The Reinfeldt cabinet () was the government of Sweden from 6 October 2006 to 3 October 2014. It was a coalition government between the four parties in the centre-right Alliance for Sweden: the Moderate Party, the Centre Party, the Liberal People's Party, and the Christian Democrats, led by Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt of the Moderate Party. It was the longest-serving consecutive non-Social Democratic led government since the first cabinet of Erik Gustaf Boström from 1891 to 1900.
The cabinet was installed following the 2006 general election which ousted the Social Democrats after twelve years in power. It began as a majority government, but continued as a minority government after the 2010 general election. Following a defeat in the 2014 general election, it was succeeded by the centre-left Löfven I cabinet.
Ministers
Party breakdown Party breakdown of cabinet ministers: Moderate Party 13 Centre Party 4 Liberal People's Party 4 Christian Democrats 3
New ministries Ministry of Employment, belonged to the Ministry of Industry, Employment and Communications in the cabinet of Göran Persson. Ministry of Culture, belonged to the Ministry of Education and Culture in the cabinet of Göran Persson. Ministry of Environment was before called the Ministry of Sustainable Development. Ministry of Integration and Gender Equality, belonged to the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in the cabinet of Göran Persson.
Policy of the cabinet The new government was presented on 6 October 2006. The following reforms were proposed: Communication and transportation: The tax on automotive fuels will be raised because of inflation adjustment, by 9 öre per litre for gasoline and 6 öre per litre for diesel (excluding VAT).Tyngre börda för bilismen, Näringsliv24, October 20, 2006 Culture: The new government plans to reintroduce entrance fees to the country's 21 state-operated museums.Free museum entry to be abolished , The Local, October 11, 2006. Third-party liability premiums for vehicle insurance will be raised. The current operator's license for the public service broadcasters Sveriges Television, Sveriges Radio and Sveriges Utbildningsradio will come up for renegotiation in three years, instead of six as negotiated with the outgoing government.Sändningstillstånd kan bli kortare för public service , The Local, October 11, 2006. Education: The reform of the secondary education (gymnasium) which was to take effect from 1 January 2007 will be scrapped and instead the new government will start planning for a deeper reform to take place some time before 2010.Regeringen stoppar gymnasiereform, Upsala Nya Tidning, October 11, 2006 Government agencies: The following government agencies will be closed down: Swedish Integration Board (), National Institute for Working Life (), Swedish Animal Welfare Agency () and the County Labour Boards ().Fler myndighetsnedläggningar utreds, Svenska Dagbladet, October 23, 2006 All agencies are being scrutinized for reformation. Heads of agencies to be made into merit based appointments. Foreign aid: The monetary foreign aid's goal and what countries receiving aid is being reconsidered.
Controversies and resignations
On 7 October 2006, the day after the new cabinet was announced two of the ministers, the Minister of Foreign Trade Maria Borelius and the Minister for Culture Cecilia Stegö Chilò, admitted that they had previously employed persons to take care of their children without paying the appropriate taxes. On 11 October 2006 it came to light that Cecilia Stegö Chilò and her husband had not paid their TV license for the last 16 years. On 12 October 2006 it emerged that two other ministers in the cabinet had neglected to pay the television license; Maria Borelius and the Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy, Tobias Billström.Ministers could be reported to police over TV fee , The Local, October 12, 2006. Radiotjänst i Kiruna AB, the private agency tasked with collecting the license fee, filed criminal charges against Cecilia Stegö Chilò, Maria Borelius and Tobias Billström.Ministers reported to police for unpaid TV licences , The Local, October 13, 2006.
On 14 October 2006 Maria Borelius resigned as Minister of Foreign Trade. On 16 October 2006, just two days after Maria Borelius' resignation, Minister for Culture Cecilia Stegö Chilò resigned as well.Second Swedish minister resigns , The Local, October 16, 2006.
The Minister for Defence, Mikael Odenberg, resigned on 5 September 2007 as he thought the budget cuts his department would face were to high.
On 29 March 2012 Minister for Defence, Sten Tolgfors, resigned due to Project Simoom.
Public perception In public opinion survey conducted by Aftonbladet/Sifo in late 2006, the Swedish public was asked to rate each of the new ministers on a 5-graded scale. The average result for the 22 ministers was 2.93.Aftonbladet, January 4, 2007 (not online). This is higher than any of the rates that the Social Democratic Persson cabinet ever received during its years in power, and the highest ratings ever since the surveys started in 1996.Erixon, Dick, "Högsta betyg för svensk regering någonsin", January 10, 2007.
From the 2006 Swedish general election the opinions for the Reinfeldt cabinet have declined steadily from a level of about 51% down to a level about 40%,Synovate/Temo Opinion research which election researchers generally explain as more than what could be expected due to normal inter-election popularity fall. Center-right newspapers in Sweden criticize the cabinet for not being pedagogically proficient, while the opposition newspapers just connects the impopularity of the cabinet with the scandals and the performed practical politics.
Implemented reforms Working tax cuts Considerably raised fees for unemployment funds, linked to the rate of unemployment among the members of each fund (introduced January 2007, abolished January 2014) resulting in large membership losses of unemployment funds and trade unionsKjellberg, Anders (2009) "The Swedish Ghent system and trade unions under pressure" Transfer no 3-4 2009 (pp. 481–504). ISSN 1024-2589Anders Kjellberg (2011) "The Decline in Swedish Union Density since 2007" Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies (NJWLS) Vol. 1. No 1 (August 2011), pp. 67-93 Municipal allowance Deduction for certain household services, so-called RUT deduction Abolished compulsory military service High Schools reforms and new grading system for the entire school system Reforming the legal framework of the National Defence Radio Establishment (FRA-law) Implemented the Enforcement Directive (IPRED) Defence Act of 2009 Abolished the state monopoly on pharmaceuticals Deregulated railroad traffic Radio frequencies for mobile broadband in 800 MHz bandDagens Nyheter Liberalisation of the Alcohol Law Abolition of the Swedish Cinema Office Abolition of compulsory student union Deductability of gifts to nonprofit organisations Reforms of the health insurance system Decreased restaurant VAT from 25 to 12 percent, to the same level as for any other food. Legalisation of same-sex marriage Corporate tax rate lowered from 26.3% to 22%.
References
External links The Government and the Government Offices of Sweden Statement of Government Policy (6 October 2006)