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TODAY IN SWEDEN

Today in Sweden: A roundup of the latest news on Friday

Find out what's going on in Sweden today with The Local's short roundup of the news in less than five minutes.

Today in Sweden: A roundup of the latest news on Friday
The government announced changes to vaccines for children and recommendations for the public. Photo: Duygu Getiren/TT

New Covid-19 guidelines for unvaccinated people, and vaccines for teens

In case you missed it, yesterday Sweden announced two developments in the country’s Covid-19 strategy.

The Covid-19 vaccine will be offered to children aged 12-15 starting from November, with the aim of not only boosting the protection against the virus among the population, but also ensuring schools can stay open.

As well as that, almost all general recommendations that currently apply to individuals will be scrapped (such as keeping distance from others and avoiding larger events) from September 29th, with a few key exceptions. Unvaccinated people will still be recommended to avoid close contact with people outside their close circle, which in practice means avoiding bars, restaurants, concerts and sports events. Everyone is still expected to stay at home and get tested if they develop Covid-19 symptoms regardless of their vaccination status.

Sweden gives green light to vaccinated tourists from some countries

In Covid travel news, the government has decided to accept vaccine certificates issued by North Macedonia, San Marino, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine and the Vatican as equivalent to those issued by the EU, meaning that people with these certificates can enter Sweden without entry restrictions or test requirements.

It’s the first step in opening up travel to more countries. Sweden intends to approve vaccine certificates as and when they are approved by the EU, and the EU Commission is expected to add more countries to the list soon, including the UK.

Swedish vocabulary: certificate/proof – intyg

Magdalena Andersson’s path to Social Democrat leadership is clear

It’s been looking like a done deal for some time, but Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson is now all but certain to become the next leader of the Social Democrats after another six party districts nominated her for leadership.

Dalarna, Gävleborg, Jämtland, Västernorrland, Västerbotten and Norrbotten jointly nominated Andersson, writing in their statement that due to their size, “the question is now settled”. It means 22 out of a total of 26 districts have put her name forward, with no-one else nominated and all the other likely contenders having said they don’t want the job and putting their support behind the Finance Minister.

Swedish vocabulary: settled/decided – avgjord

E-commerce still booming as pandemic restrictions lifted

When Sweden introduced recommendations to keep a distance and avoid busy areas including shops, the online shopping industry benefited, but it has continued to grow even as society has re-opened.

“We have seen how the pandemic has increased the pace of the digital transformation of retail and the figures are an indication that this development is continuing,” the chief economist from the Swedish Trade Confederation, Johan Davidson, said in a statement.

During the first eight months of the year, there was a 30 percent rise in clothes and shoes bought online compared with the corresponding period last year. There were also large increases in furniture and home furnishings, electronics and food, according to the organisation.

Swedish vocabulary: e-commerce – e-handel

‘Unique’ dinosaur bone uncovered by tourists in Skåne

A Dutch family stumbled across an 80-million-year-old dinosaur bone while fossil-hunting in Näsum, Skåne, Kristianstadsbladet was first to report.

“Every piece of the puzzle is valuable, now we have something we have not seen before,” Filip Lundgren, the paleontologist who runs the field station, told TT. He described the bone as “unique” in Sweden. The family initially took the leg bone home, but later contacted the field station, and the find is now being analysed in Lund.

Swedish vocabulary: dinosaur – dinosaurie

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TODAY IN SWEDEN

Today in Sweden: A roundup of the latest news on Friday

Right bloc strikes government deal, Sweden Democrat to lead Sweden in OSCE, Russia's Nord Stream 'bewilderment', and inflation nears 10 percent: find out what's going on in Sweden with The Local's roundup.

Today in Sweden: A roundup of the latest news on Friday

Moderate leader strikes government coalition deal

Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson has completed his deal with the Sweden Democrat, Christian Democrat and Liberal parties, and will announce it at 10am on Friday, state broadcaster SVT has reported.

According to a story published at close to 11pm on Thursday night, the four parties will hold a press conference at 10am where they will lay out the details on the new government’s plans to reform Sweden over the next four years.

The agreement contains both policy details and details of which parties will be part of the coalition and how they will work together.

After the press conference, at 11am, Kristersson will visit the parliament’s Speaker Andreas Norlén to inform him that the deal is complete, after which the Speaker will call a parliamentary vote on Kristersson as prime minister, probably for Monday.

Swedish vocab: en överenskommelse – an agreement 

Far-right politician appointed to lead Sweden in OSCE

One of the leading politicians in the far-right Sweden Democrats has been appointed to lead Sweden in the OSCE, a body that monitors elections and seeks to bolster security in Europe.

Björn Söder, one of the so-called ‘gang of four’ who transformed the Sweden Democrats, has been appointed chair of the Swedish delegation of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

The OSCE was founded in Helsinki in 1975 as a forum for discussion between the Western Bloc and Eastern Bloc and gained its current name in 1995.

Söder has faced criticism for saying in 2018 that in his opinion members of Sweden’s Sami and Jewish minorities were not Swedish. “They are recognised as minorities because they are not Swedish,” he argued, stressing that ethnicity and citizenship were two different concepts.

Many had expected the Sweden Democrats to put Söder forward as deputy speaker of the parliament, a position he held between 2014 and 2018, but the party instead nominated his less controversial colleague Julia Kronlid.

Swedish vocab: valobservatör – election monitor

Russia aggrieved at Germany, Denmark and Sweden over Nord Stream probe

Russia’s foreign ministry said Thursday it had summoned envoys of Germany, Denmark and Sweden to express “bewilderment” over Moscow’s exclusion from an investigation into leaks on the Nord Stream pipelines.

Multiple leaks were discovered on the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines connecting Russia to Germany, further raising political tensions already sky high since the Kremlin invaded Ukraine in February. All four leaks were located near Danish island Bornholm.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said the leaks were an act of “international terrorism” that would benefit the United States, Poland and Ukraine.

Both Moscow and Washington have denied responsibility for the leaks, which were discovered in late September. Germany, Sweden and Denmark have formed a joint investigation unit to probe the apparent sabotage.

“The heads of the diplomatic missions of Germany, Denmark and Sweden in Moscow have been summoned to the Russian foreign ministry in recent days,” the Russian ministry said in a statement.

Swedish vocab: att kalla upp diplomater – so summon diplomats

More rate hikes on cards as Swedish inflation nears 10 percent

Inflation in Sweden hit a higher than expected 9.7 percent in September, making it likely that the country’s central bank will have to hike interest rates even more rapidly.

In a press release issued on Thursday morning, Statistics Sweden blamed “higher electricity prices and higher prices for groceries and alcohol-free drinks” for driving price increases over the month.

The rise was higher than market expectations of about 9.3 percent, judging by a survey carried out by Bloomberg, a financial news service.

The goods that saw the highest price increases were bread and other products made from grain, and coffee, the agency wrote. 

“This is high, well above the Riksbank’s target. That indicates we will see continued big [rate] hikes,” Annika Winsth, chief economist at Nordea, told the TT newswire. 

She said that it was likely now that the 50 point rate rise planned for November would be increased to 75 points. 

“Both households and companies need to be prepared for rates continuing to rise,” she said. 

Swedish vocab: att rusa – to soar (literally “rush”) 

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