The police, the Swedish Migration Agency and the courts lack control over public assistants in migration matters.
The National Audit Office confirms this in a review which shows that assistants have been able to continue working despite having been convicted of serious crimes.
Persons at risk of deportation from Sweden may be entitled to public assistance, and it is the state’s responsibility to ensure that the persons receive a suitable one.
The audit shows that there are shortcomings in the control of those who risk leading to assistants being appointed lacking sufficient legal competence or for other reasons unsuitable for the assignment, the authority states in a press release.
The National Audit Office takes as an example that in 2018 the Swedish Migration Agency stopped five people from continuing to work as assistants because they had been convicted of serious crimes or had been excluded from the Swedish Bar Association. But despite that, the people have continued as assistants during 2019–2021.
“It is very problematic that assistants who are clearly inappropriate continue to be appointed and paid by the state. In addition, it is not good housekeeping with state funds “, says Auditor General Helena Lindberg in the press release.