Former royal protection chief warns dangers facing William and Catherine are worse than ever
Behind the backlash over tightened security around Prince William and Catherine, a far more serious picture is emerging.
Anger has been building among locals over the six-mile exclusion zone surrounding Forest Lodge in Windsor Great Park. Residents and visitors have complained that paths once open to ramblers and dog walkers are now off limits. But according to a former head of the Royal Protection Command, those restrictions are not about convenience. They are about survival.
Dai Davies, speaking to the Daily Mail, said the measures reflect genuine and escalating threats. While he acknowledged frustration among locals, he was clear that public access cannot outweigh the safety of the Royal Family. In his view, the loss of walking routes is a small price compared with the risks William and Catherine now face.
Davies explained that distance is a critical part of modern royal security. The wider the cordon, the more time police have to react to any potential danger. That time, he said, can be the difference between life and death.
He also pointed to the role of panic rooms, which work alongside the exclusion zone. These secure spaces are only effective if protection officers have enough warning to move everyone inside before a threat reaches the property.
Most striking was his assessment of the current risk level. Davies said the couple are facing credible threats from more directions than at any point in history. He described the terrorist threat as constant and worsening, adding that anyone who views the Windsor security cordon as merely a debate about public rights of way does not understand the realities of the modern world.
In short, what looks like heavy-handed security to some is, according to those who know the system best, a necessary response to a far darker global climate.
