Care home bosses allowed their families to be vaccinated before staff

The bosses of several care homes have offered their family members the vaccination against Covid-19 before the care home staff. Currently only the most clinically vulnerable people aged over 70 and either resident in care homes or receiving at-home care are eligible for the vaccine in Sweden, along with staff working in direct contact with these people and those sharing a household with them.

After one such case was reported in a Sörmland care home last week, an internal check in Eskilstuna uncovered three other cases of care home bosses allowing their family to skip the queue, reports public broadcaster SVT.

The municipality's press spokesperson told public broadcaster SVT: “It is about very few cases in the grand scheme of things, but that does not excuse it.”

Swedish vocabulary: few – få

A staff member at a Swedish hospital receives a Covid-19 vaccine. Photo: Johan Nilsson/TT

Sweden's MPs got a 1,500 kronor pay rise this year

Swedish members of parliament saw their pay increase to 69,900 kronor per month after a 1,500-kronor increase at the start of the new year.

Since 1994 the salary has risen from 26,500 kronor, which is around a 160 percent rise (or 145 percent if you exclude certain benefits which were transferred to the pay) compared to the 125 percent rise the average worker has seen over the same period.

Swedish vocabulary: pay rise – löneförhöjning

Parliament pictured in 2019. Photo: Claudio Bresciani/TT

Gothenburg to test Malmö's 'Ceasefire' scheme against gang crime

Gothenburg plans to try out the 'Sluta Skjut' (Ceasefire) programme, an anti-gang violence strategy first developed in the US, after promising results  in Malmö which first launched it in 2018.

The method involves 'call-ins' where known or suspected gang members attend meetings with police, social workers, civil society, the family of gun-crime victims, and others. They are then offered help leaving gang life and warned that if they continue to engage in gun crime, they risk being the subject of intense focus of the police and other authorities.

“It is positive that we are getting the chance to do this, but we should have reasonable expectations about it solving gang problems,” Gothenburg's police chief told Dagens Nyheter.

Swedish vocabulary: gang – gäng

Photo: Emma-Sofia Olsson/SvD/TT

Finland closes border with Sweden

In an effort to shield itself from mutated Covid-19 variants, Finland on Wednesday closed its borders to European arrivals, including its Nordic neighbours.

The travel ban will last until February 25th. Only essential travel for work or other reasons, such as healthcare and freight transport, will be permitted.

Swedish vocabulary: border – gräns

File photo: AFP

Sweden halts mink breeding over coronavirus concerns

Sweden has announced its decision to ban mink breeding throughout 2021 after several cases of the coronavirus were found at mink farms, but stopped short of culling its minks as Denmark decided to. 

The Scandinavian country confirmed its first case of the novel coronavirus in a mink in October 2020 and during the autumn the virus was confirmed at 13 out of the 30 mink farms around the country. But the mutated coronavirus variant found in Denmark was not reported in Sweden.

Swedish vocabulary: to ban – förbjuda

Photo: Patric Söderström/TT