Norwegian monarchs traditionally retain their positions until they die, but a new survey indicates that the royals, including King Harald, should also have an official retirement age.
Fully 55 percent of Norwegians questioned in a poll conducted by analysis bureau YouGov for weekly magazine Se og Hør said that their monarchs should qualify for a pension at a given age.
Four out of five questioned said that King Harald, now age 73, should be allowed to retire when he wants to. Nearly 60 percent said they don’t think his son, 37-year-old Crown Prince Haakon, should be too old when he takes over as king.
Author Tor Bomann-Larsen, who has written a series of books on the history of the modern Norwegian royal family since King Haakon assumed the throne in 1905, told Se og Hør that he doesn’t think King Harald (Haakon’s grandson) will abdicate in favour of his son. King Harald himself has indicated that he doesn’t want to be a “part-time” king.
A similar poll was conducted in Denmark, and a majority of Danes also favoured retirement for their monarchs. Queen Margrethe made it clear she had no intention of retiring herself.
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