Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sweden Today
A generally prosperous and peaceful country, Sweden seems able to weather
its storms rather easily. Of course there are always internal tensions and oc-
casional threats to smooth sailing, whether they're economic challenges or
political battles. But, overall, a visitor to Sweden gets the sense that the sys-
tem works quite well. The Swedish word
lagom
means not too much and not
too little but just right. Sweden strives to embody this concept. It's not per-
fect, but it's reassuringly consistent.
Change in the Weather
Despite its middle-way steadiness over the long term, recently Sweden has seen changes in
the economy and the political mood that have led some people to question their assump-
tions. For decades the country was viewed by left-leaning outsiders as an almost utopian
model of a socialist state, a successful experiment that gave hope to progressives every-
where. This is still more or less true. Inevitably, though, as the country has grown, it has had
to adjust to modern realities - both economic and sociopolitical - and some cracks have be-
gun to appear in the facade.
The Social Democrats, who held a majority of the government (and therefore shaped na-
tional policy, most notably the famous 'cradle to grave' welfare state) for most of the past 85
years, have begun to see their influence wane. The first big blow came in 2006, when the
long-entrenched party lost its leadership position in the Swedish parliament. The centre-
right Alliance Party (made up of four centre-right parties - the Moderates, the Liberals, the
Christian Democrats and the Centre Party) won the election, with Prime Minister Fredrik
Reinfeldt campaigning on a 'work first' platform. Reinfeldt's government lowered tax rates
and trimmed certain benefits, hoping to jump-start the economy and reduce unemployment.
The 2010 election saw the Social Democrats' worst result since 1921: they won just over
30% of the seats in parliament. The Alliance Party won again (173 of the 349 seats), mean-
ing Reinfeldt continued as prime minister. Unemployment remained high, though, and by
2012 the Social Democrats had regained some favour. In the September 2014 general elec-
tion, Reinfeldt failed to secure a third term as prime minister; instead, Social Democrat
leader Stefan Löfven will lead in a coalition government with the Green party. In the elec-
