Police cleared of blame over failed royal butler cases

The police investigation of two royal butlers cleared of stealing hundreds of items belonging to Diana, Princess of Wales, was vindicated by an inquiry yesterday despite the failure of prosecutions that cost taxpayers £5m.

A review of the cases of Paul Burrell and Harold Brown concluded that "no radical" changes were needed to police procedures.

The Metropolitan Police have been criticised since the trials collapsed last year but the man appointed to consider what lessons should be learnt declined to make any comment about officers involved in the case.

The report did, however, raise questions about how the inquiry was overseen by senior officers and a lack of notes taken at case conferences. It concluded: "In a number of respects some issues arising from the investigation remain unresolved." These included the way the inquiry team investigated who was the legal owner of items wrongly claimed to have been stolen by Mr Burrell and Mr Brown. It also said the Met should set up a working party to review how cases involving the Royal Family or Household should be handled – something the force has already done.

Mr Burrell's trial at the Old Bailey last October was told that police were "grossly misleading" in a meeting with the Prince of Wales and Prince William about evidence against Mr Burrell. They wrongly suggested he had sold large amounts of goods abroad and that there were photographs of staff at Kensington Palace dressing in the Princess's clothing.

The officer leading the inquiry, Detective Chief Inspector Maxine de Brunner, told the court she had not told the Prince that she had given him mistaken information.

The report's author, William Taylor, a former commissioner of the City of London Police, said: "Nothing radical or unexpected was found. No individual is mentioned in the report and nothing in the report should be seen as a direct or indirect comment on any individual."

Sir John Stevens, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, said: "I suspect a lot of people are looking for blood on the carpet. But I'm afraid sometimes the facts are things that have to be accepted.''