What to Know
Prince Harry’s fight for more security in the UK has been well documented, and so far, it has never gone in his favor. That fact didn’t stop him and Meghan Markle from moving back across the pond, though, but one expert on the situation believes that he could be putting his family at risk.
King Charles’ former guard claims Meghan and Harry are in danger without having more security, especially based on what he’s heard their plan is right now should anything go wrong.
A former royal officer said that Meghan and Harry’s safety situation is serious.
Speaking to ITV News this week, former royal police officer Scott Hamer, who was assigned to King Charles when he was a prince, called their lack of security a “fudge.”
Reportedly, Meghan and Harry’s big game plan for security is to call a police liaison if things get serious, but otherwise, they’re pretty much on their own. They do have their own private security, just like they did in Montecito, but while in the UK, they aren’t able to carry firearms. They also don’t have access to the intelligence about potential threats the way that a government-provided security officer would.
“The public are now aware of this whole issue and, of course, those people out there who may wish to do him harm — or his family harm — now know what his protection is or isn’t like,” Scott pointed out. “And that creates a risk.”
He believes that their safety needs to be prioritized like other public figures’ safety has been, including prime ministers.
Prime ministers continue to receive taxpayer-funded security detail even after they are no longer holding office, and Scott said that he thinks Harry and Meghan are at an even greater risk than a PM would be.
“What we should be looking at is purely threat and risk,” he said. “If you look at those objectively then I would argue that the current threat and risk to him and his family would mean that he should be entitled to police protection… it should not be about personality.”
Harry’s request for security is reportedly being reevaluated.
According to a report shared by Mirror, Harry wrote a letter to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood asking for his security situation to be reevaluated now that he and his family are living in the UK full time again, and the office is now “actively assessing” the situation. Even though they’ve been denied the security they asked for in the past, it’s different now that they’re planning to be in the country for an “extended” period of time.
“Officials have been asked to make a new assessment now that the family in question have chosen to reside in the UK,” a government source said. “Any recommendations will be made in due course.”
The Mirror claims Harry has reportedly been given reason to believe that things will go his way this time. Hopefully, they will — Archie and Lili’s safety is nothing to mess with!
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