Sweden's parliament has approved lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 15 to 14. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Euronews.
Parliamentary vote
281 deputies voted for the initiative, including representatives of the opposition Social Democrats. 66 parliamentarians voted against.
Initial proposal
The Swedish government initially proposed lowering the age of criminal responsibility to 13. However, in June the authorities abandoned this idea, as they could not secure the necessary support in parliament.
Expert opinion
A majority of the 126 organizations that participated in the discussion of the reform opposed the threshold of 13 years. Among them were the police and the prison service.
Fight against criminal groups
Sweden has been facing conflicts between criminal groups for more than a decade, including over control of the drug market. Authorities have repeatedly stated that gangs actively involve minors in committing crimes.
Government position
The center-right government of Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has made the fight against crime one of the key directions of its policy since coming to power in 2022. The minority cabinet relies on the support of the Sweden Democrats party.
A government-appointed commissioner had previously recommended setting the age of criminal responsibility at 14.
Stricter penalties
The parliament also tightened penalties for minors, reducing the benefits they previously received when sentencing. Now teenagers can be sentenced to up to 18 years in prison.
Entry into force
The new rules will come into force on September 10 — three days before the general elections in Sweden.
Pre-election situation
According to a Demoskop poll for the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet, the center-left opposition still maintains an advantage over the right-wing parties, but the gap between the political blocs is narrowing.
According to the poll, about 47% of voters are ready to support the ruling coalition and the right-wing parties supporting it. Opposition parties are gaining about 51%.