Speech
Skeppsholmen, Eric Ericsson hall 18 June 2010
Fredrik Reinfeldt, Prime Minister

Speech by Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt to the Crown Princess and Mr Daniel Westling

Check against delivery

Your Majesties, Your Royal Highnesses,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen.

Welcome to Stockholm, our beautiful capital. Welcome to the Government's official dinner in honour of the marriage between Crown Princess Victoria and Mr Daniel Westling.

To all our foreign guests: I ask you to forgive me for making the following remarks in Swedish.

Crown Princess Victoria. Mr Daniel Westling.

You have known one another for many years now. It shows. Everyone who has seen you together knows that you radiate that sense of ease and assurance that people only feel when they know one another well. The sort of love a person only feels when they know they have found their companion for life.

Those of us who have met the love of our life know that when you are newly in love, you want to tell everyone about it. You want to shout your happiness to the world. You want to show off your love.

After eight years together, at last you can show your love openly. No wonder you look so newly in love.

Daniel.

At last the people of Sweden have had a chance to meet you. At last we too have had a chance to get to know the person the Crown Princess has now chosen to be her husband, her companion for life - and her prince.

We have seen that you are an assured and level-headed person. With your feet on the ground and the drive it takes to start your own business and charm a Crown Princess.

The way you look at the Crown Princess has already made the people of Sweden take you to their heart.

I am convinced that you will take your responsibility as a husband, as a companion for life and as a prince with the same warmth, humility and respect.

Crown Princess Victoria.

From the autumn christening in the Royal Chapel on, we have been able to watch the Crown Princess through childhood and into adult life. Christmas television broadcasts, birthday celebrations at the summer palace of Solliden and official duties - I really believe we all think we know our Crown Princess rather well.

We know the Crown Princess as a natural, unaffected person. Warm and generous. Courageous and honest. With that special twinkle in her eye and always close to laughter.

Now the Crown Princess is following her heart and marrying her true love. And I believe I speak for the whole of the Swedish people when I say this: we have never seen the Crown Princess as happy as she is now.

Crown Princess Victoria. Mr Daniel Westling.

Two hundred years ago, Jean Baptiste Bernadotte was chosen by the Swedish Riksdag to be Crown Prince of Sweden. One hundred and seventy-seven years ago, the first Bernadotte wedding in Sweden took place.

Tomorrow you will carry on this tradition. I am convinced that the two of you together will succeed in carrying our ancient traditions and values forward and unifying them with our modern present day Sweden.

In the time since your engagement was announced, we have all seen the intensity of your love and the strength of your relationship.

We can see how close you are. We can see that you are ready to tackle the future together.

And when the day comes, I am convinced that the Crown Princess, with Daniel at her side, will shoulder her responsibility as sovereign in a way that will make all of Sweden proud.

Tomorrow is your wedding day. On behalf of the entire Swedish people, I would like to congratulate you and wish you every happiness, tomorrow and in the future.

Let me propose that we now all rise and join in a toast to Crown Princess Victoria and Mr Daniel Westling.