Prince Harry appears set to return to the UK next month for a special event to mark 10 years of his highly successful Invictus Games – but it is reported that there is a stumbling block to Meghan Markle, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet joining him on visits to his homeland

It could be just a matter of weeks before Prince Harry returns to the UK for yet another visit.

The Duke of Sussex is expected to attend a special service at St Paul’s Cathedral on May 8, which will mark the 10th anniversary of his highly successful Invictus Games.

The Games, which had its inaugural event in London in 2014, are for sick and injured servicemen and women and were co-founded by Harry. His wife Meghan Markle has been a huge supporter of Invictus and recently accompanied her husband on a trip to Canada in February to promote the 2025 Games, which are taking place in Vancouver and Whistler next year.

Harry with wife Meghan and children Archie and Lilibet (Image:alexilubomirski/Instagram)

Harry at King Charles’ Coronation last year (Image:AFP via Getty Images)

However, when it comes to next month’s event in London, although Harry is expected to attend, a question mark remains over whether Meghan and their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet will join them. And according to The Telegraph, there is one issue that makes Harry feel like he can’t bring his family to the UK – and they be able to come if something changes. The publication says it understands that 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.

Harry’s lawyers had previously told the court that he was “singled out” and treated “less favourably” in the decision to change the level of his taxpayer-funded personal security. They said a failure to carry out a risk analysis and fully consider the impact of a “successful attack” on him meant the approach to his protection was “unlawful and unfair”.

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.”

The Government said Harry’s claim should be dismissed, arguing that Ravec – which falls under the Home Office’s remit – was entitled to conclude the duke’s protection should be ‘bespoke’ and considered on a “case-by-case” basis. Home Office lawyers said the duke was no longer a member of the group of people whose “security position” was under regular review by Ravec, but he was “brought back within the cohort in the appropriate circumstances”.

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In a ruling issued in February, retired High Court judge Sir Peter Lane rejected the duke’s case that he was “singled out” and treated “less favourably” by the decision and concluded Ravec’s approach was not irrational nor procedurally unfair. Harry has announced he will appeal the decision.

Harry’s last visit to the UK came in February when he travelled alone to visit his father King 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 how he would be back in his homeland more 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.”