Prince Harry has appealed a UK Home Office decision to downgrade his security, arguing he and Meghan Markle were “forced” to step back as senior royals due to lack of protection via Yahoo.
His legal team has claimed RAVEC bypassed protocol and unfairly singled the Duke of Sussex out for “inferior treatment.” Prince Harry has also shared that he feels unsafe bringing his family to the UK and believes King Charles could intervene, though the monarchy holds no sway over security decisions.
In January 2020, Harry and Meghan had shared their decision to step down from their roles as senior members of the royal family, expressing a desire to divide their time between the UK and North America.
But, in an appeal court hearing on April 8th, 2025, regarding Harry’s security arrangements in Britain, his legal representatives claimed the couple didn’t leave by choice.
Instead, they “felt forced to step back from the role of full-time official working members of The Royal Family as they considered the institution was not protecting them.”
As per People Magazine, the lawyers noted that the couple “wished to continue their duties in support of the late Queen as privately funded members of The Royal Family.”
The court also heard that the downgrade in their security was never “discussed at any formal RAVEC [Royal and VIP Executive Committee] meeting.” Instead, the issue was allegedly handled during an informal discussion at Buckingham Palace on January 27, 2020.
