A royal expert has savaged Prince Harry, claiming he “can’t believe” he is no longer a VIP.
Prince Harry has been given the green light to appeal against a ruling on his UK security entitlements. (Image: Getty)
Prince Harry “can’t believe” he’s not in the VIP category that would afford him automatic state security as his legal row with the UK government rolls on, an expert claims.
News broke this week that the Prince has been given the green light to appeal a case he lost in the High Court against the Home Office, which downgraded his protection detail after he stepped back as a senior royal in 2020.
Royal author and commentator Angela Levin claimed one of the reasons he launched the appeal is he was “going away with Meghan for a tour, a world tour, which made my heart pump because this is going to be another copy of what the Royal Family is like and he wants to be covered.”
“Well it’s not on our tax, frankly,” she added.
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The Prince wanted the appeal to be heard by the end of July, partly due to fears the ruling would influence how other countries approach his security, but this was denied.
The Prince’s security detail was downgraded after he and wife Meghan stepped back as senior royals. (Image: Getty)
Levin claimed the fact that British taxpayers would contribute to his protection is a “joke”.
The royal watcher noted that a judge previously concluded that the Prince was not in a comparable position to those in the “other VIP category” who are entitled to state security.
“So he was – sort of – put in his place,” Levin told GB News, “but I don’t think he can believe that.”
A representative for Prince Harry has been approached for comment.
The Duke first took legal action in February 2020 when the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) decided he should receive a different degree of protection than other members of the Royal Family.
In a judgement in February this year, High Court judge Peter Lane rejected Harry’s claims that the decision was unfair, ruling that the decision by the Home Office and Ravec would stand.
But now Harry has been told he can appeal the verdict at the Court of Appeal, according to an order from Lord Justice Bean dated May 23 2024.
A rep for the Prince previously insisted he is not asking for preferential treatment. (Image: Getty)
In his ruling, Sir Peter had argued that the Prince’s lawyers had made “an inappropriate, formalist interpretation of the Ravec process” during the High Court case.
“The ‘bespoke’ process devised for the claimant in the decision of February 28 2020 was, and is, legally sound,” he added.
Sir Peter accepted the decision of Ravec’s former chairman Sir Richard Mottram, and argued that he would have reached the same conclusions back in 2020 even if he had been presented with the Prince’s argument then.
Security arrangements of the Royal Family are delegated by the Home Office to Ravec, who also handles security for other high-profile overseas guests.
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Following the ruling earlier this year, a spokesperson for the Duke said he is “not asking for preferential treatment, but for a fair and lawful application of Ravec’s own rules, ensuring that he receives the same consideration as others in accordance with Ravec’s own written policy.
“In February 2020, Ravec failed to apply its written policy to the Duke of Sussex and excluded him from a particular risk analysis.
“The Duke’s case is that the so-called ‘bespoke process’ that applies to him is no substitute for that risk analysis.
“The Duke of Sussex hopes he will obtain justice from the Court of Appeal, and makes no further comment while the case is ongoing.”
