February 14, 2012
The following articles have been tagged with "Benefits":
Politics: 13 Feb 12
The new leader of the Social Democrats Stefan Löfven has indicated he's ready to negotiate with the government over the future of nuclear power despite a previous party decision to phase out nuclear energy in Sweden.
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National: 7 Feb 12
Malmö Mayor Ilmar Reepalu hopes that open letters to the community signed by politicians will help curb the violence that has plagued the city in recent months.
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Science & Technology: 6 Feb 12
A young Swedish mother, recently diagnosed and treated for breast cancer, was told by the National Social Insurance Agency that she was not eligible for sickness benefits.
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Business & Money: 2 Feb 12
Anglo-Swedish pharmaceuticals giant AstraZeneca is closing its research facilities in Södertälje, south of Stockholm, as part of a major restructuring, resulting in the loss of more than 1,000 Swedish jobs.
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Education: 1 Feb 12
The Stockholm suburb of Sollentuna plans to get rid its schools of text books entirely by next year in favour of tablet computers like the iPad, but Sweden’s education remained sceptical about the proposal.
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Business & Money: 26 Jan 12
In the wake of several high profile cases at home and abroad, Swedish justice minister Beatrice Ask has called for stricter laws governing bribery and corruption.
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Politics: 26 Jan 12
The Social Democrats used a hastily scheduled Thursday press conference to officially unveil IF Metall union chief Stefan Löfven as the consensus choice to take over as party chair.
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Politics: 20 Jan 12
The Social Democrats' executive committee expressed its continued confidence in embattled party head Håkan Juholt on Friday following two days of intense meetings about his leadership.
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Business & Money: 13 Jan 12
The impact of the global financial crisis would have been worse on the EU the euro had not provided the necessary monetary stability, Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt said on Thursday.
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National: 11 Jan 12
Two men, aged 38 and 30, have been arrested in Malmö on suspicions of smuggling Iraqi citizens into Sweden using other people's Swedish passports.
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Science & Technology: 4 Jan 12
Gastric bypass surgery make obese patients less likely to die from heart attack and stroke than patients receiving more conventional treatment for their condition, a Swedish study showed on Tuesday.
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Politics: 31 Dec 11
Tobacco users in Sweden will have to dig deeper into their wallets as another tax increase comes into force in the new year, while parental leave benefits as well as housing allowances are set to increase starting on January 1st.
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Science & Technology: 28 Dec 11
Many Somalis in Sweden feel dismissed when visiting a doctor in Sweden, according to a new study, which shows that many end up looking abroad for medical treatment as a result.
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Analysis & Opinion: 27 Dec 11
The debt crisis plaguing the eurozone has left Swedes loving their cherished krona more than ever, a sentiment shared by non-euro country Denmark as well, as both struggle to keep the euro's woes from hurting their own economies.
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Lifestyle: 16 Dec 11
As the world awaits the impending release of the Hollywood version of “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”, The Local's Geoff Mortimore looks at whether the capital of the US film industry can accurately portray Sweden's dark underbelly.
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National: 15 Dec 11
A 46-year-old Swedish father who forced his young daughter to pretend she had a mental illness so he could cash in on assistance benefits was sentenced to four years in prison on Thursday.
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National: 10 Dec 11
A man in southern Sweden who scammed the Swedish social insurance agency for almost 14 million kronor ($2 million) has been sentenced to four years in prison.
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National: 8 Dec 11
A Swedish woman accused of making false rape accusations while on holiday in Greece was acquitted of defamation charges on Thursday by a Greek court.
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National: 2 Dec 11
Two thirds of the people in Sweden relying long term on social benefits have a foreign background, while child poverty in the same group is becoming more and more serious, according to new reports.
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Business & Money: 18 Nov 11
Sweden's social insurance agency is demanding that a man, convicted of selling alcohol from the back of his van, pay back the full sickness benefits he received during the time he was running his bootleg operation.
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Business & Money: 4 Nov 11
Only one in three young Swedes are union members, compared to 80 percent in the same age group only 15 years ago, according to a new report.
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National: 29 Oct 11
If anyone was still in denial, Saturday night will make winter time official when clocks are turned back an hour to compensate for the intruding darkness.
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Science & Technology: 27 Oct 11
Social media giant Facebook on Thursday officially unveiled long-rumoured plans to build its first European data centre in Luleå in northern Sweden, near the Arctic Circle.
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National: 27 Oct 11
A Swedish father stands to face charges for having cashed in over 25,000 kronor ($3,850) a week to take care of his daughter based on a faked diagnosis for mental illness for more than a decade.
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Society: 25 Oct 11
More than half of young Swedish mothers want to be housewives, according to a new survey, a finding that doesn't surprise some gender researchers.
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Education: 20 Oct 11
Since Sweden introduced university tuition fees for people from non-EU countries, students' expectations have increased. But those studying at Stockholm University say they are getting good value for money.
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Science & Technology: 19 Oct 11
It's been 30 years since since Swedish technology and initiative helped launch a bold, but modest initiative which marked the start of he modern era of mobile telephony, The Local's Joel Linde explains.
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Business & Money: 17 Oct 11
The Swedish government on Monday announced a new inquiry aiming at finding ways to make it easier for immigrant women to enter the labour market.
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Lifestyle: 14 Oct 11
Tired of Sweden's high alcohol taxes and the state run liquor monopoly? Come along with contributor Patrick Reilly as he details a recent journey to Germany in search of cheap beer.
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Business & Money: 13 Oct 11
A Chinese chef who collapsed from exhaustion on the streets of Gothenburg after being forced to work under 'slave-like' conditions has received a large indemnity after a Swedish union intervened on his behalf.
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Society: 12 Oct 11
The Local is taking another step out into the world, with the launch of thelocal.no, Norway’s news in English. There’s no better place to find out what’s going on in Sweden’s back yard, says editor Paul O’Mahony.
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Politics: 12 Oct 11
Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt and finance minister Anders Borg have argued that a European solution to the debt crisis should draw upon the approach used by Sweden in the 1990s.
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Science & Technology: 11 Oct 11
A fondness for chocolate doesn't have to be all bad, according to new Swedish research which has shown that the more chocolate consumed, the lower the risk of suffering a stroke.
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Science & Technology: 10 Oct 11
As growing numbers of Swedes choose private healthcare, The Local's Clara Guibourg explores what's behind the trend and what it could mean for the quality of Sweden's public healthcare system.
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Business & Money: 7 Oct 11
Swedish prime minister Fredrik Reinfledt joined his counterparts from Finland and the Netherlands in calling for an ambitious growth agenda and tighter fiscal policies to help combat the deepening euro debt crisis.
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Society: 5 Oct 11
Almost 20 percent of Swedish fathers don't take one single day of parental leave during the first four years of their children's life, according to fresh figures from Sweden's social insurance agency Försäkringskassan.
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Lifestyle: 4 Oct 11
If you're a diplomat or have tax-free status at an international organization, a special scheme from Volvo means that you can buy a premium car at favourable prices - and gain many benefits besides.
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Business & Money: 21 Sep 11
During the first half of 2011 more than 450 former local politicians shared a total of 42 million kronor ($6.3 million) in "temporary" early retirement pensions pay out, according to a new report.
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Business & Money: 20 Sep 11
Sweden's government has outlined a raft of labour market initiatives in the budget presented on Tuesday, while its forecast for GDP growth has been slashed to 1.3 percent in 2012, warning that the reality could be worse.
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Analysis & Opinion: 16 Sep 11
As Sweden's politicians return to business at the Riksdag after a period of party-leadership reshuffling, The Local's Rebecca Martin examines concerns that youth has begun to trump experience in Swedish politics.
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Lifestyle: 16 Sep 11
A new survey from Berlitz shows that expats find life abroad to be rewarding, but going home again can be tougher than expected.
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National: 14 Sep 11
Sweden's much touted integration policy reform has failed to ensure that refugees start the process of finding work before receiving welfare benefits from local authorities, a new study has shown.
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Politics: 14 Sep 11
As Denmark prepares to go to the polls on September 15th, Katherine Dunn explores the contentious election issue of immigration policy and exposes the effects it has had on Sweden's third city Malmö.
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Business & Money: 13 Sep 11
The government has proposed utlising thousands of Swedes with diminished work capacity due to illness or disability in a new effort to help preserve Sweden's cultural heritage.
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Lifestyle: 13 Sep 11
As the chill of autumn starts to sweep across Sweden, food blogger Maia Brindley Nilsson offers some tips about how to find some of the culinary treasures hidden in Sweden's forests.
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Politics: 12 Sep 11
Patrons at Swedish restaurants will see the value-added tax (VAT) added to their bills cut by more than half staring January 1st, 2012 as part of a government spending package designed to boost employment among young people.
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Business & Money: 6 Sep 11
Swedish households have seen their wealth grow in the past four decades, although many Swedes have seen their debts increase as well, according to new figures from Swedish bank Swedbank.
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Science & Technology: 30 Aug 11
The latest in a slew of diet fads that have gained popularity in Sweden, the low-carb high fat diet (LCHF), is backed by research funded by the US meat industry and is a "catastrophe" for the environment, according to a new study.
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Lifestyle: 18 Aug 11
As Sweden's southern metropolis of Malmö gears up for this year's Malmö Festivalen, contributor Caroline Bursell previews some of the event's main attractions.
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Politics: 7 Aug 11
The state-run agency set up to stem the flow of money to support organised crime via state handouts claims that it has already recouped nearly 8 million kronor ($1.3 million) from just a dozen people in Stockholm alone.
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Society: 26 Jul 11
A Swedish sailor in his seventies began a long-planned solo journey to the United States on Monday by hitching his boat to a trailer and driving through Germany.
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National: 18 Jul 11
The Swedish Armed Forces draw benefit from the relatively low political interest in the war in Afghanistan and their information campaigns are focused on keeping it that way, an intelligence analysis professor has claimed.
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Business & Money: 18 Jul 11
Swedes looking to order transportation services may from 2012 find their calls re-directed to one of 32 Swedish-speaking operators in Dakar, Senegal.
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Education: 15 Jul 11
Stockholm University, one of the largest in Scandinavia and ranked among the top 100 universities worldwide, is a great choice for students in search of a vibrant and diverse study environment.
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Analysis & Opinion: 13 Jul 11
While Swedish classes for immigrants are all well and good, the best way to acquire Swedish fluency and boost integration is to encourage immigrants to enter the labour market as soon as possible, argues linguist Sandra Ljung.
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Science & Technology: 8 Jul 11
An international team of surgeons have successfully carried out the world's first transplant of a synthetic windpipe, the Stockholm hospital where the groundbreaking operation took place announced on Thursday.
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Science & Technology: 4 Jul 11
Sigmund Freud's theory that people can intentionally learn to forget certain memories is proven accurate more than 100 years later, after researchers from a Swedish university make headway in the study of the mind.
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Education: 3 Jul 11
One in four Swedes leave their teenage years behind without completing high school, costing society six billion kronor ($957 million) per annum, according to the Green Party, who want to facilitate a return to the school desk.
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Politics: 1 Jul 11
The Swedish government suffered another setback in the Riksdag on Friday, when the Sweden Democrats voted with the centre-left opposition parties to force through its proposal by a single vote.
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Politics: 28 Jun 11
The Sweden Democrats demanded increased border controls when the Riksdag debated free movement within the European Union on Tuesday.
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Science & Technology: 20 Jun 11
Sweden's social services have been given the green light to use information found on Facebook and other social media sites to verify whether or not Swedes are being truthful on their applications for welfare benefits.
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Business & Money: 16 Jun 11
Greece's spiraling economic and political crisis has done little to dissuade Swedes' from choosing the Mediterranean country as a holiday destination, Swedish travel companies report.
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Politics: 15 Jun 11
The leaders of Sweden’s two largest political parties clashed for the first time on Wednesday, with Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt warning that pressure from opposition parties on the right and left were pushing his minority government towards crisis.
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National: 14 Jun 11
Less parental leave for those who have just arrived in Sweden with kids will help getting immigrant women out on the labour market, according to two Swedish experts.
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National: 10 Jun 11
Disabled people are being lured to Sweden by false promises of generous benefits in a sophisticated fraud scheme that officials liken to human trafficking, according to Swedish media reports.
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Politics: 9 Jun 11
The government is expected to face a new defeat in the Riksdag on Thursday after the far-right Sweden Democrats said they will side with the centre-left opposition's proposed reforms to Sweden's public health insurance system.
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Society: 8 Jun 11
A new smart phone app showing the closest place to purchase condoms has been launched in a new campaign to promote condom use among Sweden’s young people.
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Society: 7 Jun 11
Failed family policies and a welfare system that has become less fair are to blame for an increase in child poverty in Sweden, according to charity Save the Children.
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Analysis & Opinion: 7 Jun 11
The best way to boost employment levels among Sweden's foreign-born is by reducing wages for low-paying jobs, argues Jenny von Bahr, author of a report on the subject commissioned by liberal Swedish think tank Timbro.
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National: 3 Jun 11
Over 25 percent of young Swedes think that it would be “good or very good” for Sweden to be ruled by a strong and dictatorial leader, and one in five would be willing to sell their vote, according to a new study.
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Society: 27 May 11
Four out of ten young people in Stockholm last had sex with someone they weren't in a relationship with and only one in four used a condom, according to statistics from a recent study on youth sex habits in Sweden.
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Business & Money: 10 May 11
Thousands of Swedes are claiming hefty pensioner discounts despite being in gainful employment, due to a loophole enabling them to draw some of their pension in advance.
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Analysis & Opinion: 9 May 11
On Europe Day, May 9th, many will no doubt celebrate the increased mobility of EU citizens, but open borders and bureaucracy have also resulted in rising numbers of homeless EU citizens in Stockholm, The Local's Geoff Mortimore discovers.
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Science & Technology: 6 May 11
Swedish researchers have determined that surgery rather than "watchful waiting" may be a better option for treating prostate cancer, especially in younger patients.
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Analysis & Opinion: 2 May 11
As fuels derived from forestry industry waste power an increasing number of Swedish cars, The Local's Karen Holst discovers not everyone is convinced that this new biodiesel fuel will deliver long-term environmental benefits.
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Science & Technology: 29 Apr 11
Swedish scientists have developed new highly sensitive equipment that may have a huge impact on tracking the spread of HIV and detecting signs of bio terrorism and water contamination.
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Analysis & Opinion: 21 Apr 11
The abortion issue, long largely dormant in the Swedish popular discourse, has reemerged as a point of contention after two researchers called for a review of legislation framed in the 1970s, The Local's Peter Vinthagen Simpson explains.
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Society: 20 Apr 11
The government must do more to ensure that Sweden takes advantage of the benefits brought by highly educated foreigners who come to the country, Sweden's national auditor has argued.
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National: 15 Apr 11
A Swedish woman accused of trumping up rape accusations while on holiday exemplifies a persistant view in Greece that Swedish women bring false rape complaints to get payouts from special 'rape insurance'.
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Society: 15 Apr 11
Recent figures show that it will take more than three decades until parents in Sweden share their parental leave benefits equally.
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Politics: 13 Apr 11
Sweden's finance minister Anders Borg emphasised falling unemployment figures in the budget debate in the Riksdag on Wednesday, while the Social Democrats argued that Sweden was suffering from "mass unemployment".
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Politics: 11 Apr 11
The Swedish government has proposed a number of changes to its reforms of the country's health insurance system, admitting its current efforts have left some people in a jam.
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Politics: 11 Apr 11
Newly installed Social Democratic party leader Håkan Juholt thinks Sweden's monarchy should be abolished and that the country's wealth tax should be reinstated.
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Analysis & Opinion: 4 Apr 11
Losing your job may be traumatic, but there are worse places to find yourself out of a job than Sweden, The Local's Geoff Mortimore explains.
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National: 3 Apr 11
A news agency TT study shows the far-right Sweden Democrats voting with the government in nine out of ten cases during the party's first six months since reaching the Riksdag.
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Politics: 31 Mar 11
A parliamentary committee has proposed granting work permits to rejected asylum seekers and allowing immigrants to live abroad for up to five years without losing their right to reside in Sweden.
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Science & Technology: 27 Mar 11
Summertime began in Sweden on Saturday night, meaning a lost hour's sleep for many and a shorter Sunday for others.
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Politics: 26 Mar 11
Håkan Juholt, the new leader of Sweden's Social Democrat party, attacked the government's record on youth unemployment, child poverty and 'growing divides' in society, in his inaugural speech on Saturday.
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Politics: 25 Mar 11
As expected Håkan Juholt has been confirmed as the new leader of Sweden's Social Democrat party, following a vote at the party congress in Stockholm on Friday.
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Education: 23 Mar 11
Bilingual 12-year-olds perform worse at school than their monolingual peers, a researcher at Sweden's Örebro University has found.
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Analysis & Opinion: 8 Mar 11
Too few women serve on the boards of directors at Swedish companies and introducing quotas may be a necessary step to ensure that companies capture the benefits of diversity, argues leadership coach Margareta Neld.
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Society: 7 Mar 11
An increasing number of Swedes are appealing benefits claims that have been denied by the country's social insurance agency.
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Analysis & Opinion: 28 Feb 11
As the 25th anniversary of Olof Palme’s murder is remembered The Local’s Karen Holst explores the political legacy left by the man who delivered Sweden from obscurity and into the globalising world.
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Society: 23 Feb 11
Foreign-born applicants are denied sick benefits by Sweden's social insurance agency more often than applicants born in Sweden, statistics from the agency reveal.
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Science & Technology: 20 Feb 11
Swedish oil and energy firm Preem has announced the development of the "world's first" green diesel developed using residue from the Swedish forestry industry.
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Business & Money: 16 Feb 11
Sweden has ranked second in the World's Economic Forum's (WEF) Global Competitiveness Report 2010-2011, falling behind Switzerland, but leaping ahead of Singapore and the US.
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Society: 9 Feb 11
Swedish charity Children's Rights in Society received a record number of calls to children's help hotline, new figures show.
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Business & Money: 7 Feb 11
The CEOs of Sweden's 50 largest companies earn on average 40 times more than an industrial worker, a finding that a union organisation head believes is "totally unacceptable" and requires a "popular uprising" to remedy.
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Business & Money: 26 Jan 11
Since the centre-right Alliance coalition first took power in Sweden, the number of young people receiving disability pension payments has increased by nearly 50 percent, which the social security minister called a "political catastrophe."
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Science & Technology: 24 Jan 11
Eyewitnesses cannot always be trusted, a psychologist at the Lund University has revealed in a recent study.
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As diverse as Sweden is, there are a few societal norms that are distinctly Swedish. Understanding a handful of them will hopefully prepare you culturally before you relocate. When you're invited home to a Swede, you better be on time and take your shoes off, writes expat Lola Akinmade-Åkerström. Read more »
Sweden is a country where almost everyone can speak English. So why bother to learn Swedish? Edina Varnagy from Hungary managed with English for a whole year but then found that Swedish could open doors – to a job, a social life and greater understanding. Read more »
"The ice dripped in the winter sun. It was the first day when the light had been intense enough to cause dripping in the sunlight. To hear it was an extraordinary wakeup call. The cycle was happening again as it always does, always will (or so we think). I imagined that on my summer island, the bees..." READ »
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fin
adjective
Fin means anyhting from sweet to proper. When someone says, Du är så fin it's quite a compliment.
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