding anonymous witnesses will be submitted during the autumn. The investment in more cameras continues. The police's camera capacity is strengthened partly through a significant increase in the number of surveillance cameras, and partly through legislative changes that give the police access to traffic cameras and automatic number plate recognition. But it is not enough when constantly new children are socialized into gang crime.
The serious crime that Sweden is experiencing is extreme. Children are enticed to take on murder assignments via social media and are placed in a taxi towards an address in a completely different part of the country, where they shoot to kill. The government is concentrating its efforts to stop this development. "Early" and "clear" are the guiding principles for all those efforts. These are partly efforts for children and families aimed at keeping children away from gang crime, and partly measures against those children and young people who are already committing serious crimes.
At the turn of the year, the government is presenting proposals for special youth prisons for those between 15 and 17 years old. The government also wants to significantly toughen the penalties for young people who commit crimes, as well as make it possible to use secret coercive measures against children who are involved in serious crime. We are also reviewing the possibilities of monitoring more young people with ankle bracelets so that they can leave crime behind. Confidentiality barriers are being removed so that the police, social services, and school can sit around the same table and share the same information in order to prevent the recruitment of children and young people and to be able to work together to pull them out of the gangs' claws.
The government has already presented proposals for a completely new Social Services Act with a focus on early, preventive interventions. It is the beginning of the largest reform of Swedish social policy in decades. But the crime prevention work is broader than that. School and preschool, but also sports and community life, play a decisive role in many children's lives, and it all begins in the family with parental responsibility. With investments in parenting support, family centers, and home visit programs, more children can have a secure childhood. Ultimately, society has both the right and the obligation to intervene.
Blasts and shootings are the visible part of organized crime, but at least equally threatening to the system is the often hidden crime that attacks welfare systems and infiltrates authorities. Welfare crime threatens democracy and finances the criminal networks. Strangling the criminal economy is therefore a high-priority issue for this government, and a large number of reforms are now underway. Among others, Försäkringskassan and Bolagsverket are to be given new muscles in crime fighting.
Organized crime also exploits the financial systems. The Government is submitting proposals to make money laundering through so-called hawala activities more difficult. A close dialogue is being held with banks and mobile operators to stop fraud crimes against the elderly.
With the same force as the government fights organized crime, we fight violence against women, which continues to claim lives. The government is carrying out a broad offensive against men's violence against women, domestic violence, and honor violence. An action program with 132 points has been presented. To make it easier to break up with a violent partner, the government is developing a new exit program. The tyranny of honor oppression, which isolates many women and girls in captivity, must be broken. So-called virginity tests will be prohibited.
Mr. Speaker! For decades, Sweden pursued an ill-considered and unsustainable migration policy in combination with a failed integration policy. We cannot accept that Sweden is being torn apart by exclusion, gang violence, and parallel societies. Therefore, the Swedish asylum legislation must be adapted to the EU's minimum level and the conditions for family immigration must be tightened. Our country must be given a chance to become whole again.
The government is now implementing a paradigm shift, and the effect is already clear. The number of asylum seekers has decreased sharply and is expected to be the lowest during the entire 2000s this year. The government will implement the EU's migration and asylum pact according to the minimum level of the new rules. With better control over the EU's external border, irregular migration to Sweden and to the union as a whole will decrease further. The EU's new unity on this is important but would not have come about without Swedish efforts in the commission, in parliament, and during the Swedish presidency.
We are creating order in the reception itself. A central part of that work is to establish special reception centers where asylum seekers shall live to ensure a fast and clear asylum process. A proposition on this will be submitted this autumn.
Great efforts are being made to increase returns and combat the shadow society. It should not be profitable to go underground after a rejection and then submit a new asylum application. The Government is putting forward legislative proposals that shall prevent this and create incentives for those who have received a rejection to leave Sweden. Even voluntary return should be strongly stimulated and increased. It can contribute to reducing the number of people living in exclusion and the consequences that exclusion has both for the individual and for Swedish society.
With the right measures, in the form of among other things support and information, the number of people who voluntarily return can be increased - primarily among those individuals who for various reasons experience that they have not become a part of Swedish society through, for example, self-sufficiency or knowledge of the Swedish language. At the same time, we shall be an attractive country for highly qualified labor, foreign researchers and doctoral students. The new fast track has become a great success. Almost all highly qualified workers now receive an answer within 30 days.
Mr. Speaker! When migration decreases, Sweden gets better conditions to manage integration. How well we as a country succeed with that task will define what kind of country Sweden is in ten and twenty years.
Sweden has for too long pursued a requirement-free integration policy, where the expectations for the individual to learn the Swedish language, obtain a job and live honestly have been too low. We are changing that now. We emphasize the individual responsibility to become a part of Swedish society, not least by learning Swedish and supporting oneself. In Sweden, basic values regarding equality and gender equality, regarding the individual's own rights and obligations, and regarding children's position in Swedish society are respected.
We are laying the foundation for introducing a benefit reform with a benefit ceiling and successive qualification for different welfare benefits, and we are tightening the requirements for staying in Sweden and becoming a Swedish citizen.
The government is also tightening the requirements for those who study at SFI.
A successful integration policy must be built on both requirements and opportunities. Far too many children grow up in exclusion characterized by language poverty, without the presence of the Swedish language. This autumn, the first steps are taken towards mandatory language preschool for those children who otherwise do not learn good Swedish at home. All children should be able to go to their first day of school filled with anticipation, and all children should have a good chance to succeed in school.
This autumn, a new list of areas of exclusion will be presented, which has a broader focus than the police's situational awareness of vulnerable areas. It will become an important tool for designing effective interventions.
Mr. Speaker! We are proud of the Nordic welfare model: universal benefits, collective financing and individual freedom of choice. Together with the work principle, it is the foundation for one of the world's best welfare societies. It provides security through life's difficulties but also the freedom to forge one's own path.
The four coalition parties have supported the welfare state through economically tough times. It has been a real and important prioritization. Sweden's welfare must be reliable. But welfare is not just about more resources from the state. General welfare presupposes that everyone who can work does so and that there is zero tolerance towards all forms of abuse of the welfare systems. It is successful companies and people's hard work that create the resources that the welfare needs.
Sweden has world-class healthcare, but far too many must wait for it. Therefore, the government is pushing for the regions to increase healthcare capacity. Work on establishing a national healthcare brokerage is being accelerated. The government also plans to introduce a new and strengthened healthcare guarantee with significantly shorter time limits than today. The state's responsibility for health and medical care needs to increase.
Sweden shall continue to be a pioneer within cancer care. All children affected by cancer are now offered genetic mapping and precision medicine designed according to each child's individual needs. It is unique in the world. The Government is ramping up the work so that Sweden can reach the goal of being first in the world in eradicating cervical cancer. This autumn, an update of the cancer strategy will also be presented.
The first stage of a major dental care reform is being implemented. The high-cost protection for dental care is being strengthened for the large group that is 67 years of age or older. It will now more closely resemble what exists in other healthcare. It will not only make a difference in the oral health of many people but also in the wallet.
It should be safe to age in Sweden. The government continues the multi-billion investment in Äldreomsorgslyftet to train more staff. Steps are also being taken to increase medical competence within elderly care and to introduce Swedish language requirements for the staff.
The assistance, which enables a freer life for persons with disabilities, must be protected. Therefore, the widespread fraud must also be combated.
Many people suffer from poor mental health. Hundreds of thousands of people in our country have no close friend to turn to when the spiritual darkness closes in. It is a serious societal problem. Mental ill-health must be taken as seriously as physical ill-health. During the autumn, a national support line for mental ill-health will be launched. And during 2025, a national strategy to prevent and counteract involuntary loneliness will be presented.
There are several clouds of concern regarding how children are doing in today's Sweden. Sedentary behavior is increasing, and children are now affected by diseases that were previously only discovered in older people, such as fatty liver and type 2 diabetes. Teenagers between 13 and 16 years old spend an average of six and a half hours per day on screens, excluding schoolwork. It steals time from other things needed to feel well - sleep, social interaction, and physical activity.
Many parents feel great anxiety but also powerlessness. We will not passively accept that Swedish children become slaves to the algorithms. The government will submit proposals that make the school day completely mobile-free. Next year, the leisure card (fritidskortet) will also be introduced, which will be one of several measures to activate children and young people.
What happens in the classrooms today determines what Sweden will look like tomorrow. Therefore, it is deeply worrying when Swedish PISA results fall sharply. A quarter of the 15-year-olds cannot even read properly. It underscores the need for the school to return to the basics.
The government has begun to re-establish a strong knowledge school with a focus on basic skills such as reading, writing, and arithmetic. We are moving from screens to folders. There shall be order and tidiness in the classrooms, and there shall be order in the school system itself by stopping grade inflation and unserious school principals. The government plans a bill to increase transparency in independent schools in order to counteract unhealthy drivers in the world of schooling.
Mr. Speaker! The fight against inflation has dominated economic policy during the first half of the mandate period. The high inflation has eroded people's real incomes, put welfare under severe pressure, and led to bankruptcies and unemployment. The government has therefore pursued a restrained fiscal policy. At the same time, we have precisely supported households and welfare through this tough time. We have lowered taxes for both wage earners and pensioners and lowered the tax on gasoline and diesel so that people can afford to drive cars in the countryside as well.
Now we have left the worst behind us. The economic policy is entering a new phase. Now is the time to invest in Sweden's future and to implement reforms that increase Swedish growth again.
Sweden once made an impressive journey from poverty to wealth, but our prosperity cannot be taken for granted. It is not subsidies and regulations that will secure tomorrow's growth.
Sweden shall compete with entirely different qualities: a school with a focus on knowledge, excellent research, an innovative business sector, a good business climate, large amounts of reliable and affordable fossil-free electricity, a robust infrastructure, a welfare that can be counted on, and a good sense of community. Then Sweden can attract talent and international investments. We shall be at the forefront - a small country that competes above its weight class.
During the autumn, the government will present three central propositions to realize this vision: a budget proposition with a clear investment and growth focus, an infrastructure proposition, and a research and innovation proposition.
A historic commitment is being made to upgrade Sweden's infrastructure. The economic framework will be expanded by over 200 billion kronor. It is needed because Sweden has a large maintenance debt in the form of potholes in the roads and constant train stops. Addressing that debt will be a top priority when the government indicates the direction for the upcoming planning period 2026-2037. But it is also about enabling new investments. Functional infrastructure is crucial for both the development of the business sector and the vitality of cities and the countryside, but ultimately also for the defense of Sweden.
Sweden has long been a prominent research and technology nation and shall continue to be so. But the international competition is intensifying. Therefore, the government is now making the largest investment ever in research and innovation. In 2028, the state investments will amount to over 40 billion kronor. The focus in the research bill will lie on excellence, research infrastructure, and groundbreaking new technology. For Sweden to succeed, it is also required that the business sector continues to be a greenhouse for innovation. Few countries have a business sector that is as engaged in research and development. It is a strength that the state and capital can go hand in hand. We can do that more often. The government wants to see more of Team Sweden.
Mr. Speaker! During the autumn, the AI commission will present its recommendations. Sweden has unique opportunities even in this area. Step by step, reform by reform, we shall get the Swedish growth up again. The Government is expanding the so-called growth support, so that the very smallest companies can go from one to two employees. We are broadening the experts tax, so that it becomes easier to attract highly qualified foreign labor. The aviation tax meant a heavy competitive disadvantage for Swedish airports. Now it is being abolished.
We strengthen the drivers for work and strengthen the purchasing power of households. The government safeguards the household economy of ordinary people. Therefore, we are lowering the tax once again for all working people and for the country's pensioners. We also exempt savings on so-called ISK accounts from tax in two steps up to a base level of 300,000 kronor. In this way, we increase the freedom for ordinary people. After several tough years, it will once again be possible to treat oneself to something extra or put away a bit of money.
The work line needs to be re-established. Everyone who can work shall work. We have reformed the benefit system to increase the incentives to take a job. The Government strengthens the support for those who stand particularly far from the labor market. Many need to be equipped to be able to take the jobs that exist and those that will come when the economy turns. Therefore, the Government invests in municipal adult education and in the university colleges.
Mr. Speaker! The energy issue is crucial for succeeding as an advanced industrial nation. The decommissioning of half of all nuclear reactors has created a shortage of dispatchable electricity in southern Sweden. It has cost us dearly. To secure a secure electricity supply and succeed with the climate transition, the government is fundamentally restructuring the energy policy. All fossil-free types of energy will be needed. Without energy policy, one has no climate policy.
The government is acting to meet electricity needs in both the short and long term. A wind power package is presented that strengthens the municipal incentives to expand wind power, while neighbors are given the right to compensation. This means that the wind power companies receive a clear responsibility to compensate the municipality and neighbors for the impact that the wind power has. The government is also investing in investment support to build away bottlenecks and secure increased capacity, not least in southern Sweden.
Important steps have been taken for a new nuclear power program in Sweden, and the work is now entering an intensive phase. The Government continues to work on the risk-sharing model that was recently presented. A bill is being submitted on research and innovation in the energy field, where nuclear power research is a particularly prioritized area. We are making an investment in pilot and demonstration projects within the nuclear power field.
Sweden has enormous potential in the climate transition. Therefore, the government has, among other things, presented a green acceleration office and submitted the first proposals to shorten the permit processes.
It must become easier to run businesses in Sweden. The government has established both the Simplification Council and the Implementation Council. No unnecessary rules shall burden Swedish entrepreneurs and cloud the joy in entrepreneurs' life projects.
Housing construction is also hindered by an excessively large regulatory burden. The Government is working to simplify and streamline the planning and building process so that more housing is built. More measures shall be completely exempted from building permits, and the unreasonable requirements on the design of student housing shall be simplified.
Many people dream of living in small houses. The government wants to make that dream possible for more people and has, among other things, appointed a single-family home commissioner. Proposals are now being developed to create type-approved small houses that are exempt from building permits. We call it the Sverigehuset.
The Government continues to improve the conditions for living, residing, and working in the entire country. The development of the countryside is crucial for the success of all of Sweden. Entrepreneurs in agriculture and forestry need better conditions to increase their production through strengthened competitiveness and profitability. The food strategy is being updated.
Sweden shall become a freer country. It is often very small reforms that make it possible. The sale of alcoholic beverages is now planned for the first half of 2025. The Government also plans to present proposals on the liberalization of the shore protection, so that more people can live near our beautiful waters.
Mr. Speaker! Sweden shall pursue an ambitious climate policy with the goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2045 at the latest. And Sweden has shown that it is possible to reduce emissions by more than a third while the economy has doubled. This makes us a role model for other countries in the climate field. Since emissions are transboundary, the solutions must also be. Swedish climate policy is best realized within the framework of EU cooperation. When all of Europe transitions at the same time, it makes a real difference.
With the government's measures, Sweden is now expected to reach the EU's climate goals within the so-called ESR sector, that is, the emissions that are not included in the EU's emissions trading system. The new reduction obligation, which also includes fossil-free electricity from public charging stations, is being adjusted upwards. At the same time, the tax on gasoline and diesel is lowered so that the price at the pump does not increase.
So we lay the foundation for a sustainable climate policy that has popular anchoring over time. The Government is also making other important climate investments, such as an electric car premium aimed at groups in need of support in, for example, rural areas, a strengthening of Klimatklivet, and support for the production of biogas in agriculture.
New technology has a key role in the climate transition. The forest nation Sweden has the potential to become a world leader in carbon capture, so-called bio-CCS. This autumn, the first concrete steps will be taken when a reverse auction with negative emissions is conducted. The Government continues the restructuring of forest policy and is strongly driving within the EU to safeguard vital Swedish interests and property rights. The forest is a strategic resource for both the climate transition and Swedish competitiveness.
The number of wolves in Sweden shall decrease. The EU Commission has proposed a changed protection status for wolves, which the government welcomes.
We must take care of our seas and our lands. This includes, among other things, protecting the salmon stocks in the Baltic Sea and safeguarding coastal fishing. The government proposes that the trawling limit be moved out to twelve nautical miles from the baseline and that bottom trawling be prohibited in protected marine areas. We want to facilitate the hunting of seals and cormorants that cause problems for coastal fishing. The government continues the work with effective remediation of contaminated areas from, among other things, PFAS. Sweden is actively working for ambitious chemical legislation in the EU and a global agreement to limit plastic pollution.
Mr. Speaker! On March 7, 2024, a new era for Swedish security policy began. After more than 200 years of military non-alignment, Sweden became a member of Nato. Sweden has now come home to the free world's defense alliance for peace and freedom - home to all our neighboring countries' cooperation for security, home to the circle of nations where we have long belonged.
With NATO membership, Sweden became safer and NATO became stronger. We bring a strategic geography, military capability, and an innovative defense industry into the cooperation.
All these dimensions underscore that Sweden is actually a relatively large NATO land. Sweden's NATO integration is proceeding with full force. The Government will propose that Sweden, during the first half of 2025, shall contribute a reduced battalion to NATO's forward presence in Latvia. We are participating in and shaping the new NATO in the Nordic and in Northern Europe.
Sweden will fulfill our share of the burden-sharing within Nato. We expect other countries to fulfill theirs. Over the last four years, the Swedish defense appropriations have doubled from 60 billion to 124 billion per year, and the growth continues. Next year, Sweden will allocate over 2.3 percent of GDP to military defense.
This autumn, the government will submit a bill to the Riksdag regarding the development of the total defense for the period 2025-2030. It is based on the Defense Committee's reports, which all parliamentary parties essentially support. The government notes that there is now a broad political consensus on strengthening the Swedish defense.
The Government has paid particular attention to the civil defense's great needs. Historical investments will be made to, among other things, strengthen Sweden's supply preparedness and the ability to withstand cyberattacks.
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has cast Europe back into the darkest chapters of our continent's history. Support for Ukraine is the foremost foreign policy task of the coming years. The free world has a historical task to resist Russia's power expansion and help Ukraine win the war.
Thank you! We are sending those rounds of applause directly to Ukraine.
Sweden contributes in many ways. In total, 17 support packages have been delivered, ranging from main battle tanks to air surveillance aircraft. The Government has presented a multi-year financial framework of 75 billion kronor for the period 2024-2026 to provide long-term perspective and predictability in the support.
The government is pushing for further steps towards Ukrainian EU membership. Sweden is also pushing to tighten EU sanctions against Russia, including measures against Russian gas, and to use more of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine. Sweden will support Ukraine for as long as is required. Ukraine's cause is also our cause.
China's actions towards Taiwan cause concern, and threats of military violence are completely unacceptable. Over the Middle East lies the threat of a major war whose full consequences no one knows. Israel is threatened by Iran and its allies on several fronts simultaneously. Sweden stands up for Israel's right to defend itself in accordance with international law and demands that the hostages be released.
In the short term, a humanitarian ceasefire is needed to reduce regional tensions and to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe ongoing in Gaza. In the longer term, Sweden, just like the EU and the USA, believes in the idea of a two-state solution where Israelis and Palestinians can live side by side in peace, freedom, and democracy.
The European Union is Sweden's most important foreign policy platform and has a completely decisive importance for Sweden's economy, climate work, and voice in the world. The new Commission and the new Parliament will face great challenges, and Sweden's priorities can be summarized with the four k's - the war, competitiveness, climate, and crime. Sweden is an active and proactive member even after the successful Swedish presidency.
Sweden continues to be a generous aid donor, and the government has pointed out a new direction for the aid policy. Ukraine is now Sweden's single largest aid recipient.
We are setting increased demands for long-term perspective, efficiency and transparency. Aid can constitute a valuable contribution, but significantly more is needed to reduce poverty. Ultimately, it is democracy, trade and growth that can, in the long term, lift countries and their citizens out of poverty.
Sweden is a strong voice for free trade. The EU must safeguard global trade and conclude more free trade agreements. At the same time, the government sees the risks that exist with unilateral dependencies and the need to stand against unequal rules of the game between countries.
Mr. Speaker! Sweden shall be an open and tolerant society. Free society must unequivocally stand up against those who want to exploit our freedom to limit others'. In Sweden, everyone shall be able to live safely and freely, regardless of faith, regardless of personal convictions, regardless of skin color, and regardless of whom one loves.
Work has begun on a multi-year action plan for the equal rights and opportunities of hbtqi persons.
In 2025, the 250th anniversary of Jewish life in Sweden will occur. Strengthening the conditions for Jewish life in our country is a high priority for the government, and a long-term strategy will be developed.
At the same time, the initiatives for remembrance trips to the Holocaust's sites of memory continue. There is no place for antisemitism in our country.
The government accepts no exceptions and no excuses.
Free and independent journalism is an indispensable part of the democratic infrastructure. All forms of threats, hate, harassment, and violence against journalists are also attacks against the open society. The Government has decided on measures to strengthen the protection for journalists. The independence of public service media shall endure and their long-term funding shall be maintained.
Human rights, including freedom of expression, are a cornerstone of liberal democracy. The government will continue the work to achieve the release of the journalist Dawit Isaak and the publisher and poet Gui Minhai.
A vibrant cultural life is the foundation for a creative society. It creates cohesion, and it contributes to increasing the understanding of ourselves but also of others. The Government sees the cultural and creative industries as a new basic industry in Sweden. It is also important to cherish our cultural heritage. The Royal Swedish Opera has a special status as Sweden's national stage for opera and ballet.
Let us safeguard that which holds us together in our country. In many parts of the world, polarization and mistrust between people are increasing now. The climate for conversation is becoming increasingly harsh. Sweden does not need to go that way. It is up to us, not least all of us gathered here today, to lead by example. Let us shoulder that responsibility together.
Mr. Speaker! Our society has many big problems left to solve. But Sweden is rising again. It will take time to get Sweden in order, and there will be setbacks. But now we are laying the foundation for a brighter future for all of us who live in this wonderful country.
A safer Sweden, where the responsible majority takes back the public space from criminal gangs.
A wealthier Sweden, where small dreams of a cottage holiday or perhaps a puppy can be realized, and where big dreams of a technology and welfare nation at the absolute top of the world are once again possible.
A more caring Sweden, where we care for one another and feel a common pride in our social construction regardless of where in the world one comes from.
A more responsible Sweden, where one does not only ask what others can do for me, but what I can do for others.
A freer Sweden, where entrepreneurs dare to take risks, where the state provides the security that the wings of freedom need, and where the fluttering feeling of falling in love is a promise and never a threat of impending punishment in the name of honor.
A more diligent and industrious Sweden, where children sit absorbed over books and where even more adults set the alarm on their clocks to arrive at work on time.
All of this, Mr. Speaker, is within reach. Not for free, not without effort, not without us deciding on it. But we can achieve this together. Sweden has risen before. We have protected what we hold dear and yet been curious about everything that can become even better. Let us do it again. Tomorrow will be a better day.
Lastly, Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the Riksdag for its patience and report the following changes in the composition of the government.
The EU Minister and Minister of State in the Government Offices is Jessica Rosencrantz.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs and head of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs is Maria Malmer Stenergard.
The Minister for Migration and Minister of Justice is Johan Forssell.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Trade is Benjamin Dousa.
The Minister for Education and Head of the Ministry of Education is Johan Pehrson.
The Minister for Employment and Integration and Head of the Ministry of Employment is Mats Persson.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.