Charles gave Harry and Meghan 'substantial sum' despite son's claim he was 'cut off'

24 June 2021, 07:14 | Updated: 24 June 2021, 07:31

Prince Charles was paying the Duke and Duchess of Sussex a "substantial sum" after Megxit despite Harry saying his family "literally cut me off financially".

The Prince of Wales was still funding the couple in the summer of 2020, though Harry told Oprah Winfrey he stopped getting money from the family in the first quarter of that year.

Funding for both of Charles's sons – the Dukes of Cambridge and Sussex – and their families came to £4.5 million for the heir to the throne, according to Clarence House financial accounts.

The bill and other expenditures dropped by about £1.2 million in the financial year after Harry and Meghan ceased to be senior royals.

A senior Clarence House spokesperson said: "As we'll all remember in January 2020 when the duke and duchess announced that they were going to move away from the working royal family, the duke said that they would work towards becoming financially independent.

"The Prince of Wales allocated a substantial sum to support them with this transition.

"That funding ceased in the summer of last year. The couple are now financially independent."

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Quizzed on the discrepancy in the duke's remarks, the Clarence House spokesperson said: "I wouldn't acknowledge that they are dramatically different. All I can tell you are the facts."

A spokesperson for Harry and Meghan said there was no difference in the timeline, because Harry was referring to the first quarter of the fiscal reporting period in the UK, which runs from April to July.

"You are conflating two different timelines and it's inaccurate to suggest that there's a contradiction," Harry and Meghan's spokesperson said.

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"The duke's comments during the Oprah interview were in reference to the first quarter of the fiscal reporting period in the UK, which starts annually in April.

"This is the same date that the 'transitional year' of the Sandringham agreement began and is aligned with the timeline that Clarence House referenced."

In Harry's remarks to Oprah Winfrey, he said he was cut off "in the first quarter of 2020".

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The Clarence House spokesperson added that the couple's departure as working royals was "a matter of enormous sadness to the family" but that Charles "wanted to help make this work".

They added: "I betray no confidence when I say they've been very successful in becoming financially independent."

Harry and Meghan have secured multimillion-pound deals with Netflix and Spotify, which the duke said were organised to pay for security.

He said he had £7 million from what Diana left him, and their joint wealth – estimated at £18 million – is set to be boosted by their new deals.

Charles's annual income from the Duchy of Cornwall profits fell to £20.4 million, down £1.8 million, while his Sovereign Grant money fell from £1.8 million in 2020 to £0.4 million this year.