A new survey shows UK men are shirking the chores. Not so in Nordic nations, where family-friendly policies have changed the landscape

And lo! As we all return to school it turns out that women in Britain are still doing more housework than men. The new British social attitudes survey has just been published, and it reveals that although a majority of Britons agree that adult couples sharing a home should do equal amounts of housework , two-thirds of them admitted that women ended up doing much more. Italian and Spanish women have it worse ( Mi dispiace/Lo siento ). But my adopted Nordic homeland is – apparently – winning, and there’s much that Brits can learn from the way things are done here.

Since moving to Denmark in 2013, I’ve noticed a rhythm to Danish life that’s more conducive to the equal division of labour. Both sexes work and get paid a decent wage. And from the age of 10 months, all children go to tax-subsidised, state-run daycare. Most daycare institutions and offices are open from 8am until 4pm, and this has defined the way Danes work. So even the CEO of a company is allowed to say in a meeting at 4pm, “I have to leave to pick up the kids and make dinner.” And they go home to eat as a family.

Continue reading...

Fifteen activists including in France, Germany and Spain believe Iranian regime behind campaign of repression

Iran and its agents appear to be orchestrating a Europe-wide campaign of harassment, surveillance, kidnap plots and death threats targeting political activists who are protesting against the regime.

The Guardian has spoken to 15 Iranian campaigners who have been targeted in similar acts of repression across the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Sweden.

Continue reading...

Move has drawn comparisons to UK, where Rishi Sunak has U-turned on environmental commitments

The Swedish government is facing a huge backlash – including threats of no-confidence votes against its climate minister – after slashing the country’s climate budget while admitting it will dramatically increase carbon dioxide emissions.

The minority-run coalition, which has been in power for just under a year, announced on Wednesday it would be cutting funding for climate and environmental measures next year by 259m krona (£19m) and introducing tax cuts on petrol and diesel.

Continue reading...

Sweden is leading in a battle to be the first European space base outside Russia to launch a satellite into orbit

First place is “nice but it’s not necessary”, says Stefan Gustafsson, a senior official at the Sweden Space Corporation (SSC), with a telling chortle. “Other actors are more aiming to be first. Naturally, I think we will be.”

It was an unconvincing show of magnanimity. There is a space race on, a British rival has already spectacularly fallen by the wayside, and the Swedes have every intention of winning.

Continue reading...

Guardian investigation finds 98% of Europeans breathing highly damaging polluted air linked to 400,000 deaths a year

• Europe’s pollution divide: see how your area compares

Europe is facing a “severe public health crisis”, with almost everyone across the continent living in areas with dangerous levels of air pollution, an investigation by the Guardian has found.

Analysis of data gathered using cutting-edge methodology – including detailed satellite images and measurements from more than 1,400 ground monitoring stations – reveals a dire picture of dirty air, with 98% of people living in areas with highly damaging fine particulate pollution that exceed World Health Organization guidelines. Almost two-thirds live in areas where air quality is more than double the WHO’s guidelines.

Continue reading...

Cuts to climate funding and to taxes on petrol and diesel expected to increase emissions

• Europe live –latest updates

Sweden’s government has come under criticism after unveiling a budget that will dramatically increase emissions.

The budget, unveiled on Wednesday morning, included a 259m krona (£19m) reduction in funding for the climate and environment next year, and tax cuts on petrol and diesel.

Continue reading...

Police chief says citizens are afraid after wave of murders and explosions

Gang wars have brought an “unprecedented” wave of violence to Sweden, the national police chief has said, after a week of fatal shootings.

Sweden has for several years been in the grip of a conflict between gangs fighting over arms and drug trafficking, involving firearms and explosive devices.

Continue reading...

Ylva Johansson says EU is supporting Swedish government in attempt to get 33-year-old home after 512 days

The European Commission has said it is “very worried” about the plight of a Swedish EU official who has spent more than 500 days in jail in Iran.

Ylva Johansson, the home affairs commissioner, who was previously in charge of the work of the detained Johan Floderus, said every effort was being made to get him released as she spoke publicly for the first time on Monday since the veil of secrecy about his case was lifted.

Continue reading...

Schools minister Lotta Edholm moves students off digital devices and on to books and handwriting, with teachers and experts debating the pros and cons

Since young children went back to school across Sweden recently, many of their teachers have been putting a new emphasis on printed books, quiet reading time and handwriting practice, and devoting less time to tablets, independent online research and keyboarding skills.

The return to more traditional ways of learning is a response to politicians and experts questioning whether Sweden’s hyper-digitalised approach to education, including the introduction of tablets in nursery schools, had led to a decline in basic skills.

Continue reading...