Sweden's parliament enters a packed week of Feb 21-28 that tests the government across three distinct arenas: a major committee marathon on Tuesday with 11 committees meeting simultaneously, three chamber plenary sessions, and a Friday EU Affairs consultation that sets Sweden's position on the Justice and Home Affairs Council dealing with immigration enforcement. The opposition's interpellation calendar adds further pressure, with ministers facing oral debates both Monday and Friday.
Why This Week Matters
This week is the culmination of several months of committee deliberation. Key energy policy legislation—including nuclear facility regulation, wind power in municipalities, and new electricity market laws—enters finalisation in the Industry Committee on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the defence committee finalises its report on civil emergency preparedness, and the social committee weighs in on elderly care and health priorities. Taken together, these reports will head to the chamber for votes in coming weeks and will shape Swedish policy for years.
Tuesday's Committee Marathon: Energy, Defence and Social Policy
Tuesday 24 February sees perhaps the most concentrated burst of parliamentary activity of the week, with at least six committees convening simultaneously at 11:00.
Industry Committee: Energy Policy at the Crossroads
The Industry Committee (NU) session (2025/26:19) is arguably the most consequential of the week. The committee will finalise its Energy Policy report (NU13), which has been under deliberation for weeks. The report deals with Sweden's ambition to rapidly expand renewable energy while maintaining nuclear capacity—a balance the Tidö government has repeatedly called “technology neutral.”
Alongside NU13, the committee continues deliberating on Industrial Policy (NU14) and Minerals Policy (NU16). The minerals question has grown in strategic importance as the EU pushes member states to develop domestic critical raw material supply chains—an area where Sweden's substantial mineral deposits put it at the centre of European debates.
The committee will also proceed with a subsidiarity review of the EU Commission's proposal on trans-European energy infrastructure (NU26, COM(2025) 1006/1007). This position will influence Sweden's stance in Brussels.
Constitutional Committee: Civil Rights and Electoral Law
The Constitutional Committee (KU) session (2025/26:29) will continue deliberations on three overlapping reports: Civil and political rights (KU28), Electoral issues (KU27), and Constitutional matters (KU30). These touch on fundamental questions about Sweden's constitutional framework at a moment when the government is under opposition scrutiny for its handling of democratic governance. The committee will also continue its annual granskning—the oversight review of the government's conduct.
Defence Committee: Civil Emergency Preparedness
The Defence Committee (FöU) session (2025/26:28) will formally finalise its report on Civil Emergency Preparedness (FöU9) and announce chamber debate for Thursday 5 March 2026. The report comes at a critical time: with Russia's war in Ukraine ongoing and Sweden's NATO membership still settling in, questions about Sweden's resilience and civil preparedness are at the top of the security agenda.
Environment Committee: EU Climate Consultations
The Environment and Agriculture Committee (MJU) session (2025/26:30) has a dense agenda dominated by EU climate consultations. Climate and Environment Minister Romina Pourmokhtari will attend in person to discuss the government's positions on:
- EU regulations on CO₂ standards for heavy vehicles (COM(2025) 784)
- Revised CO₂ standards for light commercial vehicles (COM(2025) 995)
- The EU's “Environmental Omnibus”—a sweeping package of six proposals to simplify environmental regulations (COM(2025) 980-986)
The omnibus is controversial: industry groups see it as an opportunity to reduce administrative burden; environmental groups warn of a rollback of green standards. Sweden's position in these consultations will signal whether the Kristersson government prioritises growth and competitiveness over environmental stringency.
Social Committee: Elderly Care and Language Requirements
The Social Committee (SoU) session (2025/26:30) will finalise Elderly Care (SoU21) and continue work on Health Priorities (SoU17) and E-health and Competence (SoU22). Notably, it will begin deliberation on proposition 2025/26:93—a bill introducing a language requirement in elderly care, a politically sensitive measure that the government frames as improving care quality but critics see as exclusionary.
Justice Committee: Prison Service Briefing
The Justice Committee (JuU) session (2025/26:27) will receive a briefing from Prison Service Director-General Martin Holmgren. With Sweden's prison population under pressure from gang crime convictions and plans for new prison facilities, this briefing will likely cover capacity, conditions, and rehabilitation policy.
Thursday: Full Committee Day Across All Portfolios
Thursday 26 February brings a second wave of committee sessions, with meetings confirmed for the Finance Committee (FiU), Tax Committee (SkU), Foreign Affairs Committee (UU), Civil Law Committee (CU), Social Affairs Committee (SoU), Defence Committee (FöU), Justice Committee (JuU), Environment and Agriculture (MJU), and the Industry Committee. The latter is expected to continue deliberations on Electricity Market Legislation (NU17)—a package of new laws governing Sweden's energy market architecture—and the Transport Committee (TU) will work on maritime affairs and aviation policy.
The Electricity Market: A Structural Turning Point
Thursday's Industry Committee session on new electricity market laws (NU17) is part of a broader legislative package that includes the committee reports on nuclear facilities (NU19, NU27), wind power siting (NU20), and renewable energy permits (NU18) debated in previous weeks. Together, these bills will comprehensively reshape how Sweden generates, distributes, and prices electricity—issues with direct consequences for households, industrial competitiveness, and climate targets.
Friday: EU Affairs Sets Sweden's Immigration Stance
The most strategically significant event of the week may come on Friday morning, when the EU Affairs Committee meets at 09:00 to consult with the government ahead of the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council on March 5-6. The JHA Council's agenda—not yet fully published—is expected to cover asylum policy, border management, and law enforcement cooperation across the EU.
For the Tidö government, which has staked much of its identity on strict migration policy, this consultation is an opportunity to align Sweden's positions with like-minded EU partners. The EU's New Pact on Migration and Asylum entered implementation in 2024, and member states are navigating tensions between external border enforcement and internal solidarity mechanisms. Sweden's position in the committee will signal to Brussels—and to the Swedish electorate—where the government stands on these sensitive questions.
Interpellation Debates: Ministers Under Pressure
Two rounds of interpellation debates bracket the week. On Monday February 23 and Friday February 27, ministers will face oral interrogation from MPs in the chamber. Recent interpellations filed include questions on:
- Security for elite athletes and cultural workers (åsa Eriksson, S) to Social Insurance Minister Anna Tenje (M)
- VAT on parking facilities (Marie Olsson, S) to Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson (M)
- Social dumping between municipalities (Peder Björk, S) to Civil Affairs Minister Erik Slottner (KD)
- Syria and Kurdish security in north-eastern Syria (Kadir Kasirga, S) to Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard (M)
The interpellation calendar reveals the opposition's strategy: simultaneous pressure across welfare, financial, local government, and foreign policy portfolios, forcing the government to demonstrate coherence across ministerial lines.
What to Watch This Week
- Tuesday (NU13 Energy Policy): Does the Industry Committee finalise the energy policy report with the government's technology-neutral framing intact, or do opposition amendments reshape the text?
- Tuesday (FöU9 Civil Preparedness): What does the Defence Committee's civil emergency preparedness report say about Sweden's readiness gaps? The full chamber debate is scheduled for 5 March.
- Tuesday (MJU EU Climate): How does Romina Pourmokhtari position Sweden on the EU Omnibus environmental simplification package? Sweden's stance will be closely watched by Nordic partners and industry.
- Thursday (NU17 Electricity Market): Progress on the electricity market laws package, which together with nuclear siting and renewable permits forms the backbone of Sweden's energy transition legislation.
- Friday (EU Affairs / JHA): Sweden's stated positions on the Justice and Home Affairs Council agenda—particularly on asylum policy and border management—as EU states prepare for high-stakes migration debates in March.
Data Sources and Methodology
This article is based on official Riksdag documents from parliamentary year 2025/26 retrieved via riksdag-regering-mcp: committee meeting notices HDA3NU19 (Industry Committee), HDA3KU29 (Constitutional Committee), HDA3FöU28 (Defence Committee), HDA3MJU30 (Environment Committee), HDA3SoU30 (Social Committee), and EU Affairs Committee notice for Feb 27. All data verified from the Riksdag's official database.