{"podcast":{"title":"Sweden in Focus","slug":"sweden-in-focus-3984454","podcast_index_feed_id":3984454,"rss_url":"https://access.acast.com/rss/77ca3392-3d6f-434f-8821-6472a6c25d8d","website_url":"https://shows.acast.com/sweden-in-focus/episodes/nato-in-sight-book-tips-swedish-work-permits","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/60f989d37b49f291bd61251a/show-cover.png","author":"O'Mahony Paul","episode_count":286,"summary":"In this episode of Sweden in Focus Extra we chat about the government's new plans to tighten labour migration with Catharina Bildt Grape, an expert on migration, integration and labour market issues at the Swedish Federation of Business Owners (Företagarna). Host Paul O’Mahony is joined by Catharina Bildt Grape to talk about plans to raise the income requirement for work permit applicants to more than 34,000 kronor per month. They discuss: How companies are reacting to the plans How Företagarna intends to respond Was the old system too liberal? How will the new three-stage process work? The employment service will draw up a list of professions that should be exempted; the Migration Agency will change the lists if necessary; the government gives final approval. How wide-ranging will the exemptions be? How likely is it that groups like Företagarna can convince the government to change its plans? What impact will the proposed system have on Sweden's competitiveness? DON'T MISS: Everything you need to know about Sweden's plans for tougher work permit rules","last_synced_at":"2026-07-19T02:20:47.519475+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/sweden-in-focus-3984454"},"episode":{"title":"'A mistake to commit to a government with Sweden Democrats'","slug":"a-mistake-to-commit-to-a-government-with-sweden-democrats","published_at":"2026-05-19T03:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/sweden-in-focus-3984454/a-mistake-to-commit-to-a-government-with-sweden-democrats","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/sweden-in-focus-3984454","url":"https://shows.acast.com/sweden-in-focus/episodes/mistake-to-commit-to-a-government-with-sweden-democrats","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/acast/s/sweden-in-focus/e/6a0b1217fd0523152a0ff2b6/media.mp3?tk=eyJ0ayI6ImRlZmF1bHQiLCJhZHMiOnRydWUsInNwb25zIjp0cnVlLCJvdXQiOiJodHRwczovL3MzLmFtYXpvbmF3cy5jb20vYXNzZXRzLnBpcHBhLmlvL3Nob3dzLzYwZjk4OWQzN2I0OWYyOTFiZDYxMjUxYS8xNzc5MTEwMzMyNzE2LWRmNWU0NGZkLTBlNDAtNDUyMi05ZTJkLTkxY2MzOGUxMDEzYy1wdWJsaWNPdXRyby5tcDMiLCJzdGF0dXMiOiJwcml2YXRlIn0=&sig=6R_jZuU7K2YgBqxDhFq6HI-TaZTbvjdhG0bytOKqZVM","summary":"The repercussions of the Sweden Democrats' decision to defy Swedish parliamentary convention to get new citizenship rules passed without transitional rules are continuing to be felt. But what are the long-term consequences of the Sweden Democrats' willingness to break the rules governing Swedish politics? And could there be a price for Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's moderate party? Moderate veteran Mikael Odenberg, a former defence minister and former group leader for the party in parliament, thinks there could. In this interview with Richard Orange , he explains why. READ ALSO: Former defence minister accuses Sweden Democrats of 'sabotaging' citizenship vote Get Membership+ to listen to all The Local's podcasts Sweden in Focus Extra is a podcast for The Local's Membership+ subscribers. Sign up to Membership+ now and get early, ad-free access to a full-length episode of the Sweden in Focus podcast every weekend, as well as Sweden in Focus Extra every Wednesday. Please visit the link that applies to you and get a 40% discount on Membership+ For signed-in members: Upgrade to Membership+ For new members: Get Membership+  Read more about Membership+ in our help centre . Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"The repercussions of the Sweden Democrats' decision to defy Swedish parliamentary convention to get new citizenship rules passed without transitional rule…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":212,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/sweden-in-focus-3984454/episodes/a-mistake-to-commit-to-a-government-with-sweden-democrats/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/sweden-in-focus-3984454/a-mistake-to-commit-to-a-government-with-sweden-democrats.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}