Indefinite prison terms will be possible from April
A law to introduce a new punishment, säkerhetsförvaring, or preventive detention, will come into force on April 15th, the government and the Sweden Democrats said in a press conference.
The law, which was originally supposed to come into force in January 2028, would allow particularly dangerous prisoners to be sentenced to indefinite prison sentences, something which is not possible today even if the chance of re-offending is deemed to be high.
Säkerhetsförvaring could be used in cases of people who have committed repeat violent or sexual crimes, for example.
"This could be serial rapists and paedophiles where the risk of them abusing new victims if they are released is very high," justice minister Gunnar Strömmer said.
Under the new law, the court would determine a minimum time to be spent in prison, equivalent to a normal prison sentence, with an additional 'frame time' of between four and six years added on. This 'frame time' can then be extended by a maximum of three years at a time if deemed absolutely necessary to protect society.
Neighbouring Norway has a similar law which was used to sentence mass murderer Anders Breivik in 2017.
Swedish vocabulary: förvaring ‒ storage
Three arrests after man thrown off balcony
Three men have been arrested after a man was thrown off a balcony in Spånga in Stockholm. According to police, they are aged between 35 and 40.
"The man who was thrown off the balcony has suffered what are believed to be life-threatening injuries and has been transported to hospital by ambulance," police wrote on their website.
An apartment in Spånga has been cordoned off for forensic investigation. Police have also questioned witnesses to the incident, which is being investigated as an attempted murder.
Swedish vocabulary: misstänkta ‒ suspected
New proposal would allow body searches of more children under 15
The government has proposed a new package of laws aimed towards children and young people accused of committing a crime, including one which would expand police powers when it comes to carrying out body searches of children under 15.
Under current rules, police are only able to carry out body searches of under-15s suspected of carrying weapons or large amounts of drugs, and home searches are only allowed in certain circumstances. Police are, for example, not allowed to search the home of a 14-year-old discovered carrying drugs even if they suspect they could have more at home, and they would not be allowed to carry out a search of a 13-year-old suspected of stealing a phone in order to look for the stolen phone.
The new law would allow police to carry out body or home searches of any child under 15.
"With these laws we're both strengthening the chances of solving a crime committed by a child, as well as protecting children from being drawn to crime," justice minister Gunnar Strömmer said.
The government also proposed extending the time under-18s can be held in pre-trial custody from three to five months, as pre-trial investigations have become more complex and time-consuming.
The laws have a suggested implementation date of July 1st this year.
Swedish vocabulary: kroppsvisitering och husrannsakan ‒ body searches and home searches
SBAB predicts rise in mortgage rates
Swedish state-owned mortgage bank SBAB predicts that mortgage rates are on the rise, while adding that the window for getting a good deal by switching from a variable rate to a fixed rate still appears to be open.
In a new mortgage rate report, the bank's chief economist Robert Boije wrote that variable rates are expected to rise by a 0.1 percentage points over the next year, due in part to the fact that activity on the property market is expected to rise.
He added that the forecast for long-term fixed rates remain more or less unchanged compared to the bank's latest report from December last year.
"According to our forecast of both fixed and variable rates, it appears to be relatively cheap to insure yourself against the risk of rising interest rates," he said.
Swedish vocabulary: ränta ‒ interest rate
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