Minted, coins boss who even charged his morning Bloody Mary to taxpayer
TOP Royal Mint executive Chris Howard likes a stiff cocktail – or two – in the morning while away from home... and all thanks to you, the taxpayer.
Early one day in April last year, while on a business trip to Las Vegas in the US, he hit the bar for his first “livener” – an £11 Bloody Mary – it can be revealed.
And perhaps reasoning 41 minutes later that the sun was over the yardarm somewhere in the world, he ordered another cocktail, this time costing £11.50.
It was not clear why Mr Howard, who earns £123,000 a year doing deals for the government-owned Royal Mint, needed a pick-me-up so early in the day.
Exclusive
But some light has been shed on his varied tastes and globetrotting thanks to a Freedom Of Information inquiry.
The 57-year-old clocked up £45,000 in expenses travelling from California in the US to Melbourne, Australia, Singapore to Shanghai, China, and Hong Kong to Beijing, China, in a year.
Although he spent £15,000 staying in some of world’s most exclusive hotels and £8,700 on wining and dining business contacts, the former pupil at top public school Ampleforth, who is director of bullion at the Royal Mint, appears to love fast food.
In Jackson, Ohio, Mr Howard spent £5.12 on a Filet-O-Fish and a Big Mac with medium fries.
The next day he tucked into a KFC Big Box of chicken, coleslaw, potato wedges, a biscuit and soft drink for £6.16.
And it appears no purchase is too trivial to escape Mr Howard’s expenses form. He even charged the taxpayer 50p for a packet of Wrigley’s Extra Gum, £1.50 for Evian water and 45p for tissues from Boots at Euston, London.
The Royal Mint claims its employee was thrifty, saying its policy allows £5 a day for sundries rising to £10 while abroad.
The Mint is a limited company but is wholly owned by the Treasury and supplies all our coins.
Profits
But it is also the world’s leading export mint, making coins and medals for some 60 other countries, which make up 70 per cent of total sales.
Since Mr Howard, from Fulham, London, joined the company, bullion activities have actually grown significantly, with profits up from £1.5million to £4.6million in just two years.
He has lived in five countries, can apparently speak three languages and is described on the company website as “truly international”.
And yesterday, a Royal Mint spokesman insisted: “Chris Howard’s commercial activities necessitate frequent meetings with customers and distribution partners across the world, in order to grow sales.”
The Royal Mint is more than 1,100 years old and was based at the Tower of London for more than 800 years.
Since 1968 it has been based in Llantrisant, in Glamorgan, which also boasts the Royal Mint Museum.