A former aide to Prime Minister Thatcher is calling for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and the former Meghan Markle, to be stripped of their royal titles after embarking on a highly-criticized “faux royal tour” in Colombia.

Nile Gardiner, who worked for Thatcher for several years following her premiership as a foreign policy researcher, expressed his less-than-favorable view of the famous couple in a post on X, calling them an “embarrassment to the royal family” and claiming that they are “damaging its image with their rogue ‘statecraft.’” 

“They represent no one other than themselves,” he added, calling it “time” for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to be deprived of their royal rank. 

In the same post, Mr. Gardiner shared a link to an opinion article published in the Hill, which slammed the royal duo for traveling to Colombia in a “splashy” four-day trip, referred to by the Fleet Street press as a “faux-royal tour” despite having “stepped back” (to use their phrase) from their official royal duties. 

“​​Official royal tours, like U.S. presidential visits abroad, are intended to advance the foreign policy interests of the UK,” the authors wrote. “Beyond high-level meetings and glitzy receptions, these high-stake diplomatic undertakings are measured by the bi-lateral nation-to-nation deliverables expected of them — and of their lasting positive impact. Harry and Meghan could not deliver that.”

Indeed, Downing Street relies on the Royal Family for a certain kind of diplomacy, especially with maintaining good relations with former colonies who are still officially subjects of the King. 

The Duke and Duchess were hosted by Colombia’s vice president, Francia Marquez, who later indicated that her fondness for their Netflix show, “Harry & Meghan,” prompted her invitation. During their highly choreographed tour, the duo attended indigenous dance performances, met with Invictus athletes (Prince Harry’s charity), and attended panels on online safety and female empowerment. 

Prince Harry and Ms. Markle’s trip faced criticism from those both within and outside of the United Kingdom for offering the Colombian government a distraction from various ongoing political scandals. Both American and British governments currently caution against traveling to the South American country due to civil unrest. 

A Colombian councilman, Andrés Escobar, accused the vice president of “squandering public money” on a “vanity” trip with the royal duo. 

“The vice president asked them here because she saw them on Netflix, can you believe that? How ridiculous, I can’t believe she said that,” he told the Daily Mail. He added that the country “could have used the money to invest in our own infrastructure” rather than having it “wasted for this.” 

The country faces high levels of unemployment and its illicit cocaine trade has devastated local villages. Meanwhile, the Colombian government has been embroiled in numerous corruption scandals, including one involving the son of President Gustavo Petr who was implicated in a high-profile money laundering investigation. 

And yet, the Colombian Ministry of Equality and Equity, headed by Ms. Marquez, lauded the trip as a “success” 

“It was a very productive visit that allowed connections to be established between the populations and the Archewell Foundation — created and led by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex — to promote programmes aimed at the economic autonomy of women, the prevention of violence in digital environments for girls, boys and young people, and support for leaders who build peace through art and culture,” a Ministry spokesman said. 

Prince Harry and Ms. Markle could not be reached for comment.