Mette-Marit under scrutiny: Norway outraged over royal’s prolonged contact with Epstein
In a rare rebuke, even the prime minister criticized the future queen consort’s ‘poor judgment’ after it emerged she kept up ties with the financier after his 2008 sex crimes conviction
The contact maintained by Princess Mette-Marit of Norway with the American financier Jeffrey Epstein even after his 2008 conviction for sex trafficking has not only made headlines in the national and international media, but has also triggered an unprecedented reaction in the Scandinavian country: direct criticism from Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, who chided the wife of Crown Prince Haakon and future queen consort for her “poor judgment.”
The revelations about the depth of her ties with Epstein coincide with the start of the trial, scheduled for Tuesday, of Marius Borg Høiby, Mette-Marit’s son from a previous relationship. The 29-year-old is facing 38 charges, four of them for rape.
“Princess Mette-Marit has herself acknowledged that she has exercised poor judgment, and I agree with her,” the prime minister told the Norwegian press. Store also lashed out at former prime minister Thorbjørn Jagland—in office between 1996 and 1997—for having planned a vacation on Epstein’s private island, a trip that ultimately did not take place. Until now, Jagland had described their relationship as “normal diplomatic activity,” according to Norwegian media. The documents show that he discussed a possible joint investment and asked for Epstein’s help in buying a home.
“I think many citizens are surprised and disappointed, and it illustrates the seriousness of the crisis facing the Royal House,” explains Kjetil B. Alstadheim, a political commentator for the newspaper Aftenposten, by telephone. “I have never seen a prime minister criticize a member of the royal family in this way. It is unprecedented.”
In the official statement issued Saturday in which the princess expressed regret, Mette-Marit admitted to exercising “poor judgment,” the same words used by Prime Minister Stoke. “It’s difficult to know whether she will maintain public support going forward,” says Alstadheim. “People will wonder how we can trust her after something like this.” The answer, he says, will depend in part on how events unfold. And, above all, “whether there are new revelations or whether more documents surface.”
Mette-Marit had already apologized in 2019 for having ties with Epstein, but she hadn’t properly explained its scope, “and it’s difficult to know whether the loss of public trust is focused on her, or on the monarchy,” says the political commentator. Her role as future queen consort is essential “and she should better clarify the type of contact they had. We are asking questions that require answers.”
Alstadheim states that the institution “enjoys broad support in Norway, largely due to the work of King Harald and Queen Sonja [both 88 years old], who are very popular.” He believes the public feels sorry for the current tribulations affecting the reigning monarchs: Marius’ trial and the tensions generated by the marriage of Princess Märtha Louise, their daughter, to the self-proclaimed shaman Durek Verrett. Verrett has claimed he can cure cancer and that he was a pharaoh in a past life. Does the respect that Norwegians feel for the king and queen extend to their son Haakon and to Mette-Marit? “The monarch is very popular, and that legacy can benefit the crown prince and princess when they ascend the throne, provided Mette-Marit explains herself well,” the analyst indicates.
In the Norwegian media, the tone is harsh and expresses astonishment. In the magazine Se og Hor, royal expert Caroline Vagle expresses surprise that “this new information was initially concealed, despite the fact that, like everyone else, they knew the documents would eventually surface.” In the newspaper Dagbladet, commentator Sigrid Hvidsten writes that the important thing now “is that they have told the whole story.” In the same paper, writer Tor Bomann-Larsen says that “things need to be assimilated and put into perspective; it is premature to know whether the princess is fit to become Queen of Norway.” Mette-Marit suffers from chronic pulmonary fibrosis and may eventually require a transplant, an illness that could severely limit her activities when she becomes queen consort.
Documents declassified last Friday by the U.S. Department of Justice reveal that by the time she exchanged her first messages with Epstein—between 2011 and 2012—he had already pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting prostitution and to soliciting a minor. Under an agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he served most of his sentence in a probation program.
All that information was circulating online when Mette-Marit told him, “I googled you. I agree it doesn’t look too good.” In 2013, she spent four days at Epstein’s house in Palm Beach, Florida. In another email, sent from her official account, Mette-Marit asked him if it was “inappropriate for a mother to suggest two naked women on a surfboard as a wallpaper to her 15-year-old son [Marius].” In his parting message, Alstadheim points out that a country’s constitution is difficult to change, “and monarchies fall through revolution or war, neither of which, fortunately, is happening in Norway.”
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