2023-05-102022/23:JuU19 · p.1JuUJustice
Disclosure of human biological material
Forensic authority's disclosure of human biological material
What's at stake: The decision affects how much protection personal privacy receives for people whose biological samples are held by the forensic authority, while also determining whether forensic psychiatry and law-enforcement agencies get the access to material they say they need.
Case texts and AI reasoning are AI-translated from the Swedish originals; the Swedish text is authoritative.
What the vote decides
The question is whether the government's proposal on when the National Board of Forensic Medicine may disclose human biological material - including to the Police Authority and the Security Service for purposes beyond forensic-psychiatric examinations, and under a broader 'exceptional reasons' ground - should proceed, or whether these expanded disclosure grounds represent an inadequately prepared intrusion on personal privacy.
Yes Yes — the committee proposal
The committee shares the government's assessment that clear legal grounds are needed for the forensic authority's handling of human biological material and, despite the Council on Legislation's criticism of Section 8, considers the material sufficient to adopt the proposal; it judges that the need for information from agencies such as the Social Insurance Agency and the Migration Agency outweighs the privacy intrusion, and therefore rejects V's motion.
No No — the reservations
Reservation 1 (V)
V agrees with the Council on Legislation's criticism and wants parliament to reject the parts of the proposal that expand disclosure to requests from the Police Authority and Security Service for purposes beyond external examinations, and to a broader 'exceptional reasons' ground, since these expansions lack adequate preparatory grounding and risk personal privacy.
Summarised from the committee report. Party labels in the summary come from the report, not from the vote.
What do the votes mean here?
Yes The committee proposal: rejecting the motions (keeping things as they are).
No Backing the counter-proposal: reservation 1 by V.
Abstain The party marks a position of its own that is not one of the two final alternatives.
The decision would have held
Explicit commitments that contradicted the vote: LLiberalerna
Ja 282–21Ja 268–35
Counterfactual: the parties above are moved to the position their own documents explicitly point at, carrying their whole contingent present. Every other party keeps its real figures, including dissenters and absentees.
How the AI parties would have voted
For each party: what its own plan – election manifesto and party programme – argues for in this case, next to how the party actually voted. The AI can only answer Yes or No; a party can also abstain.
| AI | Vote | Confidence | Evidence | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V | No | No 0/21/0/3 | match | confidence: high | derived |
| S | Yes | Yes 94/0/0/13 | match | confidence: medium | derived |
| MP | No | Yes 14/0/0/4 | differs | confidence: medium | derived |
| C | No | Yes 21/0/0/3 | differs | confidence: high | derived |
| L | No | Yes 14/0/0/2 | differsagainst own programme | confidence: high | explicit |
| KD | Yes | Yes 15/0/0/4 | match | confidence: low | derived |
| M | Yes | Yes 60/0/0/8 | match | confidence: medium | derived |
| SD | Yes | Yes 63/0/0/9 | match | confidence: medium | derived |
Committee proposal
The Riksdag adopts sections 8 and 9 of the Government's proposal for a law on the National Board of Forensic Medicine's handling of human biological material. Thereby the Riksdag approves proposition 2022/23:82 point 1 in this part and rejects the motion 2022/23:2366 by Gudrun Nordborg et al. (V) demand 1.
Original (Swedish)
Riksdagen antar 8 och 9 §§ regeringens förslag till lag om Rättsmedicinalverkets hantering av humanbiologiskt material. Därmed bifaller riksdagen proposition 2022/23:82 punkt 1 i denna del och avslår motion 2022/23:2366 av Gudrun Nordborg m.fl. (V) yrkande 1.
Riksdag decision: The Riksdag approved the Government's bill on the National Board of Forensic Medicine's handling of human biological material, that is, material from the human body. The new law aims to create clear legal conditions for the handling and thereby strengthen the protection of people's integrity. The Riksdag also approved the Government's proposed amendments concerning forensic psychiatric examinations. It concerns, among other things, what information may be disclosed if a suspect is to undergo a forensic psychiatric examination, or in connection with so-called section 7 certificates. The need for information from the Social Insurance Agency, the Employment Agency, the Swedish Prison and Probation Service, the Migration Agency and the Swedish Defence Preparedness Agency is considered to outweigh the intrusion into personal integrity that disclosure could entail. Finally, the Riksdag approved the Government's proposal on confidentiality rules to maintain order and prevent escapes in the forensic psychiatric activities. The new law and amendments come into force on July 1, 2023.
Counter-proposals
- The counter-proposal wants to limit opportunities to release humanbiological material without sufficient preparation. (V) — Reservation 1
Plan vs actual vote
Every party, in chamber order: what its own plan pointed to, how it voted, and the reasoning behind both. Highlighted rows are where the two differ — but a vote that follows the plan is a result too, so the reasoning is there for every party.
The party programme affirms that all people have the right to a broad private sphere that is protected on a practical and principled basis and that growing surveillance and registration should be countered.
Plan documents: party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The party programme affirms that all people have the right to a broad private sphere that is protected on a practical and principled basis and that growing surveillance and registration should be countered. A deepened democracy means according to the plan that personal privacy and the fundamental principles of the rule of law are valued. The counter-proposal's requirement that those parts expanding the disclosure of human biological material are not implemented therefore follows from the plan's privacy commitments.
Original (Swedish)
Partiprogrammet slår fast att alla människor har rätt till en bred privat sfär som skyddas på praktisk och principiell grund och att växande övervakning och registrering ska motverkas. En fördjupad demokrati innebär enligt planen att den personliga integriteten och rättsstatens fundamentala principer värnas. Motförslagets krav på att de delar som utvidgar utlämnandet av humanbiologiskt material inte genomförs följer därför av planens integritetsåtaganden.
- protection of the private sphereweak support»Alla människor har rätt till en bred privat sfär« (party programme ↗)“All people have the right to a broad private sphere”
- counter registrationdecisive»och registrering ska motverkas« (party programme ↗)“and registration should be countered”
- privacy and rule of law»personliga integriteten och fundamentala principer i en rättsstat« (party programme ↗)“personal privacy and fundamental principles in a state under the rule of law”
flags: citat_svagt
The election manifesto's key commitment is that secrecy barriers between authorities must be removed so that the police and other professional groups can do their job, and that police need additional tools; the fight against crime must be uncompromising.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto · party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The election manifesto's key commitment is that secrecy barriers between authorities must be removed so that the police and other professional groups can do their job, and that police need additional tools; the fight against crime must be uncompromising. The counter-proposal instead wants to stop provisions expanding disclosure of human biological material to authorities. The party programme's privacy protection provides a counterweight but carries less weight than the election manifesto's explicit position.
Original (Swedish)
Valmanifestets avgörande åtagande är att sekretesshinder mellan myndigheter ska rivas så att polisen och andra yrkesgrupper kan göra sitt jobb, och att polisen behöver fler verktyg; kampen mot kriminaliteten ska vara kompromisslös. Motförslaget vill tvärtom stoppa de delar som vidgar utlämnandet av humanbiologiskt material till myndigheter. Partiprogrammets integritetsskydd utgör en motvikt men väger lättare än valmanifestets uttryckliga linje.
- remove secrecy barriers between authoritiesdecisive»Sekretesshinder mellan myndigheter ska rivas så att polisen och andra yrkesgrupper kan göra sitt jobb.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Secrecy barriers between authorities shall be removed so that the police and other professional groups can do their job.”
- more tools for police»Polisen behöver också fler verktyg, som bättre möjligheter till avlyssning och husrannsakan.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The police also need more tools, such as better opportunities for wiretapping and house searches.”
- uncompromising crime fighting»Kampen mot kriminaliteten ska vara kompromisslös.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The fight against crime shall be uncompromising.”
- protection of personal integrity»Det är samhällets absoluta skyldighet att skydda friheten och den personliga integriteten« (party programme ↗)“It is society's absolute duty to protect freedom and personal integrity”
The party programme states that the party opposes all laws that mean disproportionate interference with integrity and that crime and counter-terrorism cannot occur at the expense of human rights.
Plan documents: party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The party programme states that the party opposes all laws that mean disproportionate interference with integrity and that crime and counter-terrorism cannot occur at the expense of human rights. The counter-proposal's demand not to implement the parts that extend the handover of human biological material, citing integrity risks and weak preparation grounds, follows from that proportionality principle. The plan does not address human biological material specifically, so the position is derived.
Original (Swedish)
Partiprogrammet slår fast att partiet motsätter sig alla lagar som innebär oproportionerliga ingrepp i integriteten och att brotts- och terrorbekämpning inte får ske på bekostnad av mänskliga rättigheter. Motförslagets krav att inte genomföra de delar som utvidgar utlämnandet av humanbiologiskt material, med hänvisning till integritetsrisker och svagt beredningsunderlag, följer av den proportionalitetsprincipen. Planen behandlar inte just humanbiologiskt material, så ställningstagandet är härlett.
- no disproportionate integrity interferencedecisive»Vi motsätter oss alla lagar som innebär oproportionerliga ingrepp i integriteten.« (party programme ↗)“We oppose all laws that mean disproportionate interference with integrity.”
- protection of privacy»Vi vill värna människors rätt till integritet och privatliv.« (party programme ↗)“We want to protect people's right to integrity and privacy.”
- human rights limit crime prevention»Brotts- och terrorbekämpning är viktigt men ska inte ske på bekostnad av mänskliga rättigheter.« (party programme ↗)“Crime and counter-terrorism are important but shall not occur at the expense of human rights.”
- patient control over information»Patienten ska ha rätt till insyn i och inflytande över sin journal.« (party programme ↗)“The patient shall have the right to insight into and influence over their record.”
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
The plan requires that all legislation be tested against its impact on personal integrity and that there is proportionality between the integrity restriction and the law's purpose.
Plan documents: party programme · 2022 manifesto
Reasoning and quotes
The plan requires that all legislation be tested against its impact on personal integrity and that there is proportionality between the integrity restriction and the law's purpose. To reject the parts that expand the disclosure of human biological material on weak preparation grounds follows from this. The plan also states that the individual's rights against the state must be defended.
Original (Swedish)
Planen kräver att all lagstiftning prövas mot sin påverkan på den personliga integriteten och att det finns proportionalitet mellan integritetsinskränkningen och lagens syfte. Att avstyrka de delar som utvidgar utlämnandet av humanbiologiskt material på svagt beredningsunderlag följer av detta. Planen slår också fast att individens rättigheter gentemot staten måste försvaras.
- proportionality in integrity intrusionsweak support»All lagstiftning bör prövas mot dess påverkan på människors personliga integritet. Det måste finnas en proportionalitet mellan lagstiftningens inskränkning av medborgarnas integritet och lagarnas syfte.« (party programme ↗)“All legislation should be tested against its impact on people's personal integrity. There must be proportionality between the legislation's restriction of citizens' integrity and the laws' purpose.”
- individual's right against the statedecisive»Rättsstaten och individens rättigheter gentemot staten måste försvaras.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The rule of law and the individual's rights against the state must be defended.”
- strong integrity protection»Ett starkt integritetsskydd är därför en omistlig del av ett öppet och demokratiskt samhälle.« (party programme ↗)“Strong integrity protection is therefore an indispensable part of an open and democratic society.”
- no to legal state shortcuts»Vi säger därför nej till visitationszoner, kollektiv bestraffning, omvänd bevisbörda, anonyma vittnen, preventiv avlyssning och inskränkningar av religionsfriheten.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We therefore say no to search zones, collective punishment, reversed burden of proof, anonymous witnesses, preventive surveillance and restrictions on religious freedom.”
flags: citat_svagt
The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.
The party programme establishes that privacy intrusions are justified only if an opposing interest weighs significantly heavier and the measure is effective, and that recording must not be used for purposes other than the original motives.
Plan documents: party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The party programme establishes that privacy intrusions are justified only if an opposing interest weighs significantly heavier and the measure is effective, and that recording must not be used for purposes other than the original motives. The counter-proposal rejects precisely those parts that expand disclosure to other purposes and to a broader grounds test. It lies directly in line with the plan's purpose limitation and demand for strengthened data protection.
Original (Swedish)
Partiprogrammet slår fast att integritetsingrepp bara är berättigade om ett motstående intresse väger uppenbart tyngre och åtgärden är effektiv, och att registrering inte får användas för andra syften än de ursprungliga motiven. Motförslaget avvisar just de delar som vidgar utlämnandet till andra ändamål och till en bredare skälighetsgrund. Det ligger direkt i linje med planens ändamålsbegränsning och krav på stärkt integritetsskydd.
- significantly heavier opposing interest requireddecisive»är endast berättigade om ett motstående intresse väger uppenbart tyngre och åtgärden är effektiv.« (party programme ↗)“are justified only if an opposing interest weighs significantly heavier and the measure is effective.”
- purpose limitation»Övervakning och registrering ska inte användas för andra syften än vad som var de ursprungliga motiven« (party programme ↗)“Monitoring and recording must not be used for purposes other than what the original motives were”
- strengthened data protection»Skyddet för den enskildes integritet ska stärkas.« (party programme ↗)“Data protection must be strengthened.”
- dignity and integrity»Den enskildes värdighet och integritet får inte kränkas.« (party programme ↗)“Every person's dignity and integrity must not be violated.”
The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.
The election manifesto, which carries the most weight, requires a complete review of secrecy rules so that authorities can share information between them to prevent and clear up crimes, and the justice system's task to investigate crimes is central in the plan.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto · party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The election manifesto, which carries the most weight, requires a complete review of secrecy rules so that authorities can share information between them to prevent and clear up crimes, and the justice system's task to investigate crimes is central in the plan. Stopping the expansion of disclosure therefore goes against the plan's main line. The party programme at the same time explicitly talks about tissue samples as genetic registries with secrecy protection, which makes the basis contradictory and the conclusion uncertain.
Original (Swedish)
Valmanifestet, som väger tyngst, kräver en total översyn av sekretessreglerna så att myndigheter kan dela uppgifter mellan sig för att förebygga och klara upp brott, och rättsväsendets uppgift att utreda brott är central i planen. Att stoppa utvidgningen av utlämnandet går därför emot planens huvudlinje. Partiprogrammet talar samtidigt uttryckligen om vävnadsprover som genetiska personregister med sekretesskydd, vilket gör underlaget motstridigt och slutsatsen osäker.
- authorities should be able to share informationdecisive»Total översyn av sekretessreglerna, så att myndigheter kan dela uppgifter mellan sig för att förebygga och klara upp brott.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Complete review of secrecy rules, so that authorities can share information between them to prevent and clear up crimes.”
- effective crime investigation»förebygga brott, upprätthålla ordning samt att utreda« (party programme ↗)“prevent crimes, maintain order and investigate”
- secrecy protection for tissue samples»betrakta som genetiska personregister och ska behandlas med sekretesskydd.« (party programme ↗)“regarded as genetic registries and shall be treated with secrecy protection.”
- caution with personal data»försiktighet och respekt för den personliga integriteten« (party programme ↗)“caution and respect for personal integrity”
flags: motstridiga_plan_atagenden
The plan consistently weighs crime-fighting needs heavier than privacy intrusions: it wants to introduce search zones, drastically increase camera surveillance and even reverse the burden of proof to get at criminals' assets.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto · party programme
Reasoning and quotes
The plan consistently weighs crime-fighting needs heavier than privacy intrusions: it wants to introduce search zones, drastically increase camera surveillance and even reverse the burden of proof to get at criminals' assets. Striking the parts that expand authorities' ability to obtain human biological material goes against that line. The plan's commitment to protect personal privacy remains as a counterweight, but is in the plan subordinate to the justice system's capability.
Original (Swedish)
Planen väger konsekvent brottsbekämpningens behov tyngre än integritetsintrånget: den vill införa visitationszoner, kraftigt öka kameraövervakningen och till och med vända bevisbördan för att komma åt kriminellas tillgångar. Att stryka de delar som vidgar myndigheternas möjlighet att få ut humanbiologiskt material går mot den linjen. Planens åtagande att värna den personliga integriteten kvarstår som en avvägning, men är i planen underordnat rättsväsendets förmåga.
- expanded authoritydecisive»Införa visitationszoner så att Polisen får bättre möjligheter att leta efter vapen« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Introduce search zones so Police get better opportunities to search for weapons”
- security before privacy intrusion»Kraftigt öka antalet övervakningskameror« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Drastically increase the number of surveillance cameras”
- reversed burden of proof accepted»Ta gängens pengar och införa en omvänd bevisbörda för att kunna beslagta gängmedlemmarnas lyxprylar« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Take criminals' money and introduce reversed burden of proof to be able to seize gang members' luxury goods”
- personal privacy as counterweight»Den personliga integriteten ska värnas« (party programme ↗)“Personal privacy shall be protected”
The plan's core commitment is that the justice system shall get more effective tools and that procedural obstacles to increased prosecution shall be removed.
Plan documents: 2022 manifesto
Reasoning and quotes
The plan's core commitment is that the justice system shall get more effective tools and that procedural obstacles to increased prosecution shall be removed. Striking the parts that expand the disclosure of human biological material to authorities goes against that line. The plan's desire for a strengthened position for the Law Council points in the opposite direction but weighs less than the requirement for effective crime-fighting tools.
Original (Swedish)
Planens bärande åtagande är att rättsväsendet ska få mer effektiva verktyg och att processuella hinder för ökad lagföring ska undanröjas. Att stryka de delar som vidgar utlämnandet av humanbiologiskt material till myndigheterna går emot den linjen. Planens önskan om stärkt ställning för Lagrådet talar i motsatt riktning men väger lättare än kravet på verksamma brottsbekämpande verktyg.
- effective tools against crimedecisive»Framförallt behöver rättsväsendet få mer effektiva verktyg för att bekämpa gängbrott.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Above all, the justice system needs more effective tools to combat gang crime.”
- remove procedural obstacles»Processuella hinder för att möjliggöra en ökad lagföring måste också undanröjas.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Procedural obstacles to enabling increased prosecution must also be removed.”
- better authority cooperation»Rättsväsendets samverkan mellan myndigheter och verktyg för att upptäcka och lagföra kriminella ska förbättras.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The justice system's cooperation between authorities and tools for detecting and prosecuting criminals shall be improved.”
- respect for the Law Council's criticism»Lagrådets ställning bör stärkas genom att utreda möjligheten att fordra kvalificerad majoritet i riksdagen vid antaganden av lagförslag om vilka Lagrådet riktat kritik.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Law Council's position should be strengthened by investigating the possibility of requiring a qualified majority in the Riksdag when adopting legislative proposals that the Law Council has criticized.”
Share and embed
Sources and documents
- The committee report on riksdagen.se (2022/23:JuU19)
- Committee report full text (HA01JuU19)
- Per-MP voting data (API)
- Case status (API)
Documents under consideration
- Motion 2022/23:2366 — med anledning av prop. 2022/23:82 Rättsmedicinalverkets hantering av humanbiologiskt material av Gudrun Nordborg m.fl. (V)
- Proposition 2022/23:82 — Rättsmedicinalverkets hantering av humanbiologiskt material
Source: The Swedish Parliament