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Haulier's gifts to buy loyalty
Page 6
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THE MANAGING director of a northern haulage firm, William Brunskill, 62, invested in the future of two rising young British Steel Corporation managers by bribing them, it was claimed in court at the opening of a corruption trial last week.
Mr Brunskill, whose firm had a Eimillion a year turnover, showed them with gifts of luxury weekends in London, a year's supply of petrol, and lavish entertainment, said Robin Stewart, QC, prosecuting at Teeside Crown Court.
The BSC managers, Michael Dogett and John Potter, both aged 38, could not do him any favours at the time but Mr Brunskill wanted to ensure that when they rose to the jobs of handing out transport contracts, they were his men, said Mr Stewart.
Mr Brunskill, of Westbourne Grove, Hartlepool, denies seven corruption charges, and his firm Brunskill and Son Transport Limited of Hartlepool pleads not guilty to one similar charge.
Mr Stewart said that Mr Brunskill, a war-time RAF squadron leader, earned most of his money by hauling steel for the Teesside division of BSC. Mr Stewart said: "Dogett and Pottec were two up-andcoming young men and Mr Brunskill wanted to buy their loyalty so that, when they got to the position of having more direct influence on hauliers, they would be his men.
"When you have a persistent course of showering largesse on employees of the BSC in that way, what explanation can there be other than to buy them and wheedle their loyalty away?"
Mr Stewart said that the gifts were spread over three years up to 1976, when police enquiries began into corruption in Btitish Steel's transport department in Teesside.
Opening the case for the defence, Wilfred Steer, QC, said there was nothing secret or underhand about Mr Brunskill's gifts to the men, who were his friends.
Mr Steer said that Mr Brunskill was a rich and generous man and Mr Dogett and Mr Potter had received no more than many other friends.
Mr Brunskill paid for weekends in London, petrol and caravette holidays, but all the gifts went down on the firms books for open inspection, said Mr Steer.
The trial is continuing.