On Thursday, a state budget for 2027 will be presented. While a new government is being formed, it is customary for the outgoing government to present a so-called transitional budget - in many ways, an extension of this year’s state budget. The parties can also submit follow-up motions.
Roger Blomberg, a professor at the Centre for Cultural Policy Research at the University of Borås, finds it difficult to predict the final outcome.
All years are lost years, you could say. There is always too little money - if you say anything else, you risk cuts next year. It is part of the rules of politics, he says.
One urgent issue, however, is the 35 million kronor deficit at the world culture museums, needed to cover increased rents for the Museum of Mediterranean Antiquities and the Museum of Ethnography in Stockholm. Without the money, the museums would otherwise have to close. Gunnar Ardelius, secretary-general of the Swedish Museums Association, noted the interest shown by MPs during a visit to the Culture Committee last week.
The fact that they invited us to talk about this shows a willingness from several political parties to do something about it, he says, adding:
Money can solve some of the problems. What is also important is that politicians want to do something and take a long-term perspective.
The lowest level
Last year, Minister of Culture Parisa Liljestrand (M) presented a culture budget of 9.6 billion kronor for 2026. This amounted to 0.62 per cent of the state budget, the lowest level since 2000. Liljestrand explained this by saying that other budget areas, such as defence and correctional services, had grown more.
Anna Troberg of DIK, the union for workers in culture, communications and the creative industries, is calling for more than just “coffee money”.
Culture has been underfunded for a long time, and in recent years it has only gotten worse. A proper boost is needed for the entire cultural sector. It doesn't look like it will come next year.
Among the opposition parties’ budget proposals for this year, the Greens and the Left Party stood out, proposing increases of 1.35 billion and 957.7 million kronor more than the government, respectively. The Social Democrats wanted to increase spending by 279 million kronor, while the Centre Party wanted to cut 13 million.
Next year
If the red-green parties manage to form a government, they can submit a supplementary budget bill, perhaps early next year, according to Social Democrats’ economic policy spokesperson Mikael Damberg.
Anna Troberg is sceptical.
In stark terms, it doesn't look like there will be any major difference in terms of money. The attitude towards culture might look a little different under a red-green government, she says.
What do you think?