Prince Harry reportedly turned down an offer from his father King Charles to stay at a royal home during his recent trip to the UK due to security – and one royal expert believes this stumbling block is harming a long-held wish of the King’s

Prince Harry’s “unfounded security woes” are preventing his father King Charles the pleasure of fulfilling a desperate wish, according to a royal expert.

Reports have suggested that Harry, who has a rocky bond with his father, turned down an offer from the King to stay in a royal residence on his recent visit to the UK earlier this month. It is said the offer was knocked back because it did not come with any security provision and he would be in a “visible location with public entrance and exit points and no police protection”.

Harry has been embroiled in a long-running case against the Home Office after it was ruled in 2020, when he moved to the United States, he would no longer be given the “same degree” of publicly-funded protection when in the country. The Duke’s case has been rejected but there are now plans for an appeal.

Harry and Meghan with their children Archie and Lilibet in 2021 (
Image:
Avalon)
During the case, the High Court was told that Harry believes his children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet cannot “feel at home” in the UK if it is “not possible to keep them safe”. Since moving to the US, Archie and Lilibet have only been to the UK once, with Charles only having one face-to-face meeting with his youngest granddaughter.

And according to royal biographer Ingrid Seward, the security issue looks to be the barrier when it comes to a royal reunion. She told the Mirror: “Harry and Meghan’s security fears could well be a stumbling block to any kind of reunion with the Royal Family. But no doubt they have been invited to Balmoral this summer.

“As the late Queen discovered, Scotland offers the only quality time a monarch has to devote to family. It would be very sad if Charles was denied the pleasure of seeing his grandchildren just because of Harry’s unfounded security woes.”

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Prince Harry at St Paul’s Cathedral earlier this month (
Image:
Getty Images for Invictus Games)
When Harry did travel solo to the UK a few weeks ago, he did not meet up with his father and let it be known that Charles, who is having cancer treatment, was too busy to see him. And Ingrid, the editor-in-chief of Majesty Magazine, said that the statement was “unnecessary and hurtful”.

She said: “Harry’s unpredictable behaviour is hurtful to his father. Even if he were too busy to see Harry – and that is quite possible – to issue an announcement to this effect is unnecessary and benefits no one. This is especially the case when his father is still undergoing cancer treatment and could well be very tired and emotionally fragile.

“When Prince Harry turned down his father’s offer to stay at a royal residence during his three-day trip to London in May, it was a surprise to the royal household.

“The King was aware Harry had no UK base. He could not fail to be aware Harry was unduly anxious about security. But he was not aware that Harry would issue a statement saying his father was too busy to meet him. It was hurtful and even if true if they had been under the same roof a meeting might have been arranged.

“The King is wary of his troublesome son. Whatever he does to try and help him is turned into a snub. Nothing is ever Harry’s fault. It is either the fault of the British Government, or the lack of security afforded him by the Metropolitan Police. They have offered him a ‘bespoke’ arrangement, assessing each visit individually.

“Not good enough for Harry. He had his own arrangement to stay at a luxury private hotel where the entrance and exit are hidden from peering eyes and cameras and even the hotel staff don’t know what VIP guests are staying.”