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Herald reveals executive expenses at BBC Scotland

Uefa Cup Final tickets and a £42 cheeseboard gift were among the items BBC Scotland executives claimed in expenses, revealed following a Freedom of Information request by The Herald.

Comedian Griff Rhys Jones was the recipient of the cheeseboard from head of factual Andrea Miller while other items claimed on expenses include champagne, sculptures and bouquets of flowers.

When the top executives of the BBC published their expenses in June, no high-ranking members of BBC Scotland were included, says The Herald.

The Glasgow-based daily said it was the first time that the expenses claims for the top ten BBC Scotland executives for the past five years were being published, amassing a bill of nearly £80,000.

In its official response to the FoI request, the BBC said: “Over the five financial years, the total expenses bill for the ten named individuals is £77,154.

“This, average per person over five years, equates to approximately £1,500 per annum, and reflects inevitable expenses incurred as part of carrying out the duties.

“The BBC has tough authorisation processes on expenses.

“We regularly review our expenses policy and a number of changes were made to the policy in the autumn of 2008 as part of a continuous and ongoing programme of expense reduction and belt-tightening.”

  • Visit heraldscotland.com to read the full story.