The Act on State Financial Support to Political Parties (1972, amended 2014) and the Election Act 2005 (amended 2014) have seen changes following the Act Amending - Act on State Financial Support to Political Parties (1972, amended 2004) - 2014 and the Act on Transparency of Party Financing (2014, amended 2016). The main changes brought about alterations to some provisions on public funding and the reporting requirements of political parties.

There are few limits on the private income of parties in Sweden. There are bans on donations from foreign entities but there are no bans on donations from corporations, trade unions or from anonymous donors. There are also no limits on the amount of donation that can be received both during and outside of election periods.

There is public funding available for political parties. This is allocated according to the share of votes in the previous election, the representation in the elected body, participation in the election and the share of seats in the previous election. Furthermore, funding is not available to parties that have received donations from anonymous donors. Public funding can be used for campaign spending. There are no provisions on subsidized media access but there are provisions on indirect public funding from other sources such as the use of premises for campaign meetings.

For regulations on spending, there is a ban on vote buying but there are no bans on state resources being used in favour or against a political party or candidate. There are no limits on spending for parties and candidates.

Parties are required to keep accounts which must be made public. These do not have to reveal the identity of donors. Accounts are overseen by the Administrative Court and the Kammarkollegiet. There are sanctions in the form of fines for those breaching the provisions of the law.

Swedish financial disclosure law makes no obligations for Ministers and Civil Servants. Only Members of Parliament are subject to making declarations as to the Disclosure Act (2008, amended in 2016). These declarations must include real estate serving a business purpose, any income-generating employment which is not temporary, shares held in private companies, government contracts held, and board or accounting positions in enterprises. Should Members of Parliament already have a contract of financial nature with an employer which takes effect after the end of their mandate they must include this in the declaration. Family members must not be included in disclosure statements.

Members of Parliament first submit their statements when taking office, and submit any changes within four weeks after they arise. No sanctions are specified for MPs who fail to make a declaration, or make false statements. No enforcement body is specified to verify submissions, their accuracy, or to impose possible sanctions. Declarations are submitted with a register of parliament. They are not accessible to the public.

(Note: The Head of State is a monarch and thus exempted from disclosure laws.)

The Swedish Public Employment Act (1994, last amended 2016) specifies restrictions governing conflicts of interests for Ministers and Civil Servants. It refers mainly to them not pursuing additional employment, holding another office, or engaging in any activity which may damage their integrity. This would restrict Ministers and Civil Servants from owning private or public firms, and from holding managerial or advisory positions in companies. Ministers face similar requirements which are specified in the Constitution of Sweden (1974, last amended 2015). It includes a general clause on Ministers avoiding any activity which may impair public confidence in their office. Additionally, it prevents Ministers from engaging in managerial or advisory positions in public or private companies via a clause which forbids following any other employment.

All the while, no sanctions are specified for public officials who violate any of these requirements. The Committee on the Constitution is responsible for providing guidance and supervision to Ministers, MPs, and Civil Servants. It is also charged with law enforcement for Members of Parliament. Meanwhile, no enforcement body is specified for Ministers and Civil Servants.

(Note: The Head of State is a monarch and thus exempted from conflicts of interests laws.)

The freedom of information framework in Sweden is established by its Constitution (1974), the Freedom of the Press Act (1949), and the Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act (2009, amended 2015). The FOI law (2009) applies to all decision-making assemblies and limited companies, partnerships, for-profit associations and foundations where municipalities or county councils exercise legally decisive influence.

Specific exemptions to disclosure are outlined in the aforementioned laws, and the Personal Data Act (1998). No public interest test exists whereby exemptions to disclosure may be overridden in cases where disclosure of information benefits the public interest.

Appeals are presented to an administrative court of appeal. If the party whose application has been rejected is a central government authority, the appeal is presented to the Government instead of to an administrative court of appeal. Decisions of Parliament, the Government, the Supreme Court and the Supreme Administrative Court cannot be appealed.

There are no sanctions specified in the law for violations of FOI provisions, nor are there any enforcement or oversight bodies tasked with managing implementation.

The Swedish public procurement system is regulated by the Public Procurement Act (2007) and Utilities Act (2007) and other legislations – e.g. Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act (2009) – also include specific rules related to government tendering. The public procurement body is the National Agency for Public Procurement, which is an independent organization.

The lowest minimum thresholds for conducting a public procurement tender are:

▪         SEK 534,890 (ca. EUR 55,000) for goods, works and services

The minimum number of bidders is 5 for restricted procedures and 3 for negotiated procedures and competitive dialogue. The minimum submission period is 52 days for open procedures, 40 days for restricted procedures and 37 for negotiated procedures from dispatch date. The final beneficial owners have to not have to be disclosed when placing a bid, but authorities are entitled to request this information.

There is no preferential treatment for SMEs or domestic companies, but sustainability factors can be considered during the awarding process. There are several options for bid exclusion: conviction for participation in criminal organization, corruption, fraud, money laundering, bankruptcy, judgment for professional practice, guilty of professional misconduct, outstanding tax or social security liabilities, failure to provide information or providing false information. Bids can be also excluded because of abnormally low bid prices.

In the bid evaluation phase, there are conflict of interest restrictions on the composition of the evaluation committee. However, no form of independence of  the contracting authority is mandated for the evaluation committee.

There is no arbitration procedure, as each case goes to the Administrative Court located in the contracting authority’s district.