Fredrik Kärrholm, a former police officer newly elected as a Moderate MP, floated the idea of the moratorium in a tweet on Thursday. 

“The Christian Democrats, Liberals, Sweden Democrats and Moderates all want to tighten citizenship requirements,” he wrote. 

“Right now 96,411 applications are being processed. While new legislation is being hammered out, a moratorium on new citizenships should be considered.” 

KD, L, SD och M vill alla skärpa kraven för medborgarskap. Det behövs. Hittills i år har 54.597 medborgarskap beviljats. Just nu handläggs 96.411 ansökningar. Under tiden en ny lagstiftning mejslas fram borde ett moratorium för naturalisation övervägas genom t.ex. tillfällig lag.

— Fredrik Kärrholm (@FredrikKarrholm) October 5, 2022

The proposal seems to come from Kärrholm himself, and does not necessarily reflect Moderate Party policy, but it may indicate the thinking of some in the party over tightening citizenship, a subject which is bound to be a significant part of the ongoing discussions on the next government’s programme.  

Kärrholm caused controversy in the election campaign for posing in campaign literature dressed in police uniform, despite having left the police force in 2021. 

Sweden’s national police said at the time that it was inappropriate for former or serving police officers to use police uniform or symbols in political campaigns. 

“This is about preserving the confidence of the public and keeping political roles separate from roles as a public official,” police spokesperson Irene Sokolow told the Aftonbladet newspaper.