Prince Harry arrives back in Britain ahead of final round of engagements before Megxit
PRINCE Harry has arrived back in Britain ahead of his final official engagements as a senior royal.
The Duke of Sussex, 35, pictured at Edinburgh's Waverley Station wearing a baseball cap and jeans, will attend a travel conference promoting eco-friendly holidays in the Scottish capital tomorrow.
Harry and wife Meghan will attend a series of events together which will be their first engagements since they announced their intention to quit the Palace and move to Canada.
Next week, the couple attend the Endeavour Fund Awards on March 5 in London while Prince William and Kate Middleton are in Ireland.
Tomorrow, Harry is launching a scoring system telling tourists how eco-friendly their flights are - despite his own gas-guzzling private jet use.
WHIRLWIND RETURN
The Travalyst scoring system will advise holidaymakers on how bad for the environment their flights are.
There will be three themes - accommodation, aviation and travel experiences, reports.
Meanwhile, there are fears within the royals that Harry and Meghan's high-profile return will steal the spotlight from the Cambridges.
A senior source told Sun Online: "While William fully respects Harry’s right to come back whenever he wants - indeed he is glad that he is returning, however briefly - he wishes that it wasn’t at the same time as his Irish trip because he knows what will happen is that the spotlight as far as papers and TV are concerned will be fully on Harry and Meghan.
FINAL EVENTS AS SENIOR ROYALS
"He recognises that for the media this will be 'the big story'.
"It’s not that he and Kate would be jealous of all that coverage - they’re simply not like that - but their tour of Ireland is an important one, and he would have hoped it would get due media prominence."
Kate and William's trip to Ireland will be the first tour carried out by any member of the Royal Family after Brexit.
And the source added: "This sort of diary error would simply not have happened in the days before Harry decided to bale out of royal life.
"That’s why members of the royal family have private secretaries - and a grid system, similar to the Government’s method - to ensure that coverage of important events doesn’t clash.
"It’s a nightmare as far as staff are concerned because there is no longer any control over Harry - he has nobody now working for him who has proper experience of the methods and protocol of the court system.
"Presumably he is now relying on some flash PR person more used to the American entertainment world, more Hollywood than Windsor, who is not going to respect the views of the rest of the royal family."
Meg and Harry's '£20m security bill'
- Harry and Meghan could force taxpayers to shell out £20million a year for their security bill as they jet around the world, it has been reported.
- Police fear resources will be stretched while protecting the couple who are set to rake in £1bn following their split from the Royal Family, expert say.
- One ex-protection officer told : “This is adding to the Met’s woes.”
- The bill for guarding the “independent” couple as they globe trot earning millions is expected to rise to £20m a year, the report says.
- A row has reportedly broken out over who should foot the bill to protect the wealthy pair and their son Archie – all of whom have been in separate places recently.
- Security officials have drafted emergency plans to double the protection team, it has been reported.
The Sussexes will conduct a string of six engagements over 11 days including Harry, 35, meeting with Jon Bon Jovi to promote the Invictus Games.
Although some unintentional crossovers have occurred in the past, royal author Katie Nicholl revealed clashes were typically avoided by courtiers to prevent “competition” between the Sussexes and Cambridges.
She said: "I think that’s why couriers can avoid diary clashes they will, because they’ll be keen to avoid any sense of competition between the couples.”
On Monday, Kensington Palace announced details of the trip to Ireland, saying: "Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will visit Ireland from Tuesday 3rd March to Thursday 5th March 2020.
"This visit is at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office."
Following lengthy Buckingham Palace talks, the Queen and senior officials have ruled the couple cannot use the word 'Royal' in their new roles as they step back from royal duties to start a new life in Canada.
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As part of the Megxit deal, Harry must ditch his honorary military positions for at least 12 months.
They have been allowed to keep their HRH titles but have been forced to accept that they will not use them publicly as they tout for business around the globe.
The Sussexes have already agreed to repay the £2.4million of taxpayers’ money used to refurbish their Frogmore Cottage home in Windsor and are expected to pay a commercial rent for it of about £30,000 a month.
