Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's complaints about security have been dismissed after their trip to the UK. Richard Kay, Senior Editor-at-Large for the Daily Mail, said the Sussexes have been able to come and go from the UK "whenever they like".

Kay, speaking on the publication's Palace Confidential podcast, said: "They come and go. We don't see photographs of them unless they want to be photographed, and they make such a drama about this, and yet the public don't know.

"By and large, they can slip in and out and all this talk about [Harry] is in danger and he has to have this wraparound security when he's here - well actually anonymity is the best form of security of all."

Kay told Palace Confidential: "If nobody knows, no one can cause them harm. I know that sounds slightly glib, but I think it's an important part of the whole package."

He was speaking after Harry, Meghan, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet were reunited with King Charles at Highgrove House in Gloucestershire on Friday, July 10.

Details of the Sussexes' visit were kept tightly under wraps before Buckingham Palace confirmed on Friday evening that a meeting had taken place earlier that day.

Kay pointed to the visit as an example of the Sussexes' ability to travel about the UK without the press or public finding out about it, appearing to upend claims the family requires tight security.

He asked: "Where did they come from? We don't know. It's rumoured that they've got a holiday home in Portugal, but no one's ever seen [it] or them at it."

There was also no confirmation Meghan, Archie and Lilibet were staying with Elton John in the south of France, according to Kay.

The commentator added their Highgrove visit was "absolutely proof positive" the Sussexes are able to drop in and out of the UK "as they please".

Daily Mail diary editor, Richard Eden, said the staging of a Chanel event at Highgrove on the same day could have allowed the Sussexes to enter the grounds unnoticed as there would have been a number of vehicles going in and out. He said the meeting was "quite cleverly timed" for that reason.

Authorities say Harry isn’t entitled to blanket protection in the UK because he is no longer a working member of the Royal Family.

His security is considered on a case-by-case basis, just like any other celebrity, although Harry has repeatedly insisted it is unsafe for his children to travel to Britain without protection because his family remains a target by virtue of their royal status.

The decision on his security rests with a Government committee known as RAVEC which rules on who should get state-funded protection.

Harry and his family were not eligible to receive taxpayer-funded protection while in the UK, other than when they were within royal residences.