What happened
Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson states in an interview with TT that the Tidö cooperation was a project for the previous parliamentary term and that the parties behind it lack a majority after the election. If Social Democratic leader Magdalena Andersson fails in her attempt to form a government, Kristersson wants to try to gather five parties around a common economic policy. According to Kristersson, in such a scenario it is not a given that the Sweden Democrats will take seats in the government. The arrangement is based on the Centre Party dropping its opposition to cooperating with the Sweden Democrats, and the Sweden Democrats accepting remaining outside the government.
Our analysis
The Tidö Agreement drastically changed conditions for many new Swedes through stricter requirements and tougher legislation. When Ulf Kristersson now declares the project finished, it is not a matter of afterthought, but of simple parliamentary mathematics following an election defeat. The strategy illustrates the logic of the political game: the Sweden Democrats are kept at enough of a distance to attract the Centre Party, while their mandates are simultaneously needed to attain governing power. In discussions about who will sit at which negotiating table, the most crucial question is forgotten – what happens to people's everyday lives and security when rights become bargaining chips.
Explained
The Tidö Agreement was the written agreement between the Moderates, the Christian Democrats, the Liberals, and the Sweden Democrats that governed the government cooperation during the 2022–2026 parliamentary term.
Source: Sydsvenskan