The Local Sweden

Alliance agrees to scrap payroll tax

Tue, 02 May 2006 12:33:00 +0200

Sweden's four conservative-liberal opposition parties presented their first joint alternative budget on Tuesday morning, as part of their response to the government's spring budget unveiled last month.

Persson launches May 1st assault on Alliance

Mon, 01 May 2006 17:45:00 +0200

Prime minister Göran Persson has used his annual May 1st speech, held in Tornparken in Sundbyberg, to deliver a broad attack on the opposition alliance.

Opposition regains poll lead

Mon, 01 May 2006 13:30:00 +0200

Sweden's two big parties, the Social Democrats and the Moderates, are the losers in the latest opinion poll carried out by Skop. The Liberal Party and the Left Party have climbed most in the ratings.

Children get to vote in Gothenburg referendum

Fri, 28 Apr 2006 16:35:00 +0200

Children in Gothenburg are to become the first in the world to be given the vote in a referendum.

Government and allies draw level with opposition

Sun, 23 Apr 2006 13:32:00 +0200

The latest monthly survey of voters' intentions shows that Sweden's two political blocs are almost neck and neck, less than five months before the election.

Swedes favour Reinfeldt as PM - poll

Sat, 22 Apr 2006 14:16:00 +0200

Swedes would prefer to see opposition leader Fredrik Reinfeldt head the country's government after a general election in September than current Prime Minister Göran Persson, a poll on Saturday has shown.

Punish failing politicians - Green Party

Thu, 20 Apr 2006 21:27:00 +0200

Cut defence spending in half, extend parental benefits, create 40,000 new jobs in the public sector and introduce a 35-hour working week: just a few of the causes which Sweden's Green Party will be fighting for in the forthcoming election.

Swedish finance minister delivers 'budget of reforms'

Tue, 18 Apr 2006 13:14:00 +0200

An evidently satisfied Pär Nuder made the traditional finance minister's budget walk from the Finance Department to parliament on Tuesday under cloudy Stockholm skies.

Trust in Reinfeldt and Olofsson declines

Mon, 17 Apr 2006 12:18:00 +0200

Voters' confidence in Fredrik Reinfeldt and Maud Olofsson is declining rapidly - but Reinfeldt, the leader of the Moderates, is still Sweden's most trusted party leader.

Polling errors could decide Swedish election

Tue, 11 Apr 2006 20:20:00 +0200

See also: The Local's Guide to the Swedish Election 2006

Persson closing on Reinfeldt in popularity race

Sun, 09 Apr 2006 14:46:00 +0200

With the election barely five months away it may be voting intentions that the parties' poll analysts are most concerned about.

Government takes voter poll lead

Mon, 03 Apr 2006 11:05:00 +0200

The Moderates are losing support while the ruling Social Democrats and their coalition partners are once again leading over the opposition alliance in the opinion polls, according to the latest research by Skop.

Parties doubtful over TV advertising

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 20:56:00 +0200

This year's election campaign will be the first in which political parties will be able to spread their message via tv advertising. New broadcasting regulations, with no requirement for impartiality, make the change possible. But the parties themselves have their doubts.

Alliance maintains election advantage

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 13:32:00 +0200

The opposition Alliance continues to lead in election opinion polls, buoyed by increased support for the Christian Democrats, according to the March survey conducted by Dagens Nyheter and market research company TEMO.

Liberals join government on justice

Fri, 31 Mar 2006 12:04:00 +0200

The Liberal party has come to an agreement with the government on a series of justice-related issues. A close cooperation between Liberal Johan Pehrson and justice minister Thomas Bodström has resulted in six proposals.

Left Party slips in poll ratings

Sun, 05 Mar 2006 13:52:00 +0100

Sweden's Left Party has fallen by 1.5% in the latest opinion poll carried out by Skop. The party is now on 5.4%, and the slip breaks the upward trend of the last three surveys.

Key Persson aide behind email scandal

Sat, 25 Feb 2006 12:31:00 +0100

The Social Democrat worker who spread defamatory emails about Moderate leader Fredrik Reinfeldt was identified late on Friday as Mats Lindström, a key advisor to Prime Minister Göran Persson.

Social Democrats admit to Reinfeldt smear campaign

Fri, 24 Feb 2006 11:17:00 +0100

A member of staff at the Social Democrats' party headquarters was behind an email smear campaign targeting the leader of the Moderate Party, Fredrik Reinfeldt.

Social Democrats trail in poll

Fri, 24 Feb 2006 09:37:00 +0100

Sweden's ruling Social Democratic Party and its parliamentary allies would lose power if an election were held now, a poll published Friday showed, less than seven months before the country's general election.

Alliance: Reinfeldt will be prime minister

Wed, 22 Feb 2006 14:45:00 +0100

The three other conservative alliance leaders have rejected Liberal leader Lars Leijonborg's idea that all four parties could stand as one at the forthcoming election.