On Friday, Energy and Business Minister Ebba Busch (KD) announced that an electricity subsidy to households may be paid out in February 2023. SEK 55 billion is to be distributed among 5 million electricity customers. It is only paid out to electricity customers in southern Sweden – and there will be no high-cost protection, which was promised in the election campaign.
According to Carl-Johan Sonesson, chairman of the regional board in Skåne, it is about support that is far from what was promised in the election campaign.
– They have not kept what they promised, he says in Agenda on Sunday evening.
“Trust is diminishing”
Sonesson also points out that he himself campaigned on the promise that a high-cost protection would be in place before November 1.
– It is clear that trust in me and the Moderates here in Skåne will decrease if we do not then deliver on what we have promised, he says.
What does this mean for households and businesses in Scania?
– It is good that you get support. But at the same time, they wanted security in that the support would be designed in such a way that if you received a high electricity bill during the winter, you would know in advance how much of that electricity bill was covered by the state.
“Incredibly difficult situation”
Energy Minister Ebba Busch answers directly in Agenda.
Did you promise it just to grab votes at the end of the election campaign?
– I do not agree with that. I think I have given a straight answer. We got a better model on the table, says Ebba Busch.
She notes that Sweden is facing a difficult winter, while the war in Ukraine is affecting the economy throughout Europe.
– It is an incredibly difficult situation where the wrong measure now to alleviate the situation for Swedish households risks increasing the risk of disconnection even more, she says.
She also says that the support cannot be seen as retroactive – which Sonesson reacts strongly to after the broadcast.
– It is retroactive because it is based on last year’s electricity prices, October 2021-September 2022. This means that if the prices during the winter are higher than last year’s prices, it will be a different support than what we promised in the election. Simply lower support, says Carl-Johan Sonesson.
Hear more from Carl-Johan Sonesson (M) and Ebba Busch (KD) in tonight’s Agenda here .