Swedish PM: Moderate Party's property tax warnings 'completely absurd'

In a long interview broadcast on Swedish state radio broadcaster SR, Andersson stressed that her party had no plans to bring back the property tax abolished by the Moderate-led government back in 2008. 

"We are not going to campaign on the back of a property tax, have no plans to do it, and have shown over the last eight years that we are not doing it," she said. "It is completely absurd that the Moderates are running their campaign about this for the third or fourth time in a row. They were cranking this out in 2014, 2018 and now in 2022, and we have not brought back the property tax." 

When pushed by the interviewer, however, Andersson refused to absolutely rule out making any changes to Sweden's system of property taxation. 

"If I start to draw red lines, I will risk creating an even more locked situation after the election," she said. "But there's no question over what I believe. If you don't want to bring back property tax, you should vote for the Social Democrats." 

The Swedish Trade Union Confederation LO, is in favour of bringing back the property tax, which it describes as "one of the best taxes", as is the Left Party.

After the interview, Tobias Billström and Elisabeth Svantesson, the Moderate Party's group leader and financial spokesperson, said that by refusing to rule out bringing back the tax, Andersson had justified their decision to campaign on the issue. 

"Unequivocal message from Magdalena Andersson today in P1 Morgon," Billström wrote on Twitter. "If the Left Party wants property tax to be reintroduced, it will happen. There are no red lines from S." 

Entydiga besked från Magdalena Andersson idag i P1 Morgon: vill Vänsterpartiet ha återinförd fastighetsskatt så blir det så. Inga röda linjer från S.

— Tobias Billström (@TobiasBillstrom) August 9, 2022

"Bringing back property tax is on the negotiating table," Svantesson wrote. "She has no red lines there. Important -- but expensive -- message for Swedish households." 

Magdalena Andersson är tydlig i dagens utfrågning i P1 morgon. Återinförd fastighetsskatt finns på förhandlingsbordet. Hon har inga röda linjer där. Viktigt - men dyrt - besked för de svenska hushållen.

— Elisabeth Svantesson (@ElisabethSvan) August 9, 2022

Andersson did, however, say that the Social Democrats want to raise taxes, saying that the party planned to bring in a new tax to fund building back Sweden's defence capabilities, a so-called beredskapsskatt, or "preparedness tax". 

"So that this will not end up taking priority over schools, pensions, healthcare and elderly care, we think that those with the highest incomes should be able to pay just a little bit extra towards this," she said, although she would not go into detail on how "highest incomes" would be defined. 

"But in the economic situation we are in, it's not the time to raise taxes for ordinary households," she said.