Prince Harry’s Security Row Takes A Brutal Turn As Ex-Royal Staffer Hits Back
Dai Davies does not believe the Sussexes should have taxpayer-funded protection (Image: Getty)
Dai Davies, a former Head of Royal Protection, has slammed Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as ‘paranoid,’ following their requests for taxpayer-funded protection. Appearing on TalkTV, the security specialist told Kevin O’Sullivan, “The truth is, they have a perfectly adequate team which they pay for, and I’m all for them having it if that’s what they want.
“Let them have a team of ex-police officers, ex-SAS, whoever they want,” he declared, remarking that the Sussexes’ requests for protection were “absolute nonsense.”
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“Unless there is an absolute case that there is such a risk in this country for them coming back, that someone can demonstrably show that risk, then I don’t think you and I should be paying for it,” he continued.
Quipping that the UK shouldn’t pay for a “multi-millionaire and indulge his fantasies,” Davies quipped, “I think it’s absolute nonsense.”
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are moving back to the UK (Image: Getty)
Last week, it was announced that Harry and Meghan would be moving back to the UK at the end of August with Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five. It is understood that the couple will relocate to a non-royal residence outside of London, with their children enrolled in British schools.
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Ahead of their return, a fresh debate has erupted over whether or not the Sussexes should receive taxpayer-funded protection. While the Home Office has remained tight-lipped about the level of security the family requires, it’s thought a review by the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec) has been completed.
In the meantime, some Labour MPs have weighed in on the divisive situation. Adding to the debate, former Home Secretary Lord Blunkett has suggested a “happy medium” for the Sussexes.
“If I were looking back on my time, there’s a happy medium here. There are three areas of security. There’s the fully blown, blacked-out back-up car with two or three close protection — one in the passenger car and the others in the back-up on a 24-hour basis,” he told The Times.
A debate has erupted over the level of security Harry and Meghan will need (Image: Getty)
“There’s then the middle ground, which is security where you have one or two officers who travel with the principal, as they call it. And the third is that they get a driver with security training. I think the middle of that is a perfectly reasonable thing to offer for the time being, and then it could be reassessed in a couple of years.”
Notably sympathetic, MP Dawn Butler has shared her thoughts on the matter, too. “Where someone has served their country, faces specific and identifiable security threats, is a member of the Royal Family, and is connected to additional risk factors such as sustained racial abuse directed at them or their family, those circumstances should be carefully considered as part of that assessment,” she said.
