Andrew hoped to greenwash his reputation with eco-warrior rebrand inspired by his brother
The former prince planned to launch his own non-profit and establish a legacy around conservation before his infamous Newsnight interview
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor hoped to start his own conservation non-profit and rebrand himself, just months before he was removed from royal duties.
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According to leaked correspondence, the former duke wanted to “take up the mantle of conservation” from his brother when he became the King, and leave “a legacy”.
Charles has spent five decades campaigning on environmental issues, and the former prince appeared to wish to emulate him.
Plans for 'The Royal Conservancy' were being drawn up just months before his Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis and the second arrest of paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The emails are said to suggest a meeting of potential backers from Europe, the Middle East and the US at Buckingham Palace in 2019 to draw up a three-year business plan.
But the proposals failed due to a lack of funding and no green light from the Cabinet Office.
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Andrew was already facing allegations by Virginia Giuffre that she had been forced to have sex with him. He denied the accusations, saying he had no recollection of meeting her.
According to the Daily Telegraph, the leaked emails show that Andrew had told aides to put together the business plan in March 2019 and that he had asked to use “Royal” in the name from the Cabinet Office.
They also reportedly show that multiple businesses linked to The Royal Conservancy had been contacted in March 2019.
Libby Ferguson, who managed the former prince’s firm Urramoor Limited, wrote in one email that they had “very strong feedback from the large pension fund managers and landowners who attended the Palace meeting” and “time is really of the essence”.
"Avenues for fundraising" were also said to have "opened up," which included Sara Ojjeh, a US-based philanthropist, and a German businessman who wanted to host Andrew at a dinner in Munich with "some of the large German industrial companies such as Allianz, BMW and Siemens”.
The former duke was arrested in February on his 66th birthday on suspicion of misconduct in public office and released under investigation.