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Thursday, March 20, 2025

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https://nordictimes.com/the-nordics/sweden/christian-democrat-mep-new-citizens-must-be-loyal-to-israel/

Sweden

Christian Democrat MEP: New citizens must be loyal to Israel

Published 30 October 2024
– By Editorial Staff
“Whether or not you recognize Israel is a good indicator of how you feel about other values that are essential to our Western democracies”, says the KD leader.
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Christian Democrat MEP Alice Teodorescu Måwe demands that anyone becoming a Swedish citizen must first recognize “the right of the State of Israel to exist” and “intend to embrace the Judeo-Christian values on which Swedish democracy rests”.

Israel’s bloody invasion and bombardment of Gaza has killed at least 43,000 Palestinians, injured many more and left a large majority of the population displaced, with reports that Israel is using starvation as a weapon and intends to permanently displace the territory’s population.

Israel’s abuses and the situation in Gaza have led to widespread protests in the West and calls for boycotts of Israel, and Sweden has been no exception. In many cases, the protests have been dominated by participants with Middle Eastern backgrounds, which has also caused a lot of headaches for pro-immigration, pro-Israeli rulers.

The fact that the population in large parts of the world is very critical of Israel has led to the introduction in parts of Germany of a requirement that anyone wishing to become a citizen must first sign a kind of declaration of loyalty to Israel – and now the KD leader Alice Teodorescu Måwe wants to see similar measures in Sweden.

“Crucial values”

“In order to even obtain Swedish citizenship, it should be required, as in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, that those who wish to become Swedish citizens also recognize the right of the state of Israel to exist and, in addition, intend to embrace the Judeo-Christian values on which Swedish democracy rests”, she declares in a blog post.

“These range from the achievements of the Enlightenment, which laid the foundations for Western liberal democracy, in which the view of equality, secularism, individualism and tolerance are crucial”, she continues.

Anyone caught being disloyal to Israel or otherwise violating “Judeo-Christian values” should also be able to be stripped of their citizenship afterwards, she argues.

“Good indicator”

Despite the fact that the Palestinians are the ones who, according to many analysts, are exposed to an Israeli genocide, the KD politician focuses on the fact that Swedish Jews today are particularly vulnerable, and argues that “anti-Semites” move freely, chant anti-Jewish slogans, and spread insecurity.

On social media, Teodorescu Måwe’s proposal has been heavily criticized, with many people questioning why those who want to become Swedish citizens have to assure that they are loyal – not to Sweden – but to Israel.

Others argue that it is highly unclear how this declaration of loyalty will be applied and defined in practice, and whether it will be enough to consider that Israel has the right to be an independent state – or whether one must also recognize the West Bank or other occupied territories as legitimate parts of Israel.

Teodorescu Måwe herself believes that “whether you recognize Israel is a good indicator of how you stand on other values that are essential to our Western democracies”, and that this is why Israel should have a special status in Swedish law.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

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https://nordictimes.com/the-nordics/sweden/swedish-government-private-care-companies-sell-adhd-diagnoses/

Sweden

Swedish Government: Private care companies sell ADHD diagnoses

Published yesterday 7:23
– By Editorial Staff
Jakob Forssmed notes that the rapid increase in ADHD diagnoses shows no signs of slowing down.
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More Swedish children than ever before are being diagnosed with ADHD, and the government believes that private care companies are largely to blame for the extreme increase.

– There is a structure here that in practice means that diagnoses are sold for payment, explains Social Affairs Minister Jakob Forssmed (KD).

The government notes that long waiting times in health care have long been a major problem in Sweden – and especially in specialized psychiatric care.

This is said to have led to more and more people choosing to turn to privately funded providers instead – not least for the assessment, investigation and treatment of neuropsychiatric disabilities.

– Today, there are a large number of private providers offering ADHD assessments and medication alongside publicly funded care. We must ensure that people’s patient safety is not compromised by this and, in addition, also analyze how it affects other patients and the healthcare system as a whole, says Minister for Social Affairs Jakob Forssmed.

The Minister is highly critical of the way many private operators work and says that it often seems to be a case of healthcare companies charging patients for diagnoses.

– There are so many indications that these are set in such a way that one can suspect this and it is clear that then it has consequences for health care.

Want to get rid of “opportunists”

– You may not be able to trust these diagnoses when they are made in this way. Individuals do not receive support and help regarding a possible co-morbidity. It is not a person-centered care but a diagnosis-centered care, and it needs to be reviewed of course, he continues.

Forssmed also points out that private healthcare providers often market themselves by promising quick results, that the investigation can be carried out in whole or in part remotely on the internet, or that the patient will even get their money back if there is no diagnosis.

– We need to ensure that healthcare resources are used properly and that it is provided by serious actors and not by opportunists who mislead people into seeking answers in individual diagnoses.

The increase continues

It should be emphasized that the Moderate-led government is basically positive to private care companies – and does not want to ban them from conducting ADHD investigations.

However, it does want the Health and Social Care Inspectorate to carry out a special inspection of private care providers and the Agency for Health and Social Care Analysis to map and analyze the risks of certain privately funded care.

According to a forecast by the National Board of Health and Welfare, approximately 15% of boys in Sweden and almost 11% of girls will be diagnosed with ADHD in the future. Between 2019 and 2022 alone, the number of diagnoses among children and young people increased by as much as 50% – but no concrete reason for the increase has been established.

– We see no tendency for the increase to slow down, says the Minister for Social Affairs.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

https://nordictimes.com/the-nordics/sweden/rising-medicine-costs-for-swedes-government-blames-aging-population/

Sweden

Rising medicine costs for Swedes – government blames “aging population”

Welfare collapse

Published 17 March 2025
– By Editorial Staff
The Minister for Health, Acko Ankarberg Johansson (KD), claims that the increase is necessary to meet the funding.
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The Moderate-led government has announced that it will invest heavily in military rearmament in the coming years – and borrow billions to finance the project.

At the same time, Swedish welfare is being eroded, and this time the focus is on sick Swedes, as patients’ co-payments for prescription drugs are being sharply increased.

Although the fee has already been raised significantly in recent years, the center-right coalition now want to see another increase – this time of 30%.

This means that from this summer, anyone who regularly takes prescription medicines will have to pay SEK 3,800 (€345) for them annually – instead of the current SEK 2,900 (€260), before the high-cost protection begins to apply and the medicines become free of charge.

– It’s a big increase and a difficult situation, said Minister for Health Acko Ankarberg Johansson (KD), during a press conference.

– It is necessary to increase the costs in the state budget for medicines to ensure that all patients have access to the treatments they need. But it also requires that patients’ co-payments need to be increased to ensure long-term financing, she said.

Referring to “demographic developments”

The government points out that medical advances mean that Swedes are living longer than before – but that this is by no means all positive, as it also means increased costs.

“The demographic development with an ageing population, the increase in chronic diseases and the increased possibilities for treatment have, however, led to a sharp increase in government expenditure on medicines included in the high-cost protection, and forecasts show that costs will continue to rise rapidly”, it says.

The decision is expected to hit sick and poor pensioners hardest and yesterday protests were also organized in Stockholm where hundreds of people marched under the slogan “Vi vill ha råd med vård” (We want to afford healthcare).

– It’s a pitiful increase from the government’s point of view, so drop it for the sake of pensioners, pleads Curre Hansson, PRO chairman in Stockholm.

– If the government can afford to cut taxes for high-income earners, it can afford to ensure that ordinary people can afford to get their medicine, argues Karin Rågsjö, spokesperson for the Swedish Left Party on healthcare issues.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

https://nordictimes.com/the-nordics/sweden/swedish-finance-minister-european-war-economy-is-a-positive-thing/

Sweden

Swedish finance minister: European war economy is a positive thing

The new cold war

Published 17 March 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Elisabeth Svantesson admits that “war economy” has a negative connotation - but that this time it is about something completely different.
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EU leaders want Europe to arm itself militarily and to do so in a big way – additional defense spending of around €800 billion proposed .

Sweden’s Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson (M) is one of many leaders who welcome the development, saying there are many advantages to “a modern European war economy”.

During the Moderate Party’s Sweden Days, the Finance Minister shared her thoughts on how to strengthen Sweden’s defense – and how to maintain or further expand support to Ukraine.

– I realize that what I’m about to say is going to sound a bit drastic, but I envision a European war economy, Svantesson explains.

She admits that for most people the word “war economy” has a very negative connotation and brings to mind ration cards and coffee surrogates – but this time, she claims, it means something completely different.

– This is not what I am after, the modern war economy actually rests on two parts. First, a strong and growing economy – because that is a precondition for a strong defense.

“Fewer communicators – more companies”

The second part, according to Svantesson, is about having “order and clarity” in public finances while being able to prioritize money for “defense and security”.

– Now we are reprioritizing. Aid has decreased, it is still very high, but we can strengthen Sweden’s security and safety. To be specific, it’s really about fewer communicators and more companies.

The Finance Minister emphasizes that Sweden is certainly no closer to a full-scale war today than it was yesterday, but says that it is instead a matter of preparing mentally and highlighting how important it is for Sweden to carry out a military rearmament.

Wants to borrow billions

– You should feel calm, we have economic muscle and a large unit in the Swedish parliament that creates stability, they say.

Despite the “financial muscle”, Svantesson confirms that the government will still need to borrow several billions to finance the initiative.

– We will need to borrow for a few years to quickly reach the levels needed.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

https://nordictimes.com/the-nordics/sweden/explosion-in-gothenburg-raises-concern-in-swedish-football/

Sweden

Explosion in Gothenburg raises concern in Swedish football

Deteriorating safety

Published 17 March 2025
– By Editorial Staff
The image is an archive photo.
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During the night to Friday, an explosion occurred in an apartment building on Tegnérsgatan in central Gothenburg. The bombing is believed to be linked to an escalating conflict between gang criminals and a player agency. A player from IFK Göteborg lives in the building but has now been relocated to another address by the club.

According to Göteborgs-Posten, the police’s main theory is that the attack is part of a years-long “agent conflict” involving millions of kronor. The implicated agency, previously linked to the firm Universal, represents not only the IFK player but also players in other Allsvenskan clubs and Swedish national teams.

Schibsted-owned newspaper Aftonbladet reports that the incident has now prompted a reaction from the Swedish football community, and an anonymous Allsvenskan security chief also admits to having been in contact with the police on the matter for some months.

Stefan Dejemyr, head of security at the Swedish Football Association, emphasizes that risk assessments for serious crime are routine, but admits that the scale of recent events has come as a surprise.

– We have been aware of this for some time. It’s part of the risk assessments around our players. But the recent events were more than I knew anything about in detail, says Stefan Dejemyr.

IFK protects the player

IFK Göteborg acted quickly to protect the player, who is reportedly unharmed. The club’s head of security Jonas Arlmark declined to comment, but the move of the player shows that the club is taking the situation seriously.

Previous attacks have targeted agents linked to the same conflict, and Fotbollskanalen reports that gang criminals believe they are entitled to millions from the agency business.

The incident underlines how gang crime in Sweden is increasingly infiltrating sport. Residents in the area describe the blast as powerful, and the police are investigating it as serious criminal damage.

With national team competitions around the corner and several clubs involved, there is growing concern about further violence.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com
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