Trust in Swedish royals at all-time low: report

New figures show that Swedes have less confidence in the royal family than ever before, despite the recent wedding of Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel and the birth of Princess Estelle.

• 'We are Sweden's true royal family' (19 Apr 12)
• ‘My monkey was my best friend’: Queen Silvia (5 Apr 12)
• Swedish firms rush to cash in on 'Estelle' (2 Mar 12)

The statistics, from the SOM institute in Gothenburg, western Sweden, show a significantly lower percentage of Swedes have been able to shake the ill-will that came following the plague of harrowing media scrutiny towards the family over the past year.

Currently, the percentage of Swedes who have confidence in the royal family is only 4 percent higher than the percentage of Swedes who don't have confidence in Sweden's royals.

The corresponding figure was 21 percent in 2010. When measurements began back in 1995, the percentage of Swedes who had faith in the royal family was 41 percent higher than the share of Swedes who didn't.

Some 20 percent of Swedes surveyed suggested that a republic would be a good idea, compared to just nine percent back in 1976, reported the Dagens Nyheter newspaper.

Since the publication of "Carl XVI Gustaf – den motvillige monarken" ('Carl XVI Gustaf – the reluctant monarch') in November 2010, a string of scandals has followed, as Sweden's major tabloids Aftonbladet and Expressen have taken turns in publishing the latest unsavoury details.

Queen Silvia has also been confronted with claims that her father, Walther Sommerlath, had connections to the Nazi Party.

The book about the King detailed alleged strip club visits, affairs, and connections to the criminal underworld. Since the publication, images have surfaced of King Gustav visiting strip clubs, which later turned out to have been doctored.

Meanwhile, the survey also showed that only 39 percent of Swedes were pleased with the work of the government in 2011, compared with 59 percent in 2010.

The study also revealed that 99 percent knew the name of the prime minister of Sweden, and that woman, on average, perform 28 hours of housework compared to the average man’s 20 hours.