Sweden Today:

Daylight Saving Time in Sweden / State official's expenses under investigation / Sweden lowers estimate of incoming refugees / Pope Francis to visit Sweden / High hopes for the Game of Thrones filming location on Gotland  

  • Winter time in Sweden. Sweden turns back the clock on Sunday, October 30.
  • Daylight Saving Time in Sweden
    (National) The dark days have arrived in Sweden and turning back the clock occurs on Sunday, October 30. But a growing number of politicians want to see winter hours abolished. Maintaining summer hours, it is felt, would allow for more daylight during the afternoon and would give winter weary Swedes greater exposure to the health giving benefits of light. The EU dictates common time standards but more and more Swedish officials want to see those standards become a thing of the past.

  • State official's expenses under investigation
    (National) Secretary of State Erik Bromander has done a lot of traveling since October 2014, including 27 trips abroad at a cost of SEK 829,000 ($92,700). These costs have far exceeded those of other state secretaries. It is reported that Bromander often flies in business class (despite rules of booking at lowest prices) and often has a good deal of spare time during such trips. He is presently on a business trip in Southeast Asia.

  • Sweden lowers estimate of incoming refugees
    (National) Swedish Migration Board (Migrationsverket) has lowered its forecast for asylum applicants in 2017. In a July report, 51,2000 new arrivals were expected; Migrationsverket has lowered that estimate to 36,700. Several factors may be contributing to the decrease in numbers including border controls and long waits for asylum assessment.

  • Pope Francis to visit Sweden
    (National) With only a small minority of Catholics in Sweden, the Nordic nation is often neglected in papal outreach. Next week, however, Pope Francis will visit Lund and Malmö to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Reformation Day. The Pope’s visit is the first since Pope John Paul II visited Sweden in 1989 during a mini-tour through Scandinavia.

  • High hopes for the Game of Thrones filming location
    (Entertainment) The Line Gotland production company has sent materials and photographs to HBO in a pitch to make Gotland the next venue for filming the blockbuster television series, Game of Thrones. Gotland, with its medieval cities and sites, would be a fitting location for Tyrion, Daenerys and Arya to play out their next drama. Should the pitch be accepted, it would mean several hundred people — from stars to film crew — would be living on the island for a number of months.
    For more info on The Line Gotland, see www.thelinegotland.se