This is a private wedding. The public should not foot the bill
London, UK – 17 May 2018
Commenting on Saturday’s royal wedding between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, human rights campaigner and anti-monarchist, Peter Tatchell said:
“I wish Harry and Meghan every happiness but this is a private wedding and the public should not be picking up any of the bill. They are making it a public event and should therefore fund it out of their own pockets, like any other couple getting married.
“London LGBT Pride has to pay for road closures, policing and suspension of parking bays. So should Harry and Meghan.
“Meghan and Harry live an exceptionally privileged lifestyle, with wealth and opportunities that are denied to most young people. They have their own luxurious home and access to six royal palaces. Many people their age have no prospect of ever owning any own home.
“The royal wedding is escapist nonsense; a real-life soap opera for people who fantasise about fame, riches, status and fairy-tale romance. Good luck to Meghan and Harry but don’t expect me to fawn over them.
“Royalty is an outdated, feudal, aristocratic and anti-democratic institution that should be consigned to history. It is time we had an elected head of state, not an inherited dynastic one. Monarchism is incompatible with democracy and equal human rights,” he said.