US President Donald Trump has announced the resignation of Labour Secretary Alex Acosta, believing that he has become a distraction to the administration because of his handling of the sex abuse case against financier Jeffrey Epstein a decade ago.

Key points: The role of Alex Acosta in a plea deal for sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has come under scrutiny

The role of Alex Acosta in a plea deal for sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has come under scrutiny Mr Acosta was the first Hispanic member of Mr Trump's Cabinet and served under George W Bush

Mr Acosta was the first Hispanic member of Mr Trump's Cabinet and served under George W Bush Mr Trump described Mr Acosta as an "excellent" Labour Secretary

Mr Acosta joined Mr Trump on the White House lawn as the President announced the resignation, which he said was Mr Acosta's idea.

"Alex called me this morning and wanted to see me," Mr Trump told reporters as he was leaving the White House on a trip to Wisconsin yesterday.

"I just want to let you know this is him, not me."

While Mr Trump praised him as a "great, great" Labour Secretary, Mr Acosta said it would be "selfish" for him to stay in the job.

"As I look forward, I do not think it is right and fair for this administration's Labor Department to have Mr Epstein as a focus rather than the incredible economy we have today," Mr Acosta said.

He said his resignation would be effective in seven days.

Mr Trump named Deputy Labour Secretary Patrick Pizzella as the acting secretary of Labour.

Mr Acosta has served in Mr Trump's Cabinet since April 2017 and from 2005 through 2009 was the US attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

Epstein is accused of creating and maintaining a network that allowed him to sexually exploit and abuse dozens of underage girls from 2002 to 2005. ( AP: Elizabeth Williams )

It was there that he handled Mr Epstein's first case involving sex with girls, which resulted in a punishment that critics say was far too lenient.

Mr Epstein, a billionaire hedge fund manager, pleaded not guilty to new federal charges in New York this week.

Mr Trump, former president Bill Clinton and Britain's Prince Andrew had all previously been members of Mr Epstein's social circle over the years.

Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic speaker of the House of Representatives, and Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer had called on Tuesday for Mr Acosta to resign.

Defending his case

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Mr Acosta had responded to the criticism on Tuesday with tweets saying Mr Epstein's crimes were "horrific" and that he was glad prosecutors were moving forward based on new evidence and testimony that could "more fully bring him to justice".

On Wednesday, Mr Acosta held a news conference to defend his handling of the deal, which allowed Mr Epstein to plead guilty to a state charge and not face federal prosecution.

In a 50-plus-minute rebuttal, Mr Acosta argued his office had secured the best deal it could at the time and was working in the victims' best interests.

"We did what we did because we wanted to see Epstein go to jail," he said, refusing to apologise for his actions.

"We believe that we proceeded appropriately."

Epstein previously counted President Trump and former president Bill Clinton as friends. ( Reuters: Florida Department of Law Enforcement )

Mr Acosta would not say if he would make the same decision regarding Mr Epstein now, considering the power of the #MeToo movement that led to the downfall of several powerful men publicly accused of sex crimes by women.

"We now have 12 years of knowledge and hindsight and we live in a very different world … today's world treats victims very, very differently," he said.

US prosecutors in New York on Monday accused Mr Epstein, 66, of sex trafficking, luring dozens of girls, some as young as 14, to his luxury homes and coercing them into sex acts.

Mr Trump on Tuesday called Mr Acosta an "excellent" Labour Secretary while saying that many people were involved in decisions on Epstein's case and that the matter was being reviewed.

The federal prosecutors in New York said they were not bound by the deal arranged by Mr Acosta, which allowed Mr Epstein to plead to a lesser offence and serve 13 months in jail with leave during the day while registering as a sex offender.

In February, a federal judge in West Palm Beach, Florida, ruled that the 2007 agreement violated the victims' rights.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 54 seconds 54 s US prosecutors allege Jeffrey Epstein of lured underage for sex acts

Reuters/AP