Published: Less than 20 min ago
PM Nilsson announced on Thursday that he is ending his duties as State Secretary.
He poached eels, lied about it to the police, admitted it and is now being investigated by Noa.
Here is the story in a nutshell.
Summer 2021
During the summer of 2021, PM Nilsson had been out on a fishing trip in the Karlskrona archipelago. Two fisheries inspectors from the Maritime and Water Authority encountered him and his rowing boat. When asked lied about his catch – it wasn’t his. In the boat he had 15 eels that weighed a total of 11 kilos. The inspectors took his identity and there was silence on the matter for a year and a half.
October 2022
PM Nilsson had worked as director of Dagens Industri’s editorial page for almost ten years. But he left the job when Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) wanted her as his right hand, as state secretary.
December 2022
The police in Karlskrona contacted PM Nilsson days before Christmas. In conversations with the police, he continued to deny that the catch and fishing equipment were his. He states on his Facebook page that he lied because he found the situation embarrassing and surprising.
January 2023
The Secretary of State regretted his lie and contacted the police less than two weeks after the questioning. Now he admitted it was his Russians and that he was guilty of the illegal poaching. PM Nilsson then received 40 daily fines of SEK 970, a total of SEK 38,800.
Demand for resignation
The Social Democrats and the Green Party’s spokesperson Per Bolund was in the crowd of all who demanded the State Secretary’s resignation after the poaching. However, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson did not see it as a necessary measure.
The departure
A special department of the National Operative Department, Noa, has started an investigation where PM Nilsson is suspected of species protection crimes. On January 26 – after barely three months on the job – the Secretary of State announces that he is resigning from the post. One of the reasons was Noa’s investigation, which he believes makes the job more difficult.