TITLE: Sweden's Government Proposes New Law Strengthening Critical Infrastructure Resilience
BODY:
On May 22, 2026, the Swedish Government announced a proposed new law designed to strengthen the resilience of critical service providers across multiple sectors. The legislation implements the European Union's Directive on the Resilience of Critical Entities (CER Directive), which aims to ensure uninterrupted provision of essential services throughout the EU.
The proposed law applies to both public and private operators across eleven designated sectors: energy, transport, banking, financial market infrastructure, healthcare, drinking water, wastewater, digital infrastructure, public administration, space, and food production and distribution. Critical operators identified under the new law must implement measures to increase their resilience—their capacity to prevent, resist, and limit the consequences of disruptions to essential services. These operators will be required to report certain incidents that affect or could affect the provision of critical services.
The legislation includes provisions for supervision and enforcement mechanisms against operators failing to comply with its requirements. The law also proposes amendments to the Security Protection Act (säkerhetsskyddslagen) to enable higher administrative penalties for non-compliant private operators. These enforcement mechanisms aim to ensure operators meet the new regulatory standards, thereby strengthening protection of critical infrastructure and essential services.
The proposed law and related amendments are scheduled to enter into force on January 1, 2027. The Swedish Government submitted the proposal as a legislative referral (lagrådsremiss) for consultation. The CER Directive itself was adopted by the EU on December 14, 2022, and establishes obligations designed to enhance the resilience of critical entities across member states.
REFERENCES:
Swedish Government Press Release: "Ny lag för att stärka motståndskraften i samhällsviktiga tjänster och högre sanktionsavgifter enligt säkerhetsskyddslagen" (May 22, 2026). Available at: Regeringen.se
EU Directive 2022/2557 on the Resilience of Critical Entities. Available at: EUR-Lex