Where are the royals’ wise counsellors?

IN the end there was no alternative. For the sake of his mother and the reputation of the entire Royal Family, Prince Andrew simply had to be removed from public life.

But even retreating into the shadows won’t make this scandal go away.

Already under a cloud of suspicion over his association with the billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, the Prince’s disastrous interview with the BBC has unleashed a storm of opprobrium.

His denial that he slept with a 17-year-old girl trafficked by Epstein has cut no ice in the US, where investigators are desperate to question him further.

Questions are being asked about how the Prince can afford a super-rich lifestyle on a Navy pension and an allowance from the Queen. Charities and businesses with which he was associated are cutting him loose.

But this is about far more than his choice of friends and his crass lack of judgment. It cuts to the heart of the monarchy.

The Queen and Prince Philip are now elderly, and inevitably less active than they once were. So where is the Royal Family’s anchor? Who is advising them – and why are they doing it so badly?

The Prince of Wales is said to have been the one to persuade Andrew to step back from the public gaze. And quite right.

As heir to the throne it is now his responsibility to maintain the dignity and integrity of the monarchy for the next generation. In that onerous task, he clearly needs wiser counsel than he has now – and he needs it soon.

For make no mistake, this imbroglio has inflicted serious damage on the Royal Family. And as it unravels, there may well be much worse to come.