Åkesson backs Gellerbrant’s parental leave as practical time-out

Sweden Democrats leader Jimmie Åkesson says Gustav Gellerbrant’s parental leave is a reasonable temporary step after an Expo report that Gellerbrant’s partner, a party official in parliament, spread pro-Russian messages. SVT reported that the arrangement gives the party and the Government Offices time to investigate the matter.

Expo reported that the female Sweden Democrats official had shared pro-Russian statements and taken part in cultural activities linked to Russian state interests. She lives with Gellerbrant, who heads the party’s coordination office in the Government Offices.

After the report was published, Gellerbrant went on parental leave and said he had handed in his access card and computer. In a social media post, he sharply criticised the reporting, describing it as based on “isolated statements”. He said it included obvious sarcasm and irony and failed to reflect the full context and nuances of posts published over several decades.

Åkesson told SVT that Gellerbrant’s parental leave was “in practice” a kind of time-out and said he considered it a good solution.

“It means that we now have time to properly investigate both the parts concerning our party and those concerning the Government Offices,” Åkesson said.

Åkesson said he believed Gellerbrant himself felt it was the reasonable thing to do in the circumstances, adding that the election campaign should focus on policy rather than such issues.

The Sweden Democrats leader said the information that had emerged was being taken seriously, but that his confidence in Gellerbrant remained intact unless he received a different indication. The party is investigating the allegations, Åkesson said, and has taken no other specific measures concerning the female party official.

“There has been talk that this would constitute some kind of security risk. If it had been that, the authorities would naturally have acted. I have not noticed that they have done so. No one has contacted us, for example,” Åkesson said.

The Sweden Democrats’ press service previously told SVT that the party would investigate the information, adding that it hoped the couple could have some time alone with their newly formed family.

SVT said it had sought comment from the party official, Gellerbrant, the Government Offices and the parliamentary administration.