In Per Bolund's (MP) party leadership speech during Almedalen Week, he raised, among other things, the climate crisis, the issue of Swedish NATO membership and that Sweden should become independent of Russian gas. In addition, the focus was mostly on climate policy within Sweden's borders - despite the fact that the outside world is a recurring theme in the Green Party's party program.
Almedalen Week's last party leader speech began with a minute of silence for Ing-Marie Wieselgren, who died in a knife attack in Visby on Wednesday, and both Märta Stenevi and Per Bolund were on stage.
Afterwards, Per Bolund spoke about a new green people's home, which he believed was necessary not only for the climate and welfare, but also to stop sponsoring the war crimes committed under international law by Russian President Vladimir Putin in Ukraine. However, he did not mention any concrete proposals on how Sweden should stand up for peace and security in the world, in addition to fossil independence.
- The climate is the biggest crisis of our time, said Per Bolund and announced that the Green Party wants SEK 100 billion per year for the next ten years to go to the green transition.
Climate emergencies in Italy, floods in Australia, heat waves and birds falling dead from the sky were some of the examples Per Bolund cited in connection with the climate crisis.
- There is no welfare on a dead planet. We must once and for all put an end to oil dependence, cope with the climate threat and build a better welfare society within the framework of nature, he said.
In the party leadership speech, Per Bolund turned to people who are worried about Sweden's forthcoming NATO membership, and promised to stand up against “despots and anti-democrats” with reference to, among others, Turkish President Princip Tayyip Erdoğan. On the other hand, Per Bolund did not take a position for or against a NATO membership in the party leadership. However, the party has previously announced that they want to Sweden must be militarily non-aligned.
Increased aid was not mentioned in the speech
The Green Party has the Riksdag's most generous budget proposal regarding Swedish development assistance. The party wants to set aside at least 1%, but strives for 1,5%, of GNI for development assistance - something that was not mentioned in the party leadership speech. Instead, Per Bolund listed a number of previous achievements from the years when the Green Party was in government, but he did not clarify the party's future visions for Sweden's role in global issues such as famine disasters or the restriction of democratic and human rights in the world.
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