Lack of control opens the door to welfare violations

Welfare violations cost the public billions every year. The government has given an assignment to investigate the municipal audit. But according to Sweden's Municipalities and Regions, SKR, there is a risk that the focus ends up too much on numbers. The biggest shortcomings are instead in the management and follow-up of the operations.

A national survey of over 100 audit reviews in municipalities and regions during 2024 and 2025 shows that the work against welfare crimes and unauthorized influence needs to be strengthened and become part of the daily work.

Lotta Ricklander, development manager for auditing at SKR and one of the people responsible for the mapping, believes that a changed approach is required.

- We have long had a culture of trust, but the development of society shows that we have to control and follow up which companies and people get a share of our shared resources, she says.

In recent years, many municipalities have drawn up guidance documents to counter welfare crimes, but the practical implementation needs to be developed.

- There is often a lack of clarity about who is responsible for what and how the organization should act when irregularities are discovered.

Another problem is unauthorized influence, especially within social services but also when, for example, handling alcohol permits and building permits. Frontline officers are exposed to everything from illegal threats to unpleasant pressures. It can create fear of making correct decisions and reporting the incident to the police.

- It is understandable that an individual employee hesitates to be involved in a legal process, says Lotta Ricklander.

She emphasizes that this is fundamentally a work environment issue and that managers must provide vulnerable employees with protection and support.

The mapping also shows the need for clearer governance, greater scope for follow-up and more structured work. A report from the National Intelligence Center shows that organized crime has established itself in all welfare areas where private contractors are present. Despite this, in-depth follow-up checks are rarely carried out.

- Municipalities and regions are often good at signing agreements, but due to a lack of resources or naivety, the follow-up is lacking.

Uncertainty about confidentiality rules can also make administrators refrain from sharing information.

- There is a risk that one would rather not act than risk making a mistake.

Lotta Ricklander therefore calls for clearer acceptance of responsibility from the top management.

- Managers must mark that the issues are a priority and clearly show that welfare crime and unauthorized influence are not accepted.

In order to strengthen the work of the municipalities, the Procurement Authority has been given an operational government assignment for the period 2026 to 2028. At the same time, SKR emphasizes that the operational audit needs to be reassessed. Reviewing numbers is not enough when criminal actors get into welfare.

- We don't just review the numbers, but whether the municipality gets what it has ordered. Control and follow-up are not opposed to trust. On the contrary, it creates trust and benefits the companies that do the right thing for themselves.