Response to interpellation 2023/24:606 on the state's ownership management of Svevia AB
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
The debate concerns the state's ownership management of Svevia AB and the company's ability to fulfill its commitments regarding road maintenance. M argues that Svevia should act exemplary and enjoy public trust 1 2. The government is investing money to reduce the maintenance debt and strengthen the infrastructure 1. M emphasizes that the board is responsible for the operational activities and that the state has a close dialogue with the company 1 2 3. S argues that Svevia has received a disproportionately high number of fines for failure to fulfill contracts 4 5 2. S demands that the state be clearer that deficiencies are not acceptable and emphasizes the need for a holistic view of the state's responsibility 4 6.
Written by AI in advance and may contain errors. The numbers lead to the speech a statement builds on; check against the text below.
Finansministern Elisabeth Svantesson (M)
Mr. Speaker! Isak From has asked me two questions. The first question is how I ensure the state's governance of Svevia AB so that Svevia fulfills the decided goals and thereby contributes to long-term sustainable road maintenance throughout the country. The second question is whether I consider Svevia's penalty to be compatible with the state's ownership policy and corporate governance model and, if not, whether I intend to take any actions within my area of responsibility.
Svevia AB is the market leader in Sweden in the operation and maintenance of roads with a focus on snow removal, anti-icing, repairing and improving roads so that accessibility and safety are maintained for all types of road transport. The company has no public mission decided by the Riksdag but shall conduct its operations within the framework of business commerciality.
It is the company's board and management that are responsible for the company's organization and the management of its affairs, as well as the ongoing management of the company's operational activities. This includes the work with snow removal and ice control. Furthermore, companies with state ownership shall, according to the state's ownership policy, act exemplary within the area of sustainable business and otherwise act in such a way that they enjoy public trust. The board is responsible for ensuring that Svevia AB is managed exemplarily within the framework of the legislation, the company's articles of association, and the state's ownership policy. I assume that this is followed.
The State as owner regularly meets the company in so-called owner dialogues where, among other things, current issues of a substantial character are discussed and follow-up is conducted on decided economic goals as well as strategic goals for sustainable value creation for Svevia AB.
In this context, it can also be mentioned that the needs for maintenance of Sweden's roads are great. The Government is therefore investing 300 million kronor per year during 2024 and 2025 on increased road maintenance of state roads, as well as 100 million kronor per year during 2024 and 2025 for reinforced maintenance in the individual road network. The initiative aims to contribute to maintaining accessibility and ensuring a reliable infrastructure.
Isak From (S)
Mr. Speaker! I thank the Minister for Finance for the answer.
Let us first state that we have, in any case, received very heavy snowfall in northern Sweden during Easter. We can also state that the road maintenance seems to have functioned relatively well. There have been no major reports of traffic chaos. We must hope that it continues, even though the snow is now also falling heavily outside the Riksdagshuset.
The starting point for my interpellation is that there is very great irritation across the country regarding lack of road maintenance and, above all, lack of winter road maintenance. Svevia is the market leader, just as the Minister for Finance points out, and the largest player—furthermore a very competent player in large parts—on the Swedish market concerning winter road maintenance, summer road maintenance, bridge construction, paving, and many other parts that belong there.
The day before I wrote the interpellation, Trafikverket had issued 91 fines to various companies, of which Svevia had received the most proportionally, because they had not met the requirements in the contracts they committed to. Since I wrote the interpellation, it seems that an additional number of fines have also been issued in cases where Svevia has not fully fulfilled what they committed to.
It is, after all, the Minister for Finance who is responsible for the state-owned company Svevia, and that was the basis for why I wrote the interpellation.
Another part that must be taken into account is that this must be viewed as a whole. We remember very well the enormous criticism of the state's management that came after the chaos on the E22 in Skåne, which was about how different agencies failed to carry out either snow removal, closures, or other parts. That is also why the Social Democrats in the Committee on Transport in the Swedish Riksdag have wanted to call the Minister for Infrastructure to the Committee on Transport, which he, however, has not agreed to. Furthermore, the majority in the committee has voted no to it.
That means there is a great reason to talk about a holistic view. The state is nevertheless responsible in several different ways, both as a procurer of infrastructure, maintenance and snow removal and as a provider through Svevia. Here, the Minister for Finance is responsible.
Just as the Minister for Finance says in his response, the state-owned companies shall follow the articles of association. The state-owned companies shall lead by example and be role models. It is somewhat doubtful whether Svevia is that. And Svevia has, to some extent, acknowledged deficiencies.
It is said that one had not accounted for this. If one has not accounted for it, it is clear that we must accept that we might not get it. But then the state needs to be very clear in both respects and say that it is not acceptable. If one has committed to the assignment, one should fulfill it and deliver on it.
Finansministern Elisabeth Svantesson (M)
Mr. Speaker! I would like to thank Isak From for the interpellation.
I believe we share the view that road potholes in Sweden have been deprioritized for decades. This has led to a very large maintenance debt, which in turn creates major problems in everyday life for families and companies. It has also become a growth barrier for Sweden.
Already in our first budget, we prioritized 1 billion for strengthened road maintenance. And in this year's budget, that is for 2024, we are adding further resources, which I mentioned earlier. This can partially reduce the deferred maintenance and contribute to maintaining accessibility throughout the country. It can also contribute to securing reliable infrastructure.
Svevia, which the interpellation concerns, has an important role in the work with maintenance. They are large in the market. I believe they have approximately half of the market. That means what they do is important from many perspectives.
A state-owned company should, of course, be an exemplar and act exemplarily. I can assure Isak From that the discussions between us as owners and the company include how the company can become better at contributing to long-term sustainable road maintenance throughout the country. It is one of the issues that we take up with the company in our owner dialogues.
The concrete operational questions are questions that need to be asked of the company.
Isak From (S)
Mr. Speaker and Minister for Finance! Svevia is absolutely an important company. When it comes to localization, Svevia is one of the state-owned companies that perhaps can be seen as an example. They are located from Landskrona to Kiruna and in many places in between. It is important, given the competence and breadth that the company has. It is also there that I feel my commitment and my commitment in the Committee on Enterprise, which handles the state-owned companies, lies. With our ownership policy and governance model, we have actually decided that the state-owned companies shall lead by example.
Now it appears that the state's second hand, the authority Trafikverket, has become stricter and tougher and issues more fines, and that Svevia has indeed received the highest percentage of fines. That sends somewhat poorer signals. In that case, I think that just having the debate here is good. We can say that the operations and the company are important. But we cannot tolerate that people slack off on the procurements.
If one does not manage it fully, it perhaps also implies a competitive disadvantage for the rest of the business sector. Svevia shall compete with other companies on the open market and at the same time manage to be an example. I think and believe that the conditions exist to do so.
The Swedish trucking industry has published a number of reports in which they are critical of the fact that the road maintenance has been divided into fewer areas. This means there are more kilometers of road within each area. This makes it possible to miss a number of contractors around the country. Those who take the contracts – primarily Svevia, Peab, and Skanska – take a significantly larger share of the cake and perhaps miss the overall picture in certain parts.
Dalarna is quite large, just like Västerbotten. Skåne is not as large, but when it snows in Skåne, it seems to cause great concerns. Then one needs to have resources for that. If one has accepted and received such a mandate, one also has a great responsibility.
It is important that we in the Swedish Riksdag send those signals. The state-owned companies must hear that they are very important, but they must also perform what they have committed to.
Finansministern Elisabeth Svantesson (M)
Mr. Speaker! Svevia has no social mission. But, as I said and as Isak From is touching upon, as a market-leading actor and also as a state-owned company, it is incredibly important that one acts exemplarily in the company's entire operations.
For the state as an owner, it is of particular importance that one has and enjoys public trust. This is something we clarify, among other things through the ownership policy we have and through ongoing dialogue with Svevia, but naturally also with other companies.
We have a clear expectation of Svevia. In our ownership dialogues, we ask questions and talk about requirements and expectations. Then it is the board that is responsible for ensuring that Svevia is managed in an exemplary manner, of course within the framework of the legislation we have. I know that Isak From is very much aware of that.
I will say something brief about the whites. Just as Isak From says, Svevia has approximately half of the market shares but a somewhat larger share of whites. The whites may apply to both large and small. There is great variation. But it is still an issue that I am glad Isak From is now raising. We will, of course, include it in our ownership dialogues in the future.
Isak From (S)
Mr. Speaker! The Minister for Finance has an important role as the one responsible for the state-owned companies and for the largest party in the government when it comes to having a holistic view. It cannot be that one part of the state is not fully compatible with the other part of the state.
It is good that money is being added to both railway and road maintenance. The Swedish people will not accept this situation, especially not something like what happened on the E22. In northern Sweden, we have previously, though not now during Easter, had long stops because snow removal was missed or because, primarily, transport trucks have not met the requirements for winter tires. They have simply stopped. That means people do not get to work or cannot drop the kids off at extracurricular activities. Here, the government has a great responsibility.
The interpellation concerns the largest actor on the market, Svevia, which is a state-owned entity. The figures as a whole correspond to relatively little, but as a signal, it is also not very good that the state-owned company Svevia does not fully fulfill the tasks it has committed to.
Finansministern Elisabeth Svantesson (M)
Mr. Speaker! We share the vision that Sweden's infrastructure shall, step by step, become both more robust and more reliable. It has many times struck those of us who travel around large parts of Sweden that it would be desirable if the quality of the roads were increased instead of the speed limits being lowered.
We need to upgrade the Swedish road network, and we need to upgrade the Swedish railway network. As the responsible owner minister for the companies, I can once again assure Isak From that there is a close and frequent dialogue with Svevia. We expect exemplary behavior and that they simply perform their task as well as possible.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.