Prince Harry ‘Should Be Afforded Royalty Protection’—Former Royal Aide

Prince Harry “should be afforded royalty protection” on visits to Britain after being “pushed forward as a shining beacon” due to his military service in Afghanistan.

The Duke of Sussex twice sued the British government over the decision in 2020 to strip him of his Metropolitan Police bodyguards, without which he argues it is not safe for him, Meghan Markle, son Prince Archie and daughter Princess Lilibet in Britain.

He has already lost one case, focused on his efforts to pay privately to reinstate his team, but the other case is set for trial.

Alex Bomberg, chief executive of private security firm Intelligent Protection International, is a former British Army soldier and later was a Kensington Palace aide to the Duke of Gloucester, a cousin of Queen Elizabeth II.

He told Newsweek: “I personally think Harry should be afforded royalty protection. He was born into the royal family.

“Although he’s no longer a working royal, that choice was already made for him.

“He served in Afghanistan, he was pushed forward as a shining beacon there. So, he’s been put at risk.”

Prince Harry has a private security team who protect him in America and has access to private security in Britain too but on U.K. soil they are not allowed to carry guns.

Bomberg’s argument closely mirrors Harry’s own perspective, having argued he did not choose royal life and the risks that come with it.

In July 2022, a judge rejected part of Harry’s case but gave permission for some of his arguments to proceed to trial, though it is still possible they could be rejected after a full hearing.

These included his argument that he should have been given an opportunity to present his views to the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (RAVEC), the Home Office group that made the decision.

Harry’s argument that he should have the right to pay for his own police protection was also rejected in a separate lawsuit.

A legal representative for Prince Harry said in a January 2022 statement: “Prince Harry inherited a security risk at birth, for life. He remains sixth in line to the throne, served two tours of combat duty in Afghanistan, and in recent years his family has been subjected to well-documented neo-Nazi and extremist threats.

“While his role within the Institution has changed, his profile as a member of the royal family has not. Nor has the threat to him and his family.

“The Duke and Duchess of Sussex personally fund a private security team for their family, yet that security cannot replicate the necessary police protection needed whilst in the U.K. In the absence of such protection, Prince Harry and his family are unable to return to his home.

“The Duke first offered to pay personally for U.K. police protection for himself and his family in January of 2020 at Sandringham. That offer was dismissed. He remains willing to cover the cost of security, as not to impose on the British taxpayer.”

Jack Royston is Newsweek‘s chief royal correspondent based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek’s The Royals Facebook page.

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