Prince Andrew resigned from royal duties last week to quell the “major disruption” after he took part in a controversial interview on BBC Newsnight. The Duke of York used the platform to open up on his friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Prince Andrew provided never-before-heard details about his connection to the late Epstein, saying he did not “regret” the friendship because it had led to beneficial introductions which had helped his public work.

He said: “The people that I met and the opportunities that I was given to learn, either by him or because of him, were actually very useful.”

The 59-year-old royal explained he had visited Epstein in 2010, after the sex offender had been convicted and imprisoned for soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution, to end their friendship.

Andrew said he had considered undertaking the task on the phone but had decided to meet him in person as a show of “leadership”.

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Prince Andrew said: “I’ve questioned myself as to why did I go and what was I doing and was it the right thing to do?

“Now, I went there with the sole purpose of saying to him that because he had been convicted, it was inappropriate for us to be seen together.

“I took the judgement call that because this was serious, and I felt that doing it over the telephone was the chicken’s way of doing it, I had to go and see him and talk to him.”

“I went to see him and I was doing a number of other things in New York at the time and we had an opportunity to go for a walk in the park and that was the conversation coincidentally that was photographed which was when I said to him, I said ‘look, because of what has happened, I don’t think it is appropriate that we should remain in contact’.

“And by mutual agreement during that walk in the park we decided that we would part company and I left, I think it was the next day and to this day I never had any contact with him from that day forward.”

But in the days following the interview’s airing, Prince Andrew faced a growing online backlash as the public and even some royal commentators criticised the Duke for his interview.

After discussing the criticism with his mother, the Queen, Andrew decided to take a step back from royal duties.

The Duke said in a statement: “I continue to unequivocally regret my ill-judged association with Jeffrey Epstein.

“His suicide has left many unanswered questions, particularly for his victims, and I deeply sympathise with everyone who has been affected and wants some form of closure.

“I can only hope that, in time, they will be able to rebuild their lives.

“Of course, I am willing to help any appropriate law enforcement agency with their investigations, if required.”

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Following this decision to step back from his royal duties, Prince Andrew’s problems continued to mount.

The Duke has seen many charities, businesses and organisations cut ties with him in order to distance themselves from the controversy.

Now, the Duke of York is facing the possibility of losing a position as a nominal military head after a source revealed the Sea Cadets charity is “reviewing” the situation.

Prince Andrew could lose his position as Admiral of the Sea Cadets amid mounting pressure for him to be stripped of military roles.

A source told Mirror Online the Sea Cadets charity for 10 to 18 year-olds is “reviewing” Andrew’s status as its nominal military head.

Prince Andrew has held the position as the nominal head of the Sea Cadets since 1992, but following allegations regarding his association with Epstein, his status is under review.

Another source told the Mirror: “In the near future, His Royal Highness will not be involved any longer.

“But changes take time and I suspect we are looking at a cooling-off period.”

The Sea Cadets role may be the first in a string of military roles the royal could face losing as pressure and outrage regarding the scandal mounts.

The Duke of York is commodore-in-chief of the Fleet Air Arm.

He also holds a number of honorary roles including Grenadier Guards colonel and four colonel-in-chief roles.

The Sea Cadets and Buckingham Palace have been contacted for comment regarding Prince Andrew’s position as Sea Cadets nominal head.

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