Sweden in Focus

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previously reported.And is Hollywood actor Joel Kinnaman right to claim that Swedish attitudes to drugs are hopelessly out of date?Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Mandy Pipher and Richard Orange.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:2026 Swedish election Sweden's Centre Party won't support Social Democrats if they keep sick day promiseSweden's Moderates outline 70 billion kronor savings to fund election pledgesSweden's Social Democrats promise extra child benefits for holidaysTeen deportations Sweden’s teen deportations were far more widespread than reportedDrugsOPINION: Sweden needs politicians who stand up for sin

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

What does an American chef notice when he transplants himself to Sweden? John Klopson, known as Lost Chef in Sweden on Instagram and TikTok, talks to James Savage of his love for Swedish bread and dairy, and asks why Swedes use so much salt.

How did Greta Gustafsson, a shop assistant born into an ordinary working family in Stockholm, transform into Greta Garbo, one of the greatest film stars of all time? And what was she really like as a person? Scott Reisfield, her great-nephew and biographer, tells James Savage that her Swedishness permeated her work and influence on Hollywood.Link: https://scottreisfield.com/

AI looks set to cause huge disruption to the world of work and to almost all aspects of our lives. Yet while Sweden is home to some leading AI companies, Swedish politicians are not rising to the major challenges that the technology poses, says author and AI expert Johan Falk to James Savage.Read more: Politics in Sweden: Why are Swedish politicians so silent on AI?Johan Falk's English Substack

The Local's weekly podcast with news from Sweden. This week, James Savage, Emma Löfgren and Mandy Pipher discuss a new poll of The Local's readers on the highs and lows of living in Sweden. We also talk about what the government hopes to achieve by slashing taxes on fuel and public transport, and on an interview we did with migration minister Johan Forssell.Read more on the subjects we talk about in this episode:Swedish migration minister: 'One day you're a Nazi, the next a left-wing activist' POLL: Foreign residents love Sweden, but are afraid they'll be forced outSweden becomes one of Europe's cheapest countries for petrol and diesel

Sweden's Nordic editor Richard Orange was in Visby this week at the Almedalen political festival. One of the many people he spoke to was Niels Paarup-Petersen, who is the migration, education and digitalisation spokesperson for the Centre Party. On a walk through the city's medieval streets they discussed the chances of the government surviving after the election. And what would a new government do about transitional rules for citizenship? Also, are Sweden's political parties too wedded to incremental growth? Is it time to get a lot more ambitious in the age of AI?

This week host James Savage and regular panelist Richard Orange record the podcast from Almedalen, the annual politics fest in Visby on the Baltic island of Gotland. They are joined for a lively politics conversation by Henrik Torehammar, a political commentator for the Svenska Dagbladet newspaper. Almedalen is sometime criticised as an event for Sweden's elites, but how elitist can any event really be in what Torehammar calls a "bicycle monarchy" famed for its flat hierarchies? Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's Moderate Party is edging towards a disastrous election if polls are to be believed. Can he pull a result out of the fire at the eleventh hour? The opposition parties look poised to snatch power. But will some pretty major ideological differences act as a stumbling block for the Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson? And what issues are likely to dominate in the run-up to the September election. Immigration? Climate? Or could the rise of AI make its presence felt on the campaign trail? Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode:PoliticsWhy are Swedish politicians so silent on AI?Sweden Democrat leader takes aim at Social Democrats in key speechSweden Democrats launch retro election campaign to make 'Sweden like Sweden again'More than half of voters think Sweden's government will lose electionStay on top of the Swedish election: How to follow The Local's coverage 

Earlier this year the Fair Transition campaign group tried to convince Swedish decision makers to introduce transitional rules for the citizenship reforms which came into force on June 6th.Two months have now passed since the Swedish parliament voted against transitional rules by the smallest of margins after the far-right Sweden Democrats sent in two MPs who were supposed to be withheld from the vote.So what now for the campaigners fighting on behalf of the 100,000 citizenship applicants waiting in the citizenship queue? The Local’s editor Emma Löfgren caught up with the group's spokesman Patrick Gallen to find out more about Fair Transitions plans as they prepare to mount a legal challenge in Sweden's migration courts.  READ ALSO:Sweden Democrats accused of cheating to block transitional rules for citizenship