För att främja landsbygdens utveckling och till följd av förändringar i markpolitiken tilläts genom lag bildandet av stora bostadsfastigheter på landsbygden 1990. Detta skulle ske genom att öka den enskildes möjlighet att utforma sin fastighet efter egna önskemål. Glesbygd, som är landsbygd karaktäriserad av gles befolkning, är mer utsatt för de problem som landsbygden står inför. Syftet med studien är att undersöka om det finns eller borde finnas en skillnad mellan lands- och glesbygden vid fastighetsbildning av stora bostadsfastigheter. Studien utförs genom en genomgång av rättskällor, tolkning av rättsfall och analys av Lantmäteriets praxis. Resultaten visar att flera rättsliga faktorer, nämligen skyddszon, extensivt nyttjande, skogsmark, jordbruksmark och fastighetens belägenhet i glesbygd påverkar tillåtligheten av att bilda stora bostadsfastigheter. Vidare visas att inga avsevärda skillnader mellan lands- och glesbygd i Lantmäteriets praxis finns. Därutöver så tyder tolkningen av rättsfall på att domstolarna inte alltid beaktar markpolitikens främjande av glesbygden. Det starkaste motstående intresset för bildandet av stora bostadsfastigheter ligger i skyddet av skogsnäringen, som även till stor del sammanfaller geografiskt med glesbygden. Resultaten tyder på att nuvarande rättsläge och markpolitik inte tillräckligt beaktar glesbygdens regionalpolitiska intressen, i form av främjande av boende och sysselsättning. / In order to promote rural development and due to land use policy changes, the formation of large residential properties in rural areas was permitted by law in 1990. This was to be made possible by increasing the opportunities for the individual to shape their real property according to their own requests. Sparsely populated areas, which are rural areas characterized by sparse population, are more prone to problems considered in rural development policies. The purpose of the study is to research if there is or should be a difference between rural and sparsely populated areas in formation of large residential properties. The study is performed through a review of legal sources, interpretation of judicial proceedings, and analysis of the property formation practice of Lantmäteriet. Presented results show that there are several judicial factors that affect the allowance to form large properties for residential purpose. The factors are protective zone, extensive use, forest land, agricultural land and real property location in sparsely populated areas. Further on, no substantial differences exist between rural and sparsely populated areas in the practices of Lantmäteriet. Moreover, the interpretation of judicial proceedings suggests that the courts do not always take into account the land use policies promotion of sparsely populated areas. The most inflexible opposing interest towards the creation of large residential properties resides in the protection of forestry land use, which also largely geographically coincides with sparsely populated areas. The findings suggest that current legal position and land policies do not sufficiently address the regional policy interests of sparsely populated areas.

Recent political developments, with the outcome of the Brexit referendum and the election of Donald J. Trump as President of the United States, have revitalized the discussion about so called political cleavages. Drawing upon the work of Lipset and Rokkan, some see the urban-rural cleavage as an explanation to the election outcomes. In a Swedish context it is primarily the increase in electoral support for the Sweden Democrats that has brought up the question. The overarching purpose with this master’s thesis is to explain the role of Lipset and Rokkans theoretical cleavages in Swedish rural politics. Rural politics is considered a most likely-case for finding ideas related to the urban-rural cleavage, a cleavage which is said to have gained a greater importance over the past couple of years. Political cleavages exist when political actors demonstrate cohesive ideas and in a structured matter relate to them. For this reason, the thesis’ subordinate purpose is to describe what ideas parliamentary parties have in the rural political debate. This is done through an idea analysis where problems and solutions presented by the political parties are described and interpreted. The conclusion is that the worker-owner-cleavage is the dominant cleavage in Swedish rural politics. Political parties tend to problematize issues that are a part of the cleavage, with issues such as welfare, regional redistribution, entrepreneurship and taxation. The urban-rural and center-periphery cleavage can only be regarded as secondary and subordinate to the worker-owner-cleavage. However, there are ideas in the debate relating to these two cleavages. Ideas relating to the state-church cleavage is absent in the chosen material.