Swedish prime minister's wife faces church investigation over foundation exposé
The cathedral chapter in the Strängnäs diocese is investigating whether a foundation run by the prime minister's wife at her Fållökna estate is compatible with her priestly vows, reports Dagens Arena.
The probe follows around ten formal complaints, according to diocesan lawyer Lotta Lind.
"The complaints relate to recent media coverage and whether her actions align with her vows, such as following church order and fulfilling her duties so that the church is built up and God's will is realised in the world," Lind told Dagens Arena.
Birgitta Ed, who is married to Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, has been working for Strängnäs as a priest since 2023. She will continue her duties as normal during the investigation, the parish confirmed.
The Aftonbladet newspaper recently revealed that Ed's foundation was recruiting volunteers to renovate a mansion she co-owns outside Malmköping for free, in exchange for "good networking opportunities". When a reporter went undercover as a volunteer in May, Kristersson himself was spotted on-site directing the workers.
The security service, Säpo, has faced heavy criticism after the undercover reporter managed to get close to the prime minister without showing ID or having her bag searched.
Swedish vocabulary: a diocese – ett stift
Sweden tightens residency rules, but opposition challenge delays child detention bill
Foreigners applying for Swedish residency will soon face stricter "good conduct" requirements, following a parliamentary vote on Monday.
The updated rules, which come into effect on July 13th, mean that an applicant's lifestyle and character will weigh more heavily when the Migration Agency decides whether to grant or revoke a permit.
While the text of the law does not explicitly detail every action that could lead to a rejection, government officials and investigators have highlighted several examples. These include failing to comply with laws and regulations, ignoring official decisions by state agencies, systematically failing to pay off debts or fines, and working illegally.
The new legislation was passed despite opposition from the Left Party and the Green Party, who both voted against the proposal.
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The government also suffered a setback on Monday, as it failed to push through a proposal to expand the detaining of child migrants, after opposition parties demanded the bill be shelved for a year.
Parliament was set to vote to tighten rules regarding supervision and detention within the migration process. However, the Centre Party and the Green Party requested that the portion of the bill affecting children be put on hold for 12 months. Under Swedish law, a parliamentary minority can request such a delay if a bill is deemed to infringe upon constitutionally protected freedom of movement.
Because of the challenge, the government required a five-sixths majority to pass the law immediately, which it failed to achieve. The constitutional committee will now assess whether the delay is legally justified before a new vote is held.
The government's detention bill aims to increase the grounds and time limits for detaining individuals facing deportation to prevent them from going underground. For asylum-seeking children, the maximum detention time would double from three days to six, with a further six-day extension in exceptional circumstances. The government wants the new rules to come into effect on July 21st.
Swedish vocabulary: legislation – lagstiftning
Stockholm commuters can cash in annual SL passes ahead of price drop
Stockholm commuters will soon have the chance to trade in their prepaid annual public transport passes as monthly ticket prices are set to be halved, local newspaper Mitti reports.
From July 1st, the price of a monthly ticket in the Swedish capital will drop to 530 kronor, funded by a 6.5 billion kronor government subsidy which will see monthly ticket prices halved all over Sweden. To ensure regular passengers who already bought annual or 90-day passes don't lose out, Stockholm's public transport operator, SL, is proposing that customers can cash in the remaining time left on their tickets.
By switching to the subsidised monthly pass, an annual ticket holder could save up to 400 kronor a month.
The offer applies to around 16,000 individuals who paid for their cards out of pocket, and includes tickets valid into 2027.
While SL expects a slight dip in revenue, it believes the move will generate significant goodwill. The exact logistics of how the refunds will be processed have not yet been finalised.
Swedish vocabulary: a monthly pass – ett månadskort
Swedish consumers' rights body hails new EU rules as victory for air passengers
EU parliament negotiators have approved a new agreement on air passenger rights, securing travellers the right to bring a small cabin bag or backpack on board, without a surprise additional cost.
"This is great news for consumers and a major victory for the consumer movement. Right up until the final moment, we were worried about major setbacks," Maria Wiezell, a consumer rights experts at the Swedish Consumers' Association, said in a statement.
The new rules mean that airlines must display the price inclusive of carry-on luggage at the start of the booking process. They may, however, offer cheaper tickets for passengers who choose to travel without hand luggage.
The agreement, which has been under negotiation for over a decade, also means passengers with reduced mobility will be entitled to compensation or rebooking from airlines if they miss a flight due to a lack of assistance, according to the parliament.
Furthermore, airlines will no longer be allowed to charge extra for passengers with reduced mobility, as well as children and pregnant women, to sit next to their travel companions. The deal also covers rules on compensation for delays and cancellations, as well as increased transparency and comparability in ticket pricing.
"Now we need to ensure airlines actually comply. Getting compensation today when flights are delayed or cancelled is far too complicated. Only just over a third of passengers currently exercise their rights," Wiezell said.
Swedish vocabulary: a traveller – en resenär
Inquiry rejects Swedish government's mandatory language preschool plan
The government's own special inquiry has rejected a proposal by the ruling Tidö coalition parties to introduce a mandatory language preschool for children with insufficient knowledge of Swedish.
In an opinion piece for the Dagens Nyheter newspaper, inquiry chair Eva Broström states that introducing such a preschool would be "both legally and practically difficult, and raises questions regarding equal treatment and discrimination".
Instead, the inquiry recommends strengthening outreach programmes, granting a right to extended hours in the standard public preschool, and launching a pilot project focused on language-boosting initiatives. It also proposes a language assessment from the age of three, which could then qualify a child for targeted preschool language support.
In addition, the inquiry suggests that Sweden's National Agency for Education develop guidelines for authorities and staff on what constitutes good quality in preschool education. It further recommends setting regulatory criteria for staff-to-child ratios and capping the maximum number of children allowed in preschool groups.
Swedish vocabulary: a language preschool – en språkförskola