Advertisement

Meghan Markle And Prince Harry's Security Will No Longer Be Funded By Canada

Photo credit: VICTORIA JONES - Getty Images
Photo credit: VICTORIA JONES - Getty Images

From ELLE

Weeks after Meghan Markle and Prince Harry moved to Canada, the country’s government has announced that it will no longer fund the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s security detail.

On March 31, the couple will no longer hold senior roles in the royal family following a length transition process that has seen the pair slowly step out of the limelight and away from their official positions in the British monarchy.

On Thursday, the Office of the Minister of Public Safety for Canada explained that the security offered to Meghan, Harry and their son Archie by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police will ‘cease in the coming weeks in keeping with their change in status’.

Photo credit: Pool - Getty Images
Photo credit: Pool - Getty Images

The statement continues:

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex choosing to re-locate to Canada on a part-time basis presented our government with a unique and unprecedented set of circumstances. The RCMP has been engaged with officials in the UK from the very beginning regarding security considerations. As the Duke and Duchess are currently recognised as Internationally Protected Persons, Canada has an obligation to provide security assistance on an as needed basis.

At the request of the Metropolitan Police, the RCMP has been providing assistance to the Met since the arrival of the Duke and Duchess to Canada intermittently since November 2019.

According to the Office, the security provided to the trio will official end when the Duke and Duchess leave at the end of March.

As a result of their decision to step away from the royal family, the couple reportedly removed the term 'internationally protected people' from their website, which was a term first introduced in a 1973 United Nations convention, and in the UK in the 1978 Internationally Protected Persons Act.'

Photo credit: Pool - Getty Images
Photo credit: Pool - Getty Images

The cost and provision of security will now fall on the couple themselves or the royal family, but the latter remains a contentious issue given the pair’s decision to become ‘financially independent’ from the monarchy.

On the Sussex Royal website, Meghan and Harry state: ‘It is agreed that The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will continue to require effective security to protect them and their son.

‘This is based on The Duke's public profile by virtue of being born into The Royal Family, his military service, the Duchess' own independent profile and the shared threat and risk level documented specifically over the last few years.’

Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images
Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images

Earlier this week, the Duke returned to the UK to attend an event in association with his environmentally-friendly travel company Travalyst, during which he asked people to call him ‘just Harry’.

Like this article? Sign up to our newsletter to get more articles like this delivered straight to your inbox.


You Might Also Like