Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
PRINCE Harry’s failed bid to pay for his own armed police has cost taxpayers more than £300,000 so far.
His bid for a judicial review was rejected by the High Court, which ruled armed Met Police officers are not “bodyguards for the wealthy”.
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He wanted the review of the rejection of his offer to pay for his own protection in the UK after his security arrangements changed when he stopped being a working royal.
But in his judgment released, Justice Chamberlain threw the case out after rejecting all of Harry’s arguments.
The Met Police had argued in court that the decision to remove security was made in the public interest and warned if they were forced to give Harry, 38, armed officers it would divert resources from VIPs deemed to be at higher risk.
During the hearing last Tuesday, The Met said it would be wrong to “place officers in harm’s way” and would set a precedent for anyone prepared to cough up enough cash.
Reacting to the High Court’s refusal, a government spokesman said: “We welcome the judgment upholding the integrity of the protective security system.
“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. It would not be appropriate to comment further on the legal proceedings.”
The Duke of Sussex’s lengthy court bids have already cost Brits a small fortune.
Figures revealed in a Freedom of Information request show taxpayers have so far footed a bill of £199,978.52 on government legal department costs, £93,268 on general counsel, £660 for court fees, £2,958 on email disclosure and £16.55 for a courier.
Harry’s lawyers also plan to challenge an application for him to pay for the government’s costs defending last week’s case — thought to be at least £8,000.