The Swedish government announced on Tuesday that it would remove a tax on air travel, saying it was necessary to defend the competitiveness of flights from Sweden, a decision denounced by NGOs.
The tax, which depends on the distance travelled, was introduced by the previous left-wing government in 2018, with the intention of reducing the effects of air travel on global warming.
“If we want to protect the possibility of having good air connections in Sweden and making Sweden an international hub, we must ensure that we do not undermine the competitive advantage that Sweden can have,” Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said at a press conference.
“This is in line with long-term climate policy and helps preserve the possibility of travelling across a very large country,” he added.
Energy Minister Ebba Busch stressed that only “a minority of countries in the EU have an air transport tax”.
The centre-right government, backed by the far-right Sweden Democrats, had previously indicated it was considering halving the tax. It has now decided to abolish it by 1 July 2025.
Environmental NGOs have criticised the move, saying it will lead to an increase in flights and therefore greenhouse gas emissions.
“This is completely against the grain, the government is completely abandoning climate policy,” Daniel Kihlberg, climate director at the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, told the newspaper. Aftonbladet.
The government’s climate policy has been criticised several times recently.
In March, an agency responsible for evaluating climate policy estimated that government policy in this area would cause an increase in greenhouse gas emissions in 2024 and that the objectives announced for 2030 would not be met.
The reasons include the measures announced during the presentation of the 2024 budget, including the reduction in fuel taxes, but also the lack of concrete measures in the “climate action plan”, a four-year roadmap.