The comparison with Sweden was made by Sylvi Listhaug, leader of the right-wing populist Progress Party. She recently claimed that the situation in Norway when it comes to youth crime is like Sweden's.
Justice Minister Astri Aas-Hansen (Ap) rejects this.
No, fortunately we have not ended up in a situation similar to that in Sweden, she tells VG, adding that such a situation includes many unsolved murder cases and a loss of control over certain residential areas.
The Norwegian government is allocating an additional 120 million Norwegian kroner, bringing the total to 800 million kroner, for the fight against youth crime in next year's state budget. A total of 1.9 billion kronor will be invested over a three-year period.
