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POLITICS

Centre-right PM candidate faces likely defeat in Swedish parliamentary vote

On Wednesday, Swedish centre-right leader Ulf Kristersson is expected to become the first prime minister candidate to be voted down by parliament -- including by two of his allies.

Published: 14 November 2018 07:35 CET
Centre-right PM candidate faces likely defeat in Swedish parliamentary vote
Speaker Andreas Norlén and Ulf Kristersson (R) speak to media. Photo: Pontus Lundahl-TT

The leader of the Moderates party has been put forward by parliamentary speaker Andreas Norlén following over two months of deadlock. 

Kristersson aims to form a government with the Christian Democrats, but not the other two parties that make up the centre-right Alliance. The Centre Party and Liberals have not only refused to participate in the potential government, but have both said they will vote no to the proposal.

This leaves the proposal almost certain to fail.

Although it does not require a majority to support it in parliament, proposed governments can only be passed if a majority does not actively vote against them. The centre-left Social Democrats, Green Party and Left Party are expected to reject Kristersson, which together with the Centre and Liberals would mean 195 votes against, more than the 175 that means a majority.

The far-right Sweden Democrats on the other hand have said they will support a Kristersson-led government. The need for support from the nationalist party is the main reason the Centre Party and Liberals have refused to support the government, as they have committed to a strategy of politically isolating the Sweden Democrats.

IN DEPTH: How did the Swedish political situation get to where it is today?

“It is a difficult day for the Alliance,” said Kristersson in response to the Centre's decision to vote no.

The speaker has a total of four chances to ask a candidate to try to form a government that will be accepted by parliament. Kristersson's nomination is the first of the possible four.

If the government proposal is voted down as expected, speaker Norlén will hold a new round of talks with party leaders. After that, he is likely to propose another PM candidate, with leader of the centre-left Social Democrats Stefan Löfven and Centre Party leader Annie Lööf two of the likely choices.

After the September 9th election left neither of the two main blocs with a clear majority, the country has been in political deadlock. Kristersson and Löfven were each given two weeks to form a new coalition, but neither succeeded, leading Norlén to take a more active role in the process.

You can catch up on all The Local's coverage of the 2018 election HERE

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POLITICS

‘Very little debate’ on consequences of Sweden’s crime and migration clampdown

Sweden’s political leaders are putting the population’s well-being at risk by moving the country in a more authoritarian direction, according to a recent report.

Published: 29 April 2024 08:56 CEST
'Very little debate' on consequences of Sweden's crime and migration clampdown

The Liberties Rule of Law report shows Sweden backsliding across more areas than any other of the 19 European Union member states monitored, fuelling concerns that the country risks breaching its international human rights obligations, the report says.

“We’ve seen this regression in other countries for a number of years, such as Poland and Hungary, but now we see it also in countries like Sweden,” says John Stauffer, legal director of the human rights organisation Civil Rights Defenders, which co-authored the Swedish section of the report.

The report, compiled by independent civil liberties groups, examines six common challenges facing European Union member states.

Sweden is shown to be regressing in five of these areas: the justice system, media environment, checks and balances, enabling framework for civil society and systemic human rights issues.

The only area where Sweden has not regressed since 2022 is in its anti-corruption framework, where there has been no movement in either a positive or negative direction.

Source: Liberties Rule of Law report

As politicians scramble to combat an escalation in gang crime, laws are being rushed through with too little consideration for basic rights, according to Civil Rights Defenders.

Stauffer cites Sweden’s new stop-and-search zones as a case in point. From April 25th, police in Sweden can temporarily declare any area a “security zone” if there is deemed to be a risk of shootings or explosive attacks stemming from gang conflicts.

Once an area has received this designation, police will be able to search people and cars in the area without any concrete suspicion.

“This is definitely a piece of legislation where we see that it’s problematic from a human rights perspective,” says Stauffer, adding that it “will result in ethnic profiling and discrimination”.

Civil Rights Defenders sought to prevent the new law and will try to challenge it in the courts once it comes into force, Stauffer tells The Local in an interview for the Sweden in Focus Extra podcast. 

He also notes that victims of racial discrimination at the hands of the Swedish authorities had very little chance of getting a fair hearing as actions by the police or judiciary are “not even covered by the Discrimination Act”.

READ ALSO: ‘Civil rights groups in Sweden can fight this government’s repressive proposals’

Stauffer also expresses concerns that an ongoing migration clampdown risks splitting Sweden into a sort of A and B team, where “the government limits access to rights based on your legal basis for being in the country”.

The report says the government’s migration policies take a “divisive ‘us vs them’ approach, which threatens to increase rather than reduce existing social inequalities and exclude certain groups from becoming part of society”.

Proposals such as the introduction of a requirement for civil servants to report undocumented migrants to the authorities would increase societal mistrust and ultimately weaken the rule of law in Sweden, the report says.

The lack of opposition to the kind of surveillance measures that might previously have sparked an outcry is a major concern, says Stauffer.

Politicians’ consistent depiction of Sweden as a country in crisis “affects the public and creates support for these harsh measures”, says Stauffer. “And there is very little talk and debate about the negative consequences.”

Hear John Stauffer from Civil Rights Defender discuss the Liberties Rule of Law report in the The Local’s Sweden in Focus Extra podcast for Membership+ subscribers.

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