Prince Harry and Meghan Markle chose 31 March to step back from their royal duties as the date marks the end of the financial year. Every year the royal household publishes its annual financial statement around June, and since Harry and Meghan have expressed their wishes to work to become financially independent, the March date makes sense.
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HELLO Online’s royal correspondent Danielle Stacey explained: "One of the reasons behind the Duke and Duchess of Sussex officially stepping back from their royal duties on this date, is because 31 March marks the end of the financial year for the royal family. Every year, around June, the royal household publishes its annual financial statement, the Sovereign Grant report, for the previous year. Details in the annual reports include the cost of travel, staff and property maintenance. Harry and Meghan have expressed their wishes to work to become financially independent and as they will no longer receive funding from the Sovereign Grant, it makes sense for them to depart on this particular date."
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© Photo: Getty ImagesPrince Harry and Meghan Markle
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The doting parents announced their plans to leave the royal family in January 2020, and following their 31 March departure, Buckingham Palace has announced a number of changes for their future, including that they will no longer have a royal household. Harry and Meghan bid farewell to their former staff as they hosted a leaving lunch at The Goring hotel, during the week where they carried out their final royal engagements.
While they will no longer have a team based at Buckingham Palace, they have kept on James Holt to head up communications in the UK. As the couple have now reportedly settled in Los Angeles, Hollywood PR agency, Sunshine Sachs will now handle their publicity going forward, as they begin to build their new team.
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