Prince Harry is seeking legal action against a U.K. publisher, and his witness statement includes accusations against the royal family.
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E! News tells us that the Duke of Sussex is in the process of Associated Newspapers Ltd, which puts out The Daily Mail. In his suit, he claims that the company has been using illegal methods of getting information for their stories.
“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,” he said, speaking of Princess Diana. “However, as a member of the Institution the policy was to ‘never complain, never explain.'”
He added that, as a working royal, “There was no alternative; I was conditioned to accept it. For the most part, I accepted the interest in my performing my public functions.”
Prince Harry Says the Royal Family Lied to Him
Harry stated that, when he and his wife, Meghan Markle, asserted their independence by moving to the U.S., he began to have serious doubts about the relationship between the palace and the press. Specifically, he claimed that the royal family hid information from him when News Group Newspapers were being sued for hacking into phones. This was to prevent him from bringing forward his own case at the time.
“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,” he stated. “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.”
He continued, “To this day, there are members of the Royal Family and friends of mine who may have been targeted by NGN and I have no idea whether they have or have not brought claims. 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.”
Prince Harry also 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. The British public deserve to know the full extent of this cover up and I feel it is my duty to expose it.”
Meanwhile, Associated News Ltd has denied the duke’s claims, calling them “preposterous smears.”