Coalition in Stockholm survives hairline vote

Sweden's coalition government survived by one vote a motion of no confidence, the first in the nation's history. All 174 Social Democratic and Communist members of Parliament voted for the motion, submitted by opposition leader Olof Palme last week, while all 175 members of the three parties forming the center-right government voted against it. No-confidence motions became possible in Sweden after a constitutional change a decade ago. The government, comprising center, conservative, and liberal parties, has come under increasing fire from the opposition for its policies of economic restraint.