List: Three critical issues in the government negotiations

After election night, Ulf Kristersson's government base (M, KD, L and SD) leads with one mandate in the fight for power.

But in order to become prime minister, the moderate leader must unite the parties and there are several critical issues in any government negotiations, says political scientist Linn Mårdstam.

One issue is SD's demand that the higher level of social security that the Swedish government introduced during the pandemic remain.

- The moderates, for their part, want to lower the level.

This is one of the issues where you see that SD is more to the left on the political scale than the Moderates and one of several labor market-related issues where there is a dividing line between the parties, says Linn Mårdstam.

"Could be a problem with the Liberals"

Another conflict that remains to be resolved is migration policy and the approach to it.

M, KD, L and SD have indeed agreed on guidelines and certain proposals regarding migration, but SD wants to go further than that and advocates that Sweden's right to asylum be lowered to the EU's minimum level.

- Here there could be problems with the Liberals, who have a more open approach to how many people should come here and integration efforts, says Mårdstam.

Contradictions in EU politics

There are also contradictions in the question of Sweden's role in the world.

SD has dropped the demand for a Swedish withdrawal from the EU, but still advocates that the Union's power over the member states be limited.

- The Moderates and the Liberals are EU-friendly parties that have strong ambitious programs at the EU level.

Now that Sweden will become the EU's chairman country in 2023, this question will clarify many dividing lines.

In addition, the issue of Sweden's aid is a difficult nut to crack, according to Mårdstam.

M and SD want the aid to be reduced, while KD and L support the current goal that 1 percent of gross national income (GNI) should be set aside for aid in the state budget.

- There is a dividing line and a tension that also exists in this new cooperation coalition.