Prince Harry’s security case to be heard behind closed doors
The Duke of Sussex’s High Court security claim will mostly be heard behind closed doors amid privacy concerns, it has emerged.
Prince Harry is expected to argue today that he was treated unfairly by the Home Office when he was denied the right to automatic police protection in the UK.
The claim will be heard before Mr Justice Lane after he won the right to challenge the government’s decision.
However, a privacy order has been issued over concerns that a vast volume of evidential material cannot enter the public domain – ensuring the majority of the three-day hearing will be heard in private.
The judge said that having read both parties’ skeleton arguments, it was apparent that “the material that needs to be protected in the interests of justice is very tightly entangled with less sensitive details required for the court to properly determine the claim”.
He added: “This means that the bulk of the hearing must be in private.”
Much of the information relied upon in the case concerns security arrangements put in place for Prince Harry, as well as other public figures.
Such material usually remains confidential so that it is not compromised.
The hearing comes amid continuing tensions in the royal family after it emerged that the King and the Princess of Wales had been accused of commenting about the skin colour of Harry’s son Archie.
The Duke applied for a judicial review after the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) decided in February 2020 not to afford him the same degree of personal protective security when visiting Britain.