Sweden in Focus

This week: Joy for Liberals as support swells, Sweden Democrats and Left Party hit by scandals, immigration in focus in TV debate, billionaires duel over which side to back, and poor school results throw a spanner in the works. 

Two of Sweden’s wealthiest people, Jacob Wallenberg and Martin Lorentzon, warned in the Financial Times this week about the risks of a left-wing government. Another, Robert Weil, shot back, saying he was more concerned about “an ethno-nationalist and authoritarian policy where the issue of migration is allowed to dominate at the expense of other issues and interests."

Meanwhile, the Liberals are poised to clear the 4 percent threshold they need to get into parliament, according to a new Novus poll showing that the party had leapt from 1.9 percent to 5.8 percent.

The poll follows others that showed significant gains for the Liberals after months in which the party has languished well under the threshold, leaving many commentators to all but write off their chances – and those of Ulf Kristersson’s government.

On Sunday we'll find out if the Prime Minister's coalition has done enough to claw their way back or if Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson gets a second bite at the top job. 

Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Richard Orange. 

Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode:

• Swedish election blog: Who will govern Sweden after September 13th?
• Swedish Liberal Party soars over parliamentary threshold in new poll
• Politics in Sweden: Immigration is on the agenda, but the debate is surreal
• Top Swedish investor slams Wallenberg's 'shameful' election scaremongering
• Russian partner of top Sweden Democrat accused of pro-Putin posts
• OPINION: Has Jimmie Åkesson been playing the Swedish media like a fiddle?

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Today's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra features an interview with Ludvig Aspling, migration spokesperson for the Sweden Democrats. 

This week we are turning a spotlight on the two parties most likely to shape Sweden’s immigration policy after the September 13th election.

Yesterday we heard from Ida Karkiainen, the Social Democrats’ immigration spokesperson. Today we’ll hear a conversation The Local's Richard Orange had with her counterpart from the Sweden Democrats, Ludvig Aspling. This interview took place in early August, a week before parliament voted on a so-called ‘safety valve’ to end teen deportations, which is one of the topics discussed in the episode. 

The Sweden Democrats were long a pariah in Swedish politics due to their Nazi roots. But as the largest party on the right in the 2022 election they emerged as one of the main architects of the Tidö agreement underpinning the government’s so-called paradigm shift on immigration over the past four years.

The shift has seen Sweden get much tougher on asylum immigration, work and residence permits and citizenship, with many of the policies directly impacting a lot of readers of The Local.

With that in mind, make sure to tune in to this week’s main episode of Sweden in Focus, which we expect to come out on Friday, for discussion and analysis of these interviews with the main immigration spokespeople for two of Sweden’s biggest rival parties.

So what can foreigners in Sweden expect if the right holds on to power after the election on Sunday and the Sweden Democrats receive ministerial posts for the first time, and how happy is Ludvig Aspling with how Sweden’s immigration landscape has changed over the last four years?

Tune in for the full interview. 

READ ALSO:

• 'If you came to work in Sweden because of relaxed citizenship rules, I don’t want you'

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This week’s episode of Sweden in Focus Extra features an interview with Ida Karkiainen, migration spokesperson for the Social Democrats. 

With the Swedish election just days away, the podcast this week features conversations The Local's Richard Orange had recently with two of the people in with a strong chance of becoming Sweden’s next migration minister: Ida Karkiainen of the Social Democrats and Ludvig Aspling of the Sweden Democrats.

First up: Ida Karkiainen. She is immigration spokesperson for the Social Democrats, and with her party tipped to lead Sweden’s next government we wanted to find out what direction Sweden would take on immigration under their leadership.

The Social Democrats have been broadly on board with many of the changes to migration law ushered in by the current government but they have also been critical of a number of issues, such at how the government has handled the teen deportation scandal and its failure to allow transitional rules for citizenship applicants.

Tune in for the full interview. 

READ ALSO:

• 'We don't want people who are integrated in Sweden to be forced to leave'
• Social Democrats plan huge inquiry to clean up Swedish immigration law

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This week: Right closing the gap on Sweden's left-wing opposition, party pledges explained, and could an extremist in Örebro get into the Riksdag? Oh, and fermented herring season is upon us.

A poll released this week showed the Sweden's government further closing the gap on the opposition. An election that looked like a foregone conclusion is now anything but. 

Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Richard Orange. 

Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode:

• Swedish opposition parties' lead collapses in shock new poll
• KEY POINTS: How party election pledges could affect foreigners in Sweden
• Politics in Sweden: The small-town demagogue aiming for a Riksdag spot

• What you need to know before trying Sweden's fermented herring

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This week: Sweden in shock after school sword attack, Sweden Democrats say no to tactical voting, Migration Agency weighs in on Brexit deportations, and what do foreign parents find strange about Swedish schools?

Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Becky Waterton. 

Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode:

• Liberal leader begs for tactical votes
• Early voting opens in Sweden – 18 days before election
• Sweden's right-wing bloc gains ground in new polls as election nears

• Second man held over fatal Fagersta school attack

• 'Ripped from a loved one': British-Swedish couple separated by Brexit deportation
• 'Brexit can hardly have come as a surprise': Sweden defends expelling Brits

• What foreign parents think of schools in Sweden

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For a recent article on the real-life effects of Sweden's immigration laws on families in Sweden, The Local's Mandy Pipher spoke with a Swedish-American couple who are both biological scientists and living in Uppsala.

The pair met a decade ago when Anna-Karin moved to Chicago for a postdoctoral position in immunology and flu vaccine research. Chris, also a biologist, was finishing his immunology PhD at the same university. Three years later, when Anna-Karin was moving back to Sweden for another work opportunity, the two were a committed couple, and they made plans for Chris to follow to Sweden as soon as possible.

By the summer of 2021, Chris was on his way to Sweden with a job offer from Karolinska, Sweden's prestigious medical research institute in hand.

But despite have a Swedish spouse, owning a home together in Sweden, speaking Swedish, and doing years of valuable work at one of Sweden's top research institutes, Chris was given just days to leave the country or risk being served with a Schengen area entry ban. 

READ ALSO:

• 'I felt betrayed by my country': Swedish scientist blasts treatment of US husband

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In this week's episode: Sweden Democrats campaign hard, Brexit deportations, citizenship tests and the "caterpillar from hell". 

With just over three weeks to go until Sweden’s election, the campaign is intensifying. But reaching voters is trickier than usual this year thanks to new EU limits on political advertising. This might explain an explosion of political posters, sponsored buses and creative political rallies.

Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Richard Orange. 

Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode:

• Swedish bus operator removes anti-immigration ads after drivers call in sick
• Centre Party bets on Tidö bloc collapse to open door for new coalition

• Men with foreign names hit hardest by hiring bias in Sweden

• OPINION: The EU is betraying Brexit Brits in Sweden

• 'Caterpillar from hell' moth found in Sweden – but biologist says no need to panic

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Gustav Magnuson and Luisa Fernandez met in Costa Rica in 2018 when Gustav was there on a cycling trip of Central and South America. The two felt such a strong and immediate connection that Gustav never made it farther south on his cycling tour. Instead, he stayed with Louisa in San Jose.

A few years later the two were married and are now living in Stockholm with their one-year-old child.

In an interview with The Local's Mandy Pipher they explain how Swedish immigration law is affecting their family life and their peace of mind.

READ ALSO:

• 'I feel shame and rage': Immigration clampdown hits Swedes close to home

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This was the week in which the Swedish election campaign started to take some kind of shape. If the focus in 2022 was all crime and immigration, this time it looks like the economy is taking centre stage. What are the big differences between the parties, and what might all this mean for how the election develops?

We also look this week at revelations about spies’ activities in Sweden and we ask why Swedish authorities went public with this right now.

Also, Richard has been digging into teen deportations – and has discovered that the problem is more widespread that the Swedish media previously reported.

And is Hollywood actor Joel Kinnaman right to claim that Swedish attitudes to drugs are hopelessly out of date?

Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Mandy Pipher and Richard Orange. 

Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode:

• Sweden's Centre Party won't support Social Democrats if they keep sick day promise
• Sweden's Moderates outline 70 billion kronor savings to fund election pledges
• Sweden's Social Democrats promise extra child benefits for holidays

• Sweden’s teen deportations were far more widespread than reported

• OPINION: Sweden needs politicians who stand up for sin

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Sweden in Focus is back! James Savage, Richard Orange and Mandy Pipher look chew over the latest from Sweden, including:

• Scandal hits Sweden Democrats and Left Party 
• Is tipping now the norm in Sweden?
• How do you eat a crayfish?
• The Sweden Democrats' Ludvig Aspling tells us why he thinks high-skilled immigrants don't care about citizenship.

Articles discussed in this episode:

'I feel shame and rage': Immigration clampdown hits Swedes close to home (interview with Gustav and Luisa)

'I felt betrayed by my country': Swedish scientist blasts treatment of US husband (Interview with Anna-Karin and Chris)

Sweden's opposition hope to vote down two-year wait for family reunion (interview with Annika Hirvonen)

Swedish Left Party MP apologises for 'accidental' support message to terrorist

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