When the interim report on Tuesday was presented to the regional board, it was with a historical result. SEK 900 million in surplus on a budget comprising about SEK 11.5 billion. This makes Jönköping County one of the regions in the country with the best economic situation.

- We have a stable economy that is based on the long-term perspective, says regional board chairman Mia Frisk (KD) to SVT News Jönköping.

Government grants and investments behind

There are two main reasons behind the record figures. One is that the targeted state grants for healthcare became larger than expected and came unusually late due to the trips around the government formation, and had thus not been fully included in the original budget.

The second reason is financial investments in equities and funds that have performed better than expected, while the accounting rules have been changed so that the actual market value is now reported.

- But then it is also true that the business has a good track of its costs, and is not deducted with any deficits, while the costs for staffing companies actually fell during the year, says Mia Frisk.

But have you been holding back too much in the business, given that the result is so high?

- It is a huge educational challenge to explain. Above all, unrealized assets are now reported to look better on paper. But the value of them may as well be worse if the business cycle fluctuates.

- In addition, we have not had to impose any savings requirements on the operations for several years, says Mia Frisk.

Will pay for investments

At the same time, the surplus comes in handy, says the political leadership of the region. In the coming years, major investments await, including the three hospitals and a large bus depot for Länstrafiken. This is especially where the surplus for the year is to be put in place.

- The goal is for these investments to be self-financed and that we should not have to take out any loans, says Mia Frisk.

- But we must also continue to keep costs down so that they do not go away the day the business cycle turns