Universities welcome research bill, but fear for autonomy

Sweden’s new Research and Innovation Bill 2025-28, which supports a significant overall increase to the research budget, has been welcomed by academics, but there are concerns that failure to increase direct funding to universities heralds a micromanagement approach on the part of government.

Minister for Energy, Business and Industry and Deputy Prime Minister Ebba Busch, Minister for Education Johan Pehrson, and Minister for EU Affairs Jessica Rosencrantz presented the bill on 12 December 2024.

The policy aims to position Sweden among the foremost research and innovation countries and as a “leading knowledge nation”, a government press release said.

The bill takes into account 246 recommendations and comments received after a stakeholder consultation period launched on 22 November 2023.

The research bill provides a framework for the implementation of the government’s plan, previously reported by University World News, to significantly increase funds for research with a focus on excellence and innovation, allocating SEK6.5 billion (US$597 million) for research up to 2028.

The bill, titled “Research and innovation for the future: Curiosity and benefit”, outlines eight strategic priority areas, which are: advanced material sciences, quantum technology, crisis management and total defence systems, life science, polar research, climate-related research, research on crime, and excellence in schools.

“Within the framework of these funds, the government intends to distribute a total of SEK200 million for new strategic research areas for 2027 and SEK 400 million in 2028,” the bill states.

“Today we have presented one of the greatest investments in research and innovation ever. A total of SEK6.5 billion for research with the focus on excellence and innovation that are going to strengthen Swedish competition and the international collaboration we are engaged in,” Pehrson said in a statement on 16 December 2024.

“We are facing a challenging geopolitical environment and an ongoing global race for technological capabilities. Sweden must remain a world leader in innovation.

“For the first time, a Swedish government is initiating a process to highlight strategically important technology – with funds earmarked for this purpose. We are enhancing the conditions for companies to develop solutions for future contributions to Sweden’s security, competitiveness and climate transition,” said Busch on the same day.

The government has specified the following funding allocations: SEK400 million for further development of advanced research infrastructure, including: the European Spallation Source (ESS); SEK600 million for life sciences and health; SEK710 million for strategic recruitment at universities and university colleges; SEK1.4 billion for the Science Council, including excellence centres; SEK203 million for the circular bioeconomy; and SEK100 million for AI research.

“We should not be a country of moderation. We should compete with the absolute best in the world,” Pehrson said.

“We know that this sector actually accounts for 10% of Sweden's exports and is one of our important basic industries,” Pehrson noted, referring to the SEK600 million investment in life science and health during the period in question.

“The government prioritised competitiveness during the Swedish presidency of the Council of the EU, for which investments in research and innovation within high-tech sectors such as AI are key. Europe needs to intensify its innovation capacity and Sweden is leading the way,” said Rosencrantz at the launch.

“This bill includes concrete investments to make Sweden and Europe more competitive in the short term and more prosperous for many years to come. To be the best, we must also work with the best. That’s why international cooperation and partnerships are key themes throughout the research bill,” she added.

Micromanagement fears

While university leaders generally welcome the increased allocation to research, many question the lack of basic funding going directly to higher educational institutions.

Rector of Lund University Erik Renström said on his blog page: “The strategic priorities will be evaluated, and eight new priority areas within advanced material sciences, quantum technology, crisis management and total defence systems, life science, polar research, climate-related research, practice research regarding crime, and excellence in schools will be introduced.

“The centres of excellence will be strengthened by SEK200 million in 2027 and SEK400 million in 2028. Here, Lund University will be in the forefront, even if this will create a lot of work.”

In an online statement, Uppsala University Vice-Chancellor Anders Hagfeldt said: “We welcome this major commitment. In many ways, it is in line with our thinking at the universities.”

Hagfeldt noted: “The bill includes initiatives for innovation and commercialisation. In this area, Sweden is at the forefront within the EU, and the government is committed to continued efforts to strengthen the innovation system. They seem to have understood that basic research is a prerequisite for innovation and applications.

“We are very pleased with this action, but we would have liked a larger share of the funding to have gone directly to the higher education institutions. We hope the government will refrain from too much micromanagement.”

Petra Malm Danielson, department manager for market and social policy influence for the trade union Naturvetarna, agreed, stating in a press release: “We would have liked to see increased basic funding for the universities so that the science educations get more resources and thus can train more people who are then active in research and development. In this way, the competitiveness of Sweden, the country of innovation, can be strengthened in the long term.

“The natural scientists have worked for a stronger connection to research in education, something that the government has included in the research bill. In addition, the government has announced an ambition for increased mobility between universities and the surrounding community, something which the Naturvetarna also highlighted as important.

“The government wants to attract more foreign people with cutting-edge expertise in designated areas, but there the natural scientists believe that the conditions for all researchers at universities must be improved.”

Strong ‘political measures’

Sanna Wolk, president of the Swedish Association of University Teachers and Researchers (SULF) also questioned the failure to increase basic research funding.

“SULF is questioning why the basic funding is not increased in the bill,” she stated in a press release.

“The government today presented the research bill, and I am surprised that the government is heading in the wrong direction when they were announcing the improvements. Johan Pehrson could not reply when the journalists asked him why the bill’s investments in competition-related fields are better than the investments in basic funding at universities,” she said.

“It is a great problem that the government continues the present situation [characterised by] reduced basic funding at universities,” she said, adding that it is also concerning that “the basic funding given to the universities comes with strong political measures”.

President of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) Professor Sylvia Schwaag Serger said: “For higher education institutions, the development towards excellence gives them greater motivation for more strategic thinking and profiling.

“This might even make the connection between research and higher education stronger. And the announced increase of basic funding based on results could be seen as a quality improvement measure.

“IVA would have preferred to see increased incentives for the use of research in collaboration but welcomes the bill’s proposal that application of research should be included among the criteria for career paths at universities.”

Boost for life sciences

The independent foundation Research!Sweden said it was positive towards many parts of the bill, such as measures for excellence and investments in research infrastructure.

“A particularly welcome and requested piece is that the government has decided to set aside funds for the implementation of the life science strategy,” Anna Nilsson Vindefjärd, founder and secretary general of Research!Sweden, told University World News.

Andreas Göthenberg, executive director of the Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research and Higher Education (STINT) told University World News that he also appreciated the fact that “the government sees the need for science policy trend analysis with a presence abroad as important, something that STINT is now expanding”.

He noted: “Science policy trend analysis and contextual understanding are central to universities and research funders when they make strategic and responsible decisions in a geopolitically complex world.”

Lena Svendsen, an expert in research and innovation policy at Innovation and Chemical Industries (IKEM) in Sweden, said the government’s research propositions had “many elements that have been missing for a long time. Industry is taking enormous steps to lessen the dependence on fossil fuels, and it is therefore good that the government will invest more in biobased and recycled raw materials”.

Svendsen noted: “It is also positive that the government is proposing a programme for advanced life sciences since this area has a strong international competition and that life sciences industries are strong in Sweden ... To be able to continue the export of innovation and technology in this area is decisive for our welfare.”

Humanities and social sciences

Sofia Lodén, chair of the Young Academy of Sweden, also welcomed the government’s policies on excellence, internationalisation, and career paths.

“Several of our proposals appear to have been implemented in the bill. For example, the bill includes investments in the tenure-track position of assistant professor and measures to strengthen Sweden’s participation in the European Research Council.

“Not least, we welcome the government’s decision to follow our proposal to review the legal status of higher education institutions,” she said.

“At the same time, there are aspects of the bill that the Young Academy of Sweden finds problematic. The proposal seems to further increase the political influence on research agendas at the cost of certain disciplines.

“The humanities and social sciences, for instance, do not seem to be better off. The Young Academy of Sweden believes in interdisciplinarity and in free research across a broad range of areas. In this regard, the government does not appear to share our vision,” she explained.

Mats Benner, professor in science policy studies at Lund University’s School of Economics and Management, and past member of the Swedish government’s Research Advisory Board (2009-10, 2015-16), told University World News that the government’s 5% increase over four years – adjusted for inflation – was welcomed by the sector.

“There is also something to be had for almost everyone, with support for early career scientists, excellence centres, technological clusters, societal challenges, and even a small pot for the humanities. Quite an achievement in these troubled times for the Swedish economy!” he noted.

However, he said the bill was, at the same time, “an indication that government trust in universities is reaching a historical nadir”.

Benner explained: “Almost everything in the bill comes in the form of special programmes (I counted no less than 40), for a bewildering variety of purposes. Universities are increasingly seen as containers of external contracts and priorities set elsewhere.

“Needless to say, the bill has little to say about the connection between research and education. And somewhat paradoxically, it is announced that the organisational autonomy of universities will be investigated further. With the increasing dependence on external funding for universities, such autonomy – if eventually granted by the government – will most likely be illusory.”

Professor at the University of Oslo, Ole Petter Ottersen, former rector of the University of Oslo and former president of Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, agreed that the new bill “contains many positive elements”, among them the “focus on excellence, the potential for bolstering an already very strong life science sector in Sweden, and the urgent need to invest more in advanced technologies including AI”.

He explained: “The Draghi report – published in September – shows how Europe is lagging behind when it comes to the most sophisticated and forward-looking technologies. The new bill responds to this.

“What is missing is a stronger emphasis on social sciences and the humanities, which are more important than ever, now that our societies are facing a number of global challenges, including climate changes, conflicts, wars, and political unrest. Social sciences and humanities are also essential in ensuring that new technologies are not introduced to societies that are ill-equipped to handle them.

“International collaborations are another field that should deserve more attention. The major challenges we face today are global and can be tackled only through global cooperation.”

‘Top-down’ initiatives

Ottersen said that a major shortcoming is that the new bill “appears to be based on the idea that excellent research and innovativeness are best promoted by top-down initiatives and detailed funding schemes rather than by strengthening the basic funding of the higher education institutions that are closest to the international research forefront”.

He noted: “Time is ripe to change the funding system in all Nordic countries so that higher education institutions can develop and implement their own strategies with adequate financial support.

“There is a need for an increase in basic funding, not only in competitive funding schemes. Excellence and innovativeness cannot prevail in a funding system that does not fully appreciate the importance of institutional autonomy and academic freedom.”

He explained: “Investing generously in research and development is crucial for the Nordic countries for several reasons. We have small domestic markets and need to compensate by being at the leading edge when it comes to research and innovation; we are far removed from the major crossroads in Europe and need excellent research to remain attractive to international talents; we have high costs of living and can only sustain our living standards through high productivity and R&D-driven innovation.”

Ottersen concluded: “And not least: we owe it to our youths to provide the best possible education and career opportunities to enable them to achieve their full potential. The bill signals high ambitions and draws comparisons with previous bills. But the most relevant benchmarks would be other countries that are outside the major crossroads, such as South Korea. The latter country now invests close to 5% of its GDP in R&D. An example to follow.”