Swedish centre-left make deal with opposition to call off snap vote

Sweden’s mainstream parties reached a deal on Saturday that will allow the minority centre-left government to remain in office and sideline the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats, who hold the balance of power in parliament. Sweden’s normally stable politics were thrown into turmoil in December when Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said he would call a snap election in March after his budget was voted down by the centre-right opposition and the Sweden Democrats. The deal between the centre-left Social Democrats and Green coalition and the four-party centre-right Alliance will mean Lofven will have to follow the opposition’s budget next year, although he can make some changes in spring.

Sweden has a tradition of solving difficult questions. I am happy we have reached a deal that means that Sweden can be governed.

Prime Minister Stefan Lofven

The snap election, which had been due to take place on Mar. 22, has been cancelled. The Alliance will abstain from voting against the government’s budgets from spring onwards. Under the deal, which lasts until 2022, the two blocs have also agreed to coordinate policy on pensions, defence and energy. Despite a tradition of minority governments, Sweden has not had a snap election since 1958, but the rise of the Sweden Democrats, reflecting gains made by the far right across Europe in recent years, had led to parliamentary deadlock. The party, the country’s third biggest after September’s general election, had threatened to bring down any government that did not curb rising immigration.

Swedish Europe