STOCKHOLM, June 21 (Xinhua) – Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Lofven was thrown into a no – confidence vote in parliament on Monday, as a majority of MPs supported his resignation.
The Riksdag approved the Prime Minister’s motion of censure with 181 affirmative votes, more than the 175 votes required by Parliament with 349 seats. Meanwhile, 109 voted against and 51 abstained.
Lofven thus became the first sitting prime minister to be beaten in a no-confidence motion in Swedish history.
Distrust was aroused last week by the Left Party over plans from Lofven’s Social Democrats to facilitate rent controls over newly built rental apartments.
Since the Left Party does not have the required number of MPs to present such a proposal on its own, it was eventually done by the anti-immigration party Sweden Democrats.
The Conservative parties, the Moderates and the Christian Democrats, supported the proposal, despite the fact that they see a rent reform as necessary to solve the country’s shortage of housing.
After the 2018 election, the Social Democrats formed a government together with the Greens after reaching an agreement with two less liberal parties after four months of negotiations. The simple rent control was one of many requirements set by these supporting parties.
Lofven’s death left the country in political uncertainty just 15 months before the next general election. There are now two possible results according to the Swedish constitution.
Lofven now has one week to decide whether it should be a quick election, which must be held within three months. If he decides not to do so, the Speaker of Parliament will be tasked with forming a new government based on the 2018 election results. Regardless of the outcome, the next government will rule until September 2022 when the next general election is held.
Recent opinion polls, however, show that the outcome of a quick election could make it just as difficult to form a new government.
“We will now consider which way to go,” Lofven told a news conference after Parliament’s session.
Source: sn.dk