Uni bosses splash £100k on the lash

Union chiefs have blasted Aberdeen Uni after bosses forked out nearly £100,000 on champagne and wine — while staff fight for fair pay.

The embarrassing  figures, published on the Public Contracts Scotland website, will amount to nearly £270-a-day over the next year.

Tommy Campbell, of the Unison union, whose members are locked in tense talks with the university about pay rises for their staff, labelled the £96,102 splash-out as “unacceptable” and “outrageous”.

He said: “I find this totally unacceptable.

“This amount of money is outrageous when workers are being told to rein in their spending.”

The news comes after recent protests by university staff who are angry at being offered pay rises of just 1% – under the rate of inflation.

But the university claim the purchase is justified as they have a large number of events that take place on campus, including conferences and evening dinners for corporate clients.

As a result, they expect the investment to help them raise £2million and to establish their status as a “major commercial event venue”.

She probably hasn’t been on the Moët

A spokeswoman for the university said: “The university’s largest spend on wines is on 75cl bottles of red, white and rose options and a selection of sparkling wines and champagnes.

“The contract will initially be for a one-year period.

“The period of contract may be followed by an extension of a further three 12-month periods, subject to a satisfactory performance.

“The university is a major commercial event venue.

Lecturers striking, more than entitled to ‘wine’ over this scandal

“Our wonderful buildings and delightful setting make us a very popular wedding venue all year round.

“Our anticipated revenue for commercial event activity over that period is over £2million.

“And any surpluses we generate are reinvested into further improving the student experience at Aberdeen.”