Huge bill for adviser flights

Jun 24 2009

Taxpayers were billed almost £50,000 to fly the Scottish Government's top economic advisers to a series of meetings, it has emerged.

The Council of Economic Advisers - which met five times between September 2007 and January 2009 - also ran up food and drinks bills of more than £11,000. Labour and Conservatives criticised the level of spending.

But a spokesman for First Minister Alex Salmond defended the cost and said the council - led by former Royal Bank of Scotland chairman Sir George Mathewson - had not charged for their time and expertise.