But Harry’s security status was downgraded in 2020 after he gave up his royal duties and moved to California. Security protection is still available to Harry and his family when he is in the U.K., but the Home Office said his level of security would be decided on a case-by-case basis.
Harry’s lawyers argued that an initial ruling that his security arrangements would be on a bespoke basis was unfair.
In his 51-page ruling, High Court Judge Peter Lane said the approach by the executive committee for the protection of royalty and public figures — also known as Ravec — was not irrational nor was it procedurally unfair. The judge said that Harry’s lawyers had “an inappropriate, formalist interpretation of the RAVEC process.”
In December, Harry’s lawyers read out a statement written by the prince to the judge. Harry said he regarded Britain as “my home” and a place that was “central to the heritage of my children and a place I want them to feel at home as much as where they live at the moment in the US. That cannot happen if it’s not possible to keep them safe when they are on UK soil.
“I cannot put my wife in danger like that and, given my experiences in life, I am reluctant to unnecessarily put myself in harm’s way too,” he wrote.
When Harry made a transatlantic dash to Britain this month to see his father, King Charles III, who had just been diagnosed with cancer, he was driven from Heathrow Airport to the royal residence of Clarence House under a police escort.
The last time Prince Harry was in the country with Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, and their two children, Archie and Lilibet, was in June 2022 for Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee. Harry and Meghan also attended Elizabeth’s funeral in September of that year without their children.
This was one of two legal battles Harry launched over his security arrangements. He lost a separate legal challenge last year, denying him the ability to pay for British police protection for himself and his family when visiting. Lawyers for the British government said that wealthy people should not be allowed to “buy” police protection.