Newspapers across Europe are debating the causes and effects of Sweden’s recent youth riots in a few of its most deprived immigrant neighbourhoods.
The Migrant Integration Policy Index is one way used by Swedish policy actors, media, and the integration minister to talk about the causes of inequality for immigrants: If integration policies are not the problem in Sweden then what is? Two years ago, MPG made its own contribution to the debate in the high-level Tällberg Forum about Sweden’s role in the debate on integration. MPG’s forthcoming work on EU Integration Indicators demonstrates that societal integration is not simply determined by integration policy, but also by the country’s general policies and social structures, the characteristics of the immigrant population, and the characteristics of the receiving society. For example, an opinion piece last month used MIPEX to call for more work on housing and employment segmentation and an inclusive national identity.
Sweden’s top score on MIPEX demonstrates the state’s longstanding commitment to equal treatment in law, most recently by adopting a new Labour Market Introduction Act and Anti-Discrimination Act. The current government is focused on improving the enforcement and impact of these laws: fighting discrimination, speeding up labour market integration and language learning, and mainstreaming immigrants into all areas of everyday life. The government plans to further improve access to education and Swedish nationality. For more on enforcement of anti-discrimination law in Sweden, see the reports from the European Network of Legal Experts in the Non-discrimination Field.
One solution that Sweden has not tried is dialogue with immigrants and wider society. One of Sweden’s areas of weakness in MIPEX was the lack of structured dialogue with immigrants. MPG’s presentation at Tällberg made recommendations for a Swedish consultative structure on integration, based on the lessons learned from other European countries from MPG’s report on consultative bodies.
