Prince Harry has accused the royal family of withholding information related to phone hacking from him, as he claims they were afraid it could “open up a can of worms” if he were to make any claims against the press.
The claims were made in a witness statement issued prior to his surprise appearance at the High Court this week in London, as he pursues his lawsuit against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), the company that publishes the well-known newspapers The Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday and Metro, among others.
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Prince Harry’s Witness Statement In Associated Newspapers Lawsuit
The Duke of Sussex, 38, is suing the company over claims of illegal information gathering, and is joined by other famous individuals such as Elton John, Sadie Frost, and Elizabeth Hurley who have accused them of bugging their homes and cars with listening devices. In his statement, the Duke of Sussex went into detail about his history with the British press and how he was “conditioned” to accept things as they were.
“Following the death of my mother in 1997 when I was 12 years old and her treatment at the hands of the press, I have always had an uneasy relationship with the press,” Prince Harry said in his statement. “However, as a member of the institution, the policy was to ‘never complain, never explain.’ There was no alternative; I was conditioned to accept it. For the most part, I accepted the interest in my performing my public functions.”
The subject of phone hacking of the royal family dates back decades, as the late Princess Diana revealed that she thought her Kensington Palace phone was bugged in the personal letters that sold at auction a few months ago. In one of her deeply personal letters to her friends Susie and Tarek Kassem, she wrote: “As I don’t have a mobile [phone] it is difficult to discuss personal items, as my lines here are constantly recorded and passed on.”
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Prince Harry went on to explain how his viewpoint changed after meeting Meghan Markle, 41, and seeing how she was treated by the tabloids, especially after they had their first child, Prince Archie, who will celebrate his fourth birthday on May 6th, the same day as King Charles’ coronation, which they may or may not be at!
He even said that he realized he had a valid claim against the company as far back as 2018, however the Duke of Sussex did not realize the true depth of the issue until he and Meghan stepped down as senior royals in 2020.
Prince Harry's Claims Against The Royal Family
According to Prince Harry, at that time he became aware that there had been an "agreement" in place between the royal institution and a separate company not involved with the current lawsuit; Rupert Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers (NGN), publishers of The Sun.
"There was in place an agreement between the institution and NGN that we would not engage, or even discuss, the possibility of bringing claims against NGN until the litigation against it relating to phone hacking was over," Prince Harry said, according to The Guardian.
"The institution made it clear that we did not need to know anything about phone hacking and it was made clear to me that the royal family did not sit in the witness box because that could open up a can of worms," the father-of-two continued. "The institution was without a doubt withholding information from me for a long time about NGN’s phone hacking and that has only become clear in recent years as I have pursued my own claim with different legal advice and representation."
In a witness statement, the Duke of Sussex said that he was "conditioned to accept" his family's rule to "never complain, never explain" when dealing with the press https://t.co/CxcLra920f
— Sky News (@SkyNews) March 28, 2023
As reported by People, Harry claimed that it was the structure of the institution that prevented him from knowing if others had taken legal action against the press, saying that there "was never any centralized discussion between us about who had brought claims as each office in the institution is siloed. There is this misconception that we are all in constant communication with one another but that is not true."
Speaking about why he made the decision to sue Associated Newspapers, Prince Harry said, "If the most influential newspaper company can successfully evade justice, then in my opinion the whole country is doomed." He added, "I am bringing this claim because I love my country and I remain deeply concerned by the unchecked power, influence and criminality of Associated."
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"The evidence I have seen shows that Associated’s journalists are criminals with journalistic powers which should concern every single one of us. The British public deserve to know the full extent of this cover up and I feel it is my duty to expose it," he added.
Associated Newspapers has refuted all claims against them, describing them as "preposterous smears" and a "pre-planned and orchestrated attempt to drag the Mail titles into the phone-hacking scandal." They added that the evidence is based on "unsubstantiated and highly defamatory claims, based on no credible evidence."
EXCLU: A friend of King Charles tells The Daily Beast that Prince Harry has “torpedoed any remaining bridges” with his family by accusing the monarchy of “conditioning” him and “withholding information” about phone hacking.https://t.co/6ejDhywHOn
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) March 29, 2023
How Will Prince Harry's Claims Against The Royal Family Affect Their Relationship?
As we know, Prince Harry is hoping for a face-to-face meeting with his father, King Charles, and brother, Prince William if he comes to the U.K. for the coronation next month; but a source (apparently a friend of King Charles) has reportedly told The Daily Beast that his witness statement might have made that even *less* likely!
"Harry has torpedoed any remaining bridges with this statement," the source reportedly told the pub, adding, "It is just six weeks until the coronation and the last thing Charles needs." This, therefore, makes it unsurprising to learn that neither King Charles nor the Prince of Wales met with Prince Harry while he was in the U.K. for the trial, with The Daily Beast reporting that King Charles' office said he was "too busy" to meet his son. Ouch! "The trust is gone and I think that’s been made quite clear by the King refusing to meet him," the source added.
And the same goes for Prince William as the source added: "William is over it at this stage. If this was about his vendetta with the Mail that would be one thing. But Harry keeps doing everything in his power to try and embarrass the family. How can you have a relationship with someone who is doing that?"
