ON ONE’S OWN

Harry Loses Fight to Get Automatic Police Protection in the U.K.

He’s been locked in a legal tussle with the U.K. government since 2020 over his demand for police protection. It ended Wednesday in defeat.

Prince Harry has lost his fight to get police protection in the U.K.

Harry was told Wednesday that the government’s decision to take away his automatic police protection when he is in the U.K. was not unlawful or “irrational” and that there had been no “procedural unfairness.”

The judge added: “Even if such procedural unfairness occurred, the court would in any event be prevented from granting the claimant [Prince Harry] relief. This is because, leaving aside any such unlawfulness, it is highly likely that the outcome for the claimant would not have been substantially different.”

Harry launched the action in February 2020 after he was stripped of automatic protection, with the government saying it would offer Harry “bespoke” protection on a “case-by-case” basis.

Harry argued that he was “singled out” by the decision to remove his security. He also claimed that he offered to pay for his own security but was rejected by the British state.

Britain’s Home Office said: “We are pleased that the court has found in favour of the Government’s position in this case, and we are carefully considering our next steps. It would be inappropriate to comment further.”

In one notable section, the judge referred to a letter sent to U.K. police by the NYPD about the Manhattan car chase that Harry and Meghan alleged they were involved in last year. The NYPD said the chase was indeed dangerous and reckless, as Harry and Meghan claimed.

See more of our coverage in your search results.

ADD THE DAILY BEAST ON GOOGLE

Tom SykesEuropean Editor at Large

Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.