Sweden’s Centre Party has pledged that 90 percent of all new cars sold in the country should be electric by 2030, as part of a new election promise. Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist says the target will require broad political support, and that the Centre Party is prepared to provide it.
A seven point climate plan for the first 100 days
The Centre Party presented a seven point climate plan on Monday, intended to be implemented during the first 100 days in office, in connection with a speech by Thand Ringqvist at a rooftop bar in Stockholm.
The plan’s first point focuses on getting more electric vehicles on the road quickly. Alongside the 90 percent target for new cars, the party wants 75 percent of new light trucks and 50 percent of new heavy trucks to be electric by 2030.
Thand Ringqvist says setting these goals sends a clear signal to everyone working in the automotive industry about the direction Sweden intends to take, describing the ambition as building the strongest possible domestic market for the vehicles of the future, since these are the vehicles Sweden will go on to export.
Expanding support for electric vehicles and charging
The party wants to broaden the existing electric car bonus, simplify and strengthen the climate premium for electric trucks, and expand support for charging infrastructure. The Centre Party also wants to give municipalities the power to introduce emission free zones for certain types of transport, for example to favour light electric trucks in city centres.
Until the vehicle fleet reaches that level of electrification, the party views biofuels as the only realistic way to reduce emissions from the existing transport fleet. In the same area, the Centre Party wants an investigation into whether Sweden’s strategic fuel reserve could consist of Swedish produced biofuels.
Climate policy framed as growth and preparedness
Beyond transport, the party is also calling for a cross bloc energy agreement, faster permit processes, a funded transition plan for agriculture, and strict climate requirements in public procurement.
Thand Ringqvist rejects the idea that climate policy is a left wing issue, framing it instead as a matter of growth, innovation and jobs, as well as preparedness and stewardship for the next generation, values she describes as civic virtues.
