Sweden in Focus

In the latest episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by regular panelists Becky Waterton, Richard Orange and James Savage. The episode also features interviews with Jörgen Hedman, an author and researcher who has written extensively about the history of a Swedish village in Ukraine, and Kimberly Nicholas, a climate scientist at Lund University. 

This week's topics:

• Houdini's homecoming: the snake returns

Work permits

• Swedish businesses attack plan to hike work permit threshold 

Energy & Climate

• INTERVIEW: ‘If the world follows Sweden’s new path, we’re headed for climate disaster’
• Top Moderates accuse government of 'breaking promise' on energy prices
• What do we know about Sweden's electricity price subsidy? 
• Swedish government and Sweden Democrats propose fuel tax cuts

Ukraine

• EXPLAINED: What problems are Ukrainian refugees facing in Sweden? 
• INTERVIEW: 'We know there are Russian tanks in Ukraine's Swedish village' 

Update:

• Reader question: Will an extra year's shelter change Ukrainians' rights?

All Saints Day 

• Where can I experience All Saints' Day in Sweden
• How is All Saints' Day marked in Sweden?

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In the latest episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by regular panelists Becky Waterton, Richard Orange and James Savage, as well as US tech worker Kat Zhou, who found herself in the eye of a storm after posting about her experiences of racism in Sweden on Twitter. We also hear from Kash Haresamudram, a doctoral researcher in Lund who was one of more than 500 respondents to our survey on xenophobia in Sweden. 

You can read more about these stories on the links below.

• SURVEY: Sweden is decades behind on racism and diversity
• US tech worker's account of racist abuse in Sweden goes viral
• 'The response in Sweden is just incredibly racist and it proves my point'

We also take a closer look at some of the stories making the news in Sweden this week: 

• Deadly snake on the loose ... sort of
• Lost 17th century warship found in Sweden 
• Sweden Democrats lose power in their flagship municipality
• Jimmie Åkesson leader not invited to Nobel celebrations
• 27 seconds of spectacular silence
• Six tips for selling property in Sweden's current housing market 

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In the latest episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by regular panelists Becky Waterton, Richard Orange and James Savage. We also have expert commentary from labour policy expert Tove Hovemyr and human rights expert John Stauffer, legal director at Human Rights Watch. 

In this week's episode we dig into the makeup of the new government which was officially unveiled on Tuesday. We discuss who the new ministers are and the main talking points in the first week of Ulf Kristersson’s reign as prime minister.

• KEY POINTS: Everything you need to know about Sweden's new government

We also take a closer look at the government’s plans for work permits with the help of policy expert Tove Hovemyr.

• 'Sweden's new migration policy will have a huge impact on competitiveness'
• EXPLAINED: Who will be affected by Sweden's new immigration policy?
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And and we speak to human rights law expert John Stauffer to examine whether the new coalition’s contract constitutes a threat to fundamental rights.

• INTERVIEW: 'Civil rights groups in Sweden can fight this government's repressive proposals' 

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In the latest episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by regular panelists Becky Waterton, Richard Orange and James Savage. 

After weeks of deliberation the Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson told the parliamentary speaker on Friday he was finally ready to form a new government. Assuming he survives a vote in the Riksdag on Monday, Kristersson is expected to become prime minster next week and will start work assembling a government. We discuss what we know so far about the make-up of the next government and how it plans to govern Sweden.  

READ ALSO:

• How does Sweden's new government want to change migration policy?
• Key points - How will Sweden's new coalition deal affect foreigners?

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In the latest episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by The Local's Becky Waterton, Richard Orange and James Savage, as well as three people affected by the migration agency's work permit renewal delays. 

Tune in for to hear all about: how you can lose your driving licence in Sweden; a worthy Swedish Nobel prizewinner; the right-wing bloc's intention to ditch plans for a high-speed rail network; a round-up of a security situation described by the foreign minister as the worst since the 1980s; and, finally, for our main topic this week we discuss a petition signed by thousands of foreigner workers hit by major migration agency delays that effectively prevent them from leaving Sweden.

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In the latest episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by Handelsbanken chief economist Johan Löf, as well as The Local's Becky Waterton, Richard Orange and James Savage. 

On our radar this week we have: Cinnamon Bun Day, a sweet staple of the Swedish dietary calendar; a roundup of the week's post-election wrangling; discussion of the Baltic Sea blasts that caused serious damage to the Nord Stream gas pipelines running from Russia to Germany; major delays in the processing of Swedish work permits; and, finally, how to plan your finances when the krona is weak and what the cost of living crisis mean for foreigners living in Sweden.

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In this week's episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by Le Monde's Scandinavia correspondent Anne-Francoise Hivert, as well as The Local's Becky Waterton, Richard Orange and James Savage. 

Tune in as we chat about what the rest of world makes of Sweden’s recent election result, and after weeks of non-stop election coverage we lighten the tone a bit to talk about mushroom picking. But the news never rests and we also discuss how the government talks are going (the right-wing bloc has reportedly already agreed on stricter migration policy), the impact of the Swedish central bank’s bombshell interest rate hike, and finally we’ll talk about a controversial feature of Sweden’s education system that allows schools to make a profit.

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In the latest episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by The Local's Becky Waterton, Richard Orange and James Savage to analyse the election result, discuss likely government constellations, and examine how the Sweden Democrats want to limit the rights of immigrants. 

With so much on the agenda it's hard to narrow down a recommended reading list but our 2022 Swedish Election section will give you what you need to know. 

And for our main topic, don't miss:

• What rights do the Sweden Democrats want to take away from foreigners?

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In this special election episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by The Local's Becky Waterton, Richard Orange, and James Savage, who puts in a post-meeting late appearance.

On a day when it appears that the right bloc could be tasked with forming a government (although this is not yet certain), we look at how each of the parties has performed, how significant it is that the far-right Sweden Democrats have become bigger than the conservative Moderates, and how a Moderate-led government would rule Sweden. 

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Please leave a rating or review wherever you listen to the podcast as it helps ensure that more people discover it. 

And don’t forget to hit the follow button (or + sign) on Apple or tap the notification bell on Spotify to ensure you get a reminder whenever we publish a new episode.

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In the latest episode of our Sweden in Focus podcast, host Paul O’Mahony is joined by The Local's James Savage, Becky Waterton and Richard Orange, as well as Julia Agha, the CEO of the Arabic-language Swedish news service Alkompis. 

Don't miss Richard and Julia's joint article on why nobody is really to talking to immigrants in this election.

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Here are links to some of the other stories we discuss (and the previous episode mentioned in the podcast where we talk about how to make your home more energy efficient): 

• INTERVIEW: ‘[Invandrare för svenskar is] a way to jokingly show that Sweden is very segregated’
• Latest opinion polls
• IN PICS: Why do Swedish politicians love to pose with sausages?
• Sweden to issue guarantee's worth 'billions' to energy groups
• FACT CHECK: Did Sweden's government really shut down two nuclear plants
• EXPLAINED: How to save money on your energy bill in Sweden
• How do Sweden's parties plan to deal with high energy prices?
• The ultimate guide to the 2022 Swedish election

Please leave a rating or review.

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Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock.

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