Swedish PM Stefan Lofven to face no-confidence vote
Lofven is almost certain to ride out the?vote, which will take place on Sept. 15 at the earliest, as the main, centre-right?opposition?bloc has said it will not give its support.
Sweden's anti-immigration Sweden Democratpartyon Wednesday tabled a parliamentaryvoteof no confidence in Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, demanding his resignation in the aftermath of a scandal over leaks of sensitive material.
Lofven is almost certain to ride out thevote, which will take place on Sept. 15 at the earliest, as the main, centre-rightoppositionbloc has said it will not give its support.
But it will damage his standing just a year before the general election and ratchet up pressure on him to get rid of Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist, who has also been targeted by the Sweden Democrats over the IT scandal.
"The Prime Minister has talked about a breakdown, but he has not talked about the breakdown within his own government," Parliament member Paula Bieler said.
If the Sweden Democrats' attempt to unseat Lofven fails, they willcallfor a no-confidence motion in Hultqvist. The centre-right Alliance bloc has also said it will table a motion of no-confidence in Hultqvist.
If Hultqvist is forced to resign, he would be the third minister to fall victim to the IT scandal.
No-confidence motions are rare inSwedishpolitics. Since 1980, only seven have taken place and none one has succeeded.