การเลือกตั้งสวีเดนระหว่าง " แดง กับ น้ำเงิน " Magdalena Andersson hides her suggestions

 Peter Gustavsson

Magdalena Andersson hides her suggestions

The moderates' election manifesto at least has nice pictures

PUBLISHED: LESS THAN 40 MIN AGO

Aftonbladet's editorial page is independent social democratic.

LEADER

The selection debate has been full of plays, one crazier than the other. And much has been about them, rather than about the big issues voters are thinking about. A conscious strategy, by all accounts.

But now, at the eleventh hour, the parties have released their election manifestos and told the voters about their entire policy.

Comparing the Social Democrats' election manifesto with the Moderates' is like putting a memo from a ministry next to a picture book.

The Social Democrats' election manifesto was presented by Magdalena Andersson and Mikael Damberg on August 25, eighteen days before election day. For those who are looking, there are several reform proposals.

The Social Democrats' election manifesto was presented by Magdalena Andersson and Mikael Damberg on August 25, eighteen days before election day. For those who are looking, there are several reform proposals.

Photo: Jonas Ekströmer/TT

S hides its reforms

The S-document with a responsible Magdalena Andersson on the front is careful with what it promises. This year's big promise is to spend as much money on preventing crimes as on fighting them. But there is more for the seeker.

The Social Democrats want to make the pandemic increase in unemployment insurance permanent. S wants to raise the fee so that everyone receives at least 70 percent of the final salary in retirement. A multibillion-dollar reform will change the qualifying deduction and increase justice for everyone who cannot work from home.

The number of charging stations must be doubled by 2030 and high school students and students must be able to travel free of charge on public transport during the summer.

M cuts taxes as usual

The moderates' election manifesto has a seascape on the front, and is filled with numbers, diagrams and bullet points. On page 23, Ulf Kristersson walks with a dog through a residential area. The image is blue filtered, making it look like the apocalypse has already happened.

And doom is ever-present in the moderate election manifesto. The statistics give a picture of a country with high unemployment, a lack of equality, a lot of crime and a lot of immigration. And lots of trees, surprisingly.

But the Moderates' solution is the same as it has always been, regardless of the problem description. They want to lower taxes.

Then it doesn't matter that the defense investments are expensive or that inflation eats up the money for care, school and care. M still wants a new employment tax deduction and reduced capital taxes.

Remarkable tenure

Over the past four years, parties with very different views have cooperated with each other. And parties that think even more differently have agreed on a single thing – to reject the government's proposal. And at the same time, everything has been turned upside down by a pandemic and a war.

The Social Democrats have governed, but have had difficulty implementing their policies. When the right-wing opposition rejected the government's budget last autumn, the implementation of the big S proposal in the last election was stopped. The parents did not get more time with the children through a family week.

So it is perhaps not so strange that the election debate was less about issues of substance and more about who takes who after the election. But there are a few things we can know.

Red or blue?

In a red Sweden, school, healthcare and welfare resources will be prioritized before tax cuts. Pensions are increased and security is strengthened if you become ill or unemployed. The government is pushing to reduce market elements in school and healthcare.

In a blue Sweden, taxes will be lowered, mostly for those who earn the most. Security in the form of social security and health insurance is diminishing, and the market school and privatizations remain.