Reinfeldt tells Ulvskog to stop
Moderate Party leader Fredrik Reinfeldt has spoken out for the first time about the Liberal Party computer scandal that has engulfed Swedish politics since the beginning of the week.
"What has happened is a serious matter that has had repercussions," Reinfeldt said on Swedish Radio's P3 on Wednesday.
"I had no knowledge about this, and it is a matter for the Liberal Party."
But Reinfeldt also attacked the Social Democrats' party secretary Marita Ulvskog for comments she made about Liberal leader Lars Leijonborg, when she compared him to a "rapist blaming his victim":
"I heard Marita Ulvskog on the radio comparing Lars Leijonborg to a rapist. That was when I felt in my heart and my stomach that enough is enough," he told Svenska Dagbladet.
He also said that the most powerful political group in the country, the Social Democrats, had also abused their position:
"This is not minimized by the fact that others do wrong. The feeling that we have had is that nothing happens when the Social Democrats do something wrong. In this case there have been clear and fast reactions," he told Dagens Nyheter.
Reinfeldt said that he has spoken with Leijonborg each day. When asked if he still had confidence in the Liberal Party leader Reinfeldt said, "You don't abandon your friends when they are in trouble."
"It is just 11 days left until elections, so I want to get us back talking about important forgotten questions."
Reinfeldt and Social Democrat leader Göran Persson are set to square up to each other in a televised 'duel' on Wednesday at 9pm on TV4.
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"What has happened is a serious matter that has had repercussions," Reinfeldt said on Swedish Radio's P3 on Wednesday.
"I had no knowledge about this, and it is a matter for the Liberal Party."
But Reinfeldt also attacked the Social Democrats' party secretary Marita Ulvskog for comments she made about Liberal leader Lars Leijonborg, when she compared him to a "rapist blaming his victim":
"I heard Marita Ulvskog on the radio comparing Lars Leijonborg to a rapist. That was when I felt in my heart and my stomach that enough is enough," he told Svenska Dagbladet.
He also said that the most powerful political group in the country, the Social Democrats, had also abused their position:
"This is not minimized by the fact that others do wrong. The feeling that we have had is that nothing happens when the Social Democrats do something wrong. In this case there have been clear and fast reactions," he told Dagens Nyheter.
Reinfeldt said that he has spoken with Leijonborg each day. When asked if he still had confidence in the Liberal Party leader Reinfeldt said, "You don't abandon your friends when they are in trouble."
"It is just 11 days left until elections, so I want to get us back talking about important forgotten questions."
Reinfeldt and Social Democrat leader Göran Persson are set to square up to each other in a televised 'duel' on Wednesday at 9pm on TV4.
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