STONE WALL..
As exit talks hit snag, Harry video plays Stone Roses hit with ‘I’d like to leave the country for month of Sundays’ in lyrics
PRINCE Harry’s breakaway plans have stalled – as a video of his latest royal outing played a Stone Roses song with the line: “I’d like to leave the country for a month of Sundays.”
A deal allowing Harry and wife Meghan to leave their royal roles and strike commercial contracts worth millions could take “up to six months” to finalise, say sources close to the round-the-clock negotiations.
Buckingham Palace is poised to make an announcement today revealing progress in discussions, but insiders say there are still major stumbling blocks to be overcome.
The Queen’s senior advisers have urged a “forensic examination” of any corporate deals, which sources say will “be carefully considered on their merits and in an agreed framework”.
That framework, sources say, is the sticking point of the talks. After committing to turning down public funds in a move to becoming financially independent, Harry and Meghan could be free to sign deals with global corporations.
Harry has worked with billionaire TV queen Oprah Winfrey on a series examining mental health set to be released on Apple TV, while Meghan is already rumoured to be lined up for voiceover work with Disney.
The Queen gave her reluctant blessing to the couple’s plans after a Sandringham summit with Princes
Charles, William and Harry on Monday, ordering “final decisions to be reached in the coming days”.
But a government insider said: “There are major issues to deal with that have no way of being completely signed off in a matter of days.
“There are people working round the clock on this.
“We’ve drafted in from different departments and are working with representatives from governments who we have had little or no previous cause to work with, to try and get something to present on paper immediately.
“This is not something we can just magic up. Those at the Palace were left aghast as the Sussexes’ plans were revealed so soon after being virtually nonexistent apart from publishing a new website.
“It requires a great deal of work on complex issues such as tax, copyright, intellectual