Being half in and half out of the Royal Family 'isn't an option for Harry and Meghan'
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will not be able to live their lives “half in and half out” of the Royal Family, constitutional experts have warned.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced last week they intend to step back as senior royals, and plan to live between the UK and North America.
The couple will struggle to find a compromise between staying connected to the Royal Family and living their lives as private individuals, according to the director and senior research associate of UCL’s Constitutional Unit, Professor Robert Hazell and Bob Morris.
Writing in The Conversation, they said: “[Harry and Meghan]’s plans to carve out ‘a progressive new role’, and to ‘work to become financially independent’ have been widely criticised as unrealistic. Initial polling shows some public sympathy for their aims but strong objection to their continuing to receive public money.
“Royal officials have been tasked to find a compromise, but it is hard to see how they can be half in, and half out of the royal family and reside regularly abroad.”
According to the two academics, Meghan and Harry will be the ones who suffer from the fallout of their departure as senior royals.
They argue the couple are likely to face similar levels of scrutiny whether or not they are heavily involved with royal life.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s decision to go public with their shock announcement without first telling the Queen has caused a deep rift in the Royal Family.
The Queen was “disappointed” not to be told in advance, according to the BBC.
Prince Harry will today attend “crisis talks” with the Queen to thrash out the details of his and Meghan’s role as royals in the future.
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Prince Charles and Prince William are also due to attend the meeting at the Queen’s private Sandringham Estate.
A royal source said it is likely that Meghan, who is currently in Canada with her son Archie, will join talks by phone.
And in a further update, Princes William and Harry released a joint statement today condemning a media report accusing Prince William of “bullying behaviour” towards his brother.
The statement didn’t name a particular news outlet, but The Times carried a story on its front page on Monday morning citing a source who said Harry and Meghan “regarded themselves as having been pushed away by what they saw as a bullying attitude from the Duke of Cambridge”.
The statement said: “Despite clear denials, a false story ran in a UK newspaper today speculating about the relationship between the Duke of Sussex and the Duke of Cambridge.
“For brothers who care so deeply about the issues surrounding mental health, the use of inflammatory language in this way is offensive and potentially harmful.”
