Prince Harry has renewed
his lease on Frogmore Cottage and will continue to deputise for the Queen,
despite living abroad.
Prince Harry who lives in California with his wife Meghan
Markle and their two children, Archie and Lilibet, is eligible to continue
serving his grandmother as one of her four Counsellors of State because he
qualifies as being domiciled in Britain due to his old Windsor address.
He and the Duchess of Sussex have decided to renew the lease on the
cottage on the grounds of Windsor Castle, which is due to run out on March 31.
Princess Eugenie,
husband Jack Brooksbank and their son August are reported to have
been living at the cottage while the Sussexes are in the US. The Sussexes
paid back the £2.4m of renovations to the Windsor home, including rent up to
March 2022.
Details of Harry’s UK
living arrangements have become a constitutional matter due to his role as one
of the Queen’s four Counsellors of State.
As the four adults next in
line to the throne, the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cambridge, the Duke of
Sussex and the Duke of York are able to undertake some of the Queen’s duties
if she is temporarily indisposed.
This week, he paid out a
reported £12m to Virginia Guiffre to settle a US civil lawsuit in which he was
accused of sexual assault and rape when Ms Guiffre was underage.
Counsellors of State must
be over 21 to act for the Queen and can only be changed through legislation,
according to Buckingham Palace. The decision on any changes lies with
Parliament.
Constitutional experts
claim this would not happen unless the Queen requested it, as she has done
previously, allowing the Queen Mother and her late husband Prince Philip to
step into her shoes.
At the Queen’s request,
counsellors are able to carry out most of her official duties such as signing
documents and Privy Council meetings. They cannot play a larger role, such as
appointing a Prime Minister and can only dissolve Parliament with instruction
from the Queen.
