Sweden Democrats drop cabinet demand to clear path for Kristersson
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Government formation has entered a more active phase after Jimmie Åkesson announced his party will no longer demand ministerial seats. The concession is intended to make a right-wing coalition more palatable to the Centre Party, which has long found the Sweden Democrats impossible to sit beside but may now find them easier to stand near.
The shift puts the Social Democrats and the Green Party in an awkward position, as their strategy relied on the Centre Party's refusal to cooperate with the right. While some commentators argue a formal alliance remains impossible as long as the Sweden Democrats are numerically necessary, others suggest the Centre Party's price for cooperation has just risen.
Beyond the capital, the National Board for Consumer Disputes has ruled that the 700,000 car owners affected by the shutdown of 2G and 3G networks are entitled to their money back. In the Baltic Sea, emergency services launched a large-scale rescue operation overnight after a man fell overboard from a ferry.