Prince William and Kate Middleton’s acting privately secretary has ‘quit’ the royal household to join a £18billion finance firm.
Christian Jones, 31, who previously worked as deputy communications secretary for both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, has accepted a partner role at the private equity firm Bridgepoint, the Daily Telegraph reports.
The communications specialist was recruited by Kensington Palace in December 2018 to offer PR advice to both couples, and has worked for the Cambridges exclusively as their communications secretary since April 2019, taking charge of their press office when the two households split.
He will reportedly remain an adviser to William, 38, and Kate, 39, whom he is largely credited with helping protect from the Megxit fallout. Mr Jones has also assisted the Cambridges throughout the pandemic, helping them to maintain a visible presence.
Prince William and Kate Middleton’s acting privately secretary has ‘quit’ the royal household to join a £18billion finance firm
Christian Jones, who previously worked as deputy communications secretary for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, has reportedly accepted a partner role at the private equity firm Bridgepoint
FEMAIL has reached out to Kensington Palace for comment.
Mr Jones, who studied economics at Cardiff University, previously worked at HM Treasury for nearly five years, where he was a spokesperson before becoming chief press officer.
He later worked on Brexit, as head of news at the Department for Exiting the European Union.
At the palace he replaced Simon Case, who was Prince William’s right-hand man for nearly two years before he moved to Downing Street to take up a post as the UK’s Cabinet Secretary in September last year.
Mr Jones became Prince William’s private secretary and head of the royal household.
The Cambridges have largely led the Royal Family’s response to the Covid-19 crisis in the UK. Pictured on a video call to NHS staff at Homerton University Hospital
A source told the Telegraph: ‘Whereas Simon was credited with making the Duke a statesman, Christian has really helped them to steer them through their public-facing role during the pandemic.
‘He’s helped them to grow in confidence by gently pushing them out of their comfort zone.’
Mr Jones will head up corporate affairs at Bridgepoint.
The Cambridges have largely led the Royal Family’s response to the Covid-19 crisis in the UK, spending much of the pandemic at their Norfolk home of Anmer Hall along with their children Prince George, seven, Princess Charlotte, five, and Prince Louis, two.
Last week it emerged Prince William and Harry ‘reconnected’ over the holidays and are now ‘speaking regularly’ by video call.
Harry, 36, and Meghan Markle, 39, are currently residing in their $14million mansion in Santa Barbara with one-year-old son Archie, having stepped back from duty in March last year.
Christian Jones will remain an adviser to William, 38, and Kate, 39, whom he is largely credited with helping protect from the Megxit fallout. Pictured: the Sussexes and Cambridges in December 2017
Royal expert Katie Nicholl told Entertainment Tonight the families enjoyed ‘phone and video calls’ over Christmas and New Year where they presented gifts to each other, saying: ‘Fast forward to today, the relationship is much better than it was.
‘For a start, they are on talking terms, and not only on talking terms, they do speak relatively regularly. They were very much in touch over the holidays.’
Yet she suggested the relationship between the brothers might never recover to the close bond they enjoyed in the past.
Katie said there was ‘an ocean’ between the two families, adding the brothers are ‘on different paths.’
She added that Meghan and Harry ‘are trying’ for another child because they ‘would love to have a sibling for Archie.’
Her comments come after a royal biographer claimed the ‘long-term solution’ to the rift between Prince Harry and Prince William is for the Sussexes to ‘enjoy the freedom of America’ while the Cambridges dedicate their life to duty.