Ett socialt Europa? - en studie om de svenska partiernas inställning till EU:s sociala dimension

Sammanfattning

Since its foundation in the 1950s, social policy has been an issue of contention within the European Union and its member states. The issue was raised most recently in 2017 with the commission’s initiative to introduce the European Pillar of Social Rights. The ensuing debate has been a suitable opportunity to examine the reception in one of the member countries. What is the attitude of the Swedish parliamentary parties towards strengthening the EU’s social dimension and with what kind of arguments do the parties justify their positions? The study shows that the outcome has been four parties in favor and four parties against strengthening the social dimension. Even so, the arguments from parties in favor have been few and defensive, and they argue that the current national self-determination will remain overall unchanged. The most common argument against strengthening the social dimension is based on the lack of formal legitimacy, as a breach of the principle of subsidiarity. The opposition parties also interpret the social dimension in the EU as a potential threat to the Swedish model.