Mixed reactions across Atlantic
the Royal Family. They can be very unpredictable and the latest intelligence on them is vital.”
There will also be massive costs involved in making the Sussexes’ future home secure.
Meghan and Archie are currently staying in Canada in an £11million mansion on Vancouver Island, while Harry finalises arrangements in the UK.
It is not known where the trio will settle but it will most likely be Vancouver or Toronto.
Their new property will need the latest alarms, cameras and movement sensors, which will have to be replaced as technology evolves.
Threat
A security command centre will also have to be built, including accommodation for bodyguards.
A security expert said: “The start-up costs could be huge.”
If Harry and Meghan are forced to reduce their security, they would not be the first in the family.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s detail has been cut back since he retired.
Prince Andrew is under threat of losing his taxpayer-funded police bodyguards after stepping back from official duties. His daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, now rely on former officers paid for by their father.
THE Sussexes’ royal exit has made front pages across the Atlantic – where they plan to spend much of their time.
“The Great British Break Off” reads the knowingly punning headline of the New York Post. It adds Harry and Meghan “will pay back 3 million dollars in Megxit deal”, referring to the taxpayers’ millions spent on Frogmore Lodge.
Its Canadian comment writer Isabel Vincent said the Queen had shown she “wasn’t going to put up with any more nonsense” from the couple who “have behaved like spoiled brats”. On the bill for their security in Canada she said: “Let these new commoners pay the tab.”
Canadian outlet the Globe and Mail noted comments from premier Justin Trudeau that the couple’s security costs were “under discussion”.
Toxic
The Washington Post was more sympathetic: “The couple win their freedom from a palacecentric life of duty serving the Queen as ‘senior working royals’ which they found suffocating – especially the intense, often harsh media coverage.”
The New York Times’ Mark Landler also pointed to “a toxic relationship with Britain’s tabloids”. Echoing history he referred to one of the most dramatic royal ruptures “since King Edward VIII abdicated in 1936 to marry an American woman”.
He described Meghan as “a 38-year-old American actress with a mixed-race background who brought a breath of fresh air into one of the country’s most hidebound institutions”.
To the Wall Street Journal the couple’s decision was a watershed for the Royal Family “which has long considered public service its foremost duty”.