Lies and crime at the top of the empire – a deadly cocktail

 

  

Lena Mellin  

 

Lies and crimes at the top of the kingdom  

Kristersson's judgment is tested in the "eel business"  

 

Published: Less than 20 min ago  

 

This is a commenting text. Analysis and positions are the writer's. 

  

COLUMNISTS 

 

One of Ulf Kristersson's closest employees has poached an endangered eel and is convicted of the crime.  

He has lied to authorities on at least two occasions.  

 

He still has his job in the prime minister's office.  

 

A minister's closest collaborator is titled state secretary. Since November, PM Nilsson has been State Secretary for Strategic Planning at the Prime Minister's office in Kristersson's office, the Cabinet Committee.  

 

In September 2021, just over a year before he started his employment with Kristersson, PM Nilsson poached eels in the Karlskrona archipelago. He was caught red-handed by emissaries from the Maritime and Water Authority.  

 

PM Nilsson. Photo: Anders Wiklund/TT  

 

Now a storm has blown up around Nilsson who, before he became a civil servant, worked for the editorial board of the newspaper Dagens Industri. Previously, he has, among other things, been head of Expressen's counterpart.  

 

In short, the discussion is about Nilsson's suitability for his current job. He has committed a crime. He has set out on a red-listed species. And he has lied to authorities.  

 

We take it point by point.  

 

1. Poaching. Thus took place in the Karlskrona archipelago in 2021. Nilsson was arrested with Russians (catching gear) in the boat but denied the crime.  

 

2. Red-listed species. The fish Nilsson was after was an eel. It is a red-listed, i.e. threatened with extinction, species. The stock has decreased by 95 percent in recent decades according to Patrik Svensson, author of the acclaimed book "Ålevangeliet". Svensson calls Nilsson's fishing "an egotistical lack of judgement".  

 

3. Lied to authorities. Nilsson told the Maritime and Water Authority that the Russians in the boat were not his. That was lie number one.  

 

The catch that PM Nilsson caught when he fished eel illegally. Photo: The police  

 

A little later he lied again, then to the police. But after a couple of weeks, Nilsson seems to have remembered that honesty lasts the longest and called them up and confessed. 

 

Nilsson explained the first lie by saying that he thought it was embarrassing to be caught poaching. 

 

The second was because he was caught off guard by the police phone call. Trustworthy? Judge for yourself.  

 

Legally, this matter is exemplified by the fact that PM Nilsson admitted and accepted a penalty order of SEK 38,800.  

 

But for those who work in the prime minister's office, not only the law applies. Morality also rules there. In short, can Nilsson continue to work in the country's top management? There, crime and lies are usually a deadly cocktail.  

 

Nilsson's fight for fishing, even poaching, can be seen as an element of the moderates' pursuit of freedom.  

 

At least if you are generous. However, the magnanimity can be limited by the fact that it is precisely eel. Even the prime minister speaks warmly of the climate and certainly does not contribute to the killing of prohibited species during his hunting trips.  

 

The inspectors could see how PM Nilsson pulled four Russian eels out of the water. Photo: The police  

 

But lying to authorities repeatedly? First for the Maritime and Water Authority. And then for the police. It can reasonably not be tolerated in the moderate party which has almost elevated a tougher approach to religion. To deny a crime even though one is guilty, is it appropriate for an employee in the prime minister's office? Not in most people's eyes.  

 

Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) Photo: Henrik Montgomery/TT  

 

Ulf Kristersson has so far said neither good nor bad about PM Nilsson's future in his inner circle. But soon he has to decide what is worst, to keep or fire Nilsson.