Communication and media
Listed below are the latest news articles published on the Swedish NAO website. Previous news related to our reports and review results can be accessed from our reports page or by using the website search in the page header.
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Increased overcrowding among households receiving housing allowance
Despite the fact that the central government annually spends almost SEK 5 billion on housing allowance, the proportion of overcrowding among households is increasing. At the same time, the allowance has lifted a large number of households out of absolute poverty, according to the Swedish National Audit Office’s audit.
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Few convicted offenders receive treatment within the Swedish Prison and Probation Service
Only a small proportion of offenders serving a custodial or non-custodial sentence obtain and complete treatment aimed at counteracting their risk of reoffending. Staff shortages and overcrowded prisons are the main reasons, according to the audit of the Swedish National Audit Office (“the Swedish NAO”).
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Exception to sick leave rules improves work prospects
Individuals on long-term sick leave have better prospects of returning to their regular job with the same number of working hours if their capacity to work is assessed using the new exception that was introduced in 2021. However, the Swedish Social Insurance Agency uses the exception unnecessarily often, according to the audit of Swedish National Audit Office (“the Swedish NAO”).
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Inadequate identity investigations in Sweden
State initiatives to establish the identity of individuals entering Sweden are not sufficiently effective. These deficiencies pose a heightened risk of identity-related crime and undue payments from welfare systems.
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Neglected management of national parks and nature reserves
The management of Sweden’s most valuable natural areas is neglected. The shortcomings are mainly due to inadequate funding and follow-up that is not fit for purpose.
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The Swedish National Audit Office elected onto the Governing Board of EUROSAI
In connection with the congress that is held every three years, the Swedish National Audit Office was elected onto the Governing Board of EUROSAI last week. The tenure is six years and, together with Poland, we will have a special responsibility for a working area concerned with institutional capacity building.
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The Swedish Inheritance Fund should be wound up
The Swedish Inheritance Fund receives more money than it can distribute, while at the same time the controls performed on the organisations applying for grants are inadequate. The Swedish National Audit Office (the Swedish NAO) recommends that the Fund be replaced with a more robust system for managing the legacies of deceased persons without heirs or a will.
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Shortcomings in state compulsory care of children and youths
Care and treatment at the special residential homes for young people of the National Board of Institutional Care is neither adequate nor sufficiently good. Reasons for the deficiencies include inadequately trained staff, unstructured treatment activities and substandard conditions.
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Targets partly missed in the corporatisation of the Swedish Road Administration and Rail Administration
The state-owned companies Svevia and Infranord were formed to create better competition, greater productivity and efficiency, as well as lower prices in the civil engineering market. The audit of the Swedish National Audit Office (“the Swedish NAO”) shows that the purpose of the corporatisation has only been partially fulfilled.
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Inadequate interventions when children are suspected of serious crimes
Serious crime among children is a growing problem in Sweden. The audit of the Swedish National Audit Office (“the Swedish NAO”) shows that the interventions of the state are not sufficiently effective, and that clearer national governance is needed.
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Shortcomings in state preventive efforts to combat money laundering
The preventive efforts of the state to combat money laundering fall short in effectiveness. The Government’s management of the anti-money laundering supervision system is weak, while at the same time the supervision of the county administrative boards and Finansinspektionen (the Swedish financial supervisory authority) is not sufficiently effective.
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Inadequate efforts for information security in health and social care
Health and social care providers handle large amounts of sensitive personal data digitally, for example in medical records. The central government is responsible for supporting their information security work and also conducts supervision. The audit of the Swedish National Audit Office (“the Swedish NAO”) shows that the central government’s work needs to be more effective.
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Inadequate measures for children’s rights
Sweden ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (“the CRC”) more than 30 years ago, and in 2020 it became law in Sweden. The audit of the Swedish National Audit Office (“the Swedish NAO”) shows that the state has not taken adequate measures for the CRC to have sufficient impact in practice.
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Prize for the best performance audit report awarded to the Supreme Audit Institution of Uganda
The Supreme Audit Institution of Uganda (Office of the Auditor General) has been awarded the prize for the best performance audit report within Afrosai-E – the organisation for Supreme Audit Institutions in English-speaking countries in Africa.
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Shortcomings in the evaluating and reporting development aid
The monitoring of Swedish development aid provides a great deal of information regarding output and outcomes of contributions, but needs a stronger emphasis on assessing long term impact. In addition, there are shortcomings in the Government’s reporting of the results of development aid to the Riksdag.
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Flawed protection of individuals under threat
State efforts to protect individuals under threat are flawed in several different respects. It is recommended that the Government and relevant agencies take measures to improve protection.
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Major shortcomings in long-term infrastructure planning
The Government has compromised long-term infrastructure planning through its management of the Swedish Transport Administration. The Swedish Transport Administration’s weak cost control has exacerbated the situation. This has led to decreased mobility and more road deaths than would otherwise have been possible.
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Weak governance and unclear effects of Business Sweden’s activities
There are several shortcomings in how the Government manages the partly state-owned Business Sweden. It is recommended that the Government consider whether the current unique hybrid form of the operations is best suited to achieving central government goals.
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Lowering the ceiling for tax deduction on home repair services is cost effective
Tax deduction aims to reduce undeclared labour and increase labour supply. To increase cost effectiveness, the Government should lower the ceiling for the maximum deduction amount and use more effective ways of combating undeclared labour and other working life crime.
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Fiscal policy in line with the framework but reporting should be improved
The Swedish National Audit Office has reviewed the Government’s proposed fiscal policy in the fiscal policy bills in 2023. The overall conclusion is that reporting is done in accordance with the fiscal policy framework, but that several important improvements should be made.
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Limited opportunities to prevent improper prescription of pharmaceuticals
Today, the central government and the regions have limited possibilities to prevent the prescription of medicinal products to the wrong people or for the wrong purpose. This puts patients in danger and entails substantial costs to society. The Swedish National Audit Office calls on the Government to improve supervision.
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Weak central government control of the emergency number 112
SOS Alarm falls short of the targets on the length of time it should take before a call to 112 is answered. Average call answer times also vary depending on where the calls come from. This is partly because central government control is not fully developed, leading to inefficiency, according to the Swedish National Audit Office’s audit.
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The Riksbank’s purchase of securities: limited effect at a high cost
The Swedish National Audit Office does not find any evidence that the Riksbank’s extensive purchase of securities has had appreciable effects on inflation. The Riksbank underestimated the risks, and the purchases will lead to hefty losses.
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Shortcomings in higher education institutions’ management of research data requiring protection
Swedish higher education institutions do not have effective information security to manage research data requiring protection, according to the Swedish National Audit Office’s audit. Higher education institutions often lack knowledge both about which data needs protecting and how it should be protected.
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Major shortcomings in revoking residence permits
If a person is no longer permitted to stay in Sweden, their residence permit must be revoked. The Swedish National Audit Office’s audit shows that there are thousands of cases where this has not been done.
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Controls of subsidised employment need to be more effective
The central government spends SEK 18 billion every year on employment subsidy programmes for around 150,000 people. The Swedish National Audit Office’s audit shows that the design of these programmes can facilitate misuse and that some control elements are ineffective.
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Lack of equal treatment in compulsory land acquisition by the central government
Despite previous criticism of shortcomings, differences persist in government agencies’ treatment of property owners who are forced to give up or concede use of their land. Above all, it concerns the disparities in how compensation is determined, according to the Swedish National Audit Office’s audit.
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Major risk of incorrect compensation for high sick pay costs
The design of the system for compensating employers for high sick pay costs presents a major risk of incorrect payments. The Swedish National Audit Office recommends more controls and better opportunities to share information between agencies. In addition, the obligation of employers to provide information should be strengthened, and combined with financial penalties.
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Insufficient central government measures for an efficient electricity system
The Government and government agencies have not implemented measures efficiently enough for the electricity system to evolve in line with the overall energy policy objective. Tardy action, short-termism and poor impact assessments are the main shortcomings, according to the Swedish National Audit Office’s audit.
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Attempts to reduce waiting times in health care have been inefficient
The Government has made several efforts to reduce waiting times in health care. The Swedish National Audit Office’s audit shows that these efforts have had little impact and that waiting times remain long.
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Samhall does not fully fulfil its public policy assignment
Samhall fails to provide stimulating jobs for its employees. Sizeable staff groups and an all too uniform offering of work tasks limits its possibilities to offer matching jobs and thereby work-based development, which is the purpose of the operations.
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Incomplete and partly embellished picture of amended income taxes
During the years 2011–2023, annual income taxes were reduced by SEK 100 billion. The Swedish National Audit Office’s audit shows that the Government presented the Riksdag with an incomplete picture of what the effects would be.
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Sweden is not ready to handle old solar panels and wind turbine blades
Sweden is not ready to manage large anticipated future quantities of used solar panels and wind turbine blades. The Government, the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, and the Swedish Energy Agency need to take measures to ensure that these products can be reused or recycled as far as possible.
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Several risks to the implementation and effectiveness of the greenhouse gas reduction mandate
The reduction mandate contributes to Sweden’s chances of reaching its climate objectives. However, the current design is not fully feasible and risks leading to a number of unforeseen consequences. The Swedish National Audit Office (Swedish NAO) recommends that the Government produce better assessments ahead of new decisions.
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Sweden’s national communicable disease control needs to be strengthened
National communicable disease control works well under normal circumstances, but needs to be strengthened to increase the capacity to deal with future pandemics. Shortcomings in the regulatory framework, inadequate systems and data for national surveillance, and shared responsibility for infection prevention and control impact the effectiveness of disease control.
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Efforts to strengthen information and cyber security are inefficient
The Government’s efforts to strengthen information and cyber security in Sweden are inefficient. This is due in part to shortcomings in the national cyber security strategy, and in part because the Government’s control is weak and fragmented.
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Shortcomings in police management of volume crime
Police handling of volume crime is inefficient. The shortcomings are in part due to the fact that the police have not succeeded in staffing the local police districts to a sufficient extent, do not carry out essential skills development and set limits for the number of civilian employees that are too strict.
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Special events against serious crime can do more harm than good
When the Swedish Police Authority employs the ‘special event’ management approach to combat serious crime over a long period of time, it does more harm than good. In particular, this is because it often involves transferring resources, which has adverse implications in the local police districts that have to provide resources.
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Strengthening control on grants to civil society is necessary
Central government control of grants to civil society organisations is too weak. There is thus a risk of fraud and misuse, which may mean that urgent activities are crowded out and that confidence in central government grants is undermined.
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Agencies’ digital services need to improve
Government agencies’ work on developing digital services is proceeding slowly and has quality deficiencies, making it difficult for private individuals to fully use the services. The agencies need to improve digital services, and the Government needs to intensify efforts to enable agencies to share information with each other.
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