The Bank of England is under scrutiny after Freedom of Information request uncovers expenditure budget figures.
It has been revealed that the Bank of England spent almost £100,000 to throw a summer party for its 2,500 employees and their families. The Bank’s annual Governors’ Day event, which was held at its sports ground in Roehampton, south-west London, included a bake-off, a fun run and a treasure hunt, among other things. The Governors’ Day event saw the Bank spend more than £58,000, excluding VAT, on food and drink, more than £27,000 on entertainment, while £10,400 was spent on other expenses.
The party cost £95,674 in total, excluding VAT, a freedom of information request by the Press Association has revealed. The details come just a month after figures showed Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England, claimed more than £50,000 in travel expenses between March and May.
Amid rising criticism over high expenses claims from senior officials at the Bank, Mr Carney spent about £16,800 a month between March and May – totalling £50,664 – on foreign business travel, car hire and taxis.
Mr Carney, who earned up to £900,000 last year, and two of his closest advisers, Donald Kohn and Anil Kashyap, were forced to justify their ‘staggering’ claims to a select committee in June. The Bank insisted its summer party was ‘carefully budgeted’ and was funded within its expenditure budget. But it comes at a time when the UK is reining is spending amid Brexit concerns. The Bank has warned business investment is predicted to come to a halt this year as Brexit worries make their impact on company spending decisions.
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