Municipal corruption in Sweden: those responsible go free while few cases are reported to police
A review of 80 municipal scandals shows that those responsible are rarely prosecuted. In Ystad, a security company paid for dinners and trips for a municipal official.
Pattern of impunity in Swedish municipalities
Uppdrag granskning and SVT's local news have examined suspected corruption and irregularities in the country's municipalities and found a recurring pattern: responsible officials often escape lightly and very few cases are reported to the police.
The review of 80 municipal scandals shows that even fewer matters lead to prosecution – despite the fact that municipalities handle enormous sums of taxpayers' money and manage most aspects of citizens' daily lives.
Ystad: dinners, trips and a 700-million-krona contract
One of the most scrutinised cases concerns Ystad municipality. There, a municipal official received dinners and trips from a security company with which he entered into a contract – a contract estimated to be worth approximately 700 million kronor. Two municipal directors who attempted to raise the alarm had to leave their posts. Officials who had participated in so-called spirits trips also left the municipality.
Those charged were later acquitted in district court. Today, Ystad municipality is still struggling to extricate itself from the security contracts that were entered into.
Natali Engstam Phalén, corruption expert at the police's national operational unit NOA, states that convictions in this type of case can be difficult to achieve. However, she considers it unfortunate that the Ystad case was never appealed.
– When you have this type of evidence, a review at the next level of court should be welcomed, says Engstam Phalén.
The municipal council chair who was in power when questions about the expensive contracts began to be raised has not been willing to comment on the dismissal of the first municipal director. Paula Nilsson (M), municipal council chair in Ystad today, writes that the second municipal director's departure was not related to work against suspected corruption, but rather to the need to implement necessary changes following the shortcomings that were identified.
OECD directs sharp criticism at Sweden
In its latest review, the OECD has again criticised Sweden for insufficient capacity to combat corruption. The organisation points to insufficient resources on the investigative side and a court practice which, according to the OECD, leads to excessive evidentiary requirements.
Engstam Phalén argues that part of the explanation is a lack of problem awareness.
– There is a perception that Sweden is a low-corruption country, and that affects understanding that corruption actually exists here too, she says.
Culture of silence and whistleblowers who suffer
Former prosecutor-general Thomas Forsberg highlights a culture of silence as a central problem. He notes that whistleblowers tend to suffer when they point out irregularities, and that the whistleblower systems required by legislation do not always function as intended.
– There would need to be better and more effective oversight here, says Forsberg.
SVT News reports that reporters at the editorial office who work on municipal investigations encounter the same pattern time and again: revelations are published, but action is not taken.
What is corruption?
Corruption means abusing a position of power, trust or standing in order to gain an improper advantage for oneself or another. It can take the form of bribes, embezzlement, nepotism, extortion, conflicts of interest and money laundering.
The risks are significant: damaged trust in the public sector, diminished legal certainty, distorted competition and waste of taxpayers' money, according to Transparency Sweden, the Prosecution Authority and SKR.
Source: SVT Nyheter