Universities using our cash to visit strip clubs

UNIVERSITY staff have used taxpayer-funded credit cards to rack up more than £200million in expenses at plush hotels, racecourses and even a strip club.

Over the past two years, employees at 54 institutions across the country have enjoyed activities ranging from sipping cocktails in fancy bars to a trip to Las Vegas, data released after a Freedom of Information request shows.

Universities issue the cards to pay for student and alumni events, academic trips and looking after dignitaries. But the questionable spending drew fury since universities are part-funded via the public purse and £9,250-a-year student tuition fees. At Northumbria University, £2,184 was splashed out by staff as corporate guests at lapdance club Spearmint Rhino.

The club, which has come under fire for objectifying women, charges customers hefty sums for drinks and private dances.

It is not clear what Northumbria staff spent the money on – with a spokesman simply saying the transaction had been authorised as it was ‘promptly reimbursed’.

In another example, City University, London, shelled out £3,751 on two events for around 140 alumni at trendy Mayfair nightclub Mahiki, which is a favourite with Princes William and Harry. At Durham University, two professors ran up a £2,614 bill for seven nights on academic business at the extravagant Caesar’s Palace Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.

The University of Liverpool also spent thousands at York and Cheltenham racecourses – as well as forking out £22,000 in two years on Domino’s pizzas for student events. The revelations come as universities are criticised for excessive vice-chancellor pay at the same time as they try to scale down lecturers’ pensions to save money. Fewer than half of the UK’s universities responded to The Sun’s FoI request, meaning the overall £204million card bill for 2016/17 is likely to be much higher. Nottingham had the highest total spending at £19.8million.

John O’Connell, chief executive at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, called for greater scrutiny of universities’ spending, saying: ‘Students up and down the country will be appalled to realise how little their universities seem to care about their money.’

All the universities said official credit cards were strictly for authorised business purposes only and subject to strict monitoring.

Liverpool University said the York races spending related to a student field trip and Cheltenham to a summit by staff on its horseracing industry master’s course.