Sweden has some of the world's highest taxes, so why is the taxman so popular with the Swedes?

Sweden is infamous for having some of the highest taxes in the world, and yet the country’s tax agency is still one of Sweden’s most trusted institutions.

The Swedish attitude towards tax contrasts sharply with many countries where taxes can be a deeply divisive issue. We investigate what this says about Swedish society and how the popularity of the welfare state might survive growing challenges in the future.

  • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.worldEnglish
    137·
    6 months ago

    I mean, its an inaccurate title.

    The Swedes have had a number of popular tax revolts in living memory. The big one was back in 1979 (about the same time Americans and Brits were having their own tax revolt) when they threw out the socialist government and brought in a bunch of neoliberal reformers.

    Swedes overhauled their tax code in 1985, 1991, and 1994 and then did so again in the 2004 when they abolished inheritance and gift taxes with a unanimous vote.

    Until fairly recently, Sweden has been undergoing the same set of neoliberal policies common to western nations. But thanks to being a relatively small economy with an outsized O&G export market, they’ve skated by what industrial centers in the American Midwest and agg sectors in France and the UK have suffered.

    Sweden isn’t a high-tax state, its a petro-state with the appearance of high taxes.

    • kattfisk@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      15·
      6 months ago

      Oil and gas products account for 4.2% of Sweden’s exports. The gas exports alone almost rival those of dairy and eggs! Truly a petrostate if I ever saw one

      Are you perhaps thinking of a different country?

      • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.worldEnglish
        39·
        6 months ago

        Oil and gas products account for 4.2% of Sweden’s exports.

        Refined Petroleum is their single largest export, at $13B or 7% of gross exports.

        • Wrench@lemmy.worldEnglish
          81·
          6 months ago

          That… doesn’t seem significant enough to justify the claim that they’re a petrol state.

        • HerrBeter@lemmy.worldEnglish
          6·
          6 months ago

          I can’t find support for this?

          (7% is OK, but it’s far from the largest export, not mentioning it’s not swedish oil)

        • balp@lemmy.worldEnglish
          6·
          6 months ago

          Oil and gas products account for 4.2% of Sweden’s exports. The gas exports alone almost rival those of dairy and eggs! Truly a petrostate if I ever saw one

          Well the largest category is

          • Machinery, Nuclear reactors and boilers. The nuclear part of this in Sweden is quite small so machinery is the big part. 14%. Second is:
          • Vechicles, Other than railway, trans. E.g. the later large Car and Lorrie, Truck manufacturers, Volvo, Volvo Cars and Scania. also about 14% The third is:
          • Electrical, electronic equipment, with large companies like Ericsson. 8.7% Then on fort place:
          • Mineral Fuels, Oils, distillation products, 7.4% Thou there are no internal sources for this is mostly refining of imported gods.

          https://tradingeconomics.com/sweden/exports-by-category

          • kattfisk@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
            1·
            5 months ago

            It’s only 7.4% if you’re discounting the large service sector and looking only at goods (which may be what people mean by “exports”, idk). That’s why our numbers differ, it’s 4.2% of all exports, and 7.4% of exported goods.