Princes William and Harry may be approached to provide victim impact statements in the trial of a journalist accused of paying an army officer for information about their time at the Sandhurst Military Academy.

It would be the first time a senior Royal has been asked to assist a criminal case since the Queen was called in 2002 as a witness in the £1.5 million theft trial of butler Paul Burrell.

That trial collapsed when Her Majesty revealed he had told her he was looking after the belongings of Princess Diana.