"Neither of the two political blocks have presented a sufficiently good proposal as regards increasing the number of homes built", writes Hans Tilly, President of the Swedish Building Workers' Union Byggnads, as he makes seven demands of a future government.

• 'Construction clients are cowards'

The current housing policy has failed. Year after year the number of homes built has been below the level that would fulfil the long-term needs. This is particularly true of our growth regions.

The need for regeneration and energy efficiency initiatives are huge in current residential estates. Rapid action is required if we do not wish to end up with residential estates that are more like slums no one wants to move into and those who are able to, move out of.

According to Sabo (the Swedish Association of Municipal Housing Companies), about 200,000 flats in the Million Homes Programme of the 1960s must be refurbished at the same time.

Housebuilding in Sweden has not just been at a low level during the last few years – it has been at a low level for almost 20 years now. On average, twice as many homes are built per 1,000 inhabitants in our Nordic neighbours.

It is presumed that the building industry has the capacity to renovate about 50 000 flats per year. However, we need to both renovate and build new. In order to maintain the level and standard of the Swedish housing stock, we should, for the long term, build at least 40 000 new homes every year.

Otherwise there is a risk that there will be a lack of housing in the future.

In Sweden, the building of homes normally represents about 40 percent of all construction work. Residential construction creates jobs both within and outside the construction sector. Even if the general economic climate looks slightly better now, there are very few people who believe in a rapid recovery as regards residential construction.

None of the political blocks have presented a coherent housing policy which resolves the challenges that lie ahead. Therefore, Byggnads demands that the future government implements the following seven-point housing policy programme:

• Build at least 40,000 new homes every year. During the last ten years, 25,000 new homes have been built on average per year.

• Do something tangible about the housing situation of young people. Today’s youth is the first generation that is having greater problems finding somewhere to live compared to their parents’ generation. Therefore we should invest in more rental housing.

• Implement a state a so-called “R.O.T. programme” (the Swedish Home Renovation tax credit) of about 7 billion kronor ($903 million) per year for the Million Homes Programme areas. If not, there is a risk that they will become slums. Without state support there is a risk that many flats will remain unrenovated. The R.O.T. programme should lead to 50,000 newly renovated flats and 34,000 new jobs per year. Moreover, the Home Renovation tax credit should apply to both housing cooperatives and rental housing.

• Make homes more energy efficient in conjunction with the regeneration work. There are huge benefits to be gained.

• Take further action to make homes and premises accessible for the elderly and the disabled. Accessibility and a sense of security are key words for Byggnads. In a community where there is a sense of solidarity, there is room for everyone.

• Pursue a social housing policy. Everyone must have the right to their own home and this right is often a prerequisite when it comes to giving our children a good environment to grow up in.

• Establish a new Ministry for Community Development. For far too long, these issues have been divided between different policy areas. Hence, what is required is a firm grasp of construction, housing and living environment, infrastructure etc.

The present government’s housing policy is frightening. The coalition government is, however, obviously quite satisfied with what it has achieved when it comes to housing policy. Its motto is choice. The housing policy is to a large extent a non-issue for the present government. The government’s Spring Budget for 2010 gives a summary of what the government itself claims to have done as regards housing policy since 2006. 19 lines describe how the government has worked to achieve a better functioning housing market, how those living in the Million Homes Programme areas have been given the opportunity to buy their homes and how the government has introduced a system of owner occupancy in newly built blocks of flats.

The red/green opposition adopted a new housing policy platform during the winter that Byggnads sees as an expression of the parties wanting to see a radical change to the policy pursued by the coalition government.

We welcomed this initiative since during the previous social democratic mandate period, housing issues were not given the priority they deserve. This was a failure.

The message from the red/green block still lacks substance as regards how much they are actually prepared to invest.

The government’s policies are frightening. The housing policy platform of the red green block leads to expectations but needs to be clarified further. Therefore, Byggnads has drawn up its own housing policy programme with seven concrete points.

Hans Tilly
President, Byggnads

Byggnads, the Swedish Building Workers´ Union, is the trade union organisation for all those working in the construction sector. Byggnads’ task is to protect the members’ interests both on the labour market and in society at large. The union has some 118,000 members, of whom about 100,000 are of active working age.