The Duke of Sussex today embarked on his final round of engagements as a senior working royal as he launched a new eco-friendly travel firm in Edinburgh and asked delegates just to call him Harry.
Prince Harry, who will step down as a senior royal in less than five weeks, is in the Scottish capital for a ‘working summit’ of the Travalyst partnership, which will feature a grading system for users to track their carbon emissions.
Before he took to the stage today, host Ayesha Hazarika, a former Labour adviser and broadcaster, told delegates: He’s made it clear that we are all just to call him Harry. So ladies and gentlemen, please give a big, warm, Scottish welcome to Harry.
He told the event at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre that the industry in Scotland was at the forefront of making the sector greener, saying it could set an example for the rest of the UK and world.
Harry said: ‘We want to hear truths and perspectives from across the industry. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel, a lot of great work has already been done. But our research again shows that many of these endeavours have failed to reach the conscientiousness of consumers.’
Harry, 35, who jetted into the UK from his new home in Canada, will return to London later today before visiting the Abbey Road Studios on Friday to record a new song for his Invictus Games with rock star Jon Bon Jovi.
The Duke arrived in the Scottish capital by train last night after being stung by criticism of his frequent use of private jets while campaigning on environmental issues and climate change.
The launch of Travalyst last September was overshadowed by an ongoing controversy about the Sussexes’ luxury globe-trotting – including a mini break at Sir Elton John’s South of France mansion.
At the Edinburgh International Conference Centre today, Harry told guests: ‘We believe travel is a good thing. It is the heart of human experience, of cultural connections, and of new friendships.