Has Prince Harry really won his tabloid battle?

“Accountability” was mentioned again in a statement read out on behalf of Prince Harry and Lord Watson.

“The time for accountability has arrived,” but it meant in terms of calling on Parliament and the police to pursue what they called the “unlawful activity now finally admitted” and “the perjury and cover ups along the way”.

There was a similar call for a follow-up when Prince Harry won against the Mirror group newspapers, but there has been no imminent sign of action.

Perhaps it shouldn’t have been a surprise that there was a deal.

There has always been immense pressure for a settlement, because the curve of civil law bends so strongly in that direction.

Even if a claimant wins a case, they could end up paying the costs of their opponents, if the damages award is less than they have been offered.

The legal costs and damages at stake in this case could have been £10m. That’s a big poker hand decision for anyone. Plus the unknown jeopardy of what might happen in the court case and what questions Harry might have faced on the witness stand. He might have had his case ruled out of time or had his claims rejected.

The psychological cards would all have been stacked towards doing a deal. Does everyone have a price? Even when they’re seen as the last man standing?

In terms of the amount of damages paid to Prince Harry, or what he might do with the money, that hasn’t been made public.

But what Prince Harry’s team have seized upon is the skyscraper scale of the apology – seeing it as a “collapse” of the NGN’s denials.

They might argue that even if he had fought the court battle and won, there wouldn’t be any more to be gained.

This has always been a very personal battle for Prince Harry, the battle with the tabloids touching on his childhood as well as his adult life. So it’s significant that the apology includes an admission of a “serious intrusion” into the “private life of Diana, Princess of Wales”.

That could mean more to him than any financial deal.