Prince Harry latest: Buckingham Palace responds to allegations of ‘establishment stitch-up’

Buckingham Palace has responded to Prince Harry’s allegations of an “establishment stitch-up” after he lost his Court of Appeal case on his UK security arrangements. Harry told the BBC the King “won’t speak” to him. Follow the latest below.

Here’s a quick recap of the key developments this evening, with Prince Harry dominating the headlines:

.He gave a “jaw-dropping” interview to the BBC, after losing a court case about his UK security arrangements;
.Harry said his father the King “won’t speak” to him because of the case;
.He wants to reconcile with the Royal Family, and has forgiven them, he said. The security case is the “only thing” now preventing that;
.”I don’t know how much longer my father has,” Harry says in the interview. He expressed fears the King will never meet his grandchildren;
.But Harry emphasises he feels it’s “impossible” to bring wife Meghan and his children to the UK with his security arrangements unresolved;
.Buckingham Palace responded this evening, saying the case had been looked at “meticulously” by British courts. It’s understood the King felt it would have been constitutionally improper to intervene.

Read a full breakdown of the interview in our news story…  And here’s the background to the legal row…

What’s the security row about?

Prince Harry received full, publicly funded security protection until he stepped back from royal duties with wife Meghan in March 2020 and moved to the US.  Once he moved away, the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) – which has delegated responsibility from the Home Office for royal security – decided he would not receive the same level of protection.

Harry has argued that his private protection team in the US does not have access to UK intelligence information, which he says is needed to keep his wife and children safe.  He wants access to his previous level of security when in the country, but is willing to fund the security himself rather than ask taxpayers to foot the bill after he stepped down as a senior member of the Royal Family.

The first High Court hearing took place in February 2022 but didn’t conclude until 28 February 2024, when retired High Court judge Sir Peter Lane ruled against Prince Harry.  He ruled the decision to change his security status was not unlawful or “irrational”, and that there had been no “procedural unfairness”.

What happened today?

The Court of Appeal rejected Harry’s bid to overturn that 2024 High Court ruling on his UK security.  Judge Sir Geoffrey Vos said while the Duke of Sussex’s safety concerns were both “powerful and moving”, his “sense of grievance” did not “translate into a legal argument”.

‘Completely extraordinary’ interview by Harry ‘invites speculation’ about his father

Prince Harry’s interview has been labelled “completely extraordinary” by a royal reporter.  Jack Royston, chief royal correspondent at Newsweek, described it as “very jaw-dropping” and points out that the duke said he doesn’t know how long his father has to live.

“It is such a different line than we’re getting from the Palace at the moment,” he said.  “The Palace have been very positive, not just with the things they’ve been saying, but with the whole mood.”  Royston said the way in which Prince Harry delivered that line “does invite speculation that the King might be running out of time”.

Turning to today’s events which saw the duke lose his Court of Appeal case over UK security, Royston said Prince Harry has a “very binary” view of risk.  “He views it as if he has a police protection team standing alongside him, then he’s safe,” he said.  “If he does not, then he is facing an intolerable level of danger. I think in reality, risk is a much more nuanced thing than that.”

Prince Harry’s tone ‘hurt but full of intention’ in interview

Prince Harry’s tone was “hurt but full of intention” in his interview, a royal historian has said.  Sir Anthony Seldon explained that the Duke of Sussex “wants to forgive, wants to move on and wants to build bridges”.

He described the interview as being a “very significant moment in history” after Prince Harry signalled that he “wants to be back in a way that needs to be worked out”.  Turning to the King’s position, Seldon asked “what could be more painful for a father than to have such a public breach with a son?”  “I think it’s easier and better to forgive,” he added.

Interview ‘gives us insight’ into Prince Harry’s relationship with King

Prince Harry’s interview gives us an insight into his relationship with King Charles, a royal commentator has said.   Speaking to Sky’s Matt Barbet, Afua Hagan said “they are not on speaking terms at all” and claimed Harry feels “the King could have sorted out the security situation but won’t do it”.

“He feels that once you step back from that inner circle, once you step back from the firm and the family, you’re no longer protected,” she said.  Hagan said that although Prince Harry moved to the US, “he still remains the King’s son” and “deserved to be protected”.  Asked whether she feels the duke’s approach of doing a very emotional interview will be successful, Hagan said “I really don’t know”.

“I really don’t know if this is the only way he feels that he can communicate with his family… perhaps it may work with the King.  “Will it work with Prince William and other members of the Royal Family? I’m really not sure.”

Buckingham Palace statement on outcome of Harry security case

We can bring you reaction from Buckingham Palace now, after the Court of Appeal decision on Prince Harry’s UK security arrangements today.  Buckingham Palace said in a statement: “All of these issues have been examined repeatedly and meticulously by the courts, with the same conclusion reached on each occasion.”

It’s understood that the King felt it would have been constitutionally improper to intervene while the case was being considered by the government and reviewed by the courts.  It comes after Harry said in his BBC interview earlier: “I have had it described to me, once people knew about the facts, that this is a good old-fashioned establishment stitch-up, and that is what it feels like.”