In an interview, Swedish Migration Minister Johan Forssell spoke to The Local's Richard Orange about the personal attacks he has received in his role, explaining why he believes immigration will play a significant role in the upcoming election. Speaking at the Almedalen political festival on Gotland, Forssell appeared more relaxed than in recent months, despite a grueling legislative schedule. Over coffee and cinnamon rolls in a ruined medieval building, he reflected on an "extremely intensive" spring, during which he managed 12 bills and navigated a breakdown in the parliamentary pairing system.
Forssell estimated that he and Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer have been responsible for over 60 percent of the Tidö Agreement, the political program established in October 2022 with the far-right Sweden Democrats. Because the government followed formal procedures—appointing inquiries and sending conclusions to consultation before drafting bills—the workload hit his ministry simultaneously. He noted that the effort has been immense, not only to deliver on the historic changes of the Tidö Agreement but also to find a solution for the deportation of certain young people.
Interestingly, Forssell revealed that the biggest problem faced by the Justice Ministry has not been dealing with the Sweden Democrats, but rather finding enough qualified judges and lawyers to hold inquiries and draft the new legislation. He admitted the role is highly demanding, stating, "I've worked on several different issues in my time as a politician, and this one is bloody well not easy, I have to say that." He described the personal toll of the debate, noting, "You have to put up with so many things and so many abusive remarks: one day you're a Nazi, the next a left-wing activist.
You get it from both sides." When asked how he handles this pressure, he cited the famous British World War II motivational poster: "Keep calm and carry on!"
Despite the pressure, Forssell expressed pride in the laws he has driven through, particularly regarding citizenship, even though a scandal over the parliamentary pairing system dominated the headlines. The controversy arose when the Sweden Democrats sent two MPs to vote whom they had promised to hold back under the pairing agreement, allowing the government to defeat an opposition motion to add transitional provisions to the citizenship law.
This legislative shift has drawn strong reactions, reminiscent of a "Read Also" headline where foreigners react to Sweden's controversial citizenship vote, with one individual expressing "I feel scammed" by the sudden policy change in Sweden.
Because of this vote, more than 100,000 people who had already applied for citizenship will have their cases decided under the new, stricter rules rather than the regulations in place when they applied, which in many cases was several years ago. The opposition parties have declared the pairing agreement broken, arguing that the Sweden Democrats cheated and can no longer be trusted. Consequently, for the remainder of this parliamentary term, all MPs must be physically present in parliament to have their votes counted.
Forssell argued that this dispute should not distract from the big picture. "We finally have a legal framework that is in line with what's in place in the rest of Europe: a language requirement, civics test, and a self-sufficiency requirement," he said, noting Sweden has not had these for 50 years. He highlighted that the number of asylum seekers entering Sweden is at its lowest level since 1985, with an upcoming Migration Agency forecast expected to show even lower figures.
A new law on deporting foreign citizens who commit crimes, taking effect in September, will make Swedish migration legislation tougher in some ways than neighboring Denmark. Forssell recalled meeting his new Danish colleague, who remarked that Danish politicians will now need to visit Sweden because Sweden will have the toughest rules. A government investigator estimates this law will lead to a six-fold increase in deportations. In August, parliament will return to pass a bill to make it harder for dependants to come to Sweden and to resolve the issue of teen deportations.
Regarding a proposal to revoke existing permanent residency permits for former asylum seekers, which was shelved earlier this year and sent to the Justice Ministry for improvement, Forssell indicated he prefers it to stay shelved. "This issue is being analysed and prepared extremely carefully and it has not moved forward that much," he said. Forssell added that there is currently no agreement between the government parties to enact it if they manage to stay in power after September's election.
While the Sweden Democrats want to enact it, Forssell emphasized "it's not government policy to do it." He cited high costs as a major issue and noted that the inquiry's chair, a former Sweden Democrat official, failed to fully investigate the pathway to citizenship for those stripped of permanent residency.
Another possible future policy that he seems lukewarm about are overseas return hubs, which are now easier for EU countries to bring in after MEPs voted through a law giving EU migration authorities much broader detention powers and allowed for the creation of deportation centres outside the bloc. Forssell expressed skepticism, pointing out that while the EU law grants new possibilities, the concept has existed for a decade without any country successfully implementing it.
Sweden is working with other Nordic countries on return hubs for rejected asylum seekers who refuse to provide identity documents or cannot be returned, but Forssell warned it is not a "silver bullet." He pointed to the UK's plan to send rejected asylum seekers to Rwanda, which turned into a legal fiasco, as a warning of the complexities. "It can easily go wrong – take Great Britain as an example. I think there are probably more effective tools."
Looking ahead to next September's election, Forssell questioned whether a new Social Democrat-led government would reverse his reforms. "When it comes to the issues of deporting criminals, poor conduct, and even on citizenship, there is political conflict around this," he said, adding that "any law that can be passed can also be reversed." Although the Almedalen festival marked the unofficial start of the election campaign, and some right-wing leaders like Christian Democrat leader Ebba Busch showed signs of a softening stance—expressing sadness that a young immigrant asked her "are you going to deport me?"—Forssell believes migration will remain a major campaign issue.
" there's been this narrative that migration is no longer an issue, that now we should talk about other things," he said. "But I've said the whole time that I think this election is going to contain a large element of migration – just look at all the other elections out in Europe. It usually does."
