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Informellt ministerstyre - Hur informella kontakter mellan regeringen och dess underlydande myndigheter förhåller sig till regeringsformen

Larsson, Christoffer LU (2019) JURM02 20192
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract
Sweden is a rather unique country when it comes to public administration. The government agencies must show obedience towards the government, but the government agencies are at the same time independent from the government. Sweden does not allow ministerial rule, instead the governmet is forced to give directives collectively. The main subject of the essay is to ascertain in what way the government is allowed to use so called ”informal contacts”, communication that lies outside of the official framework, to communicate with its agencies.

The independence of the government agencies is primarily regulated in the 12th chapter, section 2 of the Instrument of Government. The statute restricts the government from influencing the government... (More)
Sweden is a rather unique country when it comes to public administration. The government agencies must show obedience towards the government, but the government agencies are at the same time independent from the government. Sweden does not allow ministerial rule, instead the governmet is forced to give directives collectively. The main subject of the essay is to ascertain in what way the government is allowed to use so called ”informal contacts”, communication that lies outside of the official framework, to communicate with its agencies.

The independence of the government agencies is primarily regulated in the 12th chapter, section 2 of the Instrument of Government. The statute restricts the government from influencing the government agencies in matters concerning exercise of public authority against an individual or a municipality, or influencing the adjudication process. Outside the area of application of the 12th chapter, section 2 of the Instrument of Government it is allowed for the government to influence the government agencies.

There have been legal disagreements regarding to what extent informal contacts should be allowed, both within and outside the area of application. There was a more liberal outlook on informal contacts during the 1980s, since then the view on informal contacts has fluctuated to some degree. The Committee on the Constitution might have a more restrictive view on informal contacts than those reflected in the legislative history. There are views in the legislative history which advocates for a more liberal view on informal contacts outside the area of application, where the government is not restricted in any regard. There are also statements in the legislative history which says individual ministers should be able to presents their opinions to their government agencies.

There is no unambiguous interpretation of when informal contacts are allowed outside the area of application. There is, however, flaws with informal contacts where you can find legalconsensus. The criticism is primarily from the Committee on the Constitution, which points out flaws in regard to documentation of formal contacts and how it negatively affects the principle of public access to official records and accountability. The Committee on the Constitution and the Swedish Agency for Public Management has also commented on that there is a certain unpredictability when it comes to the use of informal contacts. They have also pointed out that there is a lack of knowledge when it comes to the use of informal contacts, when and in what way it is permitted. This is epsecially true within the government agencies.

The Committee on the Constitution, the Swedish Agency for Public Management and statements in the legislative history has for a long time pointed out that some kind of training program is necessary. To which degree training has helped is hard to determine. Perhaps, what is necessary is a more reprehensible legislation, or at least more stringent routines in regard to informal contacts. These suggestions might not be enough, since these problems have been present for at least 30 years. Perhaps some kind of new solution is necessary. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
Sverige är ett tämligen unikt land när det kommer till den offentliga förvaltningen. Regeringens underlydande myndigheter har lydnadsplikt, samtidigt som myndigheterna ska vara självständiga. Sverige har inget ministerstyre, utan det är regeringen som kollektivt kan ge direktiv till sina myndigheter. Uppsatsen ämne berör i vilken mån regeringen kan använda sig av så kallade informella kontakter, ”…det informella och oreglerade samspelet mellan regeringen och myndigheterna”

Myndigheternas självständighet är huvudsakligen reglerad i 12 kap. 2 § regeringsformen. Paragrafen hindrar regeringen från att bestämma över myndigheterna när det kommer till ärenden som rör myndighetsutövning mot en enskild eller mot en kommun eller som rör... (More)
Sverige är ett tämligen unikt land när det kommer till den offentliga förvaltningen. Regeringens underlydande myndigheter har lydnadsplikt, samtidigt som myndigheterna ska vara självständiga. Sverige har inget ministerstyre, utan det är regeringen som kollektivt kan ge direktiv till sina myndigheter. Uppsatsen ämne berör i vilken mån regeringen kan använda sig av så kallade informella kontakter, ”…det informella och oreglerade samspelet mellan regeringen och myndigheterna”

Myndigheternas självständighet är huvudsakligen reglerad i 12 kap. 2 § regeringsformen. Paragrafen hindrar regeringen från att bestämma över myndigheterna när det kommer till ärenden som rör myndighetsutövning mot en enskild eller mot en kommun eller som rör tillämpning av lag. Utanför detta tillämpningsområde har däremot regeringen möjlighet att påverka.

Gällande informella kontakter, såväl inom som utanför tillämpningsområdet, har det funnits olika åsikter om i vilken utsträckning det får ske. Under 1980-talet fanns det en mer liberal syn på informella kontakter, därefter har åsikterna fluktuerat mellan liberala- och restriktiva förhållningssätt. Möjligtvis kan man se en tendens till att Konstitutionsutskottet har en mer restriktiv syn på informella kontakter än vad som framgår i förarbetena. I förarbeten kan man se uttalanden som förespråkar en mer liberal syn på informella kontakter utanför tillämpningsområdet, där regeringen inte alls är förhindrad från sådana kontakter. Det finns även uttalanden i förarbetena som menar att enskilda statsråd har möjlighet att framföra sina uppfattningar till sina underlydande myndigheter.

Det finns inte en helt entydig juridisk tolkning av när informella kontakter får användas utanför tillämpningsområdet för 12 kap. 2 §. Det finns dock viss konsensus angående vilka brister som framkommer vid användandet av informella kontakter. Kritiken kommer främst från Konstitutionsutskottet som pekar på brister i dokumentationen av informella kontakter, som pekar på att offentlighetsprincipen och möjligheten till ansvarsutkrävande försämras. KU och Statskontoret har även framfört att det finns en viss oförutsägbarhet i användandet av informella kontakter. De har dessutom påpekat att det finns en bestående kunskapsbrist hos tjänstemännen på myndigheterna, när det gäller informella kontakter.

För att åtgärda dessa brister har förarbetena, KU och Statskontoret under en längre tid ansett att utbildning av olika slag är centralt. Det kan vara en generell utbildning av tjänstemännen eller en specifik utbildning av myndighetschefen. Huruvida tidigare liknande utbildningar har hjälpt är svårt att direkt avgöra. Det som krävs är möjligtvis en tydligare lagstiftning eller åtminstone tydligare rutiner för hur informella kontakter får användas. I och med att ett flertal problem har varit bestående i över 30 år måste man möjligtvis försöka hitta nya lösningar. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Larsson, Christoffer LU
supervisor
organization
alternative title
Informal ministerial rule - How informal contacts between the government and the goverment agencies corresponds with the Instrument of Government
course
JURM02 20192
year
type
H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
subject
keywords
Förvaltningsrätt, Informella kontakter
language
Swedish
id
9000539
date added to LUP
2020-02-01 15:28:17
date last changed
2020-02-01 15:28:17
@misc{9000539,
  abstract     = {{Sweden is a rather unique country when it comes to public administration. The government agencies must show obedience towards the government, but the government agencies are at the same time independent from the government. Sweden does not allow ministerial rule, instead the governmet is forced to give directives collectively. The main subject of the essay is to ascertain in what way the government is allowed to use so called ”informal contacts”, communication that lies outside of the official framework, to communicate with its agencies.

The independence of the government agencies is primarily regulated in the 12th chapter, section 2 of the Instrument of Government. The statute restricts the government from influencing the government agencies in matters concerning exercise of public authority against an individual or a municipality, or influencing the adjudication process. Outside the area of application of the 12th chapter, section 2 of the Instrument of Government it is allowed for the government to influence the government agencies.

There have been legal disagreements regarding to what extent informal contacts should be allowed, both within and outside the area of application. There was a more liberal outlook on informal contacts during the 1980s, since then the view on informal contacts has fluctuated to some degree. The Committee on the Constitution might have a more restrictive view on informal contacts than those reflected in the legislative history. There are views in the legislative history which advocates for a more liberal view on informal contacts outside the area of application, where the government is not restricted in any regard. There are also statements in the legislative history which says individual ministers should be able to presents their opinions to their government agencies.

There is no unambiguous interpretation of when informal contacts are allowed outside the area of application. There is, however, flaws with informal contacts where you can find legalconsensus. The criticism is primarily from the Committee on the Constitution, which points out flaws in regard to documentation of formal contacts and how it negatively affects the principle of public access to official records and accountability. The Committee on the Constitution and the Swedish Agency for Public Management has also commented on that there is a certain unpredictability when it comes to the use of informal contacts. They have also pointed out that there is a lack of knowledge when it comes to the use of informal contacts, when and in what way it is permitted. This is epsecially true within the government agencies.

The Committee on the Constitution, the Swedish Agency for Public Management and statements in the legislative history has for a long time pointed out that some kind of training program is necessary. To which degree training has helped is hard to determine. Perhaps, what is necessary is a more reprehensible legislation, or at least more stringent routines in regard to informal contacts. These suggestions might not be enough, since these problems have been present for at least 30 years. Perhaps some kind of new solution is necessary.}},
  author       = {{Larsson, Christoffer}},
  language     = {{swe}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Informellt ministerstyre - Hur informella kontakter mellan regeringen och dess underlydande myndigheter förhåller sig till regeringsformen}},
  year         = {{2019}},
}