On Tuesday, the Court of Appeals in the United Kingdom heard Prince Harry‘s case against a ruling that allowed for his public-funded security detail to be lessened on his visits to the UK. In part, Harry’s attorney claims he was being treated unfairly and “singled out” by the decision.
According to the Associated Press, Harry’s attorney Shaheed Fatima argued that the group that decided to strip his security detail did not properly assess threats to Harry and his family and that they did not run their decision by the Risk Management Board.
Prince Harry, who attended Tuesday’s hearing, originally took legal action in 2020 after a decision was made that he should receive case-by-case protection when he visits the country. Harry’s attorney argued that he was excluded from protections offered to others in an “Other VIP Category.” Last year, High Court Judge Peter Lane ruled that Buckingham Palace’s stripping of that royal treatment, called the Royal and VIP Executive Committee, or RAVEC for short, was not “unlawful, irrational or unjustified.”
“The appellant does not accept that bespoke means better,” Harry’s attorney said in court Tuesday. “In fact, in his submission, it means that he has been singled out for different, unjustified, and inferior treatment.”
The attorney also claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle “felt forced to step back” from participating in royal family duties since they felt they were “not being protected by the institution.” However, Fatima insisted that Harry was not seeking the same level of protection as other working members of the royal family, but merely a fair process in deciding so.
“The Duke is not asking for preferential treatment, but for a fair and lawful application of RAVEC’s own rules, ensuring that he receives the same consideration as others in accordance with RAVEC’s own written policy,” a spokesperson for Prince Harry said ahead of the appeal last year.
Harry claims that he and his family face danger whenever they visit their homeland given the country’s dislike for him and his wife by the UK press and public. A written decision is expected later this week as the hearing ends Wednesday. Much of the hearing was live-streamed, although Wednesday’s hearing will be conducted behind closed doors.
