Sweden's government finalises bill to end ban on dances without a permit
Sweden's government is to submit a bill to end the long-ridiculed requirement for a dance permit to parliament next week, Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer announced in a press release on Thursday.
"Our starting point is quite simply that it is not reasonable for the state to regulate whether people are allowed to dance or not," Strömmer told Sweden's state broadcaster SR after the announcement.
The government is pushing ahead despite criticism from Sweden's Council on Legislation in January for not carrying out adequate consultations on the law.
"The government has taken on board the criticisms from the Council on Legislation and is now pushing the proposal onward to parliament," Strömmer said in the press statement.
Sweden in 1956 brought in a requirement that all restaurants and bars had to apply for and receive a special "dance permit" if their patrons were to be allowed to dance, with their owners facing fines if their customers were found dancing without a permit.
The changed law will allow nightclubs and restaurants which are not situated in public places to organise dance events without requiring permission from the police.
The law is expected to go before parliament for a vote on Tuesday, and will start to apply from July 1st.
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"Our starting point is quite simply that it is not reasonable for the state to regulate whether people are allowed to dance or not," Strömmer told Sweden's state broadcaster SR after the announcement.
The government is pushing ahead despite criticism from Sweden's Council on Legislation in January for not carrying out adequate consultations on the law.
"The government has taken on board the criticisms from the Council on Legislation and is now pushing the proposal onward to parliament," Strömmer said in the press statement.
Sweden in 1956 brought in a requirement that all restaurants and bars had to apply for and receive a special "dance permit" if their patrons were to be allowed to dance, with their owners facing fines if their customers were found dancing without a permit.
The changed law will allow nightclubs and restaurants which are not situated in public places to organise dance events without requiring permission from the police.
The law is expected to go before parliament for a vote on Tuesday, and will start to apply from July 1st.
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