The union shall also be obliged to inform each of its members of the right to say no.
The proposals are contained in a submission to the Legislative Council and are intended to increase transparency in how parties finance their activities and how lobbying influences political decisions.
Few LO unions
Nowadays, only a few LO unions give money to the Social Democrats (S), such as IF Metall and Livs. LO gives its own contribution; in 2024 it was six million. The unions and LO do this with the support of decisions by their congresses.
The government proposes, contrary to the committee that investigated the issue, that a union must ask each individual member whether part of their membership fee may go towards party contributions. Each member must also be informed of the right to say no.
S criticizes
The Social Democrats' party secretary, Tobias Baudin, accuses the government of targeting the opposition's funding instead of addressing real problems. He says, in a written comment, that several consultation bodies and the committee raised questions about the proposal.
"Despite this, the government is choosing to move forward with the proposal. It risks weakening the broad support that is normally sought in such issues," Baudin said.
The Legislative Council's report also proposes a ban on anonymous contributions to parties, as well as foreign ones.
It is proposed that the Swedish Public Administration establish a register of contacts that, for example, lobbyists have with members of parliament, ministers and their staff to influence political decisions.
The rules will come into force on July 1, 2027, that is, after the autumn elections.
