Prince Harry was given police protection during his visit to see the King in February, a former royal protection officer believes, despite being embroiled in a dispute with the Home Office over the issue.
On Tuesday, it was revealed that the prince’s failed legal bid against the Home Office over the removal of his automatic police protection has cost the taxpayer more than £500,000.
Last year, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex paid $2 million (£1.58 million) for their security measures.
But despite the setback, it appears the duke’s police protection in the UK has not been completely terminated. In early February, he made a brief 26-hour trip to Britain to see his father after it emerged that King Charles was receiving cancer treatment.
Security consultant Simon Morgan, a former royal protection officer, said there were signs the prince was receiving police protection during that trip.
He said: ‘On his last visit to see his father, you can see he had police protection. That was quite evident in relation to the vehicles in which he traveled.
“He is using 4×4 vehicles, these types of vehicles are very much a royal signature, and looking at the officers’ clothing, they are in a shirt and tie, they look like police officers from my perspective.
‘This is how we dressed in my days (as a royal protection officer).
‘Plus, the special escort group you can see in the photographs of Harry arriving at Heathrow last month to see the King. He was escorted off the plane in a marked police vehicle.
Crucially, in the UK private security groups are prohibited from carrying weapons. Meanwhile, the royal protection, usually made up of police officers with a minimum of ten years of experience, carry Glock 17 pistols.
Despite the duke’s defeat in court, according to Morgan, his security measures are likely to remain largely the same.
Morgan said: “If you look at Harry’s current situation, he is currently paying for his own protective equipment.” In reality, from his perspective, very little is going to change. He already made that change to the private sector.
Prince Harry’s failed court case (pictured last March outside the High Court) against the Home Office over the removal of his automatic police protection has cost the taxpayer more than £500,000.
‘There have been several visits to the UK where he has used his private security team. Actually, nothing is going to change for him, he’s going to continue with what he’s been doing.’
Morgan worked for members of the Royal Family between 2007 and 2013 in the UK and abroad and now runs Mayfair-based private security company Trojan Consultancy.
Officials spent £514,128 fighting two separate judicial review claims brought by the Duke of Sussex after his security status was downgraded when he and his wife Meghan quit being royals and moved to the United States. .
The legal bill could still rise as Harry vowed to appeal against his latest defeat when a judge ruled last month that he had not proven the decision was unfair or illegal.
The costs of the two claims will raise questions about whether a member of the Royal Family takes legal action against the Government.
The legal bill included more than £180,000 for lawyers, £320,000 for the government’s legal department, which provides legal advice, and £3,200 in court fees, according to a Freedom of Information request by the Daily Telegraph.
Officials spent £514,128 fighting two separate judicial review claims brought by the Duke of Sussex after his security status was downgraded.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry at the Invictus Games in Düsseldorf on September 16, 2023
Almost £10,000 was spent on the release of electronic documents relating to the case, believed to include emails between public officials and the Royal Household.
Harry, 39, claimed the decision by the Home Office Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures, known as Ravec, was unfair and put his and his family’s safety at risk.
His lawyers argued that he was “singled out” and treated less favorably than other prominent figures.
The Home Office said Britain had “finite public resources” and argued that police protection should be limited to those “acting in the interests of the State through their public role”.
A Superior Court judge ruled that the decision to revoke his permanent taxpayer-funded police protection and instead review his security needs on a case-by-case basis was legal, and dismissed his case.
Prince Harry and Meghan, photographed at an Invictus Games event in Canada on February 14, 2024
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle stand outside Kensington Palace after announcing their engagement in November 2017.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex attend an event in Whistler, near Vancouver, in preparation for the 2025 Invictus Games.
William, Harry, Meghan and Charles speak together at a service at Westminster Abbey in March 2019, a year before the Sussexes quit as royals and moved to the US.
The ruling left Harry with a legal bill estimated at £1 million. He was previously barred from filing a separate lawsuit over her request to pay for his own protection.
It is pursuing separate legal cases against News Group Newspapers, which publishes The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World, and Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Daily Mail.
In January, he dropped a defamation lawsuit against the Mail’s sister paper, The Mail on Sunday, over an article about his security, leaving him facing a legal bill estimated at £750,000.
Weeks later he accepted “substantial” damages to end a four-year legal case against Mirror Group Newspapers over phone hacking.