Prince Harry's top priority is his kids' safety.
That's why the Duke of Sussex is pushing back against the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures' (RAVEC) decision to revoke his automatic right to police protection when he and Meghan Markle visit the United Kingdom.
"It was with great sadness to both of us that my wife and I felt forced to step back from this role and leave the country in 2020," he said in a statement read by his attorney at a Dec. 7 court hearing to challenge the ruling, per ITV. "The U.K. is my home. The U.K. 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 there is no possibility to keep them safe when they are on U.K. soil."
The 39-year-old's statement continued, seemingly referencing the 1997 paparazzi car chase in Paris that killed his mom Princess Diana, "I can't put my wife in danger like that, and given my experiences in life, I'm reluctant to unnecessarily put myself in harm's way too."
Harry's access to publicly-funded security agents who normally accompany the royal family was revoked by the RAVEC in 2020 after he and Meghan—who share son Archie Harrison, 4, and daughter Lilibet "Lili" Diana, 2—stepped back from their roles as senior royals. The Spare author previously offered to cover the cost himself, but his bid was rejected by the High Court in May.
Since his relocation to the United States, Harry has traveled back to the U.K. only a handful of times.
Most recently, he visited his home country in May for his dad King Charles III's coronation, jetting back to U.S. shortly after the ceremony to celebrate Archie's fourth birthday, which fell on the same day. He was also in the U.K. in September ahead of the first anniversary of his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II's death.
Last year, his lawyer Shaheed Fatima said that Harry "does not feel safe when he is in the U.K." without proper protection.
"It goes without saying that he does want to come back to see family and friends and to continue to support the charities that are so close to his heart," the attorney said in a February 2022 statement to E! News. "This is and always will be his home."
Keep reading for everything Harry and Meghan have said about parenthood and their kids.