A long and interesting interview of Fredrik Wersäll, the Marshal of the Realm, at Dagens Juridik newspaper yesterday.
When Fredrik Wersäll was appointed The Marshal of the Realm, he had been President of the Svea Court of Appeal since 2008. His previous posts had included Prosecutor-General, Justice of the Supreme Court, and Director-General for Legal Affairs at the Ministry of Justice. He had also had a number of public assignments, including as an Inquiry Chair and as Chair of the Swedish Press Council. He was chairing the Government Disciplinary Board for Higher Officials and the Swedish Anti-Corruption Institute.
About the interview:
Fredrik Wersäll chose the King over the pension. Three years ago, he took up the highest office one can achieve within the court if one is not of royal birth. Wersäll says about his job that it is a fun and varied work with many ingredients and exciting meetings. He describes his work and says that he is probably almost some kind of equivalent to the director general of the court if this had been an authority. He has basically three tasks. The first is to be the head of the Royal Court, which consists of about 300 employees with all that entails. The second is to be an adviser to the King on more important issues, which takes up a large part of his time. The third is to be the entrance for the Government and Parliament to the King. He has a lot of contacts with the Riksdag and Government Offices. Wersäll says that his relationship with the King is very confidential. They can talk about everything and they must be able to do that. But his relationship with the King is based entirely on his office, they have no personal relationship. He is the King's closest man as the highest representative of the court's organization, but of course the King has other advisers that Wersäll doesn't know and has no reason to research. The King has a huge network.
Wersäll is asked how he addresses the King? He would not think of saying anything other than "Your Majesty" or "kungen" ("the King") depending on how the conversation goes. When he meets the King for the first time in a day, he usually says "Good morning, Your Majesty", but when they sit in conversation, he usually says "the King".
Wersäll says about the future of the monarchy that in these Twitter times, the real strength of the monarchy is long-termism and continuity. In 2023, the King has sat on the throne for 50 years, and Sweden has had a hereditary monarchy for 500 years. The strength is the long-term perspective, the ability to be a unifying figure for the country.
The reporter says to Wersäll that he turned 70 on the same day as the King turned 75 on Walpurgis Night. How long will he stay as The Marshal of the Realm? Wersäll says that he has no time-limited appointment and the starting point is that he stays as long as the King thinks he should stay and as long as he thinks he can handle his job in a good way.
Among other things, Wersäll is asked also about the problems at the Swedish Academy and the King's decision in October 2019.
Justitieministern var oändligt tacksam över kungens beslut_ _ Dagens Juridik
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