Between 2016 and 2020, the Kalmar Region received around SEK 135 million in a targeted state contribution.

The money would go to investments in maternity care, but in a review that SVT has done, it turned out that Region Kalmar has not reported to Sweden's municipalities and regions (SKR) how SEK 55 million of the money has been used.

This has upset several regional councils from the Sweden Democrats, the Moderates and the Christian Democrats within the regional council.

- To hear from the business that the money is not enough, and to then hear that 55 million of the targeted state subsidy has not gone to maternity care makes me both sad and upset, says Jimmy Loord, regional councilor for the Christian Democrats.

Requires change

After Uppdrag Granskning's revelation, Jimmy Loord (KD) told Thursday's regional council that he will in future demand a change in how the reporting of state investments is done within Region Kalmar.

- We need a different order for how we handle government grants and I will demand in the future that we will have a better political insight into how the money from government grants is used.

Satisfied with the debate despite the criticism

Despite criticism of the missing childbirth millions from the opposition, regional councilor Emmy Ahlstedt (C) was happy that there was a debate about women's health and maternity care during the regional council.

- I think it has been a rewarding day and we received, for example, a request from the opposition to make an impact to investigate how state subsidies are used and that is what we have done today.

What do you think about the debate that arose about greater transparency about how state subsidies are used?

- I think it is exactly as I said before, when you do improvement work within the business, it creates additional costs.

These are precisely the additional costs that the opposition has wanted greater transparency in and I have done my utmost to explain what they have gone to.

But it does not seem that the opposition is buying what you explained?

-

The opposition is doing its job, concludes Emmy Ahlstedt (C).