Background
After college, Ditlev-Simonsen became a partner in his father"s shipping company Sverre Ditlev-Simonsen & Company (Study Direct Stream) in 1955.
After college, Ditlev-Simonsen became a partner in his father"s shipping company Sverre Ditlev-Simonsen & Company (Study Direct Stream) in 1955.
Ditlev-Simonsen was an officer of the Norwegian Royal Guards, and he later attended Stanford University getting a Master of Arts degree.
He was the mayor of Oslo, representing the Conservative Party, from 1995 to 2007. He stepped down on 23 August 2007 following the Swiss bank-account scandal. He was a partner in the company until 1995.
From 1989 to 1990 Ditlev-Simonsen was Minister of Defense in the Cabinet of January P. Syse.
In August 2007, the presence of a hitherto unknown Swiss bank account was revealed. The revelation caused several opposition politicians to call for Ditlev-Simonsen"s resignation.
Erna Solberg, the head of the Conservative Party, asked that Ditlev-Simonsen refrain from active campaigning for his party ahead of the local elections scheduled for 10 September. Even if he had not resigned, the 75-year-old Ditlev-Simonsen was set to retire after the election.
The incident was believed to be a cause of the Conservative"s 4 percent drop in opinion polls, three weeks ahead of the election.
Ditlev-Simonsen was a Member of Parliament from 1981 to 1985, serving in the Standing Committee of Finance.