Att begripliggöra en flygskatt- En studie av diskurserna som utmanar det kommersiella flygresandet.

Sammanfattning: Using discourse analysis as a theoretical and methodical point of departure, this paper strives towards analyzing the ways in which the Swedish tax on air travel is being made understandable. Through examining how this is done on two occasions in contemporary Swedish politics, it further aims to capture how the arguments in favor of a tax have developed and changed over time. Drawing on Maarten Hajer’s theory of story-lines, the result identifies a small but significant change and suggests that the arguments were formed around three story-lines. Firstly, the study finds that a story-line, focusing on the importance of an airline industry taking responsibility for its effect on climate, can be described as highly strengthened over time. Secondly, the thesis identifies a story-line, focusing on consumer behavior, which supports arguments in favor of a tax. Thirdly, the study shows that a story-line that appears on the first occasion, explaining the tax as a temporary measure taken in the absence of European action, was less prominent in the later occasion.