Response to interpellation 2024/25:17 on housing policy measures and state aid rules
Translated from Swedish by AI; the translation may contain errors. The Swedish text is the original.
Summary AI, written in advance
KD intends to allocate over 1.5 billion SEK until 2028 for housing policy development in northern Sweden 1. KD wants to lower the fees for state credit guarantees 1 2 and argues that the government's work aims to lower the thresholds for home ownership through rent-to-buy models 3. KD argues that the government's restrained budgets and inflation fighting have laid the foundation for a better functioning housing market 4. S argues that the government has phased out investment support for rental apartments prematurely 5 and that the housing allowance is narrowly defined 6. S proposes a new housing supply act, a state real estate company, state start-up loans, construction credits, and 10,000 new student residences 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.
Statsrådet Andreas Carlson (KD)
Madam Speaker! Markus Kallifatides has asked me if I and the government intend to produce a proposal for the design of state building credits that is expected to be compatible with EU legislation. Markus Kallifatides has also asked me if I and the government intend, in a broader sense, to take into account the decision from the EU Commission regarding the previous investment aid when designing housing policy measures.
The Government intends to allocate just over 1.5 billion SEK until 2028 to support the green industrial transition and housing policy development in northern Sweden. In the budget bill, the Government proposes that 140 million SEK be allocated to housing policy development in northern Sweden already during 2025, and the amount increases to a total of 1.53 billion SEK for the years 2025-2028. The funds shall serve as a catalyst for housing construction in the affected municipalities.
The government will return to the exact design of the proposal. The grant may be used for expenses for loans for housing investments in certain municipalities.
The Government also intends to introduce a possibility for Boverket to subsidize parts of the credit guarantee fees, which apply to all establishment and transition municipalities regardless of where in Sweden they are located. The funds available in the existing system of credit guarantees are not being fully utilized today. This means that a portion of the money is not being used, while the need for housing is great. The subsidization of the credit guarantee fees aims to increase the use of state credit guarantees for housing construction in establishment and transition municipalities.
Business establishments and expansions in northern Sweden contribute to our nation being able to be world-leading in innovation and the green transition. This simultaneously entails great challenges in arranging housing for all newcomers. Housing construction is a key to being able to invest in the green transition in the future in our home Sweden.
Both of these measures will be implemented in accordance with EU legislation, including consideration of previous decisions from the EU Commission.
Markus Kallifatides (S)
Madam Speaker! Thank you, Minister, for the answer!
In June, the Minister stated here in the Chamber that our Social Democratic proposal on state construction credits would be difficult to reconcile with the EU's state aid rules.
It was the first time I had heard this claim from the Minister for Finance or any other representative of the government. It also appeared surprising to me because construction credits exist in other EU countries and because the investment support for the construction of rental apartments and student housing with lower rent levels, which is now being prematurely phased out, has obviously been compatible with EU law.
That is why I submitted a written question regarding what basis the government had for the assessment that state construction credits would be difficult to reconcile with the EU's state aid rules. The Minister for Infrastructure and Housing answered briefly.
I quote: "When it comes to the state building credits, a proposal needs to be developed that both fulfills the objectives and is compatible with the EU's state aid rules. Such an analysis must be made based on the conditions that apply in the Swedish market for residential construction. Even though measures to support residential construction have been introduced in other EU countries, it does not automatically mean that these solutions can be applied in the same way in Sweden." I agree.
The Minister referred to the state aid rules' provisions on services of general economic interest as well as an important decision from the EU Commission.
Madam Speaker! I mean that such an analysis and design of support in all instances should take its starting point in the European Commission's explicit approval of the state investment support for the construction of rental apartments and student housing with lower rent levels, which the current right-wing government has terminated prematurely. This is something that I also pointed out in my written question and actually expected as a starting point for the Minister's answer.
That is why I posed two questions to the Minister in this interpellation.
Does the Council of State and the Government intend to prepare a proposal for the design of state construction credits that is expected to be compatible with EU legislation?
Does the Council of State and the Government intend, in a broader sense, to take into account the decision from the EU Commission regarding the previous investment support when designing housing policy measures?
On the second question in my interpellation, Madam Speaker, I have received a very brief answer: Yes, previous decisions from the EU Commission shall be taken into account. Would it be possible to get a somewhat more complete answer, Minister? How does the government intend to take the decisions into account?
In the first question of my interpellation, I have not perceived any answer at all. The answer speaks of state credit guarantees. But my question is about state construction loans! Is there something special about state construction loans that would be difficult to reconcile with EU law? And if so, what, Andreas Carlson?
Statsrådet Andreas Carlson (KD)
Madam Speaker! I have answered regarding the credit guarantees. It is a system that is in place today, and the notification we have made in the budget aims to achieve a higher utilization rate of existing credit guarantees. I assume this aims for the same goal as the member has with the proposals that he and his party have presented, namely to provide support to be able to get construction started and use a system that already exists. From the government's point of view, this is a way to get this in place faster.
I still want to say that the fact that the EU Commission once approved the now-terminated investment support for rental housing and student housing has no significance for other issues or housing policy instruments that are developed. Every Commission decision regarding the approval of a support scheme is based on the circumstances of the individual case. The fact that the EU Commission once approved the aforementioned investment support does not provide any guarantee that a state guarantee with a subsidy element would be approved. Every measure is analyzed and approved or rejected by the EU Commission on its own merits.
The credit guarantees for loans for housing construction that exist today contain no subsidy elements and are therefore compatible with the EU's state aid rules. Lowering parts of the fees and subsidizing the fee, which is the government's proposal in the budget, constitutes state aid. The proposal will therefore be pre-notified to the EU Commission before it can be approved.
Madam Speaker! I also want to remind the members and the audience of the debate about what we are talking about, namely the EU's state aid rules. They ensure fair competition in the internal market. State aid that distorts competition is essentially incompatible with EU rules, but exceptions can be made if the aid contributes to common goals, for example, economic development, social cohesion, or environmental protection.
What I have previously stated in the answer to the question, Madam Speaker, is that an analysis must be made in the individual case based on the conditions that apply in the Swedish market for housing construction.
The members of the committee have asked two questions. Regarding the first question, the government's answer is to use the existing credit guarantees in a more efficient way and achieve better utilization through a reduced fee.
The second question, regarding the consideration of decisions, I gave an answer to: The measures that the government has presented in the budget will be implemented in accordance with EU legislation. This, of course, involves a consideration of previous decisions from the EU Commission.
But to base it on previous decisions and use them as a template for what might be approved in the future cannot be done - for the same reason I stated at the beginning of my speech. Every commission decision on the approval of a support scheme is based on the conditions in the individual case. Therefore, an analysis needs to be made in each individual case. In this analysis, one can, of course - and that is what the government will do - take into account previous decisions from the EU Commission. I have already answered that, Madam Speaker.
Markus Kallifatides (S)
Madam Speaker! Thank you, Minister, for the answer! We are thus in agreement. New applications for permission to introduce different forms of support, including the subsidization of credit guarantee fees that the government is now announcing, must be discussed with the EU Commission. We are in complete agreement on this, and we Social Democrats are not negatively inclined towards changes regarding the subsidization of credit guarantee fees.
Once in our rather many debates, Andreas Carlson, I indicated the wrong government investigation in my enumeration of measures that the government had then taken. The newspaper Altinget caught my mistake. Both I and the minister were given the opportunity to do what is usually called a "poodle". I said it wrong, I said. Would it not also be in order for Andreas Carlson to say something now? Please say: I answered incorrectly to Markus Kallifatides' written question. It concerned government construction loans, not credit guarantees.
Madam Speaker! Much is said about simplifying rules in the housing policy debate. But when the building regulations are to be simplified, it turns out that it is anything but simple to simplify rules. There is talk of shorter lead times, but making sharp decisions to change the various stages of the community construction process has proven to be much easier said than done.
Generating more buildable land by compensating municipalities for the work they have already done - and charged a fee for - will also not make any significant impact across the country. The Tidö majority is coddling the owner-occupied housing and coddling those who already own. But those who live in rental apartments or stand outside the housing market are getting the cold shoulder.
Today is payday, Madam Speaker! Today, both Infrastructure Minister and Housing Minister Andreas Carlson and I are opening our pay envelopes. Furthermore, we are to receive large tax cuts from the government as a New Year's gift. Among the country's construction workers and timber house workers, there are thousands who instead receive a significantly smaller payout from the unemployment insurance fund compared to the previous salary they had before the dramatic fall in housing construction. One might also be in the process of seeking another profession than the one they dreamed of and trained for.
Would it not be appropriate, Andreas Carlson, to say something about this? I would like to hear the Minister say: I made a mistake. I should have listened to the Social Democrats. We should have implemented support measures earlier so that the housing construction would not fall so dramatically.
Statsrådet Andreas Carlson (KD)
Madam Speaker! Just because a member of the Swedish Parliament is not satisfied with an answer does not mean by definition that the answer is wrong. We have given an answer on what measures the government is taking, and I believe they are an important step. If I interpret the member's intention correctly, we want to reach the same goal: to be able to facilitate housing construction. In that regard, the government has seen that the low utilization rate of the existing system with credit guarantees needs to be streamlined. We are now, according to the proposal in the budget bill, lowering the fee for this utilization to make it function better than it does today.
It is an answer to a question that the member has asked. I have full respect for the fact that a member of the Swedish Riksdag may want more and even more detailed answers. It lies by definition in the role, Madam Speaker. I respond, of course, by informing about the measures that the government is taking, and I appreciate the exchange that we have. I also place great value on what the member says about us being in agreement.
One thing we do not agree on, however, is that the government only rewards those who already own. Much of the government's work to strengthen private ownership and the opportunity for more people to own their home is about lowering the entry barriers. We have an investigation underway that looks at how it is done in Norway, namely rent-to-buy models. You buy half of the apartment and pay off the other half through leasing. This means that one can get a foot in the door to a half-owned home and then gradually and successively pay off the other half. It is a very concrete example of what the government is doing to strengthen the owner-occupied housing market and not just sit on their hands and believe that those who already own are the ones benefiting. Above all, the entry barriers are lowered for all those who want to own their own apartment and home but who cannot today.
It is the same thing regarding the fact that seven out of ten want to live in small houses. Here, reforms have been lacking that would have made it possible for more people to own their homes. So, if there is anyone who is going to sit down and say that they were wrong and that they should have listened to the other side, it is the Social Democrats. They had time to act and address structural problems in the Swedish housing market during their time in power.
Much of what we see the fruit of today has not arisen during the last two years but is a consequence of the fact that there has been a lack of sufficient reforms for a very long time. That is what we are now tackling. It is about strengthening the possibility for more people to own and building more rental apartments that suit different circumstances in life. Here, two court rulings have meant that the system of presumptive rents has not been able to be used.
The government has had an investigation ongoing with proposals that have been referred regarding making it possible for housing developers to balance the calculations and build more rental apartments to the extent that is needed in Sweden. Work is also ongoing here.
To say that the government only focuses on ownership for those who already own is factually incorrect. We focus heavily on ensuring that more people can own by lowering the thresholds, and we are also working on strengthening the opportunities for those who are in need of a rental home.
Markus Kallifatides (S)
Madam Speaker! Swedish housing policy during the coming year, 2025, will in all material respects consist of a narrowly defined and non-indexed housing allowance that has lagged far behind rent increases and housing prices - and what is called tax expenditures, that is, the rotavdrag and untaxed capital income from ownership of own housing.
Sweden allocates very few public resources to the housing supply, and it is for that reason that such large problems are created with the housing supply specifically.
We Social Democrats have proposed a new unified housing supply law, a national action plan for housing supply, the formation of a state-owned real estate company, state start-up loans for first-time buyers, and that the housing allowance must be followed up as an important tool for economically weak households. In addition, we have proposed that public housing should be exempted from the requirement to follow the cost-driving law on public procurement. In addition, we have proposed that 10,000 new student residences should be built during the next four years with the help of a state construction stimulus, which can also apply to locations with large industrial establishments. In addition, we Social Democrats have proposed that state construction credits of 5 billion kronor per year should be issued and used to support the new production of housing.
Unfortunately, the SD-controlled right-wing government has rejected all of our proposals, including the one regarding a parliamentary housing commission. We see it as two years of lost opportunities.
When the government, under pressure from Industrisverige, not least in the north, introduces some form of stimulus for housing construction, it is unfortunately too little and obviously too late.
Statsrådet Andreas Carlson (KD)
Madam Speaker! It is popular in opposition to say that it is too little and too late. Had one taken to heart that statement already while in government, we would surely have been in a better position when we entered a period of recession with very high inflation, that is to say, if one had then taken the structural problems seriously when one had the chance. If one is perhaps a bit positively inclined, the member may himself reflect on what was too little and too late.
An important part that affects housing construction dramatically is that we have been in a situation with high inflation. The very active inflation fighting that has characterized the fiscal policy and the government's restrained budgets at the beginning of the mandate period has laid the foundation for us to now have inflation at more normal levels, that the Riksbank has signaled interest rate cuts and has already taken several such steps. That in itself is an important factor for getting a better functioning housing market so that more homes are built. It is important to include in the list of measures that the government has taken and that the member missed.
Then it was the question of other measures. We will receive the investigation that reviews the amortization requirement and the mortgage ceiling. It is an investigation that the government has commissioned and which will report in the near future. Additionally, there are the measures for northern Sweden, and we will return to the exact design. These are several important steps that will make the housing market function better, in a situation where the fog is now lifting and the light is coming. It will take time to turn this around, and that is why it is important to continue with the pace of reform regarding measures that can address the structural problems that exist in the housing market. The government will continue to do so.
Source: The Swedish Parliament. The speeches come from the open data of the Riksdag, translated into English by AI, which may contain errors.