From immigration to the environment: Five things we learned about Sweden's new right-wing government
Sweden's new government formation should be approved by parliament in Stockholm on Monday, bringing the Moderates, led by likely Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, into a formal three-party coalition deal with the Christian Democrats and Liberals.
But it's the far-right Sweden Democrats, the biggest of the four parties in terms of MPs, who will be a not-so-silent partner outside the government technically but holding the reigns of power in practice.
The new government has released its 62-page policy agenda, so what have we learned about the direction Sweden will take? Here's our look at five key areas:
The whole relationship between the three parties which form the coalition government, and their partners, the Sweden Democrats, is underpinned by the agreement they've all signed.
And it's clear that the far-right anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats hold a lot of power. They might not have cabinet minister jobs, but as the biggest party out of the four, they're outside the government in name only.
"Parties that are not in government have full and equal influence on issues in the cooperation projects in the same way as the parties in government," the 'Tidö Agreement' — named after the castle where the negotiations took place — states in black and white.
The Sweden Democrats' influence goes even deeper: they'll have a say in drafting any and all new laws, amendments to regulations and budget decisions. And they'll be able to place their own political operatives into government ministries to check up on the work of the other parties who hold ministries handling the seven core policy areas the government wants to tackle during its first year.
There are also restrictions in the agreement on parties in the government working with
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