Are the Sweden Democrats far-right? Jimmie Akesson interviewed

In the newspapers today, there is much talk of Sweden turning to the ‘far-right.’ The Times has a picture of skinhead nutters on the march, giving the impression that Swedes are about a day away from goose-stepping down Drottninggatan. The myth of Sweden going all Nazi is a myth that’s hard to puncture because no one has a good word to say about the Sweden Democrats, who are hoping to finish first. They’ll not end up in government, because no one would enter coalition with them. But their electoral success baffles the outside world.

There is no agreed definition of “far-right” and the term is lazily used: dramatic, but serves to cloud understanding of what’s happening in Europe. The Sweden Democrats did emerge from a group of neo-Nazi nutters and have supporters, even a few candidates, who spew racist bile. But they are kicked out. To most voters, the Sweden Democrats are now defined not by their origins but by the hundreds of politicians in local and national government.