Executive Accountability
#2Key Findings
With highly mature oversight mechanisms, Sweden falls into the top ranks internationally (rank 2) with respect to executive accountability. Its score this year has improved by 0.3 points relative to its 2014 level.
The population is generally politically engaged, and election turnout rates are very high. Media reporting of policy issues is good by international standards. Ownership consolidation is increasing in the media, and the focus on local news has increased. Young people increasingly consume news from social media rather than from traditional news sources.
Parliamentarians have adequate resources, and well-developed executive oversight powers. The audit office reviews the government, corporations and foundations. Sweden effectively invented the ombudsman institution, and this body remains influential. The data-protection agency’s remit includes personal information, including health and financial data.
Political party decision-making has gradually become more open. Economic interest organizations are sophisticated, and have long been integrated into policymaking processes. The capacities of other interest organizations vary, but many are quite developed.
The population is generally politically engaged, and election turnout rates are very high. Media reporting of policy issues is good by international standards. Ownership consolidation is increasing in the media, and the focus on local news has increased. Young people increasingly consume news from social media rather than from traditional news sources.
Parliamentarians have adequate resources, and well-developed executive oversight powers. The audit office reviews the government, corporations and foundations. Sweden effectively invented the ombudsman institution, and this body remains influential. The data-protection agency’s remit includes personal information, including health and financial data.
Political party decision-making has gradually become more open. Economic interest organizations are sophisticated, and have long been integrated into policymaking processes. The capacities of other interest organizations vary, but many are quite developed.
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To what extent are citizens informed of public policies?
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Most citizens are well-informed of a broad range of public policies.
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Many citizens are well-informed of individual public policies.
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Few citizens are well-informed of public policies; most citizens have only a rudimental knowledge of public policies.
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Most citizens are not aware of public policies.
The Swedish population is generally politically engaged. Election turnout is still very high by most international comparisons. The turnout in the 2014 general elections was 85.8%, which was an increase of 1.2 percentage points from the previous election. In 2018, the turnout increased even further to 87.2%, which is remarkably high compared to other European countries (Valmyndigheten, 2021). Swedish voters tend to decide very late for which party to vote, which may be interpreted as the voters’ desire to gather as much information on political parties as possible before they make their final decision.
The definition of high or low levels of political knowledge is obviously a relative measure. Official data on the knowledge level of Swedish voters is not available. It can, however, be assumed that voters here are not significantly more – or less – knowledgeable than their colleagues in comparable countries.
Recent studies suggest that if voters had been more knowledgeable on political issues this would have changed their party allegiance. Increasing levels of knowledge should reduce the support for the two major parties – the Moderates and the Social Democrats – while most of the other, smaller parties would have benefited. This is a purely hypothetical study, as the perfectly informed voter does not exist (Andersson et al., 2018: Oscarsson, 2007; Oscarsson, and Holmberg, 2014).
Citations:
Andersson, Ulrika, Anders Carlander, Elina Lindgren, Maria Oskarson. (eds.) 2018. ”Sprickor i Fasaden.” Gothenburg: The SOM Institute.
Oscarsson, Henrik. 2007. ”A Matter of Fact? Knowledge Effects on the Vote in Swedish General Elections, 1985-2002.” Scandinavian Political Studies, 30:301-322.
Oscarsson, Henrik and Sören Holmberg. 2014. ”Svenska väljare.” Stockholm: Wolters Kluwer.
Valmyndigheten. 2021. “Valresultat.” https://www.val.se/valresultat.html
The definition of high or low levels of political knowledge is obviously a relative measure. Official data on the knowledge level of Swedish voters is not available. It can, however, be assumed that voters here are not significantly more – or less – knowledgeable than their colleagues in comparable countries.
Recent studies suggest that if voters had been more knowledgeable on political issues this would have changed their party allegiance. Increasing levels of knowledge should reduce the support for the two major parties – the Moderates and the Social Democrats – while most of the other, smaller parties would have benefited. This is a purely hypothetical study, as the perfectly informed voter does not exist (Andersson et al., 2018: Oscarsson, 2007; Oscarsson, and Holmberg, 2014).
Citations:
Andersson, Ulrika, Anders Carlander, Elina Lindgren, Maria Oskarson. (eds.) 2018. ”Sprickor i Fasaden.” Gothenburg: The SOM Institute.
Oscarsson, Henrik. 2007. ”A Matter of Fact? Knowledge Effects on the Vote in Swedish General Elections, 1985-2002.” Scandinavian Political Studies, 30:301-322.
Oscarsson, Henrik and Sören Holmberg. 2014. ”Svenska väljare.” Stockholm: Wolters Kluwer.
Valmyndigheten. 2021. “Valresultat.” https://www.val.se/valresultat.html
Does the government publish data and information in a way that strengthens citizens’ capacity to hold the government accountable?
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The government publishes data and information in a comprehensive, timely and user-friendly way.
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The government most of the time publishes data and information in a comprehensive, timely and user-friendly way.
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The government publishes data in a limited and not timely or user-friendly way.
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The government publishes (almost) no relevant data.
Strictly speaking, given the extensive rules about public availability of government documents, the government does not have to actively publish material but rather simply ensure that it is available. Thus, withholding information that would be relevant to an assessment of the government’s performance would be difficult. Governmental web sites are updated regularly, and reports are available to the public at no charge. All material (reports, meeting minutes, contact information of public servants, future plans, press releases, transcripts) is available online. This openness on the part of the government was most evident during the pandemic, when a great deal of data and information about various aspects of pandemic policy was made available to the public.
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Do members of parliament have adequate personnel and structural resources to monitor government activity effectively?
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The members of parliament as a group can draw on a set of resources suited for monitoring all government activity effectively.
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The members of parliament as a group can draw on a set of resources suited for monitoring a government’s major activities.
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The members of parliament as a group can draw on a set of resources suited for selectively monitoring some government activities.
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The resources provided to the members of parliament are not suited for any effective monitoring of the government.
Members of the parliament can collectively monitor all aspects of government activities. They can find some support for these and other activities from the parliament’s (Riksdag) administrative support (Riksdagens Utredningstjänst, RUT). RUT conducts inquiries requested by groups of members of parliament. Individual members of parliament in Sweden receive rather little administrative support; instead, support is given to the political party organizations within parliament. The RUT’s reports are not public record, unless the member of parliament who ordered them refers to them on a public occasion, for example when talking to the media (Sveriges Riksdag, 2022).
Citations:
Sveriges Riksdag. (The Parliament of Sweden). 2022. “Riksdagens Utredningstjänst.” https://www.riksdagen.se/sv/sa-funkar-riksdagen/riksdagsforvaltningen/verksamhet/#8db16bfd46d08fb5c137e8fccade98f2
Citations:
Sveriges Riksdag. (The Parliament of Sweden). 2022. “Riksdagens Utredningstjänst.” https://www.riksdagen.se/sv/sa-funkar-riksdagen/riksdagsforvaltningen/verksamhet/#8db16bfd46d08fb5c137e8fccade98f2
Are parliamentary committees able to ask for government documents?
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Parliamentary committees may ask for most or all government documents; they are normally delivered in full and within an appropriate time frame.
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The rights of parliamentary committees to ask for government documents are slightly limited; some important documents are not delivered or are delivered incomplete or arrive too late to enable the committee to react appropriately.
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The rights of parliamentary committees to ask for government documents are considerably limited; most important documents are not delivered or delivered incomplete or arrive too late to enable the committee to react appropriately.
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Parliamentary committees may not request government documents.
Parliamentary committees (or indeed any persons) have the right to review all public documents in Sweden unless they are classified or part of an ongoing decision-making process.
In this respect, the Swedish system leaves very little to be desired. The problem, instead, has been the execution of these rights. In the annual reviews conducted by the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Affairs (KU) during the past several years, the committee has severely criticized the government’s central office (Regeringskansliet) for not providing documents, or for being exceedingly slow in doing so. The media, academics, and more recently, members of the Coronavirus Commission have been critical of the government in this respect.
In this respect, the Swedish system leaves very little to be desired. The problem, instead, has been the execution of these rights. In the annual reviews conducted by the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Affairs (KU) during the past several years, the committee has severely criticized the government’s central office (Regeringskansliet) for not providing documents, or for being exceedingly slow in doing so. The media, academics, and more recently, members of the Coronavirus Commission have been critical of the government in this respect.
Are parliamentary committees able to summon ministers for hearings?
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Parliamentary committees may summon ministers. Ministers regularly follow invitations and are obliged to answer questions.
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The rights of parliamentary committees to summon ministers are slightly limited; ministers occasionally refuse to follow invitations or to answer questions.
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The rights of parliamentary committees to summon ministers are considerably limited; ministers frequently refuse to follow invitations or to answer questions.
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Parliamentary committees may not summon ministers.
Parliamentary committees summon ministers who appear and respond to questions. This is most frequently the case with the annual review conducted by the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Matters, but has been used by other committees, too. Except for very few cases, summoned ministers will appear in parliamentary committees. A few years ago, there was extensive media attention on a couple of instances when former cabinet ministers declined to appear before a parliamentary committee.
The hearings occur regularly and are often broadcasted by public service television. The results of the hearings are published and accessible to everyone.
The hearings occur regularly and are often broadcasted by public service television. The results of the hearings are published and accessible to everyone.
Are parliamentary committees able to summon experts for committee meetings?
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Parliamentary committees may summon experts.
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The rights of parliamentary committees to summon experts are slightly limited.
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The rights of parliamentary committees to summon experts are considerably limited.
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Parliamentary committees may not summon experts.
Parliamentary committees may certainly summon experts. They do not usually do so as part of the regular deliberation of the committees, but rather in the form of a public hearing on some specific issue.
Are the task areas and structures of parliamentary committees suited to monitor ministries effectively?
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The match between the task areas of parliamentary committees and ministries as well as other relevant committee structures are well-suited to the effective monitoring of ministries.
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The match/mismatch between the task areas of parliamentary committees and ministries as well as other relevant committee structures are largely suited to the monitoring ministries.
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The match/mismatch between the task areas of parliamentary committees and ministries as well as other relevant committee structures are partially suited to the monitoring of ministries.
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The match/mismatch between the task areas of parliamentary committees and ministries as well as other relevant committee structures are not at all suited to the monitoring of ministries.
There is a high degree of congruence between government departments and parliamentary committees, but no perfect overlap. This is of course no coincidence. The configuration of government departments is more flexible than that of parliamentary committees, which has undergone very few changes over the last several decades. Ensuring that the committee system matches the GO’s organization in departments is essential to the efficiency of both institutions. Furthermore, the GO and the parliament (Riksdag) staff have regular meetings to ensure that the parliament and individual committees are not overloaded with government bills, but that there is a steady flow of bills across the year.
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To what extent do media in your country analyze the rationale and impact of public policies?
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A clear majority of mass media brands focus on high-quality information content analyzing the rationale and impact of public policies.
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About one-half of the mass media brands focus on high-quality information content analyzing the rationale and impact of public policies. The rest produces a mix of infotainment and quality information content.
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A clear minority of mass media brands focuses on high-quality information content analyzing public policies. Several mass media brands produce superficial infotainment content only.
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All mass media brands are dominated by superficial infotainment content.
Sweden has dropped somewhat over the past couple of years in terms of newspaper circulation. Most newspapers are experiencing a gradual shift in subscriptions from conventional print to digital formats. The overall quality of the political coverage provided by Swedish media is good, if not extremely good.
Public service radio and television in Sweden is still central to the media system. There have been discussions and Commissions concerning the future of public service but thus far no major changes have been put on the agenda. The only reform worth noting is that public service radio and television is now funded through the tax system and not, as was previously the case, by annual fees.
According to a recent report, the state of media reporting in Sweden may be described as stable and positive. Ownership consolidation has increased in the past few years, income from advertising has dropped, and newspapers compete for the business of readers who are willing to pay a subscription fee, the number of which has increased. The focus on local news has increased. Finally, and perhaps unsurprisingly, young people tend to consume their news from social media than from traditional news sources (Carlsson, 2021).
Citations:
Carlsson, Kajsa. 2021. ”Tillståndet för Nyhetsjournalistiken 2021 – en Översikt.” https://mediestudier.se/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/arsbok2021-01-carlsson.pdf
Public service radio and television in Sweden is still central to the media system. There have been discussions and Commissions concerning the future of public service but thus far no major changes have been put on the agenda. The only reform worth noting is that public service radio and television is now funded through the tax system and not, as was previously the case, by annual fees.
According to a recent report, the state of media reporting in Sweden may be described as stable and positive. Ownership consolidation has increased in the past few years, income from advertising has dropped, and newspapers compete for the business of readers who are willing to pay a subscription fee, the number of which has increased. The focus on local news has increased. Finally, and perhaps unsurprisingly, young people tend to consume their news from social media than from traditional news sources (Carlsson, 2021).
Citations:
Carlsson, Kajsa. 2021. ”Tillståndet för Nyhetsjournalistiken 2021 – en Översikt.” https://mediestudier.se/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/arsbok2021-01-carlsson.pdf
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How inclusive and open are the major parties in their internal decision-making processes?
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The party allows all party members and supporters to participate in its decisions on the most important personnel and issues. Lists of candidates and agendas of issues are open.
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The party restricts decision-making to party members. In most cases, all party members have the opportunity to participate in decisions on the most important personnel and issues. Lists of candidates and issue agendas are rather open.
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The party restricts decision-making to party members. In most cases, a number of elected delegates participate in decisions on the most important personnel and issues. Lists of candidates and issue agendas are largely controlled by the party leadership.
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A number of party leaders participate in decisions on the most important personnel and issues. Lists of candidates and issue agendas are fully controlled and drafted by the party leadership.
Politics in Sweden is party politics. The political parties shape public discourse on political issues and control public decision-making at all levels of the political system. All the major parties have developed extensive party organizations, in part supported by state subsidies. Party membership has historically been high but has declined over the last couple of decades. Elected delegates from all constituencies make decisions on party policy and programs at national conferences. These meetings are increasingly public events, used not only as forums to make decisions, but also to market the party politically. Beyond that, however, rank and file members are very rarely consulted or invited to voice their opinions on daily policy issues.
Candidate selection, too, is an internal party matter. Voters do have the opportunity to indicate support for specific candidates, however.
Over the past years, the internet has played a role in making the decision-making process within the major parties more open. In the period under review, political parties maintained an active online presence through their web sites and social media for the purpose of communicating their platform and addressing voters. This is sure to intensify during the next year ahead of the general elections.
Candidate selection, too, is an internal party matter. Voters do have the opportunity to indicate support for specific candidates, however.
Over the past years, the internet has played a role in making the decision-making process within the major parties more open. In the period under review, political parties maintained an active online presence through their web sites and social media for the purpose of communicating their platform and addressing voters. This is sure to intensify during the next year ahead of the general elections.
To what extent are economic interest associations (e.g., employers, industry, labor) capable of formulating relevant policies?
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Most interest associations are highly capable of formulating relevant policies.
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Many interest associations are highly capable of formulating relevant policies.
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Few interest associations are highly capable of formulating relevant policies.
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Most interest associations are not capable of formulating relevant policies.
Sweden has a long corporatist tradition. Although corporatism as a mode of governance has declined, economic interest associations are still important players in the policy process (Pierre, 2016).
The major business interest organizations and unions are certainly very capable of analyzing the economic situation and presenting policy proposals. As organized interests, they obviously pursue their respective agendas, but overall, the expertise and policy capacity of the major interest organizations is impressive. During the global economic crisis, for example, the interest associations showed a high degree of responsibility by not counteracting the crisis management of the government.
Citations:
Pierre, Jon. (ed.) 2016. “Oxford Handbook of Swedish Politics.” Oxford University Press. Section 10.
The major business interest organizations and unions are certainly very capable of analyzing the economic situation and presenting policy proposals. As organized interests, they obviously pursue their respective agendas, but overall, the expertise and policy capacity of the major interest organizations is impressive. During the global economic crisis, for example, the interest associations showed a high degree of responsibility by not counteracting the crisis management of the government.
Citations:
Pierre, Jon. (ed.) 2016. “Oxford Handbook of Swedish Politics.” Oxford University Press. Section 10.
To what extent are non-economic interest associations capable of formulating relevant policies?
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Most interest associations are highly capable of formulating relevant policies.
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Many interest associations are highly capable of formulating relevant policies.
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Few interest associations are highly capable of formulating relevant policies.
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Most interest associations are not capable of formulating relevant policies.
For noneconomic interest associations, their capacity to conduct analysis and produce relevant policy proposals varies significantly depending on their size.
For instance, in the environmental policy field, the major interest organizations have large staff that conduct high-quality studies and present highly relevant policy proposals. In other policy fields, small interest associations do not have the staff to produce high-quality policy proposals. Yet, if we assess the quality of noneconomic interest associations over the very broad range of all Swedish interest associations, most of them produce high-quality policy proposals (Pierre, 2016).
Citations:
Pierre, Jon. (ed.) 2016. “Oxford Handbook of Swedish Politics.” Oxford University Press.
For instance, in the environmental policy field, the major interest organizations have large staff that conduct high-quality studies and present highly relevant policy proposals. In other policy fields, small interest associations do not have the staff to produce high-quality policy proposals. Yet, if we assess the quality of noneconomic interest associations over the very broad range of all Swedish interest associations, most of them produce high-quality policy proposals (Pierre, 2016).
Citations:
Pierre, Jon. (ed.) 2016. “Oxford Handbook of Swedish Politics.” Oxford University Press.
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Does there exist an independent and effective audit office?
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There exists an effective and independent audit office.
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There exists an effective and independent audit office, but its role is slightly limited.
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There exists an independent audit office, but its role is considerably limited.
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There does not exist an independent and effective audit office.
In order to conform to international standards, such as the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI), the Swedish National Accountability Office (NAO; Riksrevisionen) was established in 2003 after the adoption of an enabling constitutional amendment (Riksrevisionen 2021). For all intents and purposes, the audit office now reports to the parliament. The mandate and mission of the audit office is such that this represents the only chain of accountability. In this respect, the constitutional role and mandate of the audit office is now in harmony with INTOSAI standard.
The NAO assesses whether public agencies follow relevant directives, rules and statutes, and whether goals are reached in an effective way. If this proves not to be the case, it provides recommendations for the improvement of agency operations. From this perspective, the NAO has the ability to assess whether the budgetary measures adopted by the parliament have followed the existing regulatory framework. The NAO also audits the government, corporations and foundations.
Citations:
Riksrevisionen. (The Swedish NAO). 2021. “Om Riksrevisionen.” https://www.riksrevisionen.se/om-riksrevisionen.html
The NAO assesses whether public agencies follow relevant directives, rules and statutes, and whether goals are reached in an effective way. If this proves not to be the case, it provides recommendations for the improvement of agency operations. From this perspective, the NAO has the ability to assess whether the budgetary measures adopted by the parliament have followed the existing regulatory framework. The NAO also audits the government, corporations and foundations.
Citations:
Riksrevisionen. (The Swedish NAO). 2021. “Om Riksrevisionen.” https://www.riksrevisionen.se/om-riksrevisionen.html
Does there exist an independent and effective ombuds office?
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There exists an effective and independent ombuds office.
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There exists an effective and independent ombuds office, but its advocacy role is slightly limited.
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There exists an independent ombuds office, but its advocacy role is considerably limited.
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There does not exist an effective and independent ombuds office.
It is fair to say that Sweden invented the ombudsman institution. Sweden currently has six ombuds offices that focus on the following issues: national agencies, legal matters, consumer matters, discrimination, children, and matters related to school pupils.
The ombuds office for legal matters (JO), which has been around the longest, is appointed by the parliament, while the government appoints the other ombudspeople, which head their own agencies (Regeringen 2022).
Assessing the effectiveness of the ombuds offices is a difficult task. Their mission is not only to follow up on complaints, but also to influence public opinion in their area of jurisdiction. Their position in the political system and in society appears to be quite strong.
Citations:
Regeringen. 2022: “Ombudsmän” https://www.regeringen.se/lattlast-information-om-regeringen-och-regeringskansliet/den-svenska-samhallsmodellen/ombudsman/
The ombuds office for legal matters (JO), which has been around the longest, is appointed by the parliament, while the government appoints the other ombudspeople, which head their own agencies (Regeringen 2022).
Assessing the effectiveness of the ombuds offices is a difficult task. Their mission is not only to follow up on complaints, but also to influence public opinion in their area of jurisdiction. Their position in the political system and in society appears to be quite strong.
Citations:
Regeringen. 2022: “Ombudsmän” https://www.regeringen.se/lattlast-information-om-regeringen-och-regeringskansliet/den-svenska-samhallsmodellen/ombudsman/
Is there an independent authority in place that effectively holds government offices accountable for handling issues of data protection and privacy?
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An independent and effective data protection authority exists.
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An independent and effective data protection authority exists, but its role is slightly limited.
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A data protection authority exists, but both its independence and effectiveness are strongly limited.
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There is no effective and independent data protection office.
The public agency charged with protecting individual privacy in Sweden was previously the Swedish Data Protection Authority (Datainspektionen; DPA). In January 2021, this agency changed its name to the Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection (Integritetsskyddsmyndigheten; IMY). The data protection regulatory reform in 2018 increased this agency’s remit, which is today to protect citizens’ personal information, including health and financial data. It works closely with similar agencies in other EU member states and with EU institutions, especially with regard to the dynamic issues produced by increasing digitalization (Integritetsskyddsmyndigheten 2021).
Citations:
Integritetsskyddsmyndigheten. 2021. “Om IMY.” https://www.imy.se
Citations:
Integritetsskyddsmyndigheten. 2021. “Om IMY.” https://www.imy.se