PM of Sweden resigns in the wake of no-confidence vote

The Prime minister of Sweden has resigned after seven years in power, having lost a vote of confidence last week over a controversial plan to ease rent controls for new-build apartments.

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Lofven on June 21 became the first Swedish leader ever to lose a confidence vote in parliament after the Left Party withdrew its support for his centre-left government over its housing market plans.

A 63-year-old former union boss and welder, Lofven headed a fragile minority coalition with the Greens since 2018, relying on support from two small centre-right parties and the Left Party.

The centre-left and centre-right blocs are now evenly balanced in parliament and opinion polls show a general election might not change the picture.

It took Lofven four months to form a government after Sweden’s last general election, in 2018, which returned inconclusive results.