Cecilia Stegö Chilò
Encyclopedia
Marie Cecilia Stegö Chilò (kɪˈloː; born 25 March 1959) was the Swedish
Minister for Culture for ten days, from October 6, 2006 to October 16, 2006. Prior to her appointment as a cabinet member she was Chief executive officer of the Swedish Free Enterprise Foundation , and Director of Timbro
, a neoliberal, free-market think-tank. A former journalist and editorialist, she is a member of the Moderate Party
. From 2007 she is Chairman of the Advisory Board of the
Permanent Platform of Atomium Culture
.
in Östergötland County
. She has studied political science
, economics
, law
and language
. Cecilia Stegö Chilò lives with her husband and two children in Bromma in western Stockholm.
and London
. From 1982 to 1983 she was Vice chairperson of the Confederation of Swedish Conservative and Liberal Students. She has worked as a reporter at Norrköpings Tidningar
from 1982 to 1984, secreterary in the Stockholm County Council from 1984 to 1985, press secreterary in the Moderate Party's parliamentary group
from 1985 to 1987, speech writer for the Moderate Party leadership from 1987 to 1988 and as a reporter and editorial journalist for the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet
from 1989 to 1999. From 2001 to 2002 she was a political commentator at Sveriges Radio
.
in 1995 in protest after the expulsion of the EU-critic Björn von der Esch
- this happened in connection with his being against the EMU
and against the vision of a tighter federalism in EU affairs. She rejoined the Moderate Party
in 2005. Following the 2006 general election
on September 17, 2006 the Moderate Party together with three other parties in the Alliance for Sweden
gained a majority of the seats in the parliament and were able to form a coalition government. On October 6, 2006 Stegö Chilò was selected by the newly elected Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt
to hold the post of Minister for Culture with responsibility for culture, the media and sports in his cabinet
. However, during the period October 7 to October 16, 2006 a series of media revelations into the newly appointed minister led to her resignation after ten days in office.
was announced two of the ministers, Cecilia Stegö Chilò and Maria Borelius
, admitted that they had previously employed persons to take care of their children without paying the appropriate taxes. Stegö Chilò stated: "It's just as well that I say this right away. If you want to remove me because of that, go ahead." Neither Stegö Chilò or Borelius face any criminal or administrative consequences since the events took place more than five years ago, outside of the statute of limitations
.
for at least 16 years (since records began being kept), withholding more than 16,000 kronor
from the public service broadcasters. In Sweden it is a crime for the owner of a television not to pay the TV-licence, and punishable by a fine. However, it is possible to come to an agreement and pay the fee retroactively. Her husband registered ownership of a television five days before her appointment as minister. As Minister for Culture Stegö Chilò's responsibilities include oversight of the Swedish public service corporations. Stegö Chilò expressed an ambition to repay what she owed with interest. However, on October 12, 2006 Radiotjänst i Kiruna AB
, a private agency tasked with collecting the licence fees, filed criminal charges against Stegö Chilò together with two other ministers in the Reinfeldt Cabinet: Tobias Billström
and Maria Borelius
.
In November 2006 she sent a letter to Radiotjänst saying that she had just paid in SEK 22.656. In the letter she refers to an agreement made with the MD of Radiotjänst before the criminal charges were filed. According to the agreement the amount should equal unpaid license fees plus interest and that paying would close the issue.
, Minister for Education and Research in the Cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt
, took over the responsibilities for Stegö Chilò's portfolio until her successor Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth
was appointed on October 24, 2006.
In November 2006 she sent a letter to the salary unit within the government. She clarified that even though she might be entitled to keep her salary for some time after her resignation, she did not wish to receive any money.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Minister for Culture for ten days, from October 6, 2006 to October 16, 2006. Prior to her appointment as a cabinet member she was Chief executive officer of the Swedish Free Enterprise Foundation , and Director of Timbro
Timbro
Timbro is a libertarian, free market think tank and book publisher based in Stockholm, Sweden, that works to promote ideas, influence legislation and public opinion...
, a neoliberal, free-market think-tank. A former journalist and editorialist, she is a member of the Moderate Party
Moderate Party
The Moderate Party is a centre-right, liberal conservative political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1904 as the General Electoral League by a group of conservatives in the Swedish parliament...
. From 2007 she is Chairman of the Advisory Board of the
Permanent Platform of Atomium Culture
Atomium Culture
Atomium Culture AISBL is an International Non-Profit Organisation thatbrings together major European universities, newspapers and businesses in ashared platform for the selection, exchange, and dissemination ofparticularly significant European research,...
.
Personal life
Cecilia Stegö was born in LinköpingLinköping
Linköping is a city in southern middle Sweden, with 104 232 inhabitants in 2010. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality with 146 736 inhabitants and the capital of Östergötland County...
in Östergötland County
Östergötland County
Östergötland County is a county or län in southeastern Sweden. It borders the counties of Kalmar to the southeast, Jönköping to the southwest, Västra Götaland to the west, Örebro to the northwest, Södermanland to the northeast, and the Baltic Sea to the east.Östergötland County has a population of...
. She has studied political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
, economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
, law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
and language
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
. Cecilia Stegö Chilò lives with her husband and two children in Bromma in western Stockholm.
Professional life
In 1982 she was Secretary General of the European Democrats Students in BonnBonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. From 1982 to 1983 she was Vice chairperson of the Confederation of Swedish Conservative and Liberal Students. She has worked as a reporter at Norrköpings Tidningar
Norrköpings Tidningar
Norrköpings Tidningar , also known as NT, is a Swedish daily newspaper with its main distribution in northern and eastern Östergötland. The newspaper was founded in 1758 as the Norrköping Weko-Tidningar, and published its first issue on October 14 of that year...
from 1982 to 1984, secreterary in the Stockholm County Council from 1984 to 1985, press secreterary in the Moderate Party's parliamentary group
Parliament of Sweden
The Riksdag is the national legislative assembly of Sweden. The riksdag is a unicameral assembly with 349 members , who are elected on a proportional basis to serve fixed terms of four years...
from 1985 to 1987, speech writer for the Moderate Party leadership from 1987 to 1988 and as a reporter and editorial journalist for the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet
Svenska Dagbladet
Svenska Dagbladet is a daily newspaper in Sweden. The first issue appeared on 18 December 1884. Svenska Dagbladet is published in Stockholm and provides coverage of national and international news as well as local coverage of the Greater Stockholm region...
from 1989 to 1999. From 2001 to 2002 she was a political commentator at Sveriges Radio
Sveriges Radio
Sveriges Radio AB – Swedish Radio Ltd – is Sweden's national publicly funded radio broadcaster. The Swedish public-broadcasting system is in many respects modelled after the one used in the United Kingdom, and Sveriges Radio - like Sveriges Television - shares many characteristics with...
.
Political career
Cecilia Stegö Chilò left the Moderate PartyModerate Party
The Moderate Party is a centre-right, liberal conservative political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1904 as the General Electoral League by a group of conservatives in the Swedish parliament...
in 1995 in protest after the expulsion of the EU-critic Björn von der Esch
Björn von der Esch
Carl Gösta Björn Joachim von der Esch was a Swedish Christian democratic politician, member of the Riksdag 1998–2006....
- this happened in connection with his being against the EMU
Economic and Monetary Union of the European Union
The Economic and Monetary Union is an umbrella term for the group of policies aimed at converging the economies of members of the European Union in three stages so as to allow them to adopt a single currency, the euro. As such, it is largely synonymous with the eurozone.All member states of the...
and against the vision of a tighter federalism in EU affairs. She rejoined the Moderate Party
Moderate Party
The Moderate Party is a centre-right, liberal conservative political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1904 as the General Electoral League by a group of conservatives in the Swedish parliament...
in 2005. Following the 2006 general election
Swedish general election, 2006
A general election was held in Sweden on 17 September 2006, to elect members to the Swedish parliament. All 349 seats were up for election: 310 "fixed seats" in 29 constituencies and 39 members at a national level for what are called "adjustment seats", used to ensure that parties have...
on September 17, 2006 the Moderate Party together with three other parties in the Alliance for Sweden
Alliance for Sweden
The Alliance , formerly Alliance for Sweden , is a political alliance in Sweden. It consists of the four centre-right parties in the Riksdag...
gained a majority of the seats in the parliament and were able to form a coalition government. On October 6, 2006 Stegö Chilò was selected by the newly elected Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt
Fredrik Reinfeldt
John Fredrik Reinfeldt is the Prime Minister of Sweden, leader of the liberal conservative Moderate Party and former President of the European Council...
to hold the post of Minister for Culture with responsibility for culture, the media and sports in his cabinet
Cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt
The cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt is the current cabinet of Sweden. It is a coalition cabinet consisting of the four parties in the centre-right Alliance for Sweden: the Moderate Party, Centre Party, Liberal People's Party and the Christian Democrats...
. However, during the period October 7 to October 16, 2006 a series of media revelations into the newly appointed minister led to her resignation after ten days in office.
Nanny controversy
On October 7, 2006, the day after the Cabinet of Fredrik ReinfeldtCabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt
The cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt is the current cabinet of Sweden. It is a coalition cabinet consisting of the four parties in the centre-right Alliance for Sweden: the Moderate Party, Centre Party, Liberal People's Party and the Christian Democrats...
was announced two of the ministers, Cecilia Stegö Chilò and Maria Borelius
Maria Borelius
Maria Sigrid Astrid Borelius is a Swedish journalist, entrepreneur and former politician. Following the 2006 Swedish general election she was elected a Member of Parliament for the Moderate Party, and on 6 October 2006 she was presented as Minister for Foreign Trade in Fredrik Reinfeldt's new...
, admitted that they had previously employed persons to take care of their children without paying the appropriate taxes. Stegö Chilò stated: "It's just as well that I say this right away. If you want to remove me because of that, go ahead." Neither Stegö Chilò or Borelius face any criminal or administrative consequences since the events took place more than five years ago, outside of the statute of limitations
Statute of limitations
A statute of limitations is an enactment in a common law legal system that sets the maximum time after an event that legal proceedings based on that event may be initiated...
.
Television licence controversy
On October 11, 2006 it came to light that Stegö Chilò and her husband had not paid their television licenceTelevision licence
A television licence is an official licence required in many countries for the reception of television broadcasts...
for at least 16 years (since records began being kept), withholding more than 16,000 kronor
Swedish krona
The krona has been the currency of Sweden since 1873. Both the ISO code "SEK" and currency sign "kr" are in common use; the former precedes or follows the value, the latter usually follows it, but especially in the past, it sometimes preceded the value...
from the public service broadcasters. In Sweden it is a crime for the owner of a television not to pay the TV-licence, and punishable by a fine. However, it is possible to come to an agreement and pay the fee retroactively. Her husband registered ownership of a television five days before her appointment as minister. As Minister for Culture Stegö Chilò's responsibilities include oversight of the Swedish public service corporations. Stegö Chilò expressed an ambition to repay what she owed with interest. However, on October 12, 2006 Radiotjänst i Kiruna AB
Radiotjänst i Kiruna
Radiotjänst i Kiruna AB is Sweden's TV licensing body. It is a private corporation, formed in 1988 and based in Kiruna. The company is a subsidiary of the three Swedish public service broadcasters Sveriges Television, Sveriges Radio and Sveriges Utbildningsradio...
, a private agency tasked with collecting the licence fees, filed criminal charges against Stegö Chilò together with two other ministers in the Reinfeldt Cabinet: Tobias Billström
Tobias Billström
Tobias Lennart Billström is a Swedish politician currently serving as Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy in the Swedish government. Billström, a member of the Moderate Party, has been a Member of Parliament since 2002 representing Malmö Municipality...
and Maria Borelius
Maria Borelius
Maria Sigrid Astrid Borelius is a Swedish journalist, entrepreneur and former politician. Following the 2006 Swedish general election she was elected a Member of Parliament for the Moderate Party, and on 6 October 2006 she was presented as Minister for Foreign Trade in Fredrik Reinfeldt's new...
.
In November 2006 she sent a letter to Radiotjänst saying that she had just paid in SEK 22.656. In the letter she refers to an agreement made with the MD of Radiotjänst before the criminal charges were filed. According to the agreement the amount should equal unpaid license fees plus interest and that paying would close the issue.
Resignation
On October 16, 2006 Stegö Chilò tendered her resignation to Prime Minister Reinfeldt. Lars LeijonborgLars Leijonborg
Lars Erik Ansgar Leijonborg is a Swedish politician, Minister for Higher Education and Research 2006-2009 and Head of the Ministry of Education and Research 2006-2007...
, Minister for Education and Research in the Cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt
Cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt
The cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt is the current cabinet of Sweden. It is a coalition cabinet consisting of the four parties in the centre-right Alliance for Sweden: the Moderate Party, Centre Party, Liberal People's Party and the Christian Democrats...
, took over the responsibilities for Stegö Chilò's portfolio until her successor Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth
Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth
Lena Elisabeth Adelsohn Liljeroth is a Swedish Moderate Party politician, Member of the Riksdag and Swedish Minister for Culture in the Cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt since 24 October 2006. Adelsohn Liljeroth is a journalist, a Swedish Moderate Party politician, and has been a member of the Riksdag...
was appointed on October 24, 2006.
In November 2006 she sent a letter to the salary unit within the government. She clarified that even though she might be entitled to keep her salary for some time after her resignation, she did not wish to receive any money.
External links
- Cecilia Stegö Chilò at the Government Offices of SwedenGovernment of SwedenThe Government of the Kingdom of Sweden is the supreme executive authority of Sweden. It consists of the Prime Minister and cabinet ministers appointed by the Prime Minister. The Government is responsible for their actions to the Riksdag, which is the legislative assembly...
- Profile at TimbroTimbroTimbro is a libertarian, free market think tank and book publisher based in Stockholm, Sweden, that works to promote ideas, influence legislation and public opinion...