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KEY POINTS: Everything you need to know about Sweden’s new government

Magdalena Andersson is Sweden's new prime minister, and her new cabinet has been announced. But what are her plans for Sweden, and who are the ministers who will help her carry them out?

Published: 30 November 2021 13:41 CET
Updated: 30 November 2021 16:26 CET
Andersson's new ministers in her new government
“This government will be working hard - so make sure you take nice pictures now, because you won’t see them looking this lively again,” said Andersson to photographers in parliament. Photo: Sören Andersson/TT

What does Andersson want to achieve with her new government?

In her speech to parliament before announcing her ministers, Andersson mentioned the fight against crime and segregation, “driving the green industrial revolution” and “taking back control of welfare” as her three main priorities.

“Every minister in the government that takes office today will be tasked, within their area of responsibility and with the support of the relevant government agencies, with leaving no stone unturned in bringing an end to gang crime and segregation,” said Andersson.

She also underlined the importance of individuals, stating that “we all need to do our part”, and that “no one individual can break segregation or stop the shootings or the gangs on their own”.

“Everyone can do something,” Andersson said.

“Help out in local sports associations so that there are recreational activities for our children and young people. Stay and talk for a few minutes with someone who needs to improve their Swedish to enter into Swedish society,” she continued.

For a full English translation of her statement of government policy, click here.

Who are the new ministers in Andersson’s cabinet?

Andersson’s new Social Democrat government is a major shake-up, featuring a lot of new faces not seen in the previous cabinet – over a third of her ministers are new.

Changes to the cabinet are Mikael Damberg (previously Minister for Home Affairs) taking over Andersson’s role as Minister for Finance; Karl-Petter Thorwaldsson (previously leader of the Swedish Trade Union LO) who will be taking over as Minister for Business, Industry and Innovation from Ibrahim Baylan, who is retiring from politics after two decades as a top-ranking Social Democrat; and Anna-Caren Sätherberg, who will be the new Minister for Rural Affairs – a role which did not exist in the previous government.

Furthermore, Johan Danielsson, member of the EU parliament, will be taking over as Minister for Housing and Deputy Minister of Employment from outgoing Green Party politician Märta Stenevi – whose official title was “Minister for Gender Equality and Housing, with responsibility for urban development, anti-segregation and anti-discrimination”.

Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson and Minister of Finance Mikael Damberg with the rest of the new government on their way to meet with the King at the skifteskonselj for the formal transition of power. Photo: Sören Andersson/TT

Additionally, Matilda Ernkrans is leaving her role as Minister for Higher Education and research and joining the Ministry for Foreign Affairs as Minister for International Development Cooperation (taking over from the Green Party’s Per Olsson Fridh). There will be two new additions to the Ministry of Finance: Max Elger (currently political advisor to Magdalena Andersson) who will become Minister for Financial Markets, taking over from the Green Party’s Åsa Lindhagen, and Ida Karkiainen who will be the new Minister for Public Administration, taking over from Social Democrat Lena Micko, who chose to step down after two years in the role.

Anders Ygeman, formerly Minister for Energy and Digital Development under the Ministry of Infrastructure, has been moved to the Ministry of Justice, where he will be working as Minister for Integration and Migration, another new ministerial role – the previous government had a Minister for Justice and Migration, Morgan Johansson, whose new role will be as a combined Minister for Justice and Home Affairs instead.

Finally, Khashayar Farmanbar will be taking over Ygeman’s previous role as Minister for Energy and Digital Development, and Annika Strandhäll will be taking over from Green Party MP Per Bolund as Minister for Environment and Climate.

Two of Andersson’s new ministers have not held poltical roles before.

The first is Lina Axelsson Kihlblom, who will be the new Minister for Schools. Axelsson Kihlblom is known from TV series Rektorerna or “The Headteachers”, where she worked on improving low school results in Ronnaskolan, Södertälje. She is also making history as Sweden’s first out trans woman in a ministerial role.

The second minister brought in from outside of politics is Jeanette Gustafsdotter, the incoming Minister for Culture, who is taking over from the Green Party’s Amanda Lind, whose official title was “Minister for Culture and Democracy, with responsibility for sport”. Gustafsdotter was – until now – general secretary of the Swedish Museums Association.

The other ministers in Andersson’s cabinet remain the same as the last government.

Another particular minister to note in Andersson’s new cabinet is Infrastructure Minister Tomas Eneroth, who is currently being investigated on suspicion of sexual harassment after placing his hand on a woman’s back during the Social Democrats’ party congress earlier in November.

Andersson commented the investigation in a press conference after announcing her cabinet, stating that it was “good that the situation is being investigated,” and that she is “very proud to be leader of a party where members take up issues like this and make sure that they get investigated”.

On the incident in question, Andersson stated that “there is no doubt about what has happened, and in this case Tomas Eneroth has asked the woman for an apology. He has been clear that it was accidental on his part. I see no reason not to believe that,” she continued.

Here is a full run-down of Andersson’s new cabinet:

Prime Minister’s Office

Prime Minister: Magdalena Andersson

Minister for EU Affairs: Hans Dahlgren

Ministry of Employment

Minister for Employment and Equality: Eva Nordmark

Minister for Housing and Deputy Minister of Employment: Johan Danielsson

Ministry of Finance

Minister for Finance: Mikael Damberg

Minister for Financial Markets: Max Elger

Minister for Public Administration: Ida Karkiainen

Ministry of Defence

Minister for Defence: Peter Hultqvist

Ministry of Infrastructure

Minister for Infrastructure: Tomas Eneroth

Minister for Energy and Digital Development: Khashayar Farmanbar

Ministry of Justice

Minister for Justice and Home Affairs: Morgan Johansson

Minister for Integration and Migration: Anders Ygeman

Ministry of Culture

Minister for Culture: Jeanette Gustafsdotter

Ministry of the Environment

Minister for Environment and Climate: Annika Strandhäll

Ministry of Enterprise and Innovation

Minister for Business, Industry and Innovation: Karl-Petter Thorwaldsson

Minister for Rural Affairs: Anna-Caren Sätherberg

Ministry of Health and Social Affairs

Minister for Health and Social Affairs: Lena Hallengren

Minister for Social Security: Ardalan Shekarabi

Ministry of Education and Research

Minister for Education: Anna Ekström

Minister for Schools: Lina Axelsson Kihlblom

Ministry for Foreign Affairs

Minister for Foreign Affairs: Ann Linde

Minister for Foreign Trade and Nordic Affairs: Anna Hallberg

Minister for International Development Cooperation: Matilda Ernkrans

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FACT CHECK: Has the EU really banned Swedes from lighting bonfires?

Claims that a new EU law had outlawed lighting fires in private gardens have hit the headlines recently, with outraged Swedes accusing Brussels of banning Sweden's traditional spring fires. But how true are they?

Published: 19 April 2024 10:39 CEST
FACT CHECK: Has the EU really banned Swedes from lighting bonfires?

What’s happened?

On April 6th, TV4 Nyheter published a story claiming that burning twigs and leaves in private gardens has been illegal since the beginning of the year, due to new EU rules.

“A common habit for gardeners during their spring cleaning is now banned. An EU law which came into force at the beginning of the year demands that all food and garden waste are sorted separately,” the article states, quoting Milla Sundström, an administrator from the waste and chemicals unit of the Environmental Protection Agency (Naturvårdsverket) as saying this “indirectly” bans spring fires.

Sundström added that the ban is enforced by local councils, so rules may differ.

Wait… why is it so important for Swedes to burn twigs in their gardens?

It’s a common way of getting rid of the leaves and branches that have accumulated over the last year, with the ashes often used as fertiliser in the garden. It’s usually only allowed for a couple of weeks a year in spring and again in the autumn, and during Valborg at the end of April, when it’s traditional to light a spring bonfire.

Quite a lot of people in Sweden live in pretty remote areas, so it’s much easier for them to get rid of bulky garden waste by burning it rather than having to drive it off to the nearest recycling centre.

So has burning garden waste been banned by the EU?

Technically, no.

The EU law says that member states should “encourage the recycling, including composting and digestion, of bio-waste”, as well as encourage home composting and promoting the use of materials produced by bio-waste, but it doesn’t say anything about banning fires.

“This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,” Center Party MEP Emma Wiesner wrote on X, before blaming the government for interpreting the law incorrectly.

“Banning tidying up in your own garden has clearly NOT been the EU’s intention. The inability of the government and authorities to implement the simplest of directives is embarrassing and adds to the contempt for politicians,” she added.

So who has banned fires on private property?

In a regulation from December 22nd, 2022 signed by Environment Minister Romina Pourmokhtari, the government writes that exemptions “from the prohibition on the incineration of separately collected waste” may be granted in the case of public events. 

This refers to a separate law governing waste, which states that “waste that has been collected separately to be prepared for reuse or recycling should not be incinerated”.

This regulation came into effect on January 1st, 2024.

Wait… what does that even mean?

Admittedly, the regulation isn’t particularly clear. Having said that, the new rules on bonfires appear to stem from Naturvårdsverket interpreting this regulation as an outright ban.

“The new regulations mean that garden waste must be composted on-site, left at a recycling centre, or collected by the council,” it writes in a post on its website dated April 11th. “In practice, this means that it is no longer permitted to burn branches, leaves and other garden waste”.

Naturvårdsverket claims that this is “part of the introduction of the EU’s waste directive, which means that bio-waste should primarily be recycled”.

It does, however, add that local councils are able to grant exceptions, “for example if it’s a long way to the closest recycling centre”.

So whose fault is it?

Energy and business minister Ebba Busch, who is head of the climate and business ministry, seemed to indicate in a post on X that the confusion was due to the badly-worded rules introduced by the government at the beginning of the year, which were designed to coincide with the EU’s waste directive.

“I want to be clear and say that the government has not introduced a new ban against burning garden waste,” she wrote, alongside a picture of her standing in front of a fire in her own garden.

“There are new rules, but not any huge changes compared to how it’s worked in the past. We can see that these can be interpreted in different ways. For that reason, the rules will be clarified,” she added.

Can I burn twigs in my garden then?

Maybe.

Despite politicians sharing posts telling you to “Keep calm and keep lighting fires,” you should check with your municipality before you do so.

Some, like Halmstad, have interpreted the new regulations as meaning that you can still light a fire in your own garden, while others require you to apply for an exemption (which usually includes paying a fee), whether you’re applying for a May bonfire or just want to burn some leaves in your own garden.

Others, like Värmdö municipality, allow you to burn things like twigs and small branches in your garden, while stating that grass and leaves should be composted.

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