Swedish parties back shorter construction lead times

All Swedish parliamentary parties believe that construction lead times need to be reduced, according to a survey conducted by Byggföretagen ahead of Sweden's 2026 election. The organisation highlights lengthy and unpredictable processes as an obstacle to both housing construction and important infrastructure development. According to Byggföretagen, the average lead time for detailed development plans and building permits has increased to almost five years, despite a decline in the number of cases. CEO Kristoffer Tamsons says further reforms are needed to make construction processes simpler, faster and more predictable. Byggföretagen identifies three areas where changes are particularly important. Procedures under Sweden's Environmental Code should be simplified, including the interaction between environmental legislation and planning and building regulations. Permitting processes should also become more efficient through measures such as increased digitalisation and more coordinated assessment of major projects. A third priority concerns appeals. Byggföretagen proposes clearer deadlines for courts handling appeals related to planning and building matters, as well as measures aimed at preventing processes from becoming unnecessarily prolonged. The organisation says it intends to follow up on the political parties' responses during the next parliamentary term and compare their stated ambitions with the reforms that are ultimately implemented.