The government's bill to replace closed youth care with prison for children and young people
What's at stake: The decision determines which authority is responsible for children and young people deprived of their liberty and the environment they are placed in, with consequences for their schooling, contact with relatives and prospects for rehabilitation. It particularly concerns girls and younger teenagers sentenced for very serious crimes, and weighs society's need to respond forcefully to crime against the risks of marginalisation and stigmatisation.
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 children and young people sentenced to a custodial sanction for very serious crimes should be sentenced to prison under the responsibility of the Prison and Probation Service, instead of today's closed youth care, or whether closed youth care should be retained out of consideration for children's rights and their need for rehabilitation.
Yes Yes — the committee proposal
The committee notes that crime has changed since closed youth care was introduced: serious violence and firearms occur among ever younger age groups, and criminal networks exploit children and young people to commit serious crimes. This development, in the committee's view, calls for new tools, and the committee shares the government's assessment that the Prison and Probation Service, despite the challenges it faces, is well suited to be responsible for a custodial sanction for children and young people. The committee therefore backs the government's overall bill under which children and young people sentenced to a custodial sanction should, as a general rule, be sentenced to prison instead of closed youth care.
No No — the reservations
Reservation 2 (MP)
The reservation (MP) considers the government's proposal to place children in prison to be deeply worrying, pointing out that opposition among consultation bodies is broad, with several warning that the reform could draw ever younger children into crime and that the proposal conflicts with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, since the Prison and Probation Service lacks the experience and capacity to secure children's rights to, among other things, education, contact with relatives and a safe, rehabilitative environment. The reservation particularly highlights concern for how girls' rights will be respected within the Prison and Probation Service, and argues that prison risks leading to marginalisation, stigmatisation and an entrenched criminal identity rather than a genuine chance of rehabilitation.
Summarised from the committee report. Party labels in the summary come from the report, not from the vote.
V–
S–
MP–
C–
L–
KD–
M–
SD–
YesNoAbstainAbsent
What do the votes mean here?
Yes The committee proposal: adopting the government's legislative proposal and rejecting the motions (keeping things as they are).
No Backing the counter-proposal: reservation 2 by MP.
Abstain The party marks a position of its own that is not one of the two final alternatives.
The plan's stance / Actual vote
AI
Vote
Confidence
Evidence
V
–
Abstain 0/0/21/0
S
–
Yes 106/0/0/0
MPown reservation
–
No 0/18/0/0
C
–
Yes 24/0/0/0
L
–
Yes 16/0/0/0
KD
–
Yes 19/0/0/0
M
–
Yes 65/0/0/1
SD
–
Yes 70/0/0/0
Committee proposal
The Riksdag adopts the government's proposal for
1. a law amending the Code of Procedure,
2. a law amending the Penal Code,
3. a law amending the Social Insurance Code,
4. a law amending the Act (1946:804) on the introduction of the new Code of Procedure,
5. a law amending the Act (1971:289) on general administrative courts,
6. a law amending the Passport Act (1978:302),
7. a law amending the Police Act (1984:387),
8. a law amending the Act (1988:688) on restraining orders,
9. a law amending the Act (1990:52) with special provisions on the care of young people,
10. a law amending the Act (1991:1129) on forensic psychiatric care,
11. a law amending the Act (1998:603) on the enforcement of closed youth custody,
12. a law repealing the Act (1998:603) on the enforcement of closed youth custody.
13. a law amending the Act (1998:620) on the criminal record register,
14. a law amending the Act (1998:714) on compensation for deprivation of liberty and other coercive measures,
15. a law amending the Freedom of the Press and Secrecy Act (2009:400),
16. a law amending the Prison Act (2010:610),
17. a law amending the Education Act (2010:800),
18. a law amending the Act (2015:96) on recognition and enforcement of custodial sentences within the European Union,
19. a law amending the Act (2018:1250) on the crediting of time spent in deprivation of liberty,
20. a law amending the Sentencing Act (2018:1251),
21. a law amending the Act (2018:1693) on the police's processing of personal data within the scope of the criminal records legislation,
22. a law amending the Act (2018:1694) on the Customs Agency's processing of personal data within the scope of the criminal records legislation,
23. a law amending the Act (2022:482) on electronic communications,
24. a law amending the Act (2024:326) on secret coercive measures for the purposes of enforcing custodial sentences,
25. a law amending the Social Services Act (2025:400).
The Riksdag hereby accepts Proposition 2025/26:132 points 1-25 and rejects the motions
2025/26:3530 by Ulrika Westerlund et al. (MP) request 2,
2025/26:3586 by Teresa Carvalho et al. (S) requests 23, 26 and 143,
2025/26:3645 by Fredrik Lundh Sammeli et al. (S) request 126,
2025/26:3920 by Gudrun Nordborg et al. (V) requests 1-3 and
2025/26:3929 by Ulrika Westerlund et al. (MP) requests 1-3.
Original (Swedish)
Riksdagen antar regeringens förslag till
1. lag om ändring i rättegångsbalken,
2. lag om ändring i brottsbalken,
3. lag om ändring i socialförsäkringsbalken,
4. lag om ändring i lagen (1946:804) om införande av nya rättegångsbalken,
5. lag om ändring i lagen (1971:289) om allmänna förvaltningsdomstolar,
6. lag om ändring i passlagen (1978:302),
7. lag om ändring i polislagen (1984:387),
8. lag om ändring i lagen (1988:688) om kontaktförbud,
9. lag om ändring i lagen (1990:52) med särskilda bestämmelser om vård av unga,
10. lag om ändring i lagen (1991:1129) om rättspsykiatrisk vård,
11. lag om ändring i lagen (1998:603) om verkställighet av sluten ungdomsvård,
12. lag om upphävande av lagen (1998:603) om verkställighet av sluten ungdomsvård.
13. lag om ändring i lagen (1998:620) om belastningsregister,
14. lag om ändring i lagen (1998:714) om ersättning vid frihetsberövanden och andra tvångsåtgärder,
15. lag om ändring i offentlighets- och sekretesslagen (2009:400),
16. lag om ändring i fängelselagen (2010:610),
17. lag om ändring i skollagen (2010:800),
18. lag om ändring i lagen (2015:96) om erkännande och verkställighet av frihetsberövande påföljder inom Europeiska unionen,
19. lag om ändring i lagen (2018:1250) om tillgodoräknande av tid för frihetsberövande,
20. lag om ändring i strafftidslagen (2018:1251),
21. lag om ändring i lagen (2018:1693) om polisens behandling av personuppgifter inom brottsdatalagens område,
22. lag om ändring i lagen (2018:1694) om Tullverkets behandling av personuppgifter inom brottsdatalagens område,
23. lag om ändring i lagen (2022:482) om elektronisk kommunikation,
24. lag om ändring i lagen (2024:326) om hemliga tvångsmedel i syfte att verkställa frihetsberövande påföljder,
25. lag om ändring i socialtjänstlagen (2025:400).
Därmed bifaller riksdagen proposition 2025/26:132 punkterna 1-25 och avslår motionerna
2025/26:3530 av Ulrika Westerlund m.fl. (MP) yrkande 2,
2025/26:3586 av Teresa Carvalho m.fl. (S) yrkandena 23, 26 och 143,
2025/26:3645 av Fredrik Lundh Sammeli m.fl. (S) yrkande 126,
2025/26:3920 av Gudrun Nordborg m.fl. (V) yrkandena 1-3 och
2025/26:3929 av Ulrika Westerlund m.fl. (MP) yrkandena 1-3.
Riksdag decision: For a person who has committed a crime and is 15–17 years old, if a custodial sentence cannot be avoided, the sentence shall be determined as imprisonment instead of closed youth custody (ungdomsvård). The Riksdag approved the government's proposal on this.
According to current law, a person aged 15–17 who commits such a serious crime that it leads to a custodial sentence shall, as a general rule, be sentenced to closed youth custody instead of imprisonment. Closed youth custody is enforced by the National Board for Institutional Care and the convicted person is placed at a special youth home (SiS home).
The decision means that children and young people in these cases shall instead be sentenced to imprisonment. The Prison and Probation Service thus becomes responsible for enforcing the sentence and closed youth custody is removed from the sentencing system. This means, among other things, the following:
Children sentenced to imprisonment shall, as a general rule, be placed in special children's and youth units, which shall be specially adapted based on children's needs and rights.
Since the sentence becomes imprisonment, children and young people are covered by the conditional release system and when transitioning from institution to freedom, they will as a starting point be placed under supervision in order to provide them with the support and control they need (which differs from the sentence of closed youth custody).
The imposed sentence will in itself be longer, since four years of closed youth custody corresponds to six years of imprisonment. However, the period of deprivation of liberty is not always longer since part of the sentence can be served outside the institution after conditional release.
The legislative changes begin, in all material respects, to apply on 1 July 2026.
Counter-proposals
The counter-proposal wants to reject the government's proposal for youth prisons and instead reform SIS while extending the maximum care duration for closed youth care. (MP) — Reservation 2