Palace bribes scandal left director ‘broken man’

A company director who turned a blind eye when his colleagues paid bribes for contracts at the Royal palaces has been was spared jail after a judge accepted he had been ‘broken’ by the case. Ronald Harper, 64, was in charge of maintaining Buckingham Palace, Clarence House, St James’ Palace and Windsor Castle. The work was funded by the Civil List, now called the Sovereign Grant, and came straight out of taxpayer’s pockets. For six years Harper was paid bribes…