The repercussions of the Sweden Democrats' decision to defy Swedish parliamentary convention to get new citizenship rules passed without transitional rules are continuing to be felt.

But what are the long-term consequences of the Sweden Democrats' willingness to break the rules governing Swedish politics? And could there be a price for Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's moderate party?

Moderate veteran Mikael Odenberg, a former defence minister and former group leader for the party in parliament, thinks there could. In this interview with Richard Orange, he explains why.

READ ALSO:

• Former defence minister accuses Sweden Democrats of 'sabotaging' citizenship vote

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This week we discuss the talk about whether the rule of law is threatened in Sweden, as many lawyers are now arguing.

We also ask why things got heated in the Riksdag this week.

Why are some museums saying they’re being forced out of Stockholm?

And we finish up with a tricky quiz on Swedish society.

Host James Savage is joined this week by panelists Emma Löfgren and Mandy Pipher.

Here are links to some of the topics discussed in the episode:

• More than 1,800 lawyers warn rule of law being dismantled in Sweden

• Sweden Democrat MP accused of threatening behaviour in parliament

• QUIZ: Can you pass The Local's mock Swedish citizenship test?

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This week’s episode is sponsored by SULF, the Swedish Association of University Teachers and Researchers.

SULF was instrumental recently in securing residence permit exemptions for academics and is consistently working hard to be as accessible as possible for English speakers in Sweden.

So if you are a PhD student or university teacher in Sweden you’ll find SULF a great place to meet like-minded people who are fighting hard for academic freedom and the rights of researchers here.

You can find out more on the English-language section of the SULF website.

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Please visit the link that applies to you and get a 40% discount on Membership+

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• For new members: Get Membership+

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Sweden is introducing a stricter new citizenship law from June 6th. But there will be no transitional provisions for the 100,000 people waiting in the citizenship queue.

That’s unless opposition politicians manage to force lawmakers to vote again on transitional rules after the previous vote was marred by cheating accusations at the end of last month, as The Local was first to report.

Last week our reporter Mandy Pipher caught up with Åsa Holmes, the head of the Swedish Migration Agency’s citizenship unit in Gothenburg to find out how the agency is planning to assess cases after the June changes come into force. And will applicants be able to get a refund now that Sweden has moved the goal posts?

READ ALSO:

• How will the Swedish Migration Agency handle citizenship cases after June 6th?

Sweden in Focus Extra is a podcast for The Local's Membership+ subscribers.

Sign up to Membership+ now and get early, ad-free access to a full-length episode of the Sweden in Focus podcast every weekend, as well as Sweden in Focus Extra every Wednesday.

Please visit the link that applies to you and get a 40% discount on Membership+

• For signed-in members: Upgrade to Membership+
• For new members: Get Membership+

Read more about Membership+ in our help centre.

Become a member at https://www.thelocal.se/podcasts/podcast-offer?tpcc=padlock.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.