The Prime Minister's Question Time

Mikael Damberg (S)

Mr. Speaker! Yesterday, 900 employees in Region Östergötland were notified that they are being laid off. That is how it looks across the country - in Sörmland, in Västra Götaland, or in Skåne. Sweden is in a national healthcare crisis that has been driven forward by this government.

A few weeks ago, the Prime Minister gave a promise on television to the entire Swedish people. He was going to present, as he said, a budget that will ensure that people are not laid off in Swedish healthcare. But after this, no announcements have been made, despite the fact that the healthcare regions across the country want and need clarity on what the Prime Minister meant, so that they do not have to lay off staff and so that the healthcare queues do not have to become longer.

It seems as usual as if one cannot quite trust the Prime Minister's words. My question to Ulf Kristersson is therefore: Can you today give an assurance to all the country's healthcare employees, so that they can continue to do their jobs without having to worry about losing their jobs?

(Applause)

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

Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I have on several occasions raised that I am concerned about the situation in the country's regions. It began with the fact that we, already in the budget bill last autumn, before we knew what the development, especially regarding inflation, would be, gave a lot of money to the regions. 40 percent of the total reform space went to municipalities and regions.

Then the figures became worse. It is to a very large extent about the inherited inflation, the inflation that has plagued Sweden since long before this government took office. It is not entirely intuitive for everyone why high inflation hits pension agreements which in turn impact the regions' economy, but that is how it looks. We want to help the regions with that part from the state's side. Therefore, I have said in this chamber and on TV that we will take our share of the responsibility to ensure that the regions get through this tough period of high inflation. Then the regions themselves will also need to take their responsibility and make their 21 different decisions, but the government is ready for its responsibility.

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Mikael Damberg (S)

Mr. Speaker! Thank you, Prime Minister, for the seminar exercise! It is not unclear to anyone that we have had higher inflation or that it will affect the healthcare regions and, not least, affect the pension costs. That is not news. That is why we Social Democrats doubled the investments in healthcare in the latest budget so that Sweden would not end up in a healthcare crisis.

But the answer to my question was therefore no. No announcements were made today. The Prime Minister promised the Swedish people that no one in healthcare would lose their job. Now I ask again: When will the Prime Minister follow up on his promise and give the announcement required to stop the national healthcare crisis?

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

Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! The Social Democrats will have to accept that we in the government present our budgets when we have an analysis of the situation and know which part of the responsibility the state shall take and which part the regions shall take. That is what we are working on right now.

We are heading towards a spring budget amendment and a spring bill. That is the analysis we are working on right now. I promise that when we are finished, Mikael Damberg will also be informed of the results of that work. But these are important matters. We are talking about large amounts. We are talking about important responsibility. The state takes its responsibility, and the regions can, want to, and shall take their share of the responsibility.

(Applause)

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Jimmie Åkesson (SD)

Mr. Speaker! Prime Minister! As is known, electric cars are becoming increasingly common. We agree that electrification is the long-term, sustainable way to handle the climate issue. In that, we have much common policy.

The electric car will certainly be a completely dominant part of the vehicle fleet in the future. I am sure of that. But the internal combustion engine and the so-called fossil cars are today a very important thing for very many people - hundreds of thousands of people, not to mention millions, in our country. The probable outcome is that it will be so even in the future in large parts of Sweden.

To move forward in the transition and move towards electrification, it can be done in a few different ways. One can let the market handle it and let supply and demand steer. One can also make political decisions.

The government has stood behind the EU's ban on new cars with internal combustion engines from 2035. It is an issue where we do not agree, but Sweden's position has nevertheless been that one is positive towards a ban.

Now voices are being raised in Europe in several political camps, also in the EPP group, which is Ulf Kristersson's own partner party in Brussels, to overturn the ban. Several vehicle manufacturers have said that they will continue to manufacture internal combustion engines in the future and so on.

In view of this, Mr. Speaker, I wonder if the Prime Minister is prepared to in some way reconsider his position regarding the ban on internal combustion engines from 2035.

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I believe that even this will require a small seminar exercise. A part of the description is, after all, not entirely correct.

However, we are in complete agreement that electrification is the way forward. Electrification shall replace the fossil-fueled. This requires that the electricity is produced fossil-free. I heard an interesting report on the radio this morning about electrification in China, which is powered by coal-based electricity. It is quite pointless to build electric cars in that way. But that electrification and thus fossil-free electricity is the answer, we are certainly in complete agreement on.

Then we must be careful. It is about zero emissions. It is a ban on selling new cars that do not have zero emissions. That was the European decision. There was some fine-tuning there regarding Germany's requirements, across party lines, about making it clear that it is the emissions that are being targeted.

This means, therefore, that it is not a formal ban on internal combustion engines. Then I think that we all, in all important respects, interpret this as that it should be electric cars, because that is how it will be. But there can certainly be examples of other emission-free forms of cars as well. But I believe, as I said, that electrification is the way forward.

So, there is no ban. I have heard that some want to repeal a ban, and it is indeed difficult to repeal a ban that does not exist.

When it comes to the EPP group, I have, possibly in contrast to Jimmie Åkesson, read the document concerning this, and there are no such formulations there. On the other hand, one is keen that there should be technology neutrality. We stand behind the decision that we agreed upon within the framework of the EU decision, quite simply.

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Jimmie Åkesson (SD)

Mr. Speaker! Ban or no ban; it is clear that in practice it is a ban on cars with internal combustion engines. Possibly there are fuels at the research stage that can provide zero emissions. They are very expensive and are at some kind of very early stage. It is probably not so relevant, but in practice it is the electric car that replaces them.

There are many problems with that. In our large country with long distances, we need cars that function stably over long distances. For reasons of preparedness, there is reason to consider the internal combustion engine in relation to electric vehicles and so on.

I still interpret the Prime Minister's answer, Mr. Speaker, as that he is not, at least not here and now, ready to reassess the decision. I regret it, but I respect it.

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! No, we believe that the decision we have agreed upon in the EU within the framework of the large climate package, including providing the automotive industry with reliable, long-term rules of the game, is an important decision.

I believe, not least, that the Swedish automotive industry thinks it is important to know what the rules are. A major problem for many industrial actors is that the rules of the game are changing all the time. We share some of those things in common. Being able to give a credible answer that we will double the fossil-free electricity capacity in Sweden creates reliability for the industry, which is important for our competitiveness. I believe that the automotive industry also needs to have clear rules of the game.

A good deal is done with good incentives. Pricing on emissions is a way to create incentives. Sometimes political decisions are also required to set the rules of the game. I believe that it is a reasonable balance in this.

We stand by the fact that we shall have zero emissions when it comes to new sales of cars from 2035 because it is a common European position.

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Nooshi Dadgostar (V)

Mr. Speaker! Yesterday I met Barnens sjukvårdsuppror. It is run by parents who have experienced the absolute worst: losing a child. They have done so because of medical errors, because routines have not been followed and because the diseases have not been detected. Stressed staff have cried because they have not been able to help.

No cuts in Swedish healthcare should lead to anyone's child dying in this way. It is always a failure. Understaffing, lack of resources and stress increase these risks.

Yesterday, further record warnings arrived, this time in Östergötland. 900 people are being laid off. It is historic, Mr. Speaker.

Today, 19 days have passed since the Prime Minister, in a live broadcast, gave his promise that no human being shall be abandoned in Swedish healthcare. The government and the Sverigedemokraterna were to ensure this with their budget.

Behind the figure 900 are patients, relatives, and employees. A wave of anxiety is now washing over Sweden.

Yesterday, Jenny from Norrköping, who is suffering from cancer, told how she will be affected by the notice. She is terrified, Mr. Speaker. It is inhumane. It is appalling.

Just a few hours ago, the Prime Minister's party voted down our initiative to guarantee that no one should be turned away in Swedish healthcare, that is, to fulfill the Prime Minister's own healthcare promise. In the autumn, the Prime Minister chose instead to lower taxes by 25 billion kronor. That cannot be a worthy prioritization, Mr. Speaker.

My question is: Where is the limit for Ulf Kristersson and the Sweden Democrats' Jimmie Åkesson? How many lives will need to be risked before they act?

(Applause)

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! Let us first be a little dignified. I believe we have all at some point met parents who have lost a child to a serious illness or in other contexts. I believe one should be a little cautious before suggesting that the regions' decisions right now lead to parents losing their children. Then we all suffer deeply with the parents who have been in such situations, but I think we should be a little cautious.

I have said several times that the government will return with its part of the budget decisions required to now help the regions through a very difficult time, primarily created by high inflation. It is 21 regions making 21 different budget decisions. That is where the responsibility must lie.

I have said time and again that the state will take its share of the responsibility to ensure that this becomes as good as possible and so that medical personnel in general will not be laid off. I also note that the notice that arrived in Sörmland exempted just doctors and nurses, but it could still be a serious problem. Furthermore, different regions are different.

The message remains: The State will do its part. We will take our share of the responsibility to help the regions through a difficult time and to avoid these kinds of cuts. But the regions bear the ultimate responsibility for their finances and their decisions.

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Nooshi Dadgostar (V)

Mr. Speaker! Now it was Östergötland that had been warned.

The question of healthcare is a question of life and death. It is impossible to gloss over the fact that Ulf Kristersson and Jimmie Åkesson chose to lower the tax for themselves, for their cabinet colleagues, and for everyone else in the same income bracket by 10,000 kronor. How can we accept that it is Jenny and everyone else who are to use Swedish healthcare who should pay for this? It cannot be reasonable. They should not have to pay for it. We are a modern welfare state. We can afford decent healthcare.

The Prime Minister has stood in a live television broadcast and said that he will present a budget that ensures that no one is laid off in Swedish healthcare. When will this budget arrive? It must come now to stop the layoffs. When are you going to fulfill your healthcare promise, Ulf Kristersson?

(Applause)

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! As I have said several times, the government will return with a budget announcement where the state takes its share of an important responsibility. I have also described why we are doing it. I have also repeatedly described that 21 regions can, are expected to, and want to take responsibility for their situation. Some problems they share, such as the consequences of inflation. Some problems are very different in different regions, where they also make their decisions.

My statement remains: We will return with the budget funds that we consider to be the state's share of the responsibility to help in a very difficult situation.

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Muharrem Demirok (C)

Mr. Speaker! I would like to speak to the Prime Minister about promises, about things that the Prime Minister has promised other people, organizations, and groups, and how well he has then lived up to these promises.

The Prime Minister has promised Ukraine strong and long-term support - good and welcome! But when it comes to the Jas 39 Gripen, we shall wait and see. Despite the fact that President Zelenskyy asked for this when we met him jointly at Harpsund this summer, the promise wavers. We shall wait and see.

The Prime Minister also promised as recently as the other day that the government's budget would ensure that no one would have to be laid off in the welfare sector. When the Prime Minister was then pressed on the promise, he wavered again. In the coming days, nursing assistants, doctors, and nurses in Region Östergötland - and the Prime Minister's own party comrades - will have to work with the harsh reality: 900 employees are to be given notice.

The Prime Minister's own party has also made a promise to the country's youth to defend the 15-year age limit for obtaining an EPA, something that the European Parliament voted on yesterday. Despite the fact that both of our parties fought to defend it, the proposal passed, and it became a no to the 15-year limit. The age limit is now to be raised. EU's bureaucracy shall step in and meddle in the youth's freedom, and now the question instead falls to EU's governments and heads of state. Now this is to be negotiated among you.

My question to the Prime Minister is therefore: Can you here and now promise that the government and you as Prime Minister will do everything in your and your power to stop the proposal to raise the age limit for obtaining an EPA? Can the Prime Minister promise to do everything he can to defend the freedom for the youth where the subway does not run?

(Applause)

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I think it is a somewhat sloppy way to describe different promises. I have said time and again, most recently here today, that the state will take its share of the responsibility to help the regions through a difficult time. But the regions make their own decisions. We will take our share of that responsibility to avoid general layoffs in healthcare. It is important, and I have said that. We will return with that budget.

Regarding the Gripen issue, it seems to be completely out of thin air - it was a bad joke about the Gripen. We said early on that we are among that circle of countries that want to help Ukraine with air capacity. We will discuss carefully whether the Gripen is an option, on the premises that Sweden is a member of Nato and that we have a joint decision-making with other countries regarding the air defense of our part of Europe, no more and no less.

I have said that personally to President Zelenskyy. They have a great understanding of that argument and reasoning. And I have a great understanding that they want more aviation capacity in Ukraine as soon as possible. That is what I have said, no more and no less.

In the famous question regarding e-papers, the A-tractor, the vast majority of parties in Sweden were hit hard - some also voted against what was subsequently passed - to avoid an increase from 15 to 16 years. Now the question is to be addressed again in a European context. I can guarantee that the politicians whom I can oversee and am responsible for will fight to ensure that the age limit is not raised from 15 to 16 years. Then other parties can take their responsibility in that matter.

(Applause)

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Muharrem Demirok (C)

Mr. Speaker! Thank you for the answers, Prime Minister! But when one needs so much time just to explain one's own promises, one has to wonder what they were actually worth and what it was that one actually promised.

More money for welfare must be reviewed. The Gripen to Ukraine must be reviewed. Promise after promise becomes something completely different. Also, the promise to get Sweden in order has become something else. Just ask the train passengers all over Sweden! I don't really know what the rural youth are supposed to do with the promise that the Prime Minister is trying to give here.

Can the Prime Minister and the government promise that you, not individual members of parliament, will do everything to ensure that the age limit for tractor licenses is not raised? Now it is the government, the heads of state and government, who are to negotiate. Can the Prime Minister hammer home the promise to stand up for the freedom of Sweden's rural youth?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I seriously think that Muharrem Demirok is careless. To pretend that someone has made a promise to send Swedish aircraft to Ukraine is to tell a falsehood. Possibly the one who does not bear responsibility for the questions can send such promises completely without any basis in reality.

What I said was that I want to help, that Sweden as a country should help Ukraine defend itself even in the air. We are involved in that work. It could become relevant with the Jas 39 Gripen, if we are members of Nato and if we are in agreement with other countries that Swedish air defense is best suited there and that others can defend us here.

Exactly that difficult is that question. The one who pretends that it is a simple question has completely missed the point of what Ukraine needs.

Regarding the issue of the epan, the A-traktor, both of our parties voted no in the vote yesterday. We have taken that part of the responsibility. When the issue now comes back, the party that I can oversee and bear responsibility for will work for this. When the government is to take a position on the issue, the government will also work to maintain the 15-year limit and to ensure that the age limit is not raised to 16.

(Applause)

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Annika Hirvonen (MP)

Mr. Speaker! In Gaza City, over 100 people were murdered today in a queue to get food. UNRWA told me, when I recently visited them in Jerusalem, that their wheat deliveries are being held up in the port. They are not being released to those who are now starving on the Gaza Strip. During my trip, I also visited one of the 16 Palestinian communities in the West Bank that have been displaced as a result of violence from Israeli settlers.

My questions are: How serious crimes against international law will the Swedish government have to witness before the government demands a permanent ceasefire and introduces sanctions against settlements? How many people will have to be on the brink of starvation or even starve to death before the Swedish humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people is resumed?

(Applause)

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! In the difficult question of the situation in the Middle East right now, the government has two major tasks. One is to work, together with others—primarily European countries, sometimes Europe and the USA together and sometimes in a broader circle—to work towards a long-term solution in the Middle East.

The positions are well known. Hamas is condemned. Hamas is a terrorist organization. Israel has the right to defend itself, within the limits of international law. Humanitarian access to Gaza is needed to help, as much and as quickly as possible. And the long-term idea is a two-state solution.

Sweden is not a decisive actor in the issue. I believe many understand that. But our word is part of the team, not least in various EU contexts. The more the EU, USA, and others can agree on this and evoke respect for those positions, the better it is.

The second major task we have is to take responsibility for what happens in our own country. I am deeply concerned about the wave of antisemitism that is now sweeping across Sweden and other countries. We ourselves bear one hundred percent of the responsibility for what happens in our countries.

Both lines of thought are currently guiding our work regarding the Middle East.

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Annika Hirvonen (MP)

Mr. Speaker! I agree with several of the points that the Prime Minister highlights. For me, they lead to the conclusion that Sweden must now act offensively within the EU and together with other actors to put a stop to the collective punishment of the population in Gaza, which is now claiming an incredibly large number of human lives. 12,000 children have been killed.

If we strive for a two-state solution in earnest, we must also put a stop to the violent acts from settlers who are displacing people from their lands right now and making the solution harder to achieve.

Josep Borrell in the EU has taken a clearer stance than the Swedish government. Sweden should act. It is important for Israel, it is important for Palestine, and it is central for the people, the civilians, who are currently starving and being killed in Gaza.

(Applause)

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I believe we are in agreement on quite a few things regarding this. The question will also come up at the next European Council. It is difficult. Many European countries can agree on the broad principles, which are difficult, for example the two-state solution. But we have historically very different relations to both Israel and the State of Palestine. That makes the conflict difficult for Europe as well. But it is no excuse for not trying.

Sweden will put our word in that camp. We demand, as everyone knows, respect for civilians. We demand access to help people on the ground. We also demand that there are aid organizations that are respectable and that serious allegations are investigated to the bottom. And we demand a Gaza that is free from Hamas rule.

They are big and difficult things. I believe that most understand that Sweden does not own these decisions. But we do what we can to be as constructive as possible. At the same time, we must in all seriousness solve the problems that exist here, in our own country.

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Hans Wallmark (M)

Mr. Speaker! I shall - not surprisingly - speak about Nato. With the same security and defense policy alliance for all five Nordic countries, cooperation between us can be further deepened. The Nordic community is unique. At the same time, it is necessary to show insight into the obligation to assist the entire Nato alliance, expressed as a 360-degree perspective.

The air force chiefs in Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark have made an agreement implying that they shall be able to act as a common air defense. The declaration of intent is a clear message that the Nordic countries want to work together.

Now all NATO countries' parliaments have approved Sweden as a member. In truth, Mr. Speaker, it is not about 22 months of hard work, but rather about 22 years of opinion-building for NATO. What has been achieved is a success and shall be described as a success. Can the Prime Minister say anything about the process that has now gone all the way to the finish line?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! First, I want to refer back to the history. Even though we all live here and now, to a very large extent, the history is important. I will make a few points.

During the post-war period, Sweden moved from a pragmatic way of keeping the country out of World War II to an almost fundamentalist view on neutrality and non-alignment where Nato could not even be discussed. It is an important change we are in now.

The next step was when we realized the full extent of what Russia is prepared to do. Starting with 2008 and Crimea in 2014, we realized that Russia is dangerous for our immediate neighborhood. It also started a debate.

The step after that came somewhere around 2017/18 when Finland began to speak very actively about the Nato option, and quite a few of us realized that Finland was about to change its mind regarding Nato. Then came the fine journey we have made together, six out of eight parties are in favor of Nato.

What will happen now is that we await the Hungarian president's countersignature, and then the papers will go to Washington. Then we will receive an invitation, and then we submit our document – and then we are members of Nato.

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Hans Eklind (KD)

Mr. Speaker! The first time I met the Prime Minister was in youth politics just over 30 years ago. We have grown older.

(Prime Minister ULF KRISTERSSON (M): And wiser.)

I also believe that we have adjusted our views based on the fact that reality has changed and insights have been acquired.

The question of legal gender reassignment deserves to be based on knowledge. Warnings from experts should be taken seriously, not brushed aside.

The Christian Democrats firmly say no to a child who is only 16 years old being able to choose gender identity despite there being no underlying diagnosis of gender dysphoria. Professors and specialist doctors in psychiatry warn that the perceived gender dysphoria is exacerbated. The National Board of Health and Welfare considers that the risks outweigh the expected benefits of hormone treatment for persons as young as 16 years.

My question to the Prime Minister is whether he considers that new knowledge and evidence should be taken into account before a legislative change is implemented.

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! Some people grow older and wiser, others grow older and more stubborn. The rest of the world will have to judge how we have changed over the years.

I do not intend to answer the question in any other way than that we have agreed that it now lies in the Riksdag's Committee on Social Affairs. The Government, therefore, has no unified position on the issue. I am the Prime Minister and speak for the Government. The issue lies in the Committee on Social Affairs. There, as is well known, there are different positions. They must be weighed together in the parliamentary committee and then in the parliamentary process. I have full respect for that process and do not intend to have any specific government position on this.

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Gulan Avci (L)

Mr. Speaker! Prime Minister! There are few things that are as central and important as the fight against antisemitism right now. I want to extend a big thank you to the Prime Minister, who leads a government that takes anti-Semitism in Sweden seriously. It is clear that the entire government prioritizes the issue.

The work against antisemitism spans many areas and departments. There is a need for coordination. In Germany, there is a commissioner for Jewish life and the fight against antisemitism. The mandate is to coordinate with relevant actors, serve as a contact person for Jewish organizations, and work on knowledge raising.

I wonder how the Prime Minister views the appointment of a national coordinator in Sweden who works for Jewish life and against antisemitism.

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I agree with the description of reality to a very large extent. As recently as the day before yesterday, I met representatives for both the Swedish and the international Jewish community, and they raised exactly the same issue. That question is critical. It is also critical following Maria Arnholm's investigation, where there are many different proposals to strengthen Jewish life.

An important matter is not only to strengthen the protection against antisemitism but also to work towards strengthening Jewish life in Sweden. These are incredibly important issues. The investigation is currently under consultation, so I think I will wait for that process before the government takes a position.

In practice, we have today a coordination function in a secretary group that works across the departments under the leadership of my own secretary. I therefore think that we are, in practice, carrying out much of that work. If it is then to be made permanent in another form, that is worth discussing, but in that regard, we intend to await the referral responses.

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Matilda Ernkrans (S)

Mr. Speaker! The Prime Minister has the overall responsibility for the coordination of Sweden's EU policy. This can be read on the government's website, among other things.

Now it has been shown that the government has once again manipulated the figures. This time it concerns the climate policy. A review of the details in what the Prime Minister, together with SD, was personally involved in presenting shows that this is a bluff. Sweden will not meet either its own or the EU's climate goals for 2030.

One can ask how much more expensive it will become for ordinary people, but this is also important for Swedish jobs. If the government does not present a credible way forward, we risk, in the wake of the healthcare crisis and the construction crisis, having a crisis for the green industrial revolution when thousands of new jobs that could have ended up in Sweden and the EU instead end up in Norway and Canada.

If a country like Sweden tries to bluff and use number-tricks to bypass Sweden's and the EU's climate goals - how can other EU countries, which have tougher conditions, do their part and do the right thing? My question to the Prime Minister is therefore when the messages will come regarding the credible plan with both policy and costs so that we can reach both Sweden's and the EU's climate goals.

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I am a bit surprised by the sloppy language. Do not say "number juggling," but instead say it as it is: We differ completely on climate policy.

If you have no energy policy, you have no climate policy. This government has an energy policy and can therefore pursue serious climate policy.

The previous government, where the Social Democrats, the Left Party, the Green Party, and the Centre Party were to be responsible for energy policy, had no prerequisites to credibly electrify Sweden away from the fossil. Furthermore, you put all your effort into a single issue: increased reduction obligation and high prices on petrol and diesel in Sweden. That was supposed to do the whole job. It is not a serious climate policy.

Now we are shifting climate policy. I know you do not like it, Matilda Ernkrans. I can live with that. But we are changing the conditions for Swedish energy and climate policy in order to reach the goals we have set.

(Applause)

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Carina Ståhl Herrstedt (SD)

Mr. Speaker! Prime Minister! The Tidö parties are working hard to stop fraud, crime, and the financing of terrorism, and the Prime Minister in particular has been very clear on the issue. The ambition is that every loophole shall be found and closed. Therefore, it also becomes very strange that the Moderaterna in the Committee on Social Affairs, in parallel with stopping the fraud, are pushing through a new, changed gender legislation that is intended to make it easier to change legal gender, that is, change personal identity numbers without investigation or diagnosis.

Heavy referral bodies have harsh criticism of the proposal. Bolagsverket flags that persons who change personal identity numbers several times become harder to track in their registers. Svenska Bankföreningen argues - and this is interesting - that the proposal risks becoming a tool for organized crime to evade controls of money laundering and of financing of terrorism.

Does the Prime Minister not think it becomes problematic that, while one is fighting fraud, one also presents proposals that risk promoting welfare fraud and the financing of terrorism?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I understand that it is tempting to always turn to the government in the Riksdag to get answers to various questions. Often, it is legitimate. But in this case, the question lies in the Riksdag, not with the government. It lies literally in the Riksdag, and that is where it should be discussed. That is also where it shall ultimately be decided. All the relevant issues where one may think alike or differently can be aired in the Committee on Social Affairs. As Prime Minister, I have no position on that issue for the reasons that everyone knows. There are different opinions, and they should be discussed in the Committee on Social Affairs.

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Håkan Svenneling (V)

Mr. Speaker! I intended to ask about Gaza. I experience that the Prime Minister and the government do not show sufficient commitment to the issue.

We are currently seeing a famine catastrophe unfolding before our eyes. Millions risk starving to death because humanitarian aid has been blocked for five months. I wonder what the Prime Minister is doing. Did you make a decision today at the government meeting to resume the payments to the UN agency UNRWA, which has stated that the money will run out in a few weeks? Yesterday, the European Parliament condemned Sweden and other countries that have stopped the payments to UNRWA.

Did you make a decision to resume development aid to Palestine? The Prime Minister has now read 108,000 posts and found 2 posts that were suspected. It has now been two weeks since the report arrived, and it showed that the support can be resumed. Have you made that decision? When will the money be paid out? What is the Prime Minister doing to stop the famine and the bombs in Gaza? Now people are being killed in food queues. Will he call in Israel's ambassador?

(Applause)

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I believe that we all, regardless of political affiliation, are very concerned about the situation in the Middle East - without doubt and without any ifs and buts. On the other hand, it is obvious that we have different starting points in the issue. Some are very concerned about the risk that aid funds are used to finance the exact opposite of humanitarian support. Such must be audited. Others are only concerned that money does not arrive.

I believe that one can reconcile both positions: to review thoroughly and carefully, which is currently ongoing, and at the same time find other ways for Swedish aid, so that it reaches people who need it. Those positions do not contradict each other. One must manage both things simultaneously: to both demand short-term things, such as humanitarian access, and at the same time stand on the side that demands a Gaza without Hamas rule, which demands a two-state solution and which pressures the Israeli government on long-term constructiveness. That is where the EU is, and that is where Sweden is.

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Mona Smedman (C)

Mr. Speaker! Two weeks ago, I asked a question to the Minister for Health regarding the promise that the Prime Minister gave to the Swedish people while sitting in a TV sofa before millions of viewers, that the government shall ensure that no one in the Swedish healthcare system is laid off. The answer from the Minister for Health was not so enlightening. Therefore, I will now take the opportunity to go straight to the core. At home in Värmland, the region has, given the economic situation, announced that 750 positions shall be removed, of which 600 are healthcare-related. Region Östergötland is laying off 900 employees, as we saw yesterday. This is how it looks straight across Sweden.

Mr. Speaker! The question to the Prime Minister therefore becomes: When will the Prime Minister fulfill his promise? Or does the Prime Minister mean that the regions should bear the great inflation burden themselves?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I am happy to say for the third or fourth time that I have said that we in the government will take our share of the responsibility to help the country's regions through a very difficult time. To a very high degree, it is about an inflation effect linked to pension agreements that creates increased costs. The government does not intend to leave the regions in the lurch.

I also gladly reiterate that the regions, 21 of them, all make their decisions according to law, take their responsibility, want to take their responsibility and are expected to take their responsibility, but also hope that the state sees that state responsibility is additionally needed to help them through a difficult time. That is exactly where we are, and we will return with that budget when we are finished with that work.

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Jacob Risberg (MP)

Mr. Speaker! Since Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU's member states have provided Ukraine with financial, military, and humanitarian support worth 144 billion euro. That is good, and Sweden and the EU must continue to support Ukraine. But we also need to do as Julia Navalnaya said yesterday in her speech to the European Parliament: We must go after Putin's money. The fact is that the EU has simultaneously imported Russian fossil fuels for an unimaginable 188 billion euro, which is more than the total support to Ukraine during the same period.

In the spring of 2022, the Riksdag unanimously decided, on the initiative of the Miljöpartiet, that it wanted to see a stop to the import of Russian energy. The Prime Minister has now held power for a year and a half, but the ships continue to arrive in Sweden - it happened as recently as yesterday. Since the outbreak of the war, a total of 37 ships have delivered Russian gas worth over 1 billion Swedish kronor, and several other EU countries have taken the lead and introduced national bans. My question to the Prime Minister is: When will the government stop the import of Russian fossil gas?

(Applause)

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! First and foremost, I am glad that we have contributed very large sums both from Europe jointly and from Sweden. I am also glad that we have contributed advanced defense materiel - military materiel that many only a few years ago thought it was unthinkable that Sweden would contribute to help Ukraine fight. It is very good. We also fully stand behind the sanctions that exist. We have been proactive behind the sanctions. But both this government and the previous one have had the same view: The sanctions shall be common European. Unity has its own value, and Sweden naturally respects those sanctions.

One can still say, not least for the sake of the minutes, that there has been a dramatic shift in Europe away from Russian fossil energy. That shift has been necessary and good. Sweden does not stand in the way of any further such sanctions, but Sweden will stand on the side of the common sanction in that work.

(Applause)

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Jan Ericson (M)

Mr. Speaker! When one is interested in history, one cannot help but draw rather unpleasant parallels between what is happening in Eastern Europe today and things that have happened in Europe's history earlier. When one listens to statements and comments from the Kremlin, from the Russian leadership, one cannot help but draw parallels with what we heard in the 30s from Berlin.

What has changed since that time is the access to social media. We now see an enormous amount of disinformation and conspiracy theories being spread online. I would like to ask the Prime Minister how he views the risk that we in today's Swedish society are exposed to extensive infiltration and disinformation that can affect Sweden's defense capability.

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! First and foremost, I want to say that Russia has failed in its goals. They wanted to stifle Ukraine's opportunity to choose its own path. Instead, they got, in President Biden's words, a "NATOization" of Finland and Sweden - the exact opposite of what the Russians had reasonably hoped for from the beginning.

We are on our guard at all times now. The words that came from Russia yesterday were not unexpected. It sounded roughly the same towards Finland when they received their membership. It is a matter of extensive cyberattacks and extensive disinformation. This should not be underestimated, and no one is doing so either. New things can happen at any time. But I dare say that Swedish authorities are very much on their toes and on their guard at all times. We are also working together in Europe now ahead of the upcoming EU parliamentary elections; many countries are aware that there are great risks of disinformation and improper influence. Let us help each other in that work against Russia!

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Camilla Rinaldo Miller (KD)

Mr. Speaker! For me as a Christian Democrat, the family has always been the central and important factor in a child's upbringing. Yet today we see many children and young people who are suffering very badly, with the consequence that the queues to child and adolescent psychiatry are increasing. Many of these children and young people also end up in the hands of criminal networks.

I know that the government has made important efforts to tackle youth crime, but it is never possible to criminalize away all problems. I believe that functioning families are crucial for children to have the conditions to feel well. Therefore, the preventive work and the focus on support for the family is very important.

My question to the Prime Minister is therefore: What initiatives is the government making to help families in order to give children a safe and secure upbringing?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! This is a rather broad question, but I would like to make two points. Together with Jakob Forssmed, I initiated a conference on exactly child and adolescent psychiatry and mental health from a broad civil society perspective in order to get further input to the government in this work. We are doing a number of things, but there is always more to do. This is an incredibly important issue.

The role of families is absolutely crucial. Strengthening families with family support programs, which are now being introduced, is an important matter, as is ensuring that children and young people from families with very weak finances also get access to leisure activities. There is, therefore, a lot.

I was in Trollhättan yesterday and looked at a preschool that conducted advanced work with both the language issue - that all children regardless of origin or family circumstances shall learn good Swedish - and the connection between the preschool and social services, so that families with moderate problems are detected early, which one can quite easily help them with before the problems grow very large.

There is much of that going on. More can undoubtedly be done, and shall be done.

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Fredrik Lundh Sammeli (S)

Mr. Speaker! In TV4's party leader interview a few weeks ago, the Prime Minister said that it is the government and the coalition parties that will present the budget that will ensure that we do not lay off people in Swedish healthcare. My question to the Prime Minister is, simply put: Is it correct that this is what the Prime Minister said?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I am happy to say it again, time and again: The Government will present a budget that means the state takes responsibility for helping the regions in a difficult time. I have said that time and again, the first time here in the speaker's chair and several times since then. I have also always added that 21 regions, according to law, ultimately bear the responsibility for their own budget decisions.

But the state sees the problems. The inflation, which we have inherited from a long time ago, has driven up costs in such a way that the state must step in and help. I have said this time and again, and I say it again. We will return with that budget when it is finished.

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Nima Gholam Ali Pour (SD)

Mr. Speaker! Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has clarified that she is seeking re-election and recently published her election manifesto for the next term in the European Parliament. One of the points is the outsourcing of the asylum process to safe third countries, the so-called Australia model, to manage illegal migration.

Against the background that von der Leyen represents the same party group as the Swedish Moderaterna and therefore is also their chairmanship candidate, I wonder if the Prime Minister now stands behind von der Leyen's proposal.

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I have two answers. One is that Ursula von der Leyen has been a successful President of the European Commission. The Government naturally has no position on candidate issues ahead of the European Parliament elections, which in turn precede the next Commission. I have been content to say that we from the Swedish presidency have very good experiences of cooperating with Ursula von der Leyen, and I believe this applies almost regardless of party affiliation. That is probably sufficient.

When it comes to the entire migration issue, it is absolutely decisive for almost all countries in Europe, regardless of whether they are governed by governments belonging to my party group or any other. From right to left, the migration issue is very large. It is about having control over Europe's external border and also testing new solutions so that this does not get out of control once again. I believe there is a very broad consensus among Europe's heads of state and government, and I believe this is also reflected in what Ursula von der Leyen said in her program.

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Karin Rågsjö (V)

Mr. Speaker! I turn to the theme promises come, promises go - and not much remains. This promise sounded very good on TV; it caught all our attention. One should not lay off healthcare workers, instead, money should be added.

Now it sounds like we are going to have to wait a very long time for this. The crisis is accelerating, just like all other crises here in Sweden. Inflation is hardly something you have worked extremely much on, unfortunately.

The healthcare crisis also has enormous consequences. For example, only 26 percent could start their cancer treatment in January 2024, and in 2023, when you were in power, only 40 percent could start their cancer treatment on time; it must be 80 percent for the goal to be reached. This is a major national failure.

The healthcare crisis is ticking along. I do not think it is enough to say that one is concerned. We want to see action across the whole country - when will it come?

(Applause)

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! To say that one is concerned about a situation is often a necessary starting point in order to then do something. It was I, not anyone else, who raised these questions, because I see a concern, which is primarily linked to the high inflation. This peaks during 2024. I see a concern that makes it necessary for the state to be involved and take its share of the responsibility - I have said this many times, and I say it again.

On the other hand, I have never said that one should wait a long time. But it is only an opposition politician, who does not bear responsibility for the economy, who can throw out something and believe that one solves this overnight or over two nights. This requires rather careful analyses. Furthermore, it concerns 21 quite different regions.

The government will return, in organized forms, with the resources that we consider the state should contribute to help the regions through a difficult time.

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Christofer Bergenblock (C)

Mr. Speaker! I hope that the Prime Minister has at some point been to Halland on a visit. It is a county with large forests, wide fields, and a long coastline. This means that two of the major industries in Halland are the tourism industry and the green industries.

Many companies in these industries have difficulty understanding that the government is trying to counteract their activities and wonder why. A year ago, the employer contributions for young people were raised, which hit the tourism industry hard. In the autumn, the wage floor for labor immigration was raised, which hit both industries hard. Now the government intends to make it even more difficult through a wage floor of 34,200 kronor and the introduction of a politically steered labor market assessment for any exceptions.

My question is: Why does the Prime Minister believe that politicians and bureaucrats are more suitable to decide who should be employed by a restaurant or a farm than the individual entrepreneur?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I have many times been in the beautiful Halland, and I will go back.

I meet many more entrepreneurs, regardless of industry, who are very concerned about the crime, the fraud, and the abuse that follows in the wake of a labor immigration where almost no requirements are placed at all to earn money so that one can support oneself, as well as entrepreneurs who think that this sabotages the Swedish labor market. This is important. Those who do not see the problems that every police officer sees in industries where people come from other countries outside of Europe to take jobs in Sweden with very low wage levels, without being able to speak Swedish, are missing something fundamental: the shadow society in Sweden. This crime is serious.

If one also adds the fact that we have tens of thousands of people in Sweden who also do not speak good Swedish and have rather little knowledge of the working life but are fully capable of working, we have the solution to much of the exclusion.

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Janine Alm Ericson (MP)

Mr. Speaker! As many have pointed out, Sweden's regions are in the most serious situation since the 1990s. This affects everyone waiting in the queues for care and also everyone who works there. In his now-famous TV segment, the Prime Minister promised that the government and the Sverigedemokraterna will ensure that people are not laid off in healthcare, but we all know that it is not possible to just sit and make promises. In order for the regions to be able to plan and act based on the Prime Minister's promise, information is needed on how the promise is to be fulfilled.

I know that the Prime Minister has already received this question many times today and has tried to answer it. You will therefore come back when you have finished counting. I therefore have a question. The Varslen [cases] are coming now almost every week, and it concerns several hundred people. Does the Prime Minister not understand that it is very urgent?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! I raised these questions because this is important and because there is an urgency. The government will act. I have never said that it will take a long time, but careful analyses must be made of quite large sums of money. It is nothing that a government slacks off with.

It is easy to demand this from the rostrum of the Riksdag. But it must be delivered and bound by the government, and that requires careful analyses. This is what we are doing right now. On the other hand, I have never said that it will take a long time. The regions know that we will return with our decision.

It is important to say that the state has a responsibility in this. When it comes to the high inflation - the inflation that this government inherited from the previous one - it hits hard in 2024. It is an important part. Then the 21 regions know that they also have their own, different, problems. Some problems are common, and others are different.

Many regions speak about their need to address structural problems. That must also be done. There is no general carte blanche from the government saying that we take over all responsibility. We will take our share of the responsibility to solve a very difficult situation, and we expect the regions to take their share of the responsibility.

(Applause)

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Paula Örn (S)

Mr. Speaker! In my moderately governed home municipality of Ale, large-scale cuts have been implemented in many activities. In the school, at the start of the school year, there were at least 40 fewer adults than the year before. There are fewer who can help the students who need it the most.

The Prime Minister's Question Time

The associations have been given increased costs of 2 million kronor by the municipality - something which means significantly increased membership fees. Children of low-income parents may no longer be able to continue with football.

These are just a few examples of how the government's lack of interest in the cost crisis in the municipalities hits the very weakest - those who are struggling in school and those whose parents already previously had difficulty with the fees for the associations.

My concern concerns the children who risk being lured into the gangs, perhaps to support their mother with money or in the hope of being able to buy a pair of new football boots. My question is: Does the Prime Minister believe that with the significant cuts we see in the municipalities, it will become easier or harder for the criminal gangs to recruit these children?

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Statsministern Ulf Kristersson (M)

Mr. Speaker! High inflation affects everyone. It affects households both with price increases and with the interest rate hikes that follow from this. Everyone who has a mortgage knows this very well. The answer to that should reasonably not have been a tax increase for individual households.

Inflation also hits municipalities and regions, and it hits regions more than municipalities. But I also have all respect for the municipal situation.

High inflation is a major problem, and the government is fighting this inflation so that we get better economic conditions in Sweden, including for the country's municipalities. We have 291 municipalities, and I don't think I should even try to go into detail on what is happening in Ale municipality. That is not at all due to a lack of respect for the problems there, but because there are many other municipalities with the same or different problems. I believe these problems should be discussed in an interpellation debate in Ale municipality.

The Prime Minister's question time was hereby concluded.

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