Culture

The Government proposes that SEK 250 million be allocated each year in 2018–2020 to increase the range and accessibility of library activities throughout the country. A total of SEK 25 million per year of this investment will be provided to the cultural cooperation model, which allocates funds to libraries and activities to promote reading and literature. The Budget Bill for 2018 is based on an agreement between the Government and the Left Party.

The Government proposes that the appropriation to the National Archives be increased by SEK 10 million from 2018 to abolish fees to access digital archive material. This will make some 100 million digital archive images freely available, reducing costs for private individuals to conduct genealogy or area research.

The Government has decided to make the ‘Unga Klara’ theatre company a national theatre institute for children and young people as of 2018. State support for the theatre company will amount to an estimated SEK 16.2 million in 2018, and then SEK 15.4 million per year. This means that state support to Unga Klara will be more than doubled compared with today.

To enhance artistic freedom throughout the country, the Government proposes an investment totalling SEK 115 million per year in the Budget Bill for 2018. This investment represents an increase of the grants and remunerations allocated directly to artists, independent performing arts groups and cultural publications.

Geneva, 29 June 2017. Check against delivery.

Stockholm, 29 May 2017. Check against delivery.

In the 2017 Spring Budget, the Government proposes that the Prins Eugen’s Waldemarsudde art museum be separated in organisational terms from Nationalmuseum. This change will give Prins Eugen’s Waldemarsudde better opportunities to operate in accordance with the provisions in Prince Eugen’s will. The proposal is expected to enter into force on 1 July 2017.

Stockholm, 4 April 2017. Check against delivery.

The Government today appointed Kieran Long as the new director of ArkDes, the Swedish Centre for Architecture and Design. Mr Long will take up his position on 18 April 2017.

Göteborg, 27 January 2017. Check against delivery.

The Huffington Post, 2 December 2016. Opinion piece by Ms Alice Bah Khunke, Minister for Culture and Democracy and Ms Irina Bokova, UNESCO Director-General.

The Government is investing a total of SEK 60 million over four years in reading promotion initiatives in the area of culture. Initiatives will also be carried out in the schools sector. The aim is to improve reading skills and increase reading among children and young people throughout the country. The initiatives are part of the Budget Bill for 2017, which is based on an agreement between the government parties and the Left Party.

The Government is mobilising efforts to foster an open and democratic society. Initiatives within the framework of ‘a Sweden that stands together’ were presented in the 2016 Spring Fiscal Policy Bill. This work will continue with additional initiatives for a society with open meeting places, more local cultural activities and an enhanced civil society, as well as measures against discrimination, extremism, threats and hate. A total of SEK 132 million is being committed in the Budget Bill for 2017 and the autumn amending budget for 2016. The initiatives are included in the Budget Bill for 2017 and the autumn amending budget for 2016, which are based on an agreement between the government parties and the Left Party.

The Budget Bill for 2017 contains several initiatives and reforms to safeguard an open and accessible cultural heritage. The proposals include committing resources to digitisation of the Swedish film heritage and to more museums so as to promote democracy and increase participation. The initiatives are included in the Budget Bill for 2017, which is based on an agreement between the government parties and the Left Party.

In the Budget Bill for 2017, the Government is investing in better conditions for culture by strengthening the performing arts and increasing the public lending right. The purpose of the Government’s increased investments is to provide more culture for more people throughout the country. The initiatives are part of the Budget Bill for 2017, which is based on an agreement between the government parties and the Left Party.

The Government proposes that an additional SEK 120 million in total be allocated over four years to the cultural cooperation model, a model that gives the county councils greater responsibility to allocate certain central government grants to local and regional cultural activities. The purpose of this investment is to create a more equitable cultural offering throughout the country and to give more people access to culture. This investment is part of the Budget Bill for 2017, which is based on an agreement between the government parties and the Left Party.

The Government is proposing new initiatives so that more films reach more people. By abolishing classification fees, strengthening the initiative to digitise our film heritage by SEK 2.5 million annually and increasing the film subsidy by SEK 20 million from 2019, the Government is taking a yet another step toward this goal. The initiatives are included in the Budget Bill for 2017, which is based on an agreement between the government parties and the Left Party.

Visby, 28 June 2016. Check against delivery.

Today, Tuesday 14 June, Minister for Higher Education and Research Helene Hellmark Knutsson is on the Italian island of Capri to visit the Swedish culture institute, Villa San Michele, and the Castello Barbarossa. The purpose of the visit is to gain deeper insight into the activities of the San Michele Foundation, and its importance for Swedish research in the humanities.

Today, Monday 13 June, Minister for Higher Education and Research Helene Hellmark Knutsson is in the Italian capital, Rome, to visit the Swedish Institute in Rome’s archaeological excavations in the Etruscan town of Acquarossa. The purpose of the visit is to gain deeper insight into the activities of the Swedish Institute in Rome, and its importance to Swedish research in the humanities.