Equitable transition is the government's responsibility - and the whole environmental movement is needed.

We agree with the government that the climate is one of the great issues of our time. The climate crisis is happening right now and risks making the planet uninhabitable. It is therefore with great concern that we note that our picture of reality differs markedly from the government's description of the situation in an article in Dagens Industri.

Here is Oxfam Sweden's response to the debate article. The text is also published on ETC Debatt.

The government has been criticized for weakening Swedish climate policy. The Climate Policy Council notes that this will be the first time in two decades that active policy decisions are likely to lead to Sweden's emissions increasing rather than decreasing. At the same time, there are still no answers on how to meet Sweden's international commitments, such as promises already made on climate financing. This is at a time when the climate crisis is already causing widespread loss of human life and livelihoods. Extreme weather events, such as droughts, floods and cyclones, are becoming more frequent and hit those who are already most vulnerable the hardest. 28 million people in East Africa, as many as the entire population of the Nordic region, are fighting for their lives in the worst drought in over 40 years.

It is true that Sweden's territorial emissions, i.e. those that occur within its borders, have decreased. But this figure does not reflect the large emissions that our way of life and consumption cause elsewhere in the world. And climate change does not take into account any national borders.

The figures behind Sweden's consumption-based emissions show a clear and worrying trend of inequality: Oxfam's report Swedish Climate Inequality (2020) shows that Sweden's total consumption-based emissions per year decreased by 11% (10 million tons of CO2) between 1990 and 2015. But the richest 10%, who have a carbon footprint 8 times higher than what is required to reach the Paris Agenda climate goals by 2030, only decreased by 1%, and the richest 1% increased their emissions by 11%. Instead, the 50% with the lowest income and the 40% in the middle accounted for almost all of the reduction.

Inequality is a deadly component of the climate transition, creating a breeding ground for political discontent, reduced trust in democracy and escalating violence and conflict. This is a perspective that risks being completely missing from the government's national climate summit, based on the list of invitees and the agenda.

The necessary transition we are facing has major social consequences and it is the government's responsibility to support those who will be most affected by that transition, and to target measures at those who cause the most emissions. The government's proposals show total ignorance of the link between climate and social policy.

A successful climate action plan must address the deep climate inequality within and between countries - and this is impossible without specifically limiting emissions from the wealthiest individuals and companies that are the largest emitters. The business sector has a major responsibility to help Sweden achieve its climate goals, and we know that many Swedish companies are concerned that Sweden is slowing down its climate transition.

The Government calls the business sector "the new environmental movement", and the business sector has a key role to play in Sweden's ability to make the transition - but this must be done in collaboration with other stakeholders. The environmental movement is large and also includes research and non-profit organizations that work daily to transform society to achieve climate goals. The entire environmental movement is central to our ability to develop new knowledge, to anchor it in the public, and to influence decision-makers who can drive change at global, national and local levels. It is the real climate movement that demands action and justice and keeps the flame burning in the fight against climate change. And it is the government's responsibility that we reach the climate goals - the government cannot and must not push the responsibility to the business community or other actors, but the policy needs to ensure that the business community and the whole of Sweden's transition takes place to the extent and at the pace needed and with justice in focus.

We can only say once again: things are moving too slowly. It is not enough. At the same time, human lives, cultural heritage, animals and nature continue to be lost forever. Experts warn that we are in for a summer of extreme heat and drought in Sweden, and in many places there are already fire bans and threats of water shortages. Ultimately, it is the government's responsibility to prevent and protect us all from this.

Hanna Nelson, Head of Policy, Oxfam Sweden

Astrid Nilsson Lewis, lead climate researcher, Oxfam Sweden