On 30 June 2003, it was announced that Prince Friso was to marry
Mabel Wisse Smit. The Dutch
cabinet, however, did not seek permission from
parliament for this marriage, a constitutional requirement if Prince Friso was to remain a member of the
Dutch Royal House and in
line of succession for the throne; at the time, he was second in line after his older brother,
Willem-Alexander. The Prime Minister
Jan Peter Balkenende explained that this was due to discussions with Mabel Wisse Smit in October 2003, when she had admitted that her previous statements about an alleged relationship with
Klaas Bruinsma (1953–1991), a known Dutch
drug baron, had not been complete and accurate. She had previously stated that she had contact for a few months with Bruinsma, but in a casual context, neither intimate nor relating to business, and that she had broken the contact on learning of Bruinsma's occupation. This "breach of trust" was the reason the government did not seek parliamentary permission, respecting the wishes of the couple. They nevertheless married at
Oude Kerk (Delft) on 24 April 2004, and Mabel Wisse Smit became a member of the Dutch Royal Family but not a member of the Dutch Royal House. Considering that his elder brother King Willem-Alexander has three daughters, Prince Friso's exclusion from the succession was unlikely to have an effect on the
monarchy in the
Netherlands. After their marriage, Prince Friso and his wife Princess Mabel set up home in London, in the suburb of
Kew. The couple's first daughter, Countess Emma
Luana Ninette Sophie of Orange-Nassau,
Jonkvrouwe van Amsberg, was born on 26 March 2005 in London. Their second daughter, Countess Joanna
Zaria Nicoline Milou of Orange-Nassau,
Jonkvrouwe van Amsberg, was born on 18 June 2006, also in London. ==Avalanche accident==