The Queen agrees to a 'transition' period for Harry and Meghan - read the full statement

13 January 2020, 17:19 | Updated: 13 January 2020, 17:26

The Queen has agreed to a "period of transition", where the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will spend time in Canada and the UK.

Her Majesty the Queen said in a statement that she is "entirely supportive" of the couple's desire for a new role, but "would have preferred them to remain full-time working members of the Royal Family".

The monarch added that there is more work still to do in relation to the "complex matters", but that she expects final decisions to be made later this week.

Read the full statement:

"Today my family had very constructive discussions on the future of my grandson and his family.

"My family and I are entirely supportive of Harry and Meghan’s desire to create a new life as a young family. Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working Members of the Royal Family, we respect and understand their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family.

"Harry and Meghan have made clear that they do not want to be reliant on public funds in their new lives.

"It has therefore been agreed that there will be a period of transition in which the Sussexes will spend time in Canada and the UK.

"These are complex matters for my family to resolve, and there is some more work to be done, but I have asked for final decisions to be reached in the coming days."

Last Wednesday, Prince Harry and Meghan announced that they wanted to step back as senior royals.

However, it was later revealed from Buckingham Palace that they had not consulted the Queen in advance.

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“After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen. It is with your encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that we feel prepared to make this adjustment. We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages. This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity. We look forward to sharing the full details of this exciting next step in due course, as we continue to collaborate with Her Majesty The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Duke of Cambridge and all relevant parties. Until then, please accept our deepest thanks for your continued support.” - The Duke and Duchess of Sussex For more information, please visit sussexroyal.com (link in bio) Image © PA

A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (@sussexroyal) on Jan 8, 2020 at 10:33am PST

The couple stated their desire to split their time between the UK and North America, while "continuing to honour our duty to the Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages".

"This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter," the couple added.

Harry and Meghan were already soon to launch their own Sussex Royal charity, which they created after splitting from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's foundation in June 2019.

On social media, Buckingham Palace officials wrote: “We understand their desire to take a different approach, but these are complicated issues that will take time to work through.”