NAO chief on the defensive over expensive trips
Sir John Bourn under fire over stays in world's finest hotels
National
Audit Office chief Sir John Bourn has come under heavy fire after an
investigation by
The
Daily Telegraph revealed that he was staying in some of the
world’s finest hotels while on foreign trips.
Bourn has spent £336,000 of taxpayers money on 43 separate foreign trips over
the past three years, with his wife accompanying him on more than half of them.
A spokesman for Sir John defended his choice of hotels and claimed that he
normally stays at hotels which are ‘recommended by the host organisation’.
They just happened to be some of the most expensive in the world, including
the Astoria in
St Petersburg, which starts at £400 a night and the San Regis in Paris,
where a double room costs at least £300 a night.
Further reading:
NAO boss racks up £300,000 in travel expenses
NAO says tax forms too complicated
NAO faces conundrum over crystal-hall gazing