Prince Harry's major 'stumbling block' could halt family visit to Balmoral with Meghan
With the summer holidays upon us, the Royal Family will soon be heading up to Balmoral for their annual break - but even if Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are invited to spend time there, one issue could stop any trip to the UK from happening
The summer holidays are well and truly upon us - and that means one thing for the Royal Family.
It's during this time that they usually decamp to the Scottish Highlands to spend time at their rural country estate of Balmoral. The royal residence was a firm favourite of the late Queen's and last year King Charles continued her tradition of inviting the whole family to come and stay with her.
Over the last few years, noticeable absences from Balmoral have included Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who quit as working royals to go and live in America. But each year, there is speculation about whether the Sussexes would join the family in Scotland with their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, and if they'll get an invite in a bid to heal their rift with the Firm.
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However, there appears to be one major stumbling block to any Balmoral plans - as it seems the Sussexes would only come if one major thing changes. According to The Telegraph, unless Harry can overturn a ruling by the Home Office that he is not immediately entitled to police protection when in the UK - he does not feel he can bring Meghan, Archie and Lilibet to his homeland.
Harry had been taking legal action over the February 2020 decision of the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (Ravec) after being told he would no longer be given the "same degree" of publicly-funded protection when in the country.
The court was told that Harry believes his children, Archie and Lilibet cannot "feel at home" in the UK if it is "not possible to keep them safe" there. At a previous hearing of the case, in a written statement, Harry said: "It was with great sadness for both of us that my wife and I felt forced to step back from this role and leave the country in 2020. The UK is my home.
"The UK is central to the heritage of my children and a place I want them to feel at home, as much as where they live at the moment in the United States. That cannot happen if it's not possible to keep them safe when they are on UK soil. I cannot put my wife in danger like that and, given my experiences in life, I am reluctant to unnecessarily put myself in harm's way too."
Harry lost his claim earlier this year but has now been given permission to appeal the decision. This year, Harry has been to the UK solo twice - once to attend a service at St Paul's Cathedral for his Invictus Games, where he didn't meet up with any of his family members.
Meanwhile, in February, he travelled alone to visit his father Charles in London after news of his cancer diagnosis broke. He dashed from Los Angeles to London within hours of the announcement being made and spent around 30 minutes with his dad before returning to the United States the next day.
And days later in an interview on US TV, Harry opened up about the visit and revealed that he will be back in his homeland on various other trips. He told Good Morning America: "Look, I love my family. The fact that I was able to get on a plane and go and see him and spend any time with him, I'm grateful for that. I've got other trips planned that will take me through the UK, or back to the UK, and so I'll stop in and see my family as much as I can."
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