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WHAT CHANGES IN SWEDEN

EXPLAINED: What changes in Sweden in December 2022?

Sweden's budget goes to vote in parliament, electricity bill subsidy payment, planning for Sweden’s EU Council Presidency, Nobel Prize Day, Saint Lucia's Day, and the oncoming of Christmas. Here's what's coming in Sweden this December.

Published: 29 November 2022 18:19 CET
EXPLAINED: What changes in Sweden in December 2022?
Guests at the Nobel Banquet at Stockholm City Hall in 2019. Photo: Jessica Gow/TT

Parliament to vote on budget

On the 13th of December, Sweden’s parliament is due to vote on the government’s budget for 2023.

For the former Social Democrat government, every budget involved juggling the competing demands of the economically liberal Centre and Liberal Parties and the former communist Left Party. Twice the party had to rule on the budget drawn up by the right-wing opposition. 

But Sweden’s new government has a three-seat majority backed by parties, who, for now at least, are in agreement, so the budget should pass without too much difficulty. 

Having said that, this is an economically conservative budget that has managed to disappoint almost everyone but the inflation hawks in Sweden’s central bank. 

READ ALSO: 

Preparations for Swedish Presidency of the European Union

Sweden’s Presidency of the Council of the EU formally begins on January 1st, so December will see heightened press coverage of what Sweden’s government hopes to achieve and what demands will be put upon it. 

A big priority will be successfully concluding negotiations for the “Fit for 55” package, which aims to push EU member states to all play their part in the EU reaching its goal of reducing emissions by 55 percent by 2030. 

Lars Danielsson, the ambassador leading Sweden’s permanent representation to the EU, wrote in a press release in November that as well as climate, Sweden’s other priorities are energy, migration and security. 

Here are the country’s political priorities for the presidency (in no particular order). 

  • Providing security for EU citizens and strengthening the EU’s role in the world
  • Stopping organised crime
  • Speeding up the climate transition
  • Strengthening the EU’s competitiveness for the jobs of the future
  • Safeguarding the EU’s fundamental values

Nobel prizes 

The award-giving ceremony for Sweden’s six Nobel prizes, and the following celebratory banquet, takes place on December 10th. This is the first time the glitzy event in Stockholm City Hall has been held since the Covid-19 pandemic, so it’s likely to get significant coverage in the Swedish press.

The French writer Annie Ernaux, who has won the Nobel Prize in Literature, will hold a press conference in Stockholm on December 6th and then give a lecture on December 7th. 

Sweden’s version of the Oscars

The nominations for the Guldbagge awards, Sweden’s version of the Oscar film awards, are announced on December 15th, although to find out the winner you will have to wait for the award ceremony on January 23rd. 

Will Sweden end its obligatory ID controls on ferries? 

On December 31st, the obligatory controls on ferries Sweden brought in to keep tabs on the level of migration from Ukraine is due to expire, but Sweden’s government on November 22nd published a bill which would extend it to June 2023. 

St Lucy’s Day/St Lucia 

The festival of St Lucia, which marks the start of Sweden’s long Christmas period, is on December 13th. Those with children will not be able to miss their kindergarten, school, or choir Lucia concerts. Others can enjoy one of the many concerts and Lucia processions put on at churches and in parks around the country. 

Christmas holidays 

Sweden’s schools generally break up only a few days before Christmas Eve, with schools in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö all breaking up on December 22nd, giving families just enough time to travel to see grandparents, cousins and the like before the big celebrations, which are held on December 24th in Sweden. 

Polar night descends on far north of Sweden

Just before lunch on November 30th, the sun sets on Treriksröset, with it not coming up above the horizon again until January 12th. The polar night will extend south throughout early December, reaching Kiruna on December 11th.

The boundary for polar night is just above the northern Arctic Circle at 67 degrees north.

Days begin to get longer again

An especially important date for those living in the Arctic Circle is the 21st of December, the shortest day of the year.

After this date, days begin to lengthen, with more sunlight per day (for those areas of the country with sunlight at this time of year.

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WHAT CHANGES IN SWEDEN

What changes in Sweden in June 2024?

June is a jam-packed month this year, with a new interest rate announcement, a new work permit salary threshold and two public holidays on the cards. Here's what to expect.

Published: 28 May 2024 12:09 CEST
Updated: 4 June 2024 13:39 CEST
What changes in Sweden in June 2024?

June 1st: New law on travel ban for vulnerable children comes into force

A new law comes into force on June 1st, which will issue children under 18 with a ban on leaving the country if it is suspected that the purpose of their trip is for them to undergo genital mutilation or forced marriage.

The law will also make it possible to issue a travel ban for children who are deemed to be at risk of damage to their health or development if they leave the country.

This could be so-called uppfostringsresor, where children are sent back to their homeland against their will in order to re-learn particular values or traditions by family members who believe they have become “too Swedish”, or as a response to children acting out in school.

It also includes parents taking their children out of Sweden to undergo conversion therapy, or children who want to leave Sweden of their own accord to join terror organisations.

June 4th: Healthcare strike

The Swedish Association of Health Professionals is threatening to scale up an overtime ban to an all-out strike at some of Sweden’s biggest hospitals from June 4th.

A blockade on overtime and new hires has been in place for 63,000 members of the union in all Swedish regions since April 25th, which was extended to 5,000 municipal employees in 29 municipalities from May 20th. Healthcare is run regionally in Sweden, but municipalities organise welfare services such as elderly care and school nurses.

The new walkout will cover some 2,000 nurses, midwives, biomedical analysts and radiology nurses in five regions: Stockholm, Västra Götaland, Skåne, Östergötland and Västerbotten.

On May 28th, the union threatened to double the strike, extending it to another 1,900 union members and two new regions, Västmanland and Värmland, from 11th June.

A possible agreement could be reached before June 4th, but if not, here’s how it could affect you.

June 6th: National Day

Another important date in the Swedish calendar this month is Sweden’s National Day on June 6th. It has been a public holiday since 2005, replacing Whit Monday, but was first celebrated in 1916 in honour of the election of King Gustav Vasa on June 6th, 1523. 

Gustav Vasa’s election also marks the end of the Danish-ruled Kalmar Union, so is arguably a marking of Swedish independence, although it occurred so long ago that few Swedes associate National Day with this aspect of Swedish history.

Many Swedes will have booked June 7th off in order to have a four-day weekend, so don’t be surprised if your workplace is emptier than usual the day after National Day.

You may also be able to buy a nationaldagsbakelse or National Day pastry in many bakeries on June 6th, a small almond cake topped with strawberries and a Swedish flag.

June 9th: European Parliament elections

This year’s elections for the European Parliament will be held on June 9th across Europe, but in Sweden advance voting actually opened on May 22nd, with 21 seats up for grabs. 

Sweden elects its MEPs through direct proportional representation, so that parties gain the number of MEPs equivalent to their share of the overall vote. But exactly who gets to be an MEP is decided in advance by the parties who publish their candidate lists in priority order.

Here’s our guide to the Swedish parties currently represented in the European Parliament and the individuals heading the lists for each party.

If you want to know how the election actually works and who’s eligible to vote, read this article.

June 14th and 27th: New inflation figures and interest rate announcement

Sweden’s Riksbank central bank will make a new announcement on Sweden’s key interest rate on June 27th. They’re expected to keep it constant at 3.75 percent, but there is a small chance that this could change if inflation figures for May (released June 14th) are much lower than expected.

Having said that, Riksbank governor Erik Thedéen has made it very clear that the bank is not planning on lowering interest rates, stating earlier in May that there would need to be “very large changes” to even begin to discuss lowering interest rates in June – and unexpectedly low inflation figures for May would not be enough on their own.

“Figures alone aren’t going to decide it, but rather the context surrounding them,” he told journalists after a speech held at the National Economic Association on May 20th.

“The question is not on the table. Our main expectation is two cuts in the latter half of the year,” he added, while saying that nothing is completely ruled out.

“But there’s a very high threshold for us to even consider it.” 

Mid-June: School holidays and graduation

Summer holidays start in most of Sweden’s schools around the middle of the month. You can also expect Sweden to be a bit louder in June, especially if you live in an urban area near a gymnasium school.

Students finishing upper high school (gymnasium) will springa ut starting in early June, a tradition where newly-graduated students run out of school after getting their final exam results to cheers from friends and family, after which they will drive around in a car or on the back of a van with friends and party for the rest of the evening.

June 18th: New median salary figures released

Statistics Sweden will release its salary figures for 2023 on June 18th. This may not sound like a big deal, but these are the figures which affect the salary threshold for work permit applicants in Sweden.

The most recent figures from June last year put the median salary at 34,200 kronor, meaning that work permit holders applying for a new permit or an extension need to earn 80 percent of this – 27,360 kronor – to qualify for a permit.

From June 18th, the median salary figure will (most likely) rise, meaning that the threshold for a new work permit will also rise. This will only apply to applications submitted from that date – the threshold is determined by the most recent salary figures at the time of application, not at the time a decision is made.

June 22nd: Midsummer’s Eve

Rounding off June, we have Midsummer’s Eve, which falls on June 22nd this year.

The majority of workers – at least those who work normal working hours throughout the week – will have the day off on Midsummer’s Eve, despite the fact that it is not officially a röd dag or public holiday.

The reason it’s celebrated on a Friday rather than on the actual summer solstice, which this year is on June 20st, is due to a 1953 reform to make it fit in better with the working week – and presumably to give workers the Saturday off to recover from the festivities.

It is, however, listed as a holiday day equivalent to a Sunday in Sweden’s Annual Leave Act, so if you don’t usually work on Sundays you should have the day off.

If you do have to work on Midsummer’s Eve, you may be offered OB-tillägg (pay for working inconvenient hours), overtime pay, or a day off in lieu at a later date.

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