How Stockholm is governed

How Stockholm
is governed
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ON THE
WAY TO WORLD CLASS
“We’ve got a nice, wellkept dog exercise yard,
where all the dogs in the
area can play and have
fun without disturbing
other people.”
Dog exercise yard at Järvafältet
“Now we can walk round
the whole lake, thanks to
our suggestion to lengthen
the path.”
Path around Lake Långsjön
“The new outdoor gym on
Lilla Essingen is great.”
Outdoor gym on Lilla Essingen island
“Now we can bathe from
the jetty in Lake Kyrksjön
again. The old jetty has
been replaced.”
Bathing jetty, Lake Kyrksjön
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All Stockholmers can get involved and have a say in the city’s
development.
The democratic process
You and all other Stockholmers eligible to vote
in the local government elections determine
who governs our city. You therefore play an important role and are a part of the democracy.
city council
In the council chamber of Stockholm City Hall, the
101 elected members of the City Council make decisions that affect everyone who lives in the city of
Stockholm.
The members are appointed every four years when
elections for Sweden’s parliament, the county councils
and municipal councils are held. The party that receives the most votes has the most representatives on
the City Council, and therefore a greater chance of influencing the decisions. One representative on the City
Council is the same as one seat. 51 seats are required
to obtain a majority in the City Council. 2010 was the
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first time since 1954 that the same majority won in
two consecutive elections. The majority comprises the
Moderates, the Liberal Party, the Centre Party and the
Christian Democrats. Other parties in the City Council sit in opposition and usually have a different opinion. The opposition parties are the Social Democrats,
the Green Party and the Left Party.
Stockholm County Council consists of 101 members. The Presidency comprises the President of the City Council, the 1st and 2nd
Vice Presidents and the City Secretary. Here is the distribution of seats
after the 2010 election.
The Presidency
Social Democrats
25
Moderate Party
38
Green Party
16
Liberal Party
10
8
Centre Party 3
Christian Democrats 1
Left Party Photo: Jany Plevnik
The City Council sets goals and guidelines for the city
of Stockholm’s operations. The City Council convenes
every third Monday or so, led by the Presidency, and
the meetings are open to the general public. You are
welcome to attend a meeting in the City Hall. You can
also listen on the radio or follow the meeting on online
TV. Further information about this can be found on
our website, www.stockholm.se.
The City Council convenes in the council chamber at the City Hall.
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city executive board
As most members of the City Council have other jobs
alongside their political roles, they are unable to study
all the details of a particular matter. Responsibility for
this rests with the City Executive Board. Stockholm’s
City Executive Board comprises 13 members from both
the majority and the opposition parties. They make
sure that the members receive a compilation of all the
facts and proposals before they make a decision. The
City Executive Board has overall responsibility for ensuring decisions are implemented, followed up and evaluated. It is also responsible for the city’s financial administration and long-term development. Meetings of
the Board are not open to the general public, but you
can read what has been decided on the city’s website.
The City Executive Board comprises 13 members from both the
majority and the opposition parties. They are responsible for ensuring
decisions are implemented, followed up and evaluated. The Mayor is
the chair of the City Executive Board.
The City Executive Board is assisted by two administrations. One, the Executive Office, is responsible
for control, follow-up and development of the City’s
operations and for ensuring that all the political decisions are implemented.
The other, the Secretariat to the Council and City Executive Board, performs secretarial duties for the City
Council and City Executive Board. It is also responsible for the City Hall register, where all the documents
are registered, and the archive.
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divisions, mayor and vice mayors
Twelve politicians in the City of Stockholm are fulltime employees. They are the Mayor and the Vice
Mayors who are appointed by the City Council. The
majority has a Mayor and seven Vice Mayors, and
the opposition has four Vice Mayors. A Vice Mayor
in Stockholm can be likened to a Municipal Commissioner in other Swedish municipalities.
The Mayor and each majority Vice Mayor is head of
a Division, i.e. a department with responsibility for a
particular area of operation, such as the Mayor’s Office or the Schools and Education Division. Together
the Mayor and the 11 Vice Mayors form the Council
of Mayors, and they prepare matters for the City Executive Board.
The Mayor holds a special position among the Vice
Mayors, chairing both the Council of Mayors and the
City Executive Board.
Urban Environment
Schools and
Division
Education Division
Traffic and Labour
Market Division
Elderly and Urban
Development Division
Mayor`s Office
City Planning and
Sports Division
Culture and Real
Estate Division
Social Affairs
Division
A Division is an administrative department with responsibility for
a particular area of operations. The Divisions are headed up by the
majority Mayor and Vice Mayors. The Oppositional Vice Mayors do not
have their own Divisions.
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Photo: Yanan Li
In 2030 Stockholm is an innovative city, rich in experiences, with a
population of more than a million.
on the way to a world-class city
The Stockholm of tomorrow is also shaped in the
council chamber. What the city will look like, be like
and how it will be perceived in the future has been
agreed on jointly by all the parties in Vision 2030 –
a world-class Stockholm. The vision describes how
Stockholm will develop into an innovative, growing
city that is multi-faceted and rich in experiences, always focusing on what is best for the citizens. All city
operations shall work in harmony with the vision’s
general bearing.
If the vision defines the direction of the City’s operations, the City Council’s focus goals are the closest steps in the same direction. The focus goals are
decided on each year in connection with the budget
by the City Council, and apply to all administrations
and city-owned companies in the City of Stockholm.
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the day-to-day operation
The day-to-day work is carried out by the city’s administrations and companies. They are headed by
politically appointed committees and boards whose
composition reflects the distribution of seats in the
City Council. Their members are appointed by the
City Council.
Photo: Lieselotte van der Meijs
You come into contact with the city’s operations every day; here a
pre-school.
Photo: Svartpunkt AB
Photo: Jany Plevnik
The employees of the administrations and companies are non-political and ensure that the work is carried out as decided by the committees and boards.
The specialist administrations deal with issues of interest to the whole city, such as schools, sport, the
environment, libraries, street maintenance and city
planning.
Libraries and snow clearance are just some of the areas dealt with by
the specialist administrations.
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Photo: Yanan Li
The district councils are responsible for elderly care, for example.
The district councils deal with municipal services
and care for people living in the district in question.
Some of the issues they are responsible for include
municipal pre-school, elderly care, support and service for people with disabilities, city environment
work, social psychiatry, individual and family care,
consumer guidance, and leisure and culture activities.
Some of the City of Stockholm’s operations are carried out by city-owned companies. They are co-ordinated through Stockholms Stadshus AB, which acts
as the group board.
interested in finding out more
Visit www.insyn.stockholm.se (in Swedish only) to
view documents from the City of Stockholm’s City Council, City Executive Board and the city’s committees and
companies. Agendas, documents and decision outlines are
published here. On the same site you can subscribe to
a committee’s agendas and meeting minutes, and receive
them automatically by e-mail.
Read more about the city’s organisation, politics and
finances at www.international.stockholm.se/politics
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How it can work
Motion
1
2
3
City Council
Committe
Division
6
5
4
City Council
City Executive Board
Council of Mayors
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Result
Division
1. Proposal: A member of the City Council has sent a proposal, a motion, to the City Council regarding better lighting
in one of the city’s parks.
2. Pronouncement: The motion is sent to the responsible
committees, which make their views known in a pronouncement. In this case the pronouncement is from the Traffic and
Waste Management Committee and the relevant district
council.
3. Summary: The assessments and views regarding the proposal are sent to the responsible Division at the City Hall,
in this case to the Traffic and Labour Market Division, and a
firm proposal is drawn up.
4. Drafting: The proposal is then sent to the Council of
Mayors for drafting.
5. Proposal for decision: The responsible Mayor or Vice
Mayor presents it to the City Executive Board, which proposes that the City Council should approve the proposal.
6. Decision: A decision is taken in the City Council to approve
the proposal in the motion and increase lighting in the park.
7. Implementation: The relevant committees are tasked
with carrying out the project.
8. Result: There is now new lighting in place, which lights up
the park when it is dark.
This is one way it can work, although proposals also often
come in directly from a committee.
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Young people can also influence how Stockholm is governed.
Have a say
Vote in the local government elections, submit
suggestions and comments. That's how you can
influence development in Stockholm.
Stockholm’s politicians make decisions daily that influence the everyday lives of you and other Stockholmers.
By voting in the local elections you help choose which
politicians will govern the city of Stockholm, but you
also exert an influence between elections. For example,
you can submit comments or suggestions, attend committee meetings or take part in citizen dialogues.
If you would like to submit a comment or complaints about a particular operation, it is best to start
off by talking to the staff within that operation. You
can also phone or visit one of the city’s citizens’ offices, write a letter or send an e-mail to the relevant
administration. You can always choose to remain
anonymous, but if you leave your name and address
the administration can let you know how your issues
are being dealt with.
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Photo: Peter Hoelstad
“It’s important that today’s
young people are politically involved. It doesn’t have
to be for the rest of their
lives. But keep an eye on
politics.”
Sten Nordin, Mayor of Stockholm
(Moderate Party)
If you live in Stockholm you can submit a ‘citizen’s
suggestion’ directly to your district council. All
Stockholmers, including children, non-Swedish
citizens without the right to vote in the municipality, and associations within the city district areas are
entitled to submit citizen’s suggestions. Citizen’s suggestions are proposals to change something within
the city’s areas of responsibility. They must always be
submitted in writing by post, e-mail or fax, and you
must give your name and address. You will always
receive written confirmation and information about
how your citizen’s suggestion will be dealt with. Read
about some of the citizen’s suggestions which became a reality at the beginning of this brochure and
on the next page.
You can also take part in citizen dialogues offered by
the city, such as when a new housing area is planned.
The city also arranges exhibitions on future projects
at libraries and other meeting-places. The city’s website has further information about citizen dialogues
and current projects in the city.
Carin Jämtin, Oppositional Vice Mayor
(Social Democrats)
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Photo: Yanan Li
“Complain or give us
positive suggestions. But
above all I want to strike
a blow to encourage
more people to become
politically involved.”
Do you have a good idea?
Submit a citizen’s suggestion. That’s what
some young people in Kungsholmen did, and
November 2010 saw the completion of Rålis
Skatepark.
Rålis Skatepark is situated under Lilla Västerbron
bridge in Rålambshovsparken park. The skatepark
was designed by Stefan Hauser who has worked
worldwide. Its unique position under a bridge coupled with its special design, with areas adapted for
different degrees of difficulty, means the park can be
used by large numbers of skaters during large parts
of the year. Next to the skatepark is a newly built
area for other spontaneous sport.
Rålis Skatepark started out as a citizen’s suggestion
put forward by a group of young people. The proposal led to an online survey looking into various
design issues. At the same time Kungsholmen’s prevention unit, Fält & Fritid, held a skate event where
participants could suggest what the new skatepark
might look like. The result of the online survey and
the workshop at the skate event in 2007 formed the
basis of what is now Rålis Skatepark. What we see
now is the result of dedicated people living in Kungs­
holmen and other parts of Stockholm.
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Stockholm’s political
CITY COUN
CITY EXECUT
COUNCIL OF
Mayor’s
Office
Traffic and
Labour Market
Division
City Planning
and Sports
Division
Schools and
Education
Division
Sten Nordin
(Moderate Party)
Mayor of Stockholm
Ulla Hamilton
(Moderate Party)
Vice Mayor for Enterprise,
Traffic and Labour Market
Regina Kevius
(Moderate Party)
Vice Mayor for
City Planning and Sports
Lotta Edholm
(Liberal Party)
Vice Mayor for
Schools and Education
Responsible for
Responsible for
Responsible for
Responsible for
City Executive Board
Traffic and Waste
Management
Committee
City Planning
Committee
Education Committee
Sports Committee
Labour Market
Committee
Churchyard
Committee
Finance Committee
Personnel and Equal
Opportunities
Committee
Development
Committee
Stockholm Business
Region (exc. SBA)
Election Committee
Fortum Värme Holding
Stockholms Stadshus
AB and other companies not named below
Stockholms Stads
Parkerings AB
City District Councils,
pre-schools
SISAB
District Councils,
overall finances
Stockholms Hamn AB
Mässfastigheter i
Stockholm AB
Stockholm Business
Alliance, SBA
Oppositional Vice Mayors
Carin Jämtin
(Social Democrats)
Roger Mogert
(Social Democrats)
Tomas Rudin
(Social Democrats)
Per Bolund
(Green Party)
political organisation
OUNCIL
TIVE BOARD
OF MAYORS
Elderly and
Urban Development Division
Urban
Environment
Division
Social Affairs
Division
Culture and
Real Estate
Division
Joakim Larsson
(Moderate Party)
Vice Mayor for Elderly Care
and Urban Development
Per Ankersjö
(Centre Party)
Vice Mayor for
Environment
Anna König Jerlmyr
(Moderate Party)
Vice Mayor for
Social Affairs
Madeleine Sjöstedt
(Liberal Party)
Vice Mayor for
Culture and Real Estate
Responsible for
Responsible for
Responsible for
Responsible for
Senior Citizens
Committee
Environment and
Health Committee
Social Services
Committee
Culture Committee
City District Councils,
elderly care
Stockholm Vatten AB
Chief Guardian
Committee
Stockholm Globe
Arena AB
City Executive Board’s
Council for Disability,
Senior Citizens
Council
Council for Protection
of Ecological and
Aesthetic Matters
Micasa Fastigheter AB
Urban Environment
Advisory Board
Housing companies
The Housing Service
Greater Stockholm
Fire Brigade
Stadsteatern
Service Committee
Real Estate Committee
Järvalyftet project
Vision Söderort
Ewa Samuelsson
(Christian Democrats)
Assistant Vice Mayor for
Social Affairs
Group Leader
Left Party
Ann-Margarethe Livh
(Left Party)
Photo: Thomas Carlgren and Pawel Flato
• Vote in local elections.
• Submit your comments and suggestions
directly to an operation such as a school,
pre-school or home for the elderly.
• Submit a citizen’s suggestion to your
­district council.
• Contact Stockholm’s two ombudsmen
regarding issues relating to the elderly and
disabilities.
• Attend meetings organised by the city,
focusing on various issues.
Read more on the city’s website
www.stockholm.se/international
CITY OF STOCKHOLM’S EXECUTIVE OFFICE
City Hall, SE-105 35 Stockholm
Phone: +46 8 508 29 000 Fax: +46 8 508 29 970
www.stockholm.se/international
Production: Snick-Snack AB • Photo: Stefan Bohlin unless otherwise stated • Illustrations: Jens Callius • Print: EkotryckRedners Januari 2011 Article Number: SLK 306
You can have your say!