Government of Sweden

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Government of the Kingdom of Sweden
Overview
Established1975
StateKingdom of Sweden
LeaderPrime Minister (Statsminister)
Appointed byPrime Minister is elected by the Riksdag.
Other ministers (statsråd) are appointed by the Prime Minister.
Main organCabinet
Responsible toRiksdag
HeadquartersRosenbad, Stockholm
Websitewww.government.se

The Government of the Kingdom of Sweden (Swedish: Konungariket Sveriges regering) is the national cabinet of Sweden, and the country's executive authority.

The Government consists of the

cabinet ministers (Swedish: Statsråd), appointed and dismissed at the sole discretion of the Prime Minister. The Government is responsible for its actions to the Riksdag.[1]

The short-form name Regeringen ("the Government") is used both in the Basic Laws of Sweden and in the vernacular, while the long-form is only used in international treaties.[2]

Organization

The Government operates as a

cabinet ministers (Swedish: Statsråd), appointed and dismissed at the sole discretion of the Prime Minister. The Government is responsible for its actions to the Riksdag.[1]

Following the adoption of the

executive powers at all with respect to the governance of the Realm, but continues to serve as a strictly ceremonial head of state.[3]
At the same time, the bicameral parliament was changed into a unicameral (Swedish: Riksdag).

History

Rosenbad, in central Stockholm, has been the seat of the Government since 1981.[4]

The present Government is formed according to the laws set out in the

King Gustav III had it abolished when the Riksdag passed the Union and Security Act. The old privy council had only had members from the aristocracy. Gustav III instead instituted Rikets allmänna ärendens beredning. It functioned as the Government until 1809 when a new Instrument of Government was introduced, thus creating the present Government predecessor, the Council of State
. It acted as the Government of Sweden until the 31 December 1974.

Role and scope

Main articles: Politics of Sweden and Prime Minister of Sweden

The Government has a stronger constitutional position than the cabinets in the other Scandinavian monarchies. This is because under the Instrument of Government (Swedish: Regeringsformen)—one of the Fundamental Laws of the Realm—the Government is both the de jure and de facto executive authority in Sweden. In Denmark and Norway, the monarch is at least the nominal chief executive, but is bound by convention to act on the advice of the cabinet. However, Chapter 1, Article 6 of the Instrument of Government explicitly states:[1]

The Government governs the Realm. It is accountable to the Riksdag

The Instrument of Government sets out the main responsibilities and duties of the Government (including the Prime Minister's and other cabinet ministers') and how it relates to other organs of the State.[1]

The Chancellor of Justice and other State administrative authorities come under the Government, unless they are authorities under the Riksdag according to the present Instrument of Government or by virtue of other law.

— Instrument of Government, Chapter 12, Article 1.[1]

Most state administrative authorities (statliga förvaltningsmyndigheter), as opposed to local authorities (kommuner), sorts under the Government, including the Armed Forces, Coast Guard, Customs Service and the police.

While the judiciary technically sort under the Government in the fiscal sense, Chapter 11 of the Instrument of Government provides safeguards to ensure its independence.[1][5]

In a unique feature of the Swedish constitutional system, individual cabinet ministers do not bear any

ministerstyre
(English: "ministerial rule").

High Contracting Party

Image of the signature blocks with seals of the 2011 Croatia EU Accession Treaty for Slovakia, Finland, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Sweden is the only one of the four not with its head of state
as high contracting party.

The Government of Sweden is the

international organisations (such as the European Union), as per 10:1 of the Instrument of Government.[1] In most other parliamentary systems (monarchies and republics alike) this formal function is usually vested in the head of state
but exercised by ministers in such name.

Promulgation

Chapter 6, Article 7 prescribes that laws and ordinances are promulgated by the Government (by the Prime Minister or other cabinet minister),[1] and are subsequently published in the Swedish Code of Statutes (Swedish: Svensk författningssamling).[6]

Formation and dismissal

Following a general election, Speaker of the Riksdag begins to hold talks with the leaders of the parties with representation in the Riksdag, the Speaker then nominates a candidate for Prime Minister (statsminister). The nomination is then put to a vote in the chamber. Unless an absolute majority of the members (175 members) votes "no", the nomination is confirmed, otherwise it is rejected. The Speaker must then find a new nominee. This means the Riksdag can consent to a Prime Minister without casting any "yes" votes.

After being elected the Prime Minister appoints the cabinet ministers and announces them to the Riksdag. Prospective ministers do not have to be sitting members of the Riksdag, but if one accepts a nomination, they would surrender their seat to a substitute member. The new Government takes office at a special council held at the Royal Palace before the monarch, at which the Speaker of the Riksdag formally announces to the monarch that the Riksdag has elected a new Prime Minister and that the Prime Minister has chosen his cabinet ministers.

The Riksdag can cast a

vote of no confidence against any single cabinet minister (Swedish
: statsråd), thus forcing a resignation. To succeed a vote of no confidence must be supported by an absolute majority (175 members) or it has failed.

If a vote of no confidence is cast against the Prime Minister this means the entire government is rejected. A losing government has one week to call for a general election or else the procedure of nominating a new Prime Minister starts anew.

Cabinets

Government of Sweden
Sveriges regering
Deputy to the Prime Minister
Ebba Busch
Number of members24
Administration
Working
language		Swedish
Staff organizationGovernment Offices
(the ministries are organised as entities within it)
LocationStockholm, Stockholm County, Sweden
SeatRosenbad (since 1981)
Coat of arms of Sweden (Lesser).svg
Basic Laws
Monarchy
Executive
Legislature
Judiciary
Elections
Administrative divisions
Foreign relations
Related topics

Present Cabinet

Main article: Kristersson Cabinet
Portfolio Minister Took office Left office Party
Prime Minister's Office
Prime Minister18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Deputy Prime Minister[a]18 October 2022Incumbent Christian Democrats
Minister for EU Affairs18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Ministry of Justice
Minister for Justice18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Minister for Migration18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Minister for Foreign Affairs18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Minister of Foreign Trade and for International Development Cooperation18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Ministry of Defence
Minister for Defence
18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Minister for Civil Defence18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Ministry of Health and Social Affairs
Minister for Social Affairs18 October 2022Incumbent Christian Democrats
Minister for Health18 October 2022Incumbent Christian Democrats
Minister for Social Services18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Minister for Social Security and Pensions18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Ministry of Finance
Minister for Finance18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Minister for Financial Markets18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Minister for Public Administration18 October 2022Incumbent Christian Democrats
Ministry of Education and Research
Minister for Education18 October 2022Incumbent Liberals
Minister for Schools18 October 2022Incumbent Liberals
Ministry of the Environment and of Enterprise and Innovation
Minister for Energy and of Enterprise18 October 2022Incumbent Christian Democrats
Minister for the Environment18 October 2022Incumbent Liberals
Ministry of Culture
Minister for Culture18 October 2022Incumbent Moderate
Ministry of Employment
Minister for Employment and for Integration
18 October 2022Incumbent Liberals
Minister for Equality18 October 2022Incumbent Liberals
Ministry of Rural Affairs and Infrastructure
Minister for Rural Affairs18 October 2022Incumbent Christian Democrats
Minister for Infrastructure and for Housing18 October 2022Incumbent Christian Democrats


Former cabinets

Each appointment of a new Prime Minister is considered to result in a new cabinet, irrespective if the Prime Minister is reappointed or not. However, there is no automatic resignation following a defeat in a general election, so an election does not always result in a new cabinet.

Government offices

Chancellery House (Swedish: Kanslihuset) was the seat of the Government Offices until 1981, and the housed its predecessor, the Royal Chancery, dating back to the days of the Royal Palace fire in 1697.[7]
Central Post Office Building, houses the Ministry of Enterprise
.

Previously known as the Royal Chancery (

Instrument of Government entering into effect.[8]

The Instrument of Government briefly mentions in Chapter 7, Article 1 that there is a staff organization supporting the Government known as the Government Offices. The present organizational charter for the Government Offices is found in the

ordinance named Förordning (1996:1515) med instruktion för Regeringskansliet. Since the issuance of that ordinance in 1996, all the ministries are technically entities within the Government Offices (headed by the Prime Minister), rather than as separate organisations even though they operate as such. Below follows a short summary of the current structure.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "The Instrument of Government (as of 2018)" (PDF). The Riksdag. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Treaty between Sweden and Hong Kong" (PDF). Riksdag. Archived from the original on 17 October 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  3. ^ "The Head of State". Government of Sweden. Archived from the original on 25 February 2014. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  4. Government Offices of Sweden. Archived from the original
    on 24 October 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  5. Domstolsverket. Archived from the original
    on 18 June 2012. Retrieved 9 November 2014.
  6. ^ "Lag (1976:633) om kungörande av lagar och andra författningar" (in Swedish). Notisum. Archived from the original on 17 October 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  7. ^ "Premises of the Government Offices". Government Offices of Sweden. Archived from the original on 24 October 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  8. ^ "History of the Government Offices". The Riksdag. Archived from the original on 24 October 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
  9. ^ "Förordning (1996:1515) med instruktion för Regeringskansliet" (in Swedish). Swedish Code of Statutes. Retrieved 27 January 2014.

Notes

  1. ^ Not a separate minister post.
Bibliography

External links
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