Prince Harry request to pay for UK police protection denied

Prince Harry was denied in his push to pay for personal police protection in the United Kingdom, with a London judge siding against the royal on Tuesday.

A lawyer for Harry appeared in court last week asking to challenge a government decision that the Duke of Sussex can’t pay local police to provide security.

The U.K. stopped providing protection for Harry after he stepped down from his royal duties in 2020. He’s since expressed concerns over his family’s safety when he returns with his young children.

Tuesday’s rejection comes less than a week after a representative for Harry and wife Meghan Markle claimed the couple was involved in a “near catastrophic” car chase by paparazzi photographers in New York City.

“This relentless pursuit, lasting over two hours, resulted in multiple near-collisions involving other drivers on the road, pedestrians and two NYPD officers,” the spokesman said Wednesday.

The photo agency Backgrid USA Inc. denied the royal couple’s claims. Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, died in a 1997 car crash after being chased by paparazzi in Paris.

[ Harry and Meghan in ‘near catastrophic car chase’ with paparazzi in NYC ]

Harry and Meghan are raising son Archie, 4, and daughter Lilibet, who turns 2 next month, in Southern California. Last year, Harry asked in a court filing for his U.K. police protection plea to be reviewed.

“The goal for Prince Harry has been simple — to ensure the safety of himself and his family while in the UK so his children can know his home country,” his representative said at the time.

“The UK will always be Prince Harry’s home and a country he wants his wife and children to be safe in.”

Harry, 38, returned to London this month for the coronation of his father, King Charles. Meghan and their kids remained in the U.S.

With News Wire Services