Sweden's municipalities would need between 20,000 and 30,000 inhabitants in order for the business to operate effectively, according to the report presented on Dagens Nyheter's debate page by its chairman Niklas Karlsson (S).

Want to award a volunteer

A proposal in the final report is increased collaboration between small municipalities and financial incentives for voluntary municipal mergers.

Better state governance

The state also needs to improve its governance of the municipalities and review the municipal equalization system in order to ensure equal financial conditions, writes Niklas Karlsson. Furthermore, the provision of skills in the municipalities needs to be facilitated, among other things, by investigating whether it is possible to reduce the study debts of persons residing and professionals in particularly vulnerable municipalities.

SD opposes the proposal

The Swedish Democrats believe that it is wrong to increase the incentives for municipal mergers, for example by taking over the municipalities' debts from the state. Instead, priority initiatives are needed for the countryside and municipalities, such as increased travel deductions and reduced fuel taxes, the party's economic-political spokesman Oscar Sjöstedt and MP Mikael Eskilandersson write in a debate article in Svenska Dagbladet.