London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 08, 2025

'Lessons learned', but no details of royal review of Meghan bullying claims

'Lessons learned', but no details of royal review of Meghan bullying claims

Buckingham Palace says lessons have been learned following a review into bullying allegations made by royal staff against Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, although it declined to give any details about the report's conclusions.

The HR review was announced by the palace last March after the Times newspaper reported allegations had been made against Meghan, the American wife of Queen Elizabeth's grandson Prince Harry, including that she had reduced some of her assistants to tears and treated others so badly that they had quit.

The couple issued a statement in response denying she had bullied anyone, and in an interview with Oprah Winfrey shortly afterwards, she accused the palace of "perpetuating falsehoods".

Michael Stevens, the queen's treasurer who is known as Keeper of the Privy Purse, said the privately-funded review, which was carried out by an independent law firm, had been set up to examine the handling of the allegations and to improve practices across all the royal households.

"The review has been completed and recommendations on our policies and procedures have been taken forward," Stevens told reporters. "But we will not be commenting further."

The Times report said a senior aide to Harry and Meghan had raised a complaint in October 2018 alleging that the duchess had bullied some of her assistants, and that the prince had urged the aide to drop the issue which then never progressed.

The palace ordered a review, saying it was "very concerned", and all those who participated, including current and former staff members, have been informed of its outcome. Royal sources declined to say whether the duchess herself had been involved.

"I think the objectives have been satisfied because lessons have been learned," a senior royal source said.

OVERSPEND


Stevens was speaking as he gave details of the annual report into the queen's taxpayer-funded spending and income, known as the Sovereign Grant, which was published on Thursday.

This showed that official expenditure for 2021-22 had been some 102 million pounds ($124 million), above the 86 million allocated for the royals' official travel, property maintenance and the operating costs of the 96-year-old queen's household.

Since 2017, the queen has received extra public money to pay for a 369 million pound 10-year refit of Buckingham Palace to replace ageing and dangerous electrical wiring and boilers, and Stevens said the royal household would draw upon reserves put aside in previous years to cover the additional outlay.

Another hit on the royal finances - which the palace says costs each Briton 1.29 pounds a year - was the reduction in additional money made mainly from ticket sales to visit royal palaces, down 50% at 10 million pounds compared with before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Overall, travel costs amounted to just under 2.5 million pounds, with the biggest expense being Prince William and his wife Kate's tour of the Caribbean which cost 226,383 pounds.

"We are realistic that there will always be a tension between the travel involved with fulfilling the head of state and head of nation role, and meeting our environmental aspirations," Stevens said. ($1 = 0.8231 pounds)

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
OpenAI Launches GPT‑5, Its Most Advanced AI Model Yet
Embarrassment in Britain: Homelessness Minister Evicted Tenants and Forced to Resign
President Trump nominated Stephen Miran, his top economic adviser and a critic of the Federal Reserve, to temporarily fill an open Fed seat
The AI-Powered Education Revolution: Market Potential and Transformative Impact
Chikungunya Virus Outbreak in Southern China: Over 7,000 Hospitalized
French wine makers have seen catastrophic damage to vines that were almost ready to be harvested after the worst fires in more than 70 years burned through the south of the country
US Lawmaker Probes Intel CEO’s China Ties Amid National Security Concerns
Brazilian President Lula says he’ll contact the leaders of BRICS states to propose a unified response to U.S. tariffs
Trump Open to Meeting Putin as Soon as Next Week, with Possible Trilateral Summit Including Zelenskiy
Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau spark dating rumors, joining high stakes world of celeb-politician romances
US envoy Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow to seek a breakthrough in the Ukraine war ahead of President Trump’s peace deadline
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Nine people have been hospitalized and dozens of salmonella cases have been reported after an outbreak of infections linked to certain brands of pistachios and pistachio-containing products, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada
Karol Nawrocki Inaugurated as Poland’s President, Setting Stage for Clash with Tusk Government
Trump Signals JD Vance as ‘Most Likely’ MAGA Successor for 2028
US Charges Two Chinese Nationals for Illegal Nvidia AI Chip Exports
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
U.S. Tariff Policy Triggers Market Volatility Amid Growing Global Trade Tensions
Tariffs, AI, and the Shifting U.S. Macro Landscape: Navigating a New Economic Regime
Representative Greene Urges H-1B Visa Cuts Amid U.S.-India Trade Tensions
U.S. House Committee Subpoenas Clintons and Senior Officials in Epstein Investigation
Sydney Sweeney Registered as Republican as Controversial American Eagle Ad Sparks Debate
Trump Accuses Major Banks of Politically Motivated Account Denials and Prepares Executive Order
TikTok Removes Huda Kattan Video Over Anti-Israel Conspiracy Claims
Trump Threatens Tariffs on India Over Russian Oil Imports
German Finance Minister Criticizes Trump’s Attacks on Institutions
U.S. Proposes Visa Bond of Up to $15,000 for Some Applicants
U.S. Farmers Increase Lobbying Amid Immigration Crackdown
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Matt Taibbi Slams Media for Role in Russiagate Narrative
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
×