Ludvigsen may lose the Order of St. Olav

"For the excellence of his merit for Norway and humanity", Louis has been rewarded by colleagues in the Conservative government of recent years, Erna Solberg, Ansgar Gabrielsen and Kristin Krohn Devold.

In 2004-2005, 15 members of the Bondevik government received the order after the laws have been expanded automatically apply to members of government who have been sitting for some time.

But it goes without saying that the prestigious medal can be kept, according to St. Olav's words council. The rules for merit orders and medals provide that awards may be deleted.

in statutes of the Order of St. Olav – paragraph 16, it is called:

"If there is question of erasing a member because of unworthy circumstances, Stormester decides, after consulting the Board of Representatives, how to handle it."

In practice, it is therefore the Council of Orders, headed by the "Chancellor" and former Minister Eva Hildrum, who proposes a possible strike for the King – who is the grand master of the order.

"It's the palace that answers questions about the order of St. Olav," writes Hildrum in a text message to VG.

The secretary of the board confirms that the removal of the recipients has taken place.

Order of St. Olav

"It has happened that recipients of the Order of St. Olav have been removed," said Sven Gj. Gjeruldsen, secretary of the VG.

He does not want to comment on the former minister Svein Ludvigsen because the addressee of the order can be considered suppressed by a possible verdict.

Delivered back

However, VG knows that recipients returned their order medals on their own and appointments were removed.

In these latter cases, this is due to the fact that the recipients are convicted for criminal offenses, informs VG.

Indeed, the recipients of the words are deleted from the recipient lists of the king.

Ludvigsen defender Ulf E. Hansen says his client refuses to impose a penalty and challenges the outcome of the charge.