Meghan Markle and Harry: Expert calls for COP26 appearance

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The Queen’s omission of Prince Harry’s name during her heartfelt speech to world leaders at COP26 would have “been hard” for the duke, a royal expert has claimed. Over the years, the Duke of Sussex has launched a number of initiatives tackling the climate crisis, and has previously described it as one of the world’s “two most pressing issues”. According to Richard Eden, the 37-year-old prince and his wife Meghan Markle would have “hated” not being present at COP26 due to the high-profile platform it offers. 

In a recorded video message for world leaders, the Queen praised her son Prince Charles and her grandson Prince William for their contribution to the climate debate and their environmental activism.

Speaking of Harry’s response on the MailPlus podcast Palace Confidential, diary editor Richard Eden said: “They will have hated not being at COP26, I mean just the chance to talk to the whole world with Prince William there.

“One thing, in the Queen’s speech, which I think will have been genuinely hurtful for Harry was no reference to him.

“The Queen talked about how her husband’s environmental concerns were being built on by his son Prince Charles and his grandson Prince William.

“No mention of Harry, even though the environment is something that he’s felt very strongly about through the years, has spoken about and he’s even launched initiatives like Travelyst to try and do something for the environment.

“So I think that will have been hard for him.”

The 95-year-old monarch was originally due to attend the COP26 summit in Glasgow but was forced to “regretfully” cancel her trip after receiving medical advice to remain in Windsor. 

Instead, a recorded video message was played to assembled delegates at an evening reception on November 1. Both the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge, alongside their two wives, were in attendance and had been photographed with world leaders such as US President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. 

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Her Majesty urged them to “rise above the politics” to unite together against climate change, and achieve “true statesmanship”.

Speaking of her late husband Prince Philip, she said: “It is a source of great pride to me that the leading role my husband played in encouraging people to protect our fragile planet, lives on through the work of our eldest son Charles and his eldest son William. I could not be more proud of them.”

Both Charles and William have conducted a number of engagements throughout the week, which has included attending Stella McCartney’s sustainable fashion show, meeting Earthshot Prize finalists, and hosting meetings with world leaders. 

The Duke of Sussex is also a passionate advocate for sustainability and the environment and has given several speeches on the matter both during his royal career and post-Megxit. 

During an interview with Oprah Winfrey for the Apple TV+ series ‘The Me You Can’t See’, he said: “With kids growing up in today’s world, pretty depressing, right, depending on where you live, your home country is either on fire, it’s either underwater, houses or forests are being flattened.”

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He also called for a post-Covid “reckoning moment” for people to start tackling the climate crisis, which he linked to mental health. 

The prince is also President of Africa Parks, a conservation group that works to protect natural wildlife and ecosystems in Africa’s national parks. 

Speaking of the dangers facing the next generation, he said: We can’t steal their future. I’ve always believed that, hopefully, we can leave the world in a better place than when we found it. 

“We really need to take a moment and think, how do we get what we need and have our desire fulfilled without taking from our children and generations to come?”

Despite this, Harry and Meghan have previously come under criticism for their use of private jets. In the summer of 2019, they took four private jets in the space of 11 days, which included visiting Elton John’s home in the South of France. 

The prince has defended these trips, saying that he flies commercial “99 percent of the time” and launched his own sustainable travel company, Travalyst.  

The couple currently reside in Montecito, California, with their two young children. 

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