The Swedish parliament on Thursday voted to lower the age of criminal responsibility from 15 to 14 as the right-wing government heads toward a national election, vowing to clamp down on crime. The government had wanted to lower the age at which children could be sent to prison to 13, but it had to withdraw the proposal in June because it could not secure a majority in parliament. Some 281 lawmakers voted in favour of 14, including the opposition Social Democrats, with 66 lawmakers voting against. The Scandinavian country has been rocked by gang battles for more than a decade, particularly for control of the drug market. The minority conservative government, led by Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, survives with the backing of the far-right Sweden Democrats party. It had made the battle against crime a centrepiece of its policy platform after taking office in 2022. A government-appointed commissioner had recommended lowering the age of criminal responsibility to 14. The government decided to propose 13, but most of the 126 groups consulted on the proposal, including the police and prison service, opposed such an age. Parliament also voted to cut the reduction in prison terms for young people. Youths aged under 18 can now be jailed for up to 18 years. The law will come into force on September 10, three days before the country holds a general election. A Demoskop poll for the Svenska Dagbladet newspaper put the centre-left opposition ahead of the right-wing parties but with the gap narrowing. The poll said the governing parties and far right would get 47 percent of the vote and the opposition parties 51 percent.
