"Chickens at Harpsund! Hurray!", wrote Ulf Kristersson's wife Birgitta Ed in an email to two senior managers at the Government Offices and the Swedish Property Board (SFV), which manages the prime minister's recreational and representative residence Harpsund.
Her wish to have summer chickens at Harpsund was then put on hold after many email conversations.
The prime minister and his wife were responsible for purchasing the chicken coop and the costs of keeping the chickens. However, the cost of assembly, which amounts to SEK 16,691, was to be borne by the Government Offices.
After the newspaper asked questions about the invoice, Kristersson's press officer announced that the prime minister and his wife were not aware of it but would now pay the full amount. The whole idea was that the chicken coop would be the family's contribution to Harpsund.
Other emails between the Government Offices and SFV were about Ed's idea to produce labels for apple juice from the farm, which never came to fruition, and about beekeeping. But SFV drew the line there.
The authority wrote that it was difficult to see that providing bees was part of its mission: "After receiving a response from our company lawyer, we are very doubtful whether we at SFV should handle bees and the production of honey."
This spring, Expressen reported on how the prime minister couple's wishes for tenant adaptations of the Sagerska house resulted in high consulting costs when furnishings were purchased. For example, a bread scoop was invoiced for SEK 2,300, pillows for just over SEK 30,000 and a kitchen mat for SEK 27,400.
