According to a royal expert, the Duchess of Sussex will not accompany Prince Harry to the UK for the inauguration of Princess Diana’s statue.

Phil Dampier said he “very much doubts” the Duchess will attend the event in the coming weeks.

According to sources close to Harry and Meghan, she will remain in California when her husband returns to London on July 1 to join his brother Prince William for the event at Kensington Palace.

They shot off a rumor on the US gossip site Radar Online that Meghan was planning to visit the UK to support Harry. According to the website, she planned to bring their two-year-old son Archie but not their infant daughter Lilibet.

Reports stating Meghan Markle will attend the ceremony are false, according to ITV News royals reporter Lizzie Robinson and the Daily Telegraph’s acting royal journalist Victoria Ward.

Markle isn’t expected to attend, according to Ward, because she just gave birth to the couple’s second child, Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor.

Meanwhile, if Prince Harry is unable to return, Kate Middleton may fill in on the big day.

“Maybe Kate will step in to not have William do it on his own,” Daily Mirror royal editor Russell Myers said on the Pod Save The Queen podcast.

“I think we can expect to see him travel within the next few weeks and he is due to unveil that statue,” Roya Nikkhah, Royal Editor at The Sunday Times, told Kay Burley on Sky.

The Duke, 36, is scheduled to return to the UK on July 1 for the emotional occasion, which will commemorate his mother’s 60th birthday.

Mr. Dampier explained: “It wouldn’t surprise me if we don’t see Meghan for some time.

“I don’t think she is popular with the royals or the public in the UK anymore and I think she will prefer to stay in California with her two young children.”

“The birth of Lilibet gives her a perfect excuse not to come,” he said.

“It may be seen as a swipe at the Royal Family, but it will just be added to an already long list.”

“In the unlikely event she did come, it would turn into a circus and detract from the point of the unveiling, which is to remember Diana,” he said.

“This is the best opportunity for William and Harry to repair their relationship, and it may be better for the brothers to sort things out between them on their own.”

Prince Harry and Prince William announced in 2017 that Ian Rank-Broadley would design the statue. Rank-Broadley is known for his design of the Queen on British coins.

“We have been touched by the kind words and memories so many people have shared about our mother over these past few months. It is clear the significance of her work is still felt by many in the UK and across the world, even 20 years after her death,” the brothers said in a statement obtained by Hello! Magazine in 2017.

“Ian is an extremely gifted sculptor and we know that he will create a fitting and lasting tribute to our mother. We look forward to unveiling the statue, which will allow all those who visit Kensington Palace to remember and celebrate her life and legacy,” they added.