At the end of april 2018, announced the minister of social affairs Annika Strandhäll (S) suddenly that the Insurance office would get a new management. The director-general Ann-Marie Begler was, according to his own description, fired. The handling of the case led to a minor crisis for the government – in an interview with dagens nyheter, claimed Ann-Marie Begler that political reasons were behind the decision, and the opposition demanded answers from the minister.
On Monday, launching the committee on the constitution a review of the case with a hearing by Annika Strandhälls former secretary of state. Later in april will also minister to be asked.
When KU’s review now begins it has taken almost a year ago, Ann-Marie Begler was allowed to leave his service. Despite this, the social Insurance office, which is one of Sweden’s largest government agencies with expenditure of nearly 220 billion annually, still not received any regular director general.
government took into Beglers place – Maria Hemström-Hemmingsson – is left, but still only as the acting director-general. At her regular workplace, the Inspection of the social security system, another person had to step in as acting agency director.
It means that the two authorities during almost a year of time, lacked directors with the long-term dispositions of the government.
the Agency’s director general, Maria Rydbeck took office in the fall of 2018, with the mission to be a support to the director-general. But a new director-general has therefore not yet been appointed and the chief director has no information about when it will happen.
” None at all. It is a process that is completely operated within the government offices. We have no indications, unfortunately, neither the date or who it will be, ” Maria says Rydbeck.
Despite the long wait, she thinks that the Insurance business worked well during the time.
” We have a board of directors made a decision on a direction, we have processes and procedures internally and assignments from the government. I must say that we have good momentum, and it rolls on.
” it is clear that It is always a good thing with a long-term perspective, even in the highest levels of management. There are some decisions that we need to take in business development and other, even if our board of directors to help us with it.
Union ST s representative at the Insurance office says that she agrees with överdirektörens description.
Social security , ISF, you can’t see it in the future with the same confidence. The authority has the mandate to examine the legal certainty and efficiency in, among other just the social Insurance.
It was from the ISF that the government took the director-general, Maria Hemström-Hemmingsson to become the acting director general of social Insurance agency after Ann-Marie Begler sparkats.
the general Counsel Catarina Eklundh Ahlgren was then stepping up as acting director-general of the ISF. It was at a critical stage for the authority, which is still in the midst of an ongoing move from Stockholm to Gothenburg. The move has meant that many employees choose to quit, one of them is Catarina Eklundh Ahlgren itself. She is critical of the authority still stands without a regular director-general:
” of course It is jätteolyckligt. It was in a very inconvenient location that you moved on Maria Hemström-Hemmingsson. It was very troublesome to get rid of our estimated head in such a sensitive location, and also lose a workforce in the management team, ” she says.
an almost completely new management team to the agency’s new offices in Gothenburg, but none of the employees know who in the future will have the ultimate responsibility to control the authority.
– Now it is a matter of practice to build up a new authority in Gothenburg. It is a great challenge to do so as the agency director when I know I’m doing it on a borrowed chair, ” says Catarina Eklundh Ahlgren, and continues:
– It is also a challenge for the agency. We must push the development, while we know that it eventually enter a new director-general who may with a new agenda and like to do things in a different way.
In theory, would Maria Hemström-Hemmingsson able to return to the ISF, where she is still on leave, but Catarina Eklundh Ahlgren points out that it would be problematic because the ISF exercising supervision over the social Insurance office.
” I don’t know how the government looks at the issue of Maria Hemström-Hemmigsson would be able to get back to the ISF, and it makes that the situation is even more uncertain for the us than for the social Insurance agency. We have asked the question to the Government offices without getting any clear answer. The answer we have received is that it will not address the issue of a director-general of the ISF until you have solved out the appointment of a new director general for the Swedish social Insurance agency, ” says Catarina Eklundh Ahlgren.
for service as director general of the ISF, as far as she knows is not opened.
Each onsdagseftermiddag keeps employees at ISF a check on the government’s site, then the ärendelistan for the cabinet meeting are usually published, to see if a decision concerning the appointment of a new director general for the Swedish social Insurance agency at the time. Pending clarification has so far been in vain.
“Soon have the ISF had a deputy director-general, in a whole year,” says Catarina Eklundh Ahlgren, and notes that it is likely that the ISF will continue to have a temporary solution for a longer time to come.
Personally, she leaves the authority for the summer, and another person in the management team will take over her temporary place.
the Application period for the assignment as director general of the Insurance authority expired on August 10, 2018, and eight people applied for the job. One of them was kicked, the director-general Ann-Marie Begler, Expressen was the first to report.
the DN has applied for social insurance Annika Strandhäll for an interview. She has instead chosen to respond with a written comment, to which she says that it is the protracted formation of the government is behind that, no new managers were appointed.
Strandhäll: Regeringsbildningens errors that new managers delayed
