Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, is reportedly eager to return to the UK and maintain his role as a counsellor of state, a position that allows him to act on behalf of the monarch in certain circumstances.
However, his recent eviction from Frogmore Cottage, his former residence in Windsor, has put his eligibility for this role in doubt.
According to royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams, Prince Harry can no longer act as a counsellor of state if he does not have a UK home.
He told The Sun: “That’s hugely important because in theory he had the right, in the event of the king being incapacitated, to do this. Although he is no longer a working royal he still had this right — and by not having a UK residence he has now thrown this opportunity away.”
According to a report by Express, the counsellors of state are senior members of the royal family who can perform some of the sovereign’s duties when they are abroad or unable to do so. The current counsellors of state are Prince Charles, Prince William, Prince Harry, Prince Andrew and Princess Beatrice.
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, moved to California in 2020 after stepping back from their royal duties and becoming financially independent. They bought a nine-bedroom mansion in Montecito for £11.32million and have signed lucrative deals with Netflix and Spotify.
However, Prince Harry has reportedly expressed his desire to move back to the UK and reconnect with his old friends, as well as keep his royal role. A Hollywood insider claimed that Meghan Markle is “frustrated” by her husband’s conflicting views about their future home. They told Entertainment Tonight: “Meghan has no desire to be in the UK, she feels rejected by them and she doesn’t want to put herself in a position to be humiliated by them again the way they booed her in the past.”
The couple have also been rumoured to be “casually house hunting” in Malibu, where they have stayed at a friend’s rental home over the past two summers. Royal expert Christine Ross suggested that there could be a reason behind their interest in Malibu.
She said on Us Weekly’s royal podcast: “It is interesting, we have heard several stories about them wanting to move somewhere new. I wonder if it has anything to do with Harry’s visa because he’s not an American citizen. Does he need to have a residence in the UK to maintain whatever it is he has in the US that they’re so secretive about?”
It remains unclear whether Prince Harry will be able to keep his role as a counsellor of state or find a suitable UK home that would allow him to do so. The royal family has not commented on the matter publicly.
