Prince Harry to bring his own team for UK return despite royal peace offer
Prince Harry to bring his own team for UK return despite royal peace offer, claims insider
The Duke of Sussex is reportedly hoping to reunite with King Charles during next month's visit as questions over his UK protection continue.
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Add us as preferred source Comments By Michael D. Carroll 23:35, Thu, Jun 25, 2026 Updated: 23:36, Thu, Jun 25, 2026 
Prince Harry is reportedly hoping to reunite with King Charles when he returns to Britain with Meghan Markle and their children next month, as plans gather pace for a family visit linked to the Invictus Games.
The Duke of Sussex is said to be keen for the King to spend time with Prince Archie, seven, and Princess Lilibet, five, who have not visited the UK for four years.
The trip is also expected to revive questions over Harry's security arrangements after his long-running dispute with the Home Office over police protection.
Although the prince reportedly spends around $3 million (£2.2 million) a year on private security in the United States, he has yet to regain automatic armed police protection while in Britain and is understood to remain in a holding pattern as his security status is reviewed.
Sources told Page Six that the Sussexes have been offered accommodation at a royal residence, where security is already provided, during their stay.
Harry is also expected to travel with members of his own security team.
One source familiar with the arrangements said the family will fly on a commercial flight rather than by private jet, adding: "Harry always travels with one or two of his own security team."
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The visit is expected to coincide with the one-year countdown to the 2027 Invictus Games, which will be held in Birmingham from 7 to 10 July next year, reports Page Six.
According to the report, Harry hopes to use the trip to see his father, who has had few opportunities to spend time with his grandchildren.
The source claimed the visit would inevitably attract significant attention.
"They know it will make the biggest spectacle," the source said of Harry and Meghan. "They will want photos of them being 'royal.'"
Speculation has also centred on whether Buckingham Palace and the Sussexes could release a photograph of the King with Archie and Lilibet.
Although the children have appeared on Meghan's Instagram account and in promotions for her As Ever lifestyle brand, their faces have only rarely been shown in full.
Responsibility for Harry's security in Britain rests with the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (RAVEC), which determines protection arrangements for senior royals and other high-profile individuals.
While Harry employs his own security personnel, they are not permitted to carry firearms in the UK. Armed protection is restricted to authorised police officers.
Private security teams also do not receive the police and intelligence briefings available to specialist royal protection officers.
During Harry's appearance at the High Court in January for his privacy case against the publisher of the Daily Mail, a woman described by The Daily Telegraph as a known stalker reportedly sat close to him on two occasions.
According to the newspaper, Harry's security team identified the woman but had no authority to intervene.
"There is nothing they could do; they are not the police. It's a public building, and she has a right to be there," an insider said.
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Sir Clive Alderton, King Charles's Principal Private Secretary, is among the eight members of RAVEC involved in decisions surrounding Harry's security arrangements.
Harry has previously suggested his father could help bring the dispute to an end.
"There is a lot of control and ability in my father's hands," he told the BBC last year.
"Ultimately, this whole thing could be resolved through him. Not necessarily by intervening, but by stepping aside, allowing the experts to do what is necessary," he added.
"I can't see a world in which I would be bringing my wife and children back to the UK at this point … And I think that it's really quite sad that I won't be able to show, you know, my children my homeland."
Last year, Harry secured a risk-management board review of his security arrangements, with RAVEC expected to advise an independent chair on whether he should receive armed police protection during future visits.
In a statement, the Home Office said: "The UK Government's protective security system is rigorous and proportionate. It is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on those arrangements, as doing so could compromise their integrity and affect individuals' security."
Meanwhile, Meghan is not expected to undertake any business engagements during the trip, despite promoting her As Ever lifestyle brand during a visit to Australia earlier this year, including a partnership with AI fashion platform OneOff.
A spokesperson for the Sussexes declined to comment on security arrangements.
Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
