Newsdeck

COVID-19

Sweden starts critical look at its pandemic response

Sweden starts critical look at its pandemic response
epa08509389 An information sign ask people to keep social distance due to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, where people stroll, sunbathe and swim at a bathing jetty in Malmo, Sweden, 25 June 2020, during a heatwave with temperatures over 30 degrees Celcius. EPA-EFE/Johan Nilsson/TT *** SWEDEN OUT ***

STOCKHOLM, June 30 (Reuters) - Sweden on Tuesday announced a commission to evaluate its response to the novel coronavirus, reacting to criticism over a death toll that has far exceeded that of its neighbours.

More than 5,300 Swedes have died compared to around 250 in Norway, 600 in Denmark and 325 in Finland, all of which have populations around half the size.

Sweden, unlike the rest of Scandinavia, chose not to close schools and businesses to fight the spread of the virus.

“It is not a question of whether Sweden is going to change as a result of this – the question is how,” Prime Minister Stefan Lofven told a news conference.

The commission has a broad mandate to look at how the virus arrived in Sweden, how it spread, the government’s and other authorities’ response, and the effect on equality.

Sweden’s response to the virus outbreak, which has relied mainly on voluntary measures and common sense hygiene rules, has led to its being snubbed by its neighbours and other countries in Europe that have kept their borders shut to Swedish tourists.

Its toll is still lower than in some European countries, such as Britain, which has one of the worst death rates in the world.

Criticism in Sweden has focused mainly on the death toll among elderly residents of care homes, who make up the majority of deaths from the virus, and the late start to widespread testing.

The head of the Public Health Agency says Sweden followed established practice.

Anders Tegnell, who has become the face of Sweden’s virus strategy, told Reuters it remained unclear whether total lockdowns were effective.

The commission will report on elderly care at the end of November, although its final conclusions are not due until 2022, ahead of a national election. (Reporting by Simon Johnson; editing by Barbara Lewis)

Gallery

"Information pertaining to Covid-19, vaccines, how to control the spread of the virus and potential treatments is ever-changing. Under the South African Disaster Management Act Regulation 11(5)(c) it is prohibited to publish information through any medium with the intention to deceive people on government measures to address COVID-19. We are therefore disabling the comment section on this article in order to protect both the commenting member and ourselves from potential liability. Should you have additional information that you think we should know, please email [email protected]"

Please peer review 3 community comments before your comment can be posted

We would like our readers to start paying for Daily Maverick...

…but we are not going to force you to. Over 10 million users come to us each month for the news. We have not put it behind a paywall because the truth should not be a luxury.

Instead we ask our readers who can afford to contribute, even a small amount each month, to do so.

If you appreciate it and want to see us keep going then please consider contributing whatever you can.

Support Daily Maverick→
Payment options

Become a Maverick Insider

This could have been a paywall

On another site this would have been a paywall. Maverick Insider keeps our content free for all.

Become an Insider

Every seed of hope will one day sprout.

South African citizens throughout the country are standing up for our human rights. Stay informed, connected and inspired by our weekly FREE Maverick Citizen newsletter.