Prince Harry’s security arrangements in the UK are reportedly under review after he wrote to the Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, asking for a risk assessment to be taken
16:12, 09 Dec 2025Updated 16:12, 09 Dec 2025
Prince Harry should have police security reinstated, argues Jennie Bond(Image: BACKGRID)
It could be the start of a new chapter for Prince Harry. The Duke of Sussex’s security arrangements for the UK are finally under review, after the son of King Charles has spent years fighting to have his police protection reinstated when he is back on his home country’s soil.
He wrote to Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, requesting an official risk assessment – something that is reported to have been granted, which could mean that more regular reunions with his father, King Charles, and the rest of the Royal Family are on the cards. Since he stepped back in 2020 from life as a working royal, moving across the pond with wife Meghan, Harry has not enjoyed automatic police security when he comes back to the UK – something that he claims makes it difficult to come home as much as he would like.
As it stands, Harry receives a “bespoke” security arrangement, where it is decided on a case-by-case basis whether or not the police will protect him when he comes to the UK. He is also required to give 30 days notice of a visit so that a decision can be made about whether taxpayer-funded security will be granted.
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A royal expert has argued that given the official review, the government should change their decision not to provide automatic security to the Duke of Sussex when he comes back to the UK, arguing that if a short-lived former prime minister like Liz Truss is given life-long police protection, then the son of the monarch should too.
Writing for the i newspaper, former royal correspondent for the BBC – Jennie Bond – said, “To me, the equation is simple. If security is offered to a former prime minister who served barely any longer than a lettuce takes to wilt, then surely the son of the King deserves the same?
“Liz Truss, along with the seven other living former PMs, is entitled to taxpayer-funded protection for the rest of her life. The security bill for all eight is estimated at just under £10m a year.”
The lettuce outlasted Liz Truss’ 50 days as Prime Minister(Image: PA/Humphrey Nemar)
Bond explained that this kind of protection requires a rotation of 12 full-time officers to make sure the former PMs are protected constantly. For most of the year, Harry relies on private security to keep him and his family safe in their home in California, so the automatic police security provision would only be required on his occasional visits back to the UK.
The royal expert argued that no matter what Harry does, he will always be the son of a monarch, and, therefore, any threats against his safety cannot be ignored. Harry has also pointed this out himself, previously, arguing that his life is in danger purely because of the family he was born into, a fact he cannot change.
Bond also revealed that insiders have revealed that the current set up might actually cost more to the taxpayer than an automatic one. “Some sources argue that this could be more expensive than using a few salaried armed officers on the rare occasions that Harry is here,” she wrote.
The royal expert argues that, as the King’s son, Harry can’t change the threat level against him(Image: BACKGRID)
In his memoir Spare, Harry claimed that he and Meghan had the highest threat level in the Royal Family, the same as that of his late grandmother, the former sovereign, Queen Elizabeth. He also revealed that he had been, before his security was unceremoniously pulled, totally convinced that he would never be left as a sitting duck, with no protection officers.
He wrote that he explained to Meghan their security would surely not be removed, because his disgraced uncle, the former Prince Andrew, had not been taken away from him. “Despite being involved in an embarrassing scandal, accused of having sexually abused a young woman, nobody had suggested removing his security. People may have a lot of grievances towards us, but sexual offences weren’t one of them,” Harry wrote.
It was in 2022 when it was reported that Andrew’s protection officers had finally been taken away. Currently, Harry has argued, the private security team he employs isn’t enough to keep his wife and children safe when back in the UK.
He argues this is because whilst in the US his security are allowed to be armed, that is not the case in the UK, and further that they don’t have access to the necessary intelligence to keep the Sussex family safe. Harry has said repeatedly he wants to bring his children to the UK, so they can know their British heritage too, but as it stands, he doesn’t feel able to.
Harry has argued he can’t bring his kids to the UK safely
Last Spring, his legal action against the Home Office to try and get his security reinstated failed, after he made repeated attempts through the courts to get the government to change its mind. In a candid sit-down with the BBC, he revealed that the legal action had become a major sticking point in his relationship with his father, who would “speak” to him because of it.
Since that chapter ended, Harry has met up with his father in person, where the pair enjoyed tea at Clarence House when the Duke of Sussex came back to the UK to support some of the charities he works with. A proper security provision, Bond argued, could allow Charles and Harry to spend more time together, and for the monarch to get to know his grandchildren, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
In a recent, emotional, open letter to mark Remembrance Day, Harry divulged just how much he misses the UK, as well a beseeching people to look after former servicepeople in their communities. “Though currently, I may live in the United States, Britain is, and always will be, the country I proudly served and fought for. The banter of the mess, the clubhouse, the pub, the stands – ridiculous as it sounds, these are the things that make us British. I make no apology for it. I love it,” he wrote.