Prince Edward has come under fire over comments he made while speaking about the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award in Australia.
Speaking in Sydney on a trip to mark the 50th anniversary of the award, the Prince said that the risk of death is part of the appeal which it holds for young people.
“The sense of adventure, the sense of excitement, that it gave you that sort of risk element, young people are like that still; that sense of adventure, that sense that (death) is possible.” he said.
“Obviously we don’t want that to happen, certainly it’s not our intention … It was just that psychology about what makes young people tick.”
The Prince, who is chairman of the award scheme, was replying to a question from ‘The Australian‘ newspaper about the case of 17-year-old David Iredale, who died after getting lost on an expedition in the Blue Mountains in 2006.
He admitted that he was unaware of the specific incident but made comparisons with the death of a British participant in the late 1950s, which led to a surge of interest in the award.
Local mother Sally Weatherson, whose son Jake received a gold award and met the Prince, said that Edward’s comments were “excessive”.
“I think Prince Edward was a bit excited – kids don’t want to die or put themselves in harm’s way,” she said.
His comments have drawn fire from the press, including comparisons to the Duke of Edinburgh’s infamous ‘spear throwing’ comment which he made on a trip to Australia in 2002.
