Over the weekend, The Mail on Sunday reported that Prince William and Princess Catherine have enlisted Liza Ravenscroft, an expert in crisis management. This move left many wondering why the seemingly untroubled royal couple would require such assistance.

After all, the Prince and Princess of Wales are often seen as the steadying force within the monarchy’s tumultuous environment.

In contrast, King Charles faces the ongoing scandal surrounding his brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, and his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The King is forced to navigate this turmoil while receiving reduced treatment for an undisclosed type of cancer.

The Prince and Princess of Wales, however, are not burdened with similar issues. They are thankful that Catherine has successfully battled cancer and are relishing their time at Forest Lodge, their new residence in Windsor since last November, which they envision as their permanent home.

Prince William has comfortably assumed his responsibilities as the head of the Duchy of Cornwall, a significant private estate worth over £1 billion. Meanwhile, their son, Prince George, is set to begin secondary education in September, likely following in his father’s footsteps to Eton College.

William and Catherine continue to enjoy high regard and consistently rank as the most favored members of the Royal Family in public opinion polls.

So, surely, the last person they need is a crisis manager?

Here is what I’ve been told about Ms Ravenscroft’s appointment – and I found it absolutely fascinating.

The Prince and Princess of Wales are deeply grateful that Catherine is now in remission from cancer and are enjoying life at their new Windsor home, Forest Lodge

Her CV stresses that she has told companies ‘how to get past an issue as quickly as possible with minimum dents….It’s often front-page stuff: from boycott campaigns to sexual allegations to serious safety issues, geopolitical and ethical risks’.

However, everyone at Kensington Palace is desperately keen to emphasise that she has been hired for her general abilities as a communications expert and not just because of her experience at dealing with crises.

‘Liza is joining in a non-crisis role based in the KP press office, working on the day-to-day Press interaction Kensington Palace has,’ a source said. ‘People who work in communications for the Royal Household come from an array of backgrounds.’

However, William and Catherine know that there may be trouble ahead, and it’s likely to come from a familiar source – Prince Harry and Meghan.

The Establishment ‘plot’ to bring the Duke and Duchess of Sussex back to Britain is gathering pace, with a decision expected within the next couple of weeks on the reinstatement of the couple’s automatic armed police protection – paid for by British taxpayers – when they make return visits to this country.

Over the past few days we have seen gushing front-page stories in red-top newspapers from ‘sources close to the Sussexes’. One was about how Meghan could visit Britain this summer, bringing her children, Prince Archie, aged six, and Princess Lilibet, four, to see their grandfather, the King, for the first time in four years. Another was about Harry inviting his father to open the forthcoming Invictus Games, his event for injured and sick former soldiers, which is due to be held in Birmingham next summer.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the Invictus Games in Germany in 2023. It is said that Harry will invite his father to open the forthcoming games in Birmingham next summer

Both these stories, and other similar ones, serve to put pressure on the King and the rest of the Royal Family to roll out the red carpet for the Sussexes, even though the California-based couple have never apologised for their disgraceful attacks on their relations in television interviews, Harry’s tawdry memoirs and in their Netflix ‘docu-series’.

This PR offensive is all part of the Establishment ‘plot’ I have reported on over recent months which aims to restore the Sussexes to the affections of the British public. The plot is known as ‘Project Thaw’ because the aim is to ‘warm up’ the duke’s and duchess’s frosty relationships with the rest of the Royal Family and with the British people.

As I wrote last September: ‘Worryingly, King Charles has been drawn into this, aided by some key figures of the Establishment behind the scenes.’

These are disturbing developments for William and Catherine, who are carefully and quietly establishing themselves as King and Queen in waiting. Harry and Meghan returning to set up their ‘rival’ royal court at the same time as trying to make a fortune for themselves has the makings of a future crisis for the monarchy.

So, while Liza Ravenscroft’s new role at Kensington Palace may be a ‘non-crisis’ one for now, it might not be long before she needs all the skills she acquired while dealing with disasters in the corporate world.