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The Duke of Sussex has told a court he does not have “leaky” social circles, as he insisted he was unable to complain about press coverage because of the royal institution.

In a frosty exchange between Harry and lawyers acting on behalf of Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), the duke told the High Court: “My social circles were not leaky, I want to make that absolutely clear.”

He added that if he became suspicious of someone, “I would have to cut contact with this person”.

The duke, Sir Elton John and his husband David Furnish, campaigner Baroness Doreen Lawrence, politician Sir Simon Hughes, and actresses Sadie Frost and Liz Hurley are all bringing legal action against ANL over allegations of unlawful information gathering.

This includes claims that information for articles was obtained by carrying out or commissioning unlawful activities such as phone tapping and “blagging” private records.

ANL has strongly denied wrongdoing and is defending the claims.

In his witness statement for the trial, Harry said he has always had an “uneasy relationship” with the press, adding: “However, as a member of the institution the policy was to ‘never complain, never explain’.”

Speaking from the witness box at the Royal Courts of Justice in London on Wednesday, Harry told the court: “When you are in a situation like this, the moment something private is out, your circle of trust and knowledge decreases over time.”

He added: “The stuff in these articles is not the kind of stuff I would talk about openly.”

The duke said it would have been “impossible to complain” about certain stories because “thousands” of articles were being written about him by newspapers.

He added: “If you complain, they double down on you, in my experience.”

The duke insisted he did not complain about some of the articles at the centre of his claim “because of the institution I was in”.

Antony White KC, for ANL, said the duke “did not complain and no complaint was made on your behalf” about articles Harry was aware of, adding: “That is because you believed, at the time that the articles were published, insofar as you saw them, that the information they contained came from legitimate sources.”

The duke replied: “To a certain extent, but I would not have been able to complain about them anyway, because of the institution I was in.”