Background & Purpose

The Swedish parliament must check if EU legislative proposals are better handled at the EU level or nationally in Sweden. During 2024, a total of 45 EU proposals were examined to ensure decisions are taken as close to citizens as effectively possible.

The Decision

The Swedish parliament reviewed its annual handling of EU proposals and emphasized that national parliaments must continue to actively challenge EU initiatives that bypass local decision-making.

Does this affect you?

  • Members of Swedish parliamentary committees: Must evaluate upcoming EU legislative proposals on a case-by-case basis to protect national decision-making rights.
  • EU institutions: Receive formal objections from the Swedish parliament when proposed EU laws conflict with the subsidiarity principle.

In Practice

  • The Swedish parliament reviewed 45 different EU legislative proposals during 2024.
  • Six formal objections were sent to EU institutions regarding proposals deemed to violate the subsidiarity principle.
  • Parliamentary committees such as the Committee on Taxation and the Committee on Justice led the objections.
  • The Swedish parliament continues to be one of the most active national parliaments within the EU in issuing such objections.