https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Sweden in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Dozens of Swedish municipalities have rejected the government’s overtures on encouraging the voluntary repatriation of refugees. After years of political negativity, it’s refreshing to hear politicians speak up for immigrants, writes The Local’s Paul O’Mahony. https://www.thelocal.se/20251104/politics-in-sweden-pro-immigration-voices-make-welcome-return Tue, 04 Nov 2025 16:55:53 +0100 politics-in-sweden-pro-immigration-voices-make-welcome-return The Local's Nordic Editor Richard Orange took advantage of Sweden's generous parental leave by taking six months off work (twice) to look after his baby daughter and baby son. It was an experience that changed his life. https://www.thelocal.se/20240816/opinion-i-still-carry-so-much-with-me-from-swedish-parental-leave Fri, 16 Aug 2024 11:44:06 +0200 opinion-i-still-carry-so-much-with-me-from-swedish-parental-leave Sweden’s union for registered nurses is urging the government to reconsider scrapping the so-called ‘spårbyte’ immigration path, its deputy chair writes in an opinion piece for The Local. https://www.thelocal.se/20250409/opinion-abolishing-track-changes-could-have-serious-consequences-for-swedish-healthcare Wed, 09 Apr 2025 10:13:49 +0200 opinion-abolishing-track-changes-could-have-serious-consequences-for-swedish-healthcare Swedish journalists excel at portraying the victims of immigration crackdowns in other countries – but domestic coverage leaves a lot to be desired, The Local’s Paul O’Mahony argues. https://www.thelocal.se/20250326/opinion-swedish-media-must-get-better-at-covering-immigrant-perspectives Wed, 26 Mar 2025 07:22:43 +0100 opinion-swedish-media-must-get-better-at-covering-immigrant-perspectives Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson sought to address the 'vulnerability' felt by many foreigners in Sweden after the Örebro attack, but he and opposition politicians should also reflect on how their own rhetoric sparked that feeling, writes The Local Sweden's editor Emma Löfgren. https://www.thelocal.se/20250210/opinion-its-down-to-swedens-lawmakers-to-help-immigrants-feel-less-vulnerable Mon, 10 Feb 2025 15:54:05 +0100 opinion-its-down-to-swedens-lawmakers-to-help-immigrants-feel-less-vulnerable It was hard not to give a cheer when the government's own inquiry pooh-poohed its plan to pay immigrants to return to their home countries. But a bump in the road served only to show how smoothly the 'paradigm shift' on immigration is going, writes The Local's Nordic editor, Richard Orange. https://www.thelocal.se/20240820/politics-in-sweden-despite-a-bump-swedens-shift-on-immigration-is-going-smoothly Tue, 20 Aug 2024 13:24:53 +0200 politics-in-sweden-despite-a-bump-swedens-shift-on-immigration-is-going-smoothly Twelve years into bringing up his bilingual children in Sweden, Richard Orange wonders if they will ever feel or come across as wholly British. https://www.thelocal.se/20240314/will-they-pass-as-british-the-challenges-of-raising-bilingual-kids-in-sweden Thu, 14 Mar 2024 13:06:37 +0100 will-they-pass-as-british-the-challenges-of-raising-bilingual-kids-in-sweden The economist tasked with proposing a system for financing new nuclear power stations in Sweden was unexpectedly frank and up front about the costs and risks involved. The Local's Richard Orange looks at how this is changing the debate. https://www.thelocal.se/20240813/politics-in-sweden-the-end-of-the-era-of-wishful-thinking-on-new-nuclear Tue, 13 Aug 2024 18:33:34 +0200 politics-in-sweden-the-end-of-the-era-of-wishful-thinking-on-new-nuclear Historically Stockholm was a natural choice for Sweden's capital. But times have changed. Here are the some of the reasons why Sweden should switch its political and business centre to Gothenburg, the gateway to Scandinavia. https://www.thelocal.se/20240801/five-reasons-sweden-should-move-its-capital-to-gothenburg Thu, 01 Aug 2024 16:56:35 +0200 five-reasons-sweden-should-move-its-capital-to-gothenburg With as many as three of Sweden's parties at risk of being kicked out of the European parliament, the stakes in this year's European elections are higher perhaps than ever before. https://www.thelocal.se/20240506/politics-in-sweden-this-years-eu-election-will-be-a-white-knuckle-ride-for-smaller-parties Mon, 06 May 2024 18:12:12 +0200 politics-in-sweden-this-years-eu-election-will-be-a-white-knuckle-ride-for-smaller-parties As a registered candidate for Sweden's new Folklistan party I want an end to all border controls, a ban on fossil fuel use, and the abolition of legal gender. Well, I don't want any of those things, but when you have a party without policies, anything goes. https://www.thelocal.se/20240411/opinion-why-i-registered-as-a-candidate-for-swedens-new-folklistan-party Thu, 11 Apr 2024 19:33:50 +0200 opinion-why-i-registered-as-a-candidate-for-swedens-new-folklistan-party If you read international news coverage of Sweden, you would be forgiven for having the impression that Sweden is experiencing levels of murder never seen before. But if you look at the numbers, they tell a different story, argues journalism professor Christian Christensen. https://www.thelocal.se/20240403/why-dont-journalists-mention-that-swedens-murder-rate-is-lower-now-than-in-the-1970s Wed, 03 Apr 2024 11:13:34 +0200 why-dont-journalists-mention-that-swedens-murder-rate-is-lower-now-than-in-the-1970s Far from the polarising political debate, Sweden's Eurovision trials showed viewers the real, human side of life in many languages, writes linguist Sarah Campbell. https://www.thelocal.se/20240311/opinion-melodifestivalen-shows-multilingualism-isnt-a-threat-to-swedish Mon, 11 Mar 2024 13:59:04 +0100 opinion-melodifestivalen-shows-multilingualism-isnt-a-threat-to-swedish German journalist Jasmin Adolph had landed an internship in Stockholm and found the perfect apartment. The only problem was: the apartment didn't exist. Here she shares her story with The Local about how she fell victim to an all-too-common scam. https://www.thelocal.se/20231005/how-i-got-scammed-in-stockholm-by-paying-for-an-apartment-that-didnt-exist Thu, 05 Oct 2023 17:13:40 +0200 how-i-got-scammed-in-stockholm-by-paying-for-an-apartment-that-didnt-exist Ulf Kristersson has cast doubt on the willingness of naturalised Swedes to defend the country. But new Swedish citizens are not less patriotic, and making Swedish citizenship rules less generous won’t make Sweden safer, argues James Savage. https://www.thelocal.se/20240115/opinion-yes-kristersson-new-swedes-will-stand-up-for-sweden Mon, 15 Jan 2024 17:25:32 +0100 opinion-yes-kristersson-new-swedes-will-stand-up-for-sweden What do I do and who am I when nature goes to rest? The Local's contributor Anne Grietje Franssen writes about life in the Gothenburg archipelago this time of the year, when the Swedish winter makes it feel like there's no end in sight. https://www.thelocal.se/20211122/how-will-i-endure-another-nordic-winter-heres-what-ive-learned-after-five-years Mon, 22 Nov 2021 16:49:17 +0100 how-will-i-endure-another-nordic-winter-heres-what-ive-learned-after-five-years Swedish banks should find new ways of combatting money laundering to increase financial inclusion, argues Malin Alpen, executive director of payments at Sweden's Financial Supervisory Authority. https://www.thelocal.se/20231219/opinion-three-things-swedish-banks-could-do-to-stop-denying-foreigners-accounts Tue, 19 Dec 2023 09:00:31 +0100 opinion-three-things-swedish-banks-could-do-to-stop-denying-foreigners-accounts There's no nice way to put this: when Swedes talk in meetings or give presentations, they can seem quite boring. But could this be a side effect of the flat hierarchies that make Sweden such a productive country? https://www.thelocal.se/20231123/opinion-why-swedens-flat-hierarchy-can-make-people-seem-boring Thu, 23 Nov 2023 09:24:21 +0100 opinion-why-swedens-flat-hierarchy-can-make-people-seem-boring Swedish broadcaster SVT recently aired the first episode of its high-profile new series on Swedish history and racists aren't happy about it, The Local's Paul O'Mahony discovers. https://www.thelocal.se/20231110/why-are-racists-in-sweden-angry-at-history Fri, 10 Nov 2023 11:54:25 +0100 why-are-racists-in-sweden-angry-at-history The Local's reader Denise de Valencia is one of many non-EU foreigners whose future in Sweden is at risk when the country next month more than doubles the minimum required salary for work permit holders. https://www.thelocal.se/20231009/readers-story-im-not-a-criminal-so-why-does-sweden-want-to-kick-me-out Mon, 09 Oct 2023 11:03:59 +0200 readers-story-im-not-a-criminal-so-why-does-sweden-want-to-kick-me-out