The King Charles recently made it “absolutely clear” that the Duke of Sussex cannot be a “half-in, half-out” member of the Royal family, as per The Telegraph.
The monarch met his younger son for 54 minutes at Clarence House earlier this month, and will continue to uphold the late Queen’s wish that members of the Royal family do not undertake official duties while also earning money.
It is reported that the father and son may meet privately on an occasional basis, now that the Duke has appeared to draw a line under his high-profile public criticisms of the monarchy and now that his Home Office security hearing is over.
However, he will not be permitted to join the Royal family in any official public role.
A royal source said: “The King has been absolutely clear in upholding his late mother’s decision that there can be no ‘half-in, half-out’ public role for members of the Family.”
The Duke is believed to want to make more public appearances in Britain following a four-day trip earlier this month when he attended an award ceremony and visited charitable organisations.
The trip, royal commentators noted, closely resembled the work he did while in the Royal family. He is reported to have been given Metropolitan Police security for the WellChild Awards, using his own protection team for the rest.
The Mail on Sunday claimed that “high-level” talks were underway between aides to bring the King and the Duke together for a “public show of unity”.
The outler reported that Buckingham Palace courtiers and Sussex staff were “tentatively discussing” arranging for the pair to get together “more frequently over the next year, with a view to them finally appearing jointly at a public event”.
The Mail on Sunday claimed that the Duke might now take part in more public events in Britain, outside of the Royal family, returning “four or five” times a year. A source told the paper it didn’t “need to be as part of the ‘working’ Royal Family”.
The source is reported to have added pointedly: “Harry’s visit to the UK was not about trying to show up or compete with his brother – in fact, the opposite.
“It was to remind William that Harry can be there to take some of the load off, given some of the criticism William has received for carrying out a lower number of engagements than his father.”
