With Sweden’s election just days away, ALDE Party member Centerpartiet is making competitiveness a central theme of its campaign, arguing that Sweden can do more.
Under its campaign message “Sweden can do more”, the party is putting jobs, climate action and stronger welfare at the centre of its offer. Its wider election manifesto aims to help businesses grow, accelerate the green transition and ensure people can access public services across the country.
For party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist, competitiveness also depends on whether Sweden can attract and retain the skills it needs to grow. Centerpartiet argues that the current rules are contributing to a damaging loss of talent, while companies struggle to find the people they need.
Centerpartiet is putting forward four election proposals to make Sweden more attractive:
- Replace the current wage floor. Introduce a wage requirement linked to collective agreements to prevent needed workers from being deported.
- Keep permanent residence permits permanent. Sweden must be a country people can trust if it wants to attract and retain international talent.
- Invest in AI researchers and entrepreneurs. Make Sweden a stronger destination for world-leading researchers, innovators and businesses.
- Introduce a start-up visa. The proposal would create a faster, clearer route for entrepreneurs from outside the EU to establish businesses in Sweden, with the party linking this to new jobs, investment and innovation.
At a time when liberal values are being challenged from both the right and the left, Centerpartiet argues that Sweden needs a strong, forward-looking liberal force to provide stability.
The party is positioning itself as a centrist alternative, with Ringqvist calling for “a strong and stable government in the middle” that includes neither the Sweden Democrats nor the Left Party.
For Centerpartiet, the campaign is ultimately about unlocking Sweden’s potential: more people in work, more businesses able to grow, a faster green transition and a country where opportunity is not determined by where you live.
Sweden can do more. Centerpartiet is making that the case at the heart of its campaign.
Watch the full press conference here for more details.