WITH many top European politicians tangling over the Lisbon treaty in Brussels, it was easy to overlook an interesting bit of news from Sweden. After heated debate, the parliament in Stockholm has narrowly passed what critics call the most extensive eavesdropping plan in Europe.

Under the programme, Swedish intelligence will be able to monitor international phone calls, faxes and emails (the government claims it will not monitor domestic traffic). Proponents say the plan is needed for national security reasons. It is due to take effect next year.

Civil libertarians are up in arms, but the plan has drawn criticism from many other quarters. As Radio Sweden International reports:

Organisations such as journalist unions, newspaper publishers associations, the Swedish bar council, police authorities, the Swedish Security Service and above all, countless political blogs have all been negative to the new law.  

The BBC adds

"By introducing these new measures, the Swedish government is following the examples set by governments ranging from China and Saudi Arabia to the US government's highly criticised eavesdropping programme," said Peter Fleischer of Google.

Hmm, not normally countries one immediately associates with Sweden. How far will European governments go in the name of national security?