ALPHA. Demokratiskolan.se is a PROTOTYPE · Content review in progress
Demokratiskolan
The Countryside card from MethodKit for Society and Politics
Card 60 of 128 · MethodKit for Society & Politics
  • AreaPlaces & infrastructure
  • Centre of gravityCentral government
  • Points of influence3 on the journey
  • Decisive electionThe general election
Places & infrastructure

Countryside

Life in the countryside

A large share of Sweden lives outside the larger towns, but the decisions that shape the countryside are often made somewhere else. The school, the petrol station, the fibre and the farming support are steered from four different levels, and the EU is more present here than in the city.

Where does the power lie?1

  • Municipality · school, services & planning · approx 30 %
  • Region · development funds & bus routes · approx 20 %
  • State · support, equalisation & agencies · approx 35 %
  • EU · farming & rural support · approx 15 %

Power is unusually spread out. The EU and central government steer the support schemes, but the general election weighs heaviest through the equalisation system and rural policy.

How it works: the breakdown

The municipalityEveryday services
The regionDevelopment & transport
Central governmentThe support & the equalisation · centre of gravity
Who decides?
The municipal council (kommunfullmäktige) and the committees, often in small municipalities with large areas.
The regional council (regionfullmäktige) and the regional development committee.
The Riksdag, the Government, the County Administrative Board (Länsstyrelsen), the Swedish Board of Agriculture (Jordbruksverket) and Tillväxtverket.
What do they decide?
Schools, elderly care, comprehensive planning and the question of whether the village school gets to stay.
Regional development funds, service programmes, broadband coordination and the buses between the towns.
Rural policy, the equalisation system, support for services in sparsely populated areas and the handling of farming support.
Where are decisions made?
In the municipal hall. In small municipalities the distance to the politicians is often short.
In the regional council and the development committee.
In the Riksdag and at the agencies. The County Administrative Board processes many support schemes in the county.
Who pays?
The municipal tax plus central government equalisation, which weighs heavily in many rural municipalities.
The regional tax plus national and European development funds.
The central government budget: equalisation, support and infrastructure.
Fastest way in?
Municipal election A citizen's proposal (medborgarförslag), the village association's dialogue with the municipality, the consultation (samråd) on the comprehensive plan.
Regional election The consultation (samråd) on the development strategy and the public transport plan.
General election A referral response (remissvar), contact with members of the Riksdag from your constituency.
EUThe EU's farming policy and rural fund finance large parts of the support for agriculture and rural development. The European Parliament election has a direct effect.

Read the table by column to understand one level, or by row to compare the levels. The green level is the area's centre of gravity.

How it works: follow the decision

The case The village shop is saved
  1. EU

    The funds are filled in Brussels

    The EU's rural fund and farming policy decide which support schemes are available to apply for, for services and enterprise outside the cities. Sweden negotiates the rules and scales them up with its own money.

  2. State

    Central government marks out the service points

    The Riksdag sets aside money for support to shops in areas with sparse services. Tillväxtverket and the County Administrative Board handle the support and point out where it is needed.

    Point of influence

    The general election shapes the budget for rural policy. The agencies' proposals go out for referral (remiss).

  3. Region

    The service programme points out the shop

    The region's service programme describes where basic services must remain. If the local shop ends up there, the door opens to operating support and investment support.

    Point of influence

    The programme is drawn up in dialogue with municipalities and village associations. Get in touch with the regional development committee.

  4. Municipality

    The municipality and the village association roll up their sleeves

    The municipality can help with premises, home delivery grants and planning. The village association gathers names, organises customer loyalty and applies for support together with the shopkeeper.

    Point of influence

    Community life is the countryside's fastest route to influence. Join the village association, or start one.

  5. Your everyday life

    The milk is still five minutes away

    The shop is also an agent for parcels, the pharmacy and cash. That it is still there was not just the market's decision, but the sum of support and voluntary work at four levels.

The journey looks the same in reverse: what has been built came the same way, through the same decisions. Whoever knows where the decisions are made also knows where they can be changed.

Questions to discuss

  1. Which services must remain in the countryside, and who should pay for them?

  2. How far is too far to a school, a health centre or a shop?

  3. What would get more people to stay in or move to the countryside in your part of the country?

  4. Is the EU more or less noticeable in the countryside than in the city, do you think?

  5. What do the village associations do where you live, and what could they do?

Glossary

Utjämningssystemet
Central government system that redistributes money so that municipalities with few residents can manage the same tasks.
Driftstöd
Central government support that helps shops in areas with sparse services to survive.
Byalag
Local association that drives the area's issues with the municipality and the region.
Serviceprogram
Regional programme that points out where basic services should be available.
Hemsändningsbidrag
Grant for delivering goods to people living far from the nearest shop.

Go further

Footnotes

1) This is an estimate of how decision-making power over the issue is split between the municipality, the region, central government and the EU, based on how responsibility is divided in legislation. A teaching guide, not an exact measurement.