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INSIDE SWEDEN

Inside Sweden: Everything you need to know to plan your Christmas holiday

The Local's editor Emma Löfgren writes about the biggest stories of the week (and Christmas) in our Inside Sweden newsletter.

Published: 18 November 2023 09:27 CET
Inside Sweden: Everything you need to know to plan your Christmas holiday
The Christmas market at Gothenburg theme park Liseberg is one of many Christmas markets in Sweden. Photo: Göran Assner/imagebank.sweden.se

Hej,

Will you be spending Christmas in Sweden? Regardless of whether you celebrate or not, it’s is inescapable, as the biggest holiday in Sweden.

I for one can’t wait until the festive period begins to brighten up these dark and dreary winter days. If there’s one thing that always puts me in a better mood this time of the year, it’s not Santa, lussekatter or julmust – it’s seeing the Advent lights in my neighbours’ windows. Like a quiet “hej” in the night.

If you’re an introvert who’s drawn to predictability and making Christmas last as long as possible, you may want to spend it in Sweden too. Here are The Local’s six criteria to tell if Sweden is the best place for you to celebrate Christmas in.

It’s of course also the time of julbord, the lavish meal which Swedes eat with their family on Christmas Eve but also in the run-up to Christmas with their friends, colleagues, and maybe once more with their family for practice.

Here’s a list with some of the best julbord offered at restaurants in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö. Feel free to add your own favourites in the comments.

The deadlines for posting mail in Sweden for Christmas are coming up, especially if you’re sending parcels abroad. Write down these dates. 

I’ve shared this one before, but Christmas markets are the best place to find traditional Swedish gifts for family back home, so don’t miss these events.

We got a question from a reader about whether or not your boss is allowed to make you work over Christmas, and the answer is yes-ish, but it depends and you may have some room for negotiating extra pay or days off in return.

The public holidays fall on awkward dates this year, but next year you can get 12 days off at Christmas by only using up three days of your total holiday allowance. Check out our top Swedish holiday planning tips here.

In other news

Is it harder to break into the Swedish housing market today than it was ten years ago? The answer is a resounding YES, according to a new report.

The European Commission has proposed a shared EU talent pool as part of a package of new measures to make it easier for skilled workers to come to the EU to work.

Swedish banking giant Swedbank raised concern this week over the challenge a new work permit salary threshold for non-EU citizens poses to the Swedish model.

The Swedish state should issue a public apology to the country’s Tornedalian minority, urges a truth commission set up to investigate historic wrongdoings.

Things could start looking brighter for Sweden on the economic front in the latter half of next year, new economic forecasts predict.

Next week, the Swedish central bank is set to make its next decision on whether to leave the interest rate unchanged or hike it once more. Here’s what we know so far.

Thanks for reading,

Emma Löfgren

Editor, The Local Sweden 

Inside Sweden is our weekly newsletter for members that gives you news, analysis and, sometimes, takes you behind the scenes at The Local. It’s published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to your newsletter preferences.

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For members

INSIDE SWEDEN

Inside Sweden: What does Sweden Democrats’ election flop mean for foreigners?

The Local's editor Emma Löfgren rounds up the biggest stories of the week in our Inside Sweden newsletter.

Published: 15 June 2024 11:48 CEST
Inside Sweden: What does Sweden Democrats' election flop mean for foreigners?

Hej,

The far-right Sweden Democrats have had a week of reckoning after they lost votes in the EU election – the first time in the party’s history that it’s performed worse in a national or EU election than previous elections. Thus far it had always been on an upward trajectory, a trend that is now broken.

In some districts it saw voters’ support reduced by up to a third, and in Sölvesborg (the popular party leader Jimmie Åkesson’s home town) where support also fell, there was talk of organising crisis meetings.

Let’s not exaggerate what this means. The Sweden Democrats get to keep their three seats in the European Parliament, and voting patterns for the EU election are usually different from the national elections (the Greens performed almost three times better than in the last national election less than two years ago).

A major poll this week suggested that the Sweden Democrats would win 19.5 percent of the vote if an election were held today – one percentage point lower than its 2022 election result, but better than its 13 percent in the EU election.

It is still a member of Sweden’s ruling Tidö coalition and it’s hardly the only party in favour of stricter migration: the right-wing Moderates and Christian Democrats, and the centre-left Social Democrats have all had a hand in the tightening of rules that have impacted foreigners in Sweden in recent years.

But its poor performance does tell us something, which may have at least a small chance at influencing the Swedish political debate in the years ahead.

It suggests that the Sweden Democrats are less able than many thought at mobilising its potential voters. Its voters are generally sceptical of the EU and less keen to vote in the EU election, not even for the Sweden Democrats.

It suggests that Åkesson overplayed his hand when he wrote an opinion piece in the run-up to the election seeking to legitimise the concept of folkutbyte, a clear reference to the Great Replacement Theory that underpinned the deadly terror attack mounted by the Norwegian extremist Anders Breivik.

It suggests that the party played it wrong when it launched a verbal attack on TV4, refusing to apologise after the broadcaster revealed that the party operated a so-called troll factory. Perhaps the public thought showing just a little bit of contrition would have been a more appropriate reaction.

It suggests that peace, democracy, the climate and European cohesion – none of which are Sweden Democrat core issues – are important to voters.

And it rocks the boat for a party that perhaps for the first time failed at what it claims to do better than anyone else: gauging the mood of the nation.

What topics would you like The Local to cover?

It’s a challenging time for the media industry with volatile tech algorithms and advertising markets hitting even the biggest of newsrooms. That’s why I wrote a couple of weeks ago that it’s such a relief that our focus and number one resource here at The Local isn’t the tech giants, but our readers.

I’d like to take a moment to ensure that we’re continuing to meet your needs. Please fill out this survey to suggest stories we should cover in the year ahead.

In other news

The number of Swedish work permits rejected because the applicant’s salary is too low has increased by almost 2,000 percent since the country tightened the rules last year, according to new figures supplied to The Local.

There are plenty of things Sweden could do to help foreigners integrate, said The Local’s readers when we asked for their suggestions as to how the country could become more inclusive.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE and India are the top investment destinations for Swedish companies, meaning that businesses are planning on increasing their investments in these markets over the next 12 months.

English speakers who don’t speak Swedish can currently only donate blood in Stockholm, but The Local has been told of plans to roll out the service to Gothenburg and Uppsala in the year ahead.

The year-on-year inflation rate fell to 3.7 percent in May, according to new figures from Statistics Sweden. This was less than expected.

Hundreds of British citizens are still battling rejected applications to stay in Sweden, nearly two and a half years after the deadline to apply for post-Brexit residency status. The Local spoke to four of them.

Sweden’s Migration Agency has sent an analysis to the EU Commission, in which it concludes that its near blanket refusal of late applications for post-Brexit residency has been ‘at the right level’ and is of ‘a high legal quality’.

The number of beaches in Sweden which are checked and graded is growing every year, making it easy to make sure that where you are swimming is clean and safe. These are the cleanest beaches in Sweden this summer.

From TV schedules to bars and cafes, here are your options for watching all matches of the Euro 2024 football tournament in Sweden.

Thanks for reading and have a good weekend!

Best wishes,

Emma

Inside Sweden is our weekly newsletter for members which gives you news, analysis and, sometimes, takes you behind the scenes at The Local. It’s published each Saturday and with Membership+ you can also receive it directly to your inbox.

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