Officials at Scotland’s crisis-hit exam body are allowed five times the expenses on foreign trips that other quangos offer.
Insiders at the Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA) say it encourages senior staff to drag out trips abroad.
We have previously revealed the huge costs to taxpayers of the SQA’s international work and claims that senior staff exploit the perks for personal gain.
The taxpayer costs include funding lavish hotel stays and business-class travel for SQA officials as they travel the globe flogging courses and qualifications.
But on top of those perks, it has been revealed SQA officials enjoy £50 a night in an allowance for being away with work. That compares to just £10 a night that officials at Scottish Enterprise receive when away in the same locations for business.
One source said: “It’s incredible that there is such a big difference between two Scottish Government bodies who do similar work.
“You have SQA officials getting a £50-per-night bonus for every day they are away. That’s on top of general expenses for things like flights and hotel stays.
“There are times when the SQA and Scottish Enterprise are attending the same international conferences but some officials are getting £10 a night and SQA officials are getting £50 a night.
Some of the senior SQA staff, including the head of international Alistair Shaw, spend huge chunks of the year away and are entitled to claim that money back. It soon adds up.
“It’s the belief among a lot of the staff that trips abroad have been stretched by some to get more out of this allowance.”
In July, we revealed claims by another whistleblower who said SQA executives routinely exploited business perks for personal use.
That came months after our revelations that SQA bosses had racked up £800-a-night bills on hotel stays abroad.
But the body has refused to disclose many of the details surrounding its foreign travel, citing “security reasons”.
The SQA said: “We pay a £50 overseas allowance for staff for each night away. This is part of SQA pay policy and is subject to negotiation with trade union partners.”
Scottish Enterprise said: “Staff can claim an overnight allowance to cover the cost of any incidental personal expenses incurred while travelling for work.”
The Scottish Government said: “We expect all public sector bodies to ensure their travel and subsistence policies deliver the best value for money possible for the Scottish taxpayer.”
In recent years, the SQA has worked with barbaric regimes in Saudi Arabia and Brunei, our investigation revealed.
Human rights campaigners have demanded that the qualification authority ends its work in those countries.
