SEEING the news that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, are "standing down" from being major royals, made me wonder exactly what the future of the monarchy in Britain is.

I am one of what I suspect is a sizeable section of the population who respect the constitutional role of the monarchy while also finding the level of coverage and intrigue slightly baffling.The question the royal family now faces is exactly what will happen to it over the coming decade.

For the monarchy to survive and still be relevant, it needs to change to fit the modern world, and couples like Harry and Meghan and William and Kate are essential for that.

If the monarchy does not adapt and work to fit the modern world, will we still have one in 50 years? Or will it fade into irrelevance and be brushed aside, forgotten after centuries?

I do feel a great degree of sympathy for Meghan Markle. Ever since she married Harry her every move has been criticised for one reason or another.

Can any of us say that if we were in the spotlight in the way she is, that we wouldn't want to pack it in?

Some of the assessments of her character and personality have been ridiculous. Maybe she is a manipulative force, trying to separate Harry from his family, as some commentators have suggested.

Or, more reasonably, she is a woman who just wants to have a family with the man she loves, and has been unfairly singled out by people who, for one reason or another, simply do not like her.

I am not a staunch monarchist, but I am also not a republican who believes we should do away with the monarchy, but really, why are we all getting so wound up over this family and its various intrigues?

The monarchy performs an important constitutional role in Britain, but is it something which is necessary in the 21st century?

Maybe the monarchy will just keep rolling on, from Elizabeth to Charles, Charles to William, but maybe we are coming to the end of the concept of monarchy all together.

One thing is sure, we as taxpayers spend an enormous amount of money on the royal family, and could we really say that money cannot be better spent on public services, schools or other things which benefit more of the wider population?