And that’s a win for the Sussexes! There are new reports that say Prince Harry has won a bid to bring part of a High Court challenge against the Home Office over his security arrangements. Harry is taking legal action over a decision not to allow him to pay for police protection for himself and his family when visiting the UK from North America. Here’s what you need to know.
In the first stage of the case earlier this month, the duke’s lawyers asked Mr Justice Swift to grant permission for a full hearing to have a judge review the Home Office’s decision. In a judgment on Friday, the High Court judge said the case could proceed, granting permission for part of Harry’s claim to have a judicial review. Justice Swift said: “The application for permission to apply for judicial review is allowed in part and refused in part.”
Prince Harry Wins His Bid To Challenge Home Office Over His Security Protection
The duke’s challenge concerns the February 2020 decision of the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) over his security, after being told he would no longer be given the “same degree” of personal protective security when visiting.
Harry’s legal team argued that the security arrangements set out in a letter from Ravec, and their application when he visited the UK in June 2021, were invalid due to “procedural unfairness” because he was not given an opportunity to make “informed representations beforehand”.
Shaeed Fatima QC, for the duke, told the court earlier this month: “He didn’t know at that stage that the Royal Household was involved at all … he was told it was an independent decision.”
However, lawyers for the Home Office say Ravec was entitled to reach the decision it did, which is that Harry’s security arrangements will be considered on a “case by case” basis, and argue that permission for a full judicial review should be refused.
In a public judgment on Friday, Mr Justice Swift said the duke had brought the claim for judicial review on five grounds, four of which were “arguable” and were granted permission, with some parts of the grounds removed. This means there will be a full High Court hearing to review the duke’s claim. Harry was granted permission on the arguments including that Ravec’s decisions were legally unreasonable, and that the duke should have been told about Ravec’s policy before its decision in February 2020.
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