Sweden and the EU
Sweden has been a member of the European Union, EU, since 1 January 1995. This means that some decisions that were previously taken in the Swedish Riksdag are nowadays taken jointly with other EU countries.
This applies, for example, to rules for trade with countries outside the EU, rules for agricultural subsidies and rural development and annual Baltic Sea fishing quotas. Legislation relating, for example, to taxes, health care and education is not decided at EU level.
In the EU context, the role of the Government is to represent Sweden in the European Council and the Council of the European Union, which is often referred to as the council of ministers. The Prime Minister has overall responsibility for the development and coordination of Sweden's EU policy. The Prime Minister's Office also includes the Minister for EU Affairs and the EU Department. In close cooperation with the Prime Minister's Secretariat, the EU Department is responsible for EU issues of a horizontal nature and coordinates instructions to Sweden's Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels.
If you want more information about developments in a specific area of policy, you contact in the first instance the ministry responsible for the matter or the ministries' officials at Sweden's Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels, which is the Government Offices' extended arm in the EU.
