Earlier this week, Prince Harry officially settled his lawsuit with the publisher of The Sun newspaper, News Group Newspapers (NGN), over the media company’s intrusion into his private life over a span of 15 years.
As the BBC reported, the lawsuit ended with NGN agreeing to pay “substantial damages” and to offer a “full and unequivocal apology” not only to Harry, but to his late mother, Princess Diana, as well.
In a statement shared on X, Diana’s brother, Charles Spencer, praised Harry for having the “guts” to take on NGN at all and said his sister would be “rightly proud” of her youngest son for having the “great tenacity to win” the legal battle against the publisher.
“It takes an enormous amount of guts to take on opponents like News Group Newspapers, and great tenacity to win,” Spencer wrote, along with a link to news coverage about Harry’s victory. “And it’s just wonderful that Harry fought for – and gained – an apology to his mother. She would be incredibly touched at that, & rightly proud.”
In the suit, Harry alleged that journalists and private investigators working for NGN (as well as the now-defunct News of the World) had engaged in unlawful activities that constituted “serious intrusion” into his private life and the private life of the late Princess Diana.
In its “full and unequivocal apology” to the royal for its intrusion into his private life, NGN acknowledge “incidents of unlawful activities carried out by private investigators working for The Sun” between 1996 and 2011, as well as “phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators instructed by them at the News of the World.”
Here’s the full text of the “full and unequivocal apology” NGN issued to Prince Harry (per The Guardian):
NGN offers a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the serious intrusion by the Sun between 1996 and 2011 into his private life, including incidents of unlawful activities carried out by private investigators working for the Sun.
NGN also offers a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators instructed by them at the News of the World.
NGN further apologises to the Duke for the impact on him of the extensive coverage and serious intrusion into his private life as well as the private life of Diana, Princess of Wales, his late mother, in particular during his younger years. We acknowledge and apologise for the distress caused to the Duke, and the damage inflicted on relationships, friendships and family, and have agreed to pay him substantial damages.
It is also acknowledged, without any admission of illegality, that NGN’s response to the 2006 arrests and subsequent actions were regrettable.
NGN also offers a full and unequivocal apology to Lord Watson for the unwarranted intrusion carried out into his private life during his time in government by the News of the World during the period 2009- 2011.
This includes him being placed under surveillance in 2009 by journalists at the News of the World and those instructed by them. NGN also acknowledges and apologises for the adverse impact this had on Lord Watson’s family and has agreed to pay him substantial damages.
In addition, in 2011 News International received information that information was being passed covertly to Lord Watson from within News International. We now understand that this information was false, and Lord Watson was not in receipt of any such confidential information.
NGN apologises fully and unequivocally for this.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.marieclaire.com ’
