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The Prime Minister of Sweden, Stefan Lofven, has recognized that the response of his government to the coronavirus pandemic in the Nordic country was slow and not very aggressive, before assuming full responsibility for the disproportionate number of deaths compared to other Nordic countries.
“As prime minister, all the fault is mine”, he declared in an interview.
Earlier this month, Sweden tightened restrictions with the introduction of fines against those who violated regulations that prohibit certain private gatherings. Until now, the decision was purely voluntary.
In any case, the prime minister defended his initial approach by arguing that no one in the government knew how the situation was going to evolve. In fact, the country’s leading epidemiologist and architect of the containment policy against the pandemic, Anders Tegnell, proposed a loose approach from the beginning, understanding that lockdowns were not a viable long-term solution.
Ten days ago, Tegnell himself admitted that the current wave of infections is “much worse” than expected. “We are at a critical moment where we are approaching the limit of what the health system can support,” he warned, reports the DPA agency.
Among the measures that the Government has proposed are the prohibition of the sale of alcohol after 8:00 p.m., teleworking, the closure of public centers for the next two weeks, the recommendation of the use of masks in public transport and the extension of virtual classes in institutes until April 1.
The country has registered 547,000 cases and in the last hours it has exceeded the threshold of 11,000 deaths, registering 11,005 total deaths.