Queen Elizabeth II already granted Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wish to step down as senior members of the royal family. The Sussexes will be dividing their time living in the United Kingdom and North America. As they are currently staying in Canada, taxpayers are now worried that they may shoulder their security cost, creating a petition not to pay for their bill.
The Sussexes are now in Canada, renting a home in Victoria on Vancouver Island. However, as they are still royals, they should have 24-hour security, which will reportedly cost £1 million per year. As they seem to be under the care of the Canadian government, it remains to be a big question who should pay their security costs.
This issue is now turning into a big controversy, threatening to be a serious political headache not just for the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau but to the Canadian people as well. According to Express, there is an understanding that the country's PM assured Queen Elizabeth that the nation would pay part of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's security cost. However, it remains to be confirmed as well.
But the lobby group, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, didn't like this move and created a petition, calling Justin Trudeau to refuse all the requests for public funds to cover the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's security arrangements. The organization's federal director Aaron Wudrick said that although the Canadians are pleased to welcome the royal couple in the country, he wanted to make it clear that the taxpayers should not be forced to pay for the cost of their living.
"All Canadians wish them well as they realize their ambition of financial independence," Wudrick added. At the time of the launch, the petition gathered 80,000 signatures within days. Now, it is nearly reaching 100,000 signatories.
The organizers then urged their supporters to spread the word and gather more than 100,000 signs. As Justin Trudeau is yet to confirm if the taxpayers will pay for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's security cost, they said it is the best time to remind him how many people don't want the taxpayers to shoulder the price to pay.
Queen Elizabeth already announced she already granted Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wish to leave the monarchy to have a more independent life, per US News. During the period of transition, they would divide their time between the U.K. and Canada.
Justin Trudeau already denied the claim that he said his country would pay for the half of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's security cost. "There are still a lot of decisions to be taken by the Royal Family, by the Sussexes themselves as to what level of engagement they choose to have," he said.
