Prince Harry once made a heartbreaking six-word comment about his UK security case, which he has now lost. The Duke of Sussex, who quit royal life in 2020, challenged a decision made by High Court judge Sir Peter Lane in February last year, which supported the fact that the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) had removed the prince’s high-level police protection while he’s in the UK. The decision to do this was made by Ravec in 2020 when Harry, 40, and his wife Meghan Markle, 43, decided to step back as senior royals and move abroad to the US.
The duke believed this made it unsafe for his family to visit the UK, and appealed the Home Office’s decision. However, in a ruling on Friday, Sir Geoffrey Vos, Lord Justice Bean and Lord Justice Edis dismissed Harry’s appeal. Sir Geoffrey Vos summarised the decision and told the court that while the Duke of Sussex’s personal arguments were both “powerful and moving”, he concluded that: “I could not say that the Duke’s sense of grievance translated into a legal argument for the challenge to Ravec’s decision.”
This is likely to be a big hit for Harry, who previously claimed that he believes his UK police protection was withdrawn in an effort to prevent him and Meghan from leaving Britain to start a new life in America in 2020.
He also once told The Telegraph that this court case “mattered the most” to him, even more so than his previous cases against the tabloid press.
In a heartbreaking six-word statement, the prince said: “This one always mattered the most.”
The duke’s case against the Home Office is also believed to be one of the reasons for the rift between the duke and his family members.
He told the BBC on Friday after losing the court appeal that security had been a “sticking point” for his rift with his royal relatives, and that he now wants reconciliation.
He said: “This current situation that has been ongoing for five years with regards to human life and safety is the sticking point.
“It is the only thing that’s left. Of course, some members of my family will never forgive me for writing a book. Of course, they will never forgive me for lots of things.
“But I would love reconciliation with my family. There’s no point in continuing to fight anymore. As I said, life is precious. I don’t know how much longer my father has.”
