Tobias Baudin (S): Had three years but failed
This is a debate article. It is the writer who stands for the opinions presented in the text, not Aftonbladet.
Published 2025-10-18 10.00
Ulf Kristersson has had three years to show leadership and unite the country, but has failed. In a year there will be an election. Then Sweden can choose another direction. Choose cooperation over division, action over passivity, writes Tobias Baudin (S) in a debate article.” sizes=”(min-width: 1300px) 662px, (min-width: 1180px) 50vw, (min-width: 768px) 65vw, 100vw” loading=”eager” fetchpriority=”high” style=”aspect-ratio:1900 / 1267″/>If Ulf Kristersson had been CEO of a company with three years marked by increased costs, poor results and declining trust, he would have been fired on his feet.
But as prime minister he still remains, despite Sweden becoming poorer, more dangerous and more divided during his three years as prime minister, writes Tobias Baudin, party secretary (S).
DEBATE. When Ulf Kristersson took office as prime minister after the last election, he promised that his government would unite the country and get Sweden in order. Three years later, the reality is the opposite. Social problems have deepened, the gaps between people have grown and the Prime Minister has not managed to rally the country in crises. The responsibility for this rests heavily on Ulf Kristersson’s shoulders. He has lost control over both his government base and the development of society.
Anyone waiting for Sweden’s prime minister to start leading has had to wait a long time.
Moderates sing hate songs about their political opponents
Just take the Landerholm scandal. The prime minister appointed his childhood friend as national security adviser. Shortly thereafter, top-secret actions went astray, actions that unauthorized ill-intentioned forces could then have taken part in. When the media asked questions about the prime minister’s responsibility, he ducked
he. No introspection, no leadership, just evasions.
Ulf Kristersson likes to talk about keeping his side of politics clean. But at the same time, he looks the other way when the scandals appear in his own government documents. There, top representatives interact with people in right-wing extremist and violence-supporting circles. Party leader invites gang criminals to his wedding. And moderates sing hate songs about their political opponents. In such situations, leaders usually step forward and act. Others hide or look the other way. Ulf Kristersson belongs to the latter category.
And the weak leadership has consequences for how his government manages to attack Sweden’s social problems.
Over a hundred thousand more Swedes are unemployed today than at the last election. At the same time, Ulf Kristersson has had time to appoint three different labor market ministers in three years without succeeding in reversing the trend. An ordinary family with children has to spend tens of thousands of kroner more each year just to put food on the table. Growth has ended up in the bottom league of the EU, bankruptcies have hit records and housing construction has collapsed.
A country where faith in the future has been chipped away
At the same time, the problems in welfare are deepening. The government has put Swedish healthcare in crisis. During the years of the Tidö government, the queues have grown to record levels and the patients face an increasingly stressed and overworked staff. People should be able to feel secure in receiving good care on time.
In schools, the government still allows the interest of profit to come before the best interests of the students. Big profits disappear into the pockets of the school capitalists while the teachers are too few and the classes too large.
And despite all the talk of a crackdown on crime in the election campaign, gang violence continues to shake residential areas around our country. The explosions are increasing. The violence creeps down in the ages while too little is done to break the new recruitment.
This is the result after three years with Ulf Kristersson as prime minister. A country where faith in the future has been chipped away.
Ulf Kristersson has had three years to show leadership and unite the country, but has failed.
In a year there will be an election. Then Sweden can choose another direction. Choose cooperation over division, action over passivity.
So that Sweden can be built strong again.
Tobias Baudinparty secretary of the Social Democrats
