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This week: Halloween in Sweden, Swedish media coverage of the Tidö government’s migration crackdown, our favourite Swedish children’s books, efforts to form Sweden’s next government, and a language quiz. The last four years have seen sweeping change for immigrants in Sweden. For many of The Local's readers, the lack of transitional rules in the new citizenship law caused untold stress. The same goes for multiple changes to the salary threshold required for a work permit. Teen deportations hit the headlines in Sweden last year. But why did it take so long? And how come Swedish media missed so much of what was impacting the lives of people who chose to make Sweden their home? Host Richard Orange is joined this week by panelists Mandy Pipher and Emma Löfgren. Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode: HalloweenOPINION: Why I wish Sweden would just stop with HalloweenImmigrationHow did Swedish media cover the 'migration paradigm shift'?PoliticsRegion Stockholm reaches centrist governing agreement, freezing out the leftWhat does Centre Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist really want?What would it take for Sweden's Centre Party to back Ulf Kristersson as PM? Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week’s Sweden in Focus Extra features an interview with Brenda and Marcus Ramström, a couple in western Sweden who speak to The Local days before she is forced to return to her native Brazil following a Migration Court ruling. Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. Brenda Ramström, a former Northvolt worker, is 21 weeks pregnant as she boards a flight on Tuesday for the first leg of a gruelling 23 hour journey to Brazil. She has no clear idea of when she will be allowed to return to Sweden. She and her husband Marcus tell The Local's Emma Löfgren that they were shocked and devastated when they received confirmation in late September that Brenda had four weeks to leave Sweden of her own volition or risk an entry ban. Tune in to this week's Sweden in Focus Extra for the full story. Read also: ‘I want to be with my husband’: Pregnant woman forced to leave Sweden Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week: First month post-election ends with no government, breakthrough on ending teen deportations, a plan to help citizenship applicants hit retroactively by the new law, and a reminder of some of the best things about living in Sweden. More than a month has passed since Sweden’s election, and we still don’t have a government. As we were recording this week's episode, the Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson lost a vote in parliament on installing her as prime minister. So what happens now? Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Mandy Pipher and Emma Löfgren. Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode: PoliticsDoes losing parliament vote mean Andersson can't be Sweden's next PM?Moderates hit five-year high in Swedish post-election poll as Liberals slipImmigrationHow Sweden's 'new majority' can already move on deportations and citizenshipAll Swedish parties back emergency freeze on teen deportationsSwedish MP seeks to apply old rules to all pre-June 6th citizenship applicantsLiving in SwedenRemembering what I love about this countryThumbnail photo: Fredrik Sandberg/TT Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week’s Sweden in Focus Extra features an interview with AI consultant Anna Bärlund, who won an appeal last week against her Swedish citizenship rejection. Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. On June 6th, Sweden rolled out major new citizenship reforms that included increasing the length of time that the partners of Swedish citizens have to live in Sweden before they become eligible for citizenship from three years to seven years. What's more, the government didn't include transitional rules for those already in the queue despite the protestations of legal experts. Consequently, many people who met the requirements when they applied are now being rejected. Until now Sweden's courts have sided with the Migration Agency, so when The Local's Emma Löfgren learned that Anna Bärlund had won her appeal, she was curious to find out more. READ ALSO: AI consultant wins appeal under Sweden’s new citizenship rules Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week: Tortuous efforts to form a government, plans to stop teen deportations, how new rules on family reunification could make life harder for university researchers, and what do The Local’s readers miss most when living in Sweden? The four parties that claimed victory in the election are still a long way from forming a government, but there has been movement this week as they agreed to meet in person. The parties will meet on Friday at a luxury hotel on the island of Lidingö, near Stockholm. But the plan is not to negotiate; instead they will be given a series of briefings on the problems facing Sweden. The initiative came from the Centre Party, which has taken a lot of the blame for the lack of progress due to its insistence that the Left Party be denied ministerial posts in any coalition. But will it break the deadlock? Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Mandy Pipher and Richard Orange. Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode: PoliticsFour-party meeting set to test Sweden's government potentialMagdalena Andersson once again given job of building new Swedish governmentImmigrationWhat's in Sweden's new law on family reunification?Q&A: How will Sweden's new family immigration law affect researchers?Q&A: Who is affected by Sweden's new law on family immigration?Teen deportations Sweden's centre-left parties agree on halting teen deportationsSweden's migration minister pledges long-term solution to teen deportationsLiving in Sweden'Flavourful food and friendliness': What foreigners in Sweden miss from 'home' Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. Gift Blessing is only 24 years old, but has already achieved an enormous amount. He is a rapper, an author, a newspaper columnist, and a poet. He came to Sweden as a quota refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo as a young child. He broke through to public consciousness in 2021 with a bravura rap performance in Sweden's Got Talent (Talang). Last month he was made Sweden's official reading ambassador with a mission to get young people reading. And this week he is releasing an anthology of writing in English from writers from all around the world, but who are based in Stockholm. This week's Sweden in Focus Extra features Gift Blessing in conversation with The Local's James Savage. READ ALSO: In Sweden, there are only good, bad, ugly and evil immigrants – a recent long read for The Local by Faisal Khan, one of the contributors to the new anthology, 'Upon All the Living'.Thumbnail photo by Maja Brand. Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Magdalena Andersson was acclaimed as the winner of Sweden’s election. Four parties – adding up to a majority – said they wanted her to be prime minister, and she was charged by the speaker with forming a government. Yet on Monday she threw in the towel. The immediate pretext was the decision by the Left Party to support the re-election of speaker Andreas Norlén, a Moderate, over the Social Democrats’ own candidate. But it followed two weeks in which Andersson had failed to get the Centre Party, Left Party and Greens to so much as take a cup of coffee with each other. Now it’s up to the speaker to find someone else willing to have a go. Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Richard Orange. Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode: PoliticsSocial Democrat Magdalena Andersson abandons attempt to form a governmentStrategy or spite? Why is Magda giving up on forming Sweden's next government?EXPLAINED: What needs to happen for Sweden to get a new prime minister?From the obvious to the unthinkable: Nine options for Sweden's governmentBrexit'But what are the rules?': My interview with the Swedish Migration Agency's legal chiefThumbnail photo: Left Party leader Nooshi Dadgostar and Centre Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist take part in a party leader discussion hosted by RFSL during Stockholm Pride. Photo: Stefan Jerrevång/TT Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. Sweden's government tightened rules for citizenship earlier this year without transitional rules for people who had already applied. The new rules require eight years of residency instead of five for most applicants, and would-be citizens must now pass language and civics tests. The Migration Court in Malmö looked very closely recently at a case in which an applicant appealed for their right to be awarded citizenship according to the old rules. But the court ruled against the citizenship applicant in a blow to people who had waited in the queue and were hoping to become Swedish citizens under the rules that were in place at the time of application. Some hope was restored however when the judge told The Local's Richard Orange that an appeal to a higher court could succeed. In this week's episode you can hear an excerpt from the interview with Judge Löndahl we well as a studio discussion about the case and what happens next. Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Richard Orange. READ ALSO: Chief judge expects Swedish citizenship case to head to highest migration courtINTERVIEW: 'The last word has not yet been said on Swedish citizenship' Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week's podcast: Electoral fraud allegations, complex coalition building, Candy Crush maker faces strike action, and how do Swedes say 'Digestive biscuit'? Negotiations between the centre-left parties are ongoing after they won a wafer thin majority in last week’s election. But now a voter fraud scandal involving the Left Party threatens to derail the whole process. Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the election of a Left Party Member of Parliament in the Dalarna region. What do know about the allegations so far? And could the scandal lead to a revote? Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Richard Orange. Not yet a member of The Local? Join now with this special offer for podcast listeners. Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode: Electoral fraud scandalSwedish Left Party leader finally speaks on election fraud allegationsSwedish Election Authority criticises ballot paper systemNewly elected MP steps aside amid Swedish electoral fraud probePoliticsEXPLAINED: What needs to happen for Sweden to get a new prime minister?Behind closed doors, Sweden's Left and Centre parties are still miles apartWorking in SwedenUPDATE: Strike threat lifted as Candy Crush maker signs collective agreementMore unions join pending strike at Swedish Candy Crush makerQ&A: Why Swedish unions are launching a strike at the games maker KingZara Larsson clip credit: Heart Radio Thumbnail photo: Left Party leader Nooshi Dadgostar. Magnus Hjalmarson Neideman/SVD/TT Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week’s Sweden in Focus Extra, The Local's Mandy Pipher tells us about the bureaucratic nightmare surrounding her recent trip to Canada.  Living in Sweden on a residence permit can be a risky business, not least given that almost everyone who does so has strong connections to another country and needs to travel frequently. But if your residency card is in the process of being renewed while you're travelling, you risk being shut out of Sweden on your return. In this episode, host James Savage talks to podcast regular Mandy Pipher about her struggles ahead of a recent trip home to Canada. READ ALSO: OPINION: Yes, Swedish immigrants vote in their own interests – just like other voters Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week: Final election results, far right blames immigrants for loss, and what the election outcome means for foreigners in Sweden.   200,000 foreigners who have become Swedish citizens are to blame for Sweden’s tiny swing to the left – and in particular for the losses suffered by the Sweden Democrats. That’s the claim being made by the party as it grapples with a surprise electoral reverse in Sunday’s election. But is it accurate to say that immigrants won this election for the Left? 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 Kristersson resigns as PM after Sweden's centre-left opposition wins electionJimmie Åkesson reportedly plans break if Sweden Democrats enter oppositionOPINION: The misunderstood Centre Party could learn from Ebba Busch'It's tighter than I thought': How do foreigners in Sweden feel about the election?What does Sweden's unexpectedly close election result mean for foreigners?Swedish government scenarios: What happens now?Thumbnail on Spotify: Social Democrat party leader Magdalena Andersson and party secretary Tobias Baudin celebrate with supporter on election night. Photo: Jonas Ekströmer/TT Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

All three parties in the governing coalition increased their vote share while the Sweden Democrats lost ground. On the left, meanwhile, the Social Democrats had a terrible election, while all the other parties had something to celebrate. So why did the government parties do better than expected? What went wrong for the two biggest parties on the right and left? And what is Sweden's next government likely to look like?  Nicholas Aylott, associate politics professor at Södertörn University, gives his views in a conversation with The Local's Richard Orange.   READ ALSO: Centre Party 'ready to start talks' with Social Democrats on new Swedish government Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this week’s Sweden in Focus Extra our panelists try to make sense of a dizzying election night. Sweden’s election threw up some major surprises on Sunday night. The Liberals cleared the parliamentary threshold by a respectable margin having languished way beneath the four percent limit ever since the last election. The Social Democrats are seemingly on course for their worst election ever – but leader Magdalena Andersson could still be headed for a second stint as Sweden’s prime minister. The incumbent, Ulf Kristersson, meanwhile can breathe a sigh of relief as his Moderate Party regained its position as Sweden’s second biggest party. Their rise came at the expense of the Sweden Democrats, whose vote share dropped for the first time ever in a national election. But what does it all mean for the business of forming a new government? Host James Savage is joined this week by podcast regulars Emma Löfgren and Richard Orange. READ ALSO: What does Sweden's unexpectedly close election result mean for foreigners? Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week: Joy for Liberals as support swells, Sweden Democrats and Left Party hit by scandals, immigration in focus in TV debate, billionaires duel over which side to back, and poor school results throw a spanner in the works.  Two of Sweden’s wealthiest people, Jacob Wallenberg and Martin Lorentzon, warned in the Financial Times this week about the risks of a left-wing government. Another, Robert Weil, shot back, saying he was more concerned about “an ethno-nationalist and authoritarian policy where the issue of migration is allowed to dominate at the expense of other issues and interests." Meanwhile, the Liberals are poised to clear the 4 percent threshold they need to get into parliament, according to a new Novus poll showing that the party had leapt from 1.9 percent to 5.8 percent. The poll follows others that showed significant gains for the Liberals after months in which the party has languished well under the threshold, leaving many commentators to all but write off their chances – and those of Ulf Kristersson’s government. On Sunday we'll find out if the Prime Minister's coalition has done enough to claw their way back or if Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson gets a second bite at the top job.  Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Richard Orange.  Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode: 2026 Swedish election Swedish election blog: Who will govern Sweden after September 13th?Swedish Liberal Party soars over parliamentary threshold in new pollPolitics in Sweden: Immigration is on the agenda, but the debate is surrealTop Swedish investor slams Wallenberg's 'shameful' election scaremongeringRussian partner of top Sweden Democrat accused of pro-Putin postsOPINION: Has Jimmie Åkesson been playing the Swedish media like a fiddle? Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today's episode of Sweden in Focus Extra features an interview with Ludvig Aspling, migration spokesperson for the Sweden Democrats.  This week we are turning a spotlight on the two parties most likely to shape Sweden’s immigration policy after the September 13th election. Yesterday we heard from Ida Karkiainen, the Social Democrats’ immigration spokesperson. Today we’ll hear a conversation The Local's Richard Orange had with her counterpart from the Sweden Democrats, Ludvig Aspling. This interview took place in early August, a week before parliament voted on a so-called ‘safety valve’ to end teen deportations, which is one of the topics discussed in the episode.  The Sweden Democrats were long a pariah in Swedish politics due to their Nazi roots. But as the largest party on the right in the 2022 election they emerged as one of the main architects of the Tidö agreement underpinning the government’s so-called paradigm shift on immigration over the past four years. The shift has seen Sweden get much tougher on asylum immigration, work and residence permits and citizenship, with many of the policies directly impacting a lot of readers of The Local. With that in mind, make sure to tune in to this week’s main episode of Sweden in Focus, which we expect to come out on Friday, for discussion and analysis of these interviews with the main immigration spokespeople for two of Sweden’s biggest rival parties. So what can foreigners in Sweden expect if the right holds on to power after the election on Sunday and the Sweden Democrats receive ministerial posts for the first time, and how happy is Ludvig Aspling with how Sweden’s immigration landscape has changed over the last four years? Tune in for the full interview.  READ ALSO: 'If you came to work in Sweden because of relaxed citizenship rules, I don’t want you' Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.