Twenty years ago, on September 14, 2003, the Swedes said no to the single currency, in a referendum organized just three days after the murder in Stockholm of Foreign Minister Anna Lindh, one of the standard bearers of the “yes” campaign. Some experts believed that his death would shift public opinion, which had until then been hostile to the euro. This was not the case: 56% voted “no”.
Since then, the Swedes have never regretted their choice. When the debt crisis hit the eurozone, they were proud to see their national currency doing so well. In 2013, it traded at 8.20 crowns for 1 euro. Those days are over. We now have to reckon with almost 12 crowns for 1 euro.
Enough to revive discussions on possible accession of Sweden to the Economic and Monetary Union. The offensive was launched by the leader of the Liberals, Johan Pehrson, current Minister of Labor. Thanks to a column, published in the newspaper Svenska Dagbladeton September 14, the anniversary of the 2003 referendum, Mr. Pehrson therefore proposes to raise the level of integration of Sweden into the European Union “from basic to premium”, by adopting the euro by 2028.
In a dead end
Launching his party’s campaign for the 2024 European elections, the leader of the Liberals believes that the crown, adopted one hundred and fifty years ago by Sweden, is now in an impasse. Not only has its weakening “damaged the image of Sweden and Swedish businesses”writes Mr. Pehrson, but “we are importing inflation which is causing the price of food and intermediate goods to skyrocket”not considering “Holidays are expensive”.
If the Liberal party is currently the only one on the political scene to present a calendar, a poll, published on September 14, reveals a notable change in public opinion: while 19% of those questioned were in favor of euro in May and 54% were against, supporters of the single currency are now 30% and its detractors are only 47%.
Among those who changed sides: billionaire Christer Gardell, co-founder and CEO of the investment company Cevian Capital, who voted “no” in 2003. In December 2022, he had already called the crown “shit small change”. In an interview with the economic newspaper Dagens Industriin Junehe went even further, asserting that“looking back, the decision taken in 2003 was a mistake” and that, without the euro, Sweden risked finding itself “in the same economic league as Romania or Bulgaria”.
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