A special adviser to Michael Moore used his Government credit card to upgrade an airline seat and also to pay for a hotel on his way to accompany the Scottish Secretary at the British Grand Prix.
Euan Roddin utilised the Government Procurement Card (GPC) on 12 occasions for accommodation and travel, racking up a bill of £1560.
Under a Freedom of Information request and parliamentary questions, Labour MP Gordon Banks found Mr Roddin had paid a United Airlines bill of £263 and an Air Canada baggage charge of £16 in December last year on the card.
Mr Roddin had also booked an £87 night's stay in Milton Keynes, near the Silverstone racetrack where the Grand Prix took place on July 10, 2011.
However, the Scotland Office insisted everything was above board and the flight upgrade was for prac- tical purposes, so Mr Roddin could help his boss write a speech he was due to make in America the following day.
Through his inquiries, Mr Banks, who represents Ochil and South Perthshire, found Mr Roddin had used the card mostly for hotel accommodation in Edinburgh – including four stays totalling £461; Glasgow – with one stay at £21; Aberdeen – one stay at £75; and Brussels where one stay cost £171. In London, two stays totalling £467 were recorded on the card's transactions.
The Scotland Office explained the card was subject to a single transaction limit of £500 and a monthly limit of £5000, stressing: "Costs incurred must be consistent with propriety guidance and are regu- larly checked and audited by officials in line with good accounting practice."
David Mundell, the Scotland Office Minister, has insisted the £263 upgrade had enabled Mr Roddin to work with Mr Moore ahead of a speech he gave the following day at Georgetown University in the US. Mr Moore was on a diplomatic and trade mission to the country and Canada.
Meanwhile, the Scotland Office said that staying in Milton Keynes allowed Mr Roddin to accompany Mr Moore to the Grand Prix.
Mr Moore was a guest, along with other leading politicians, of the UK racing's governing body, The Motor Sports Association, at the event won by Ferrari's Fernando Alonso.
Mr Banks said: "Michael Moore has always been quick to tell the House of Commons that the Government is facing difficult financial decisions.
"But we now know his adviser used his Government credit card to buy an upgrade so he could keep him company.
"He also used it to pay for a hotel on his way to the Grand Prix."
He noted how when the Scotland Office was questioned about this in January it said the GPC was necessary because the special adviser travelled between London and Scotland regularly.
Mr Banks added: "However, the only travel it has ever been used for is to America."
He added: "The ministerial code says all travel should be 'cost effective'. Michael Moore has some serious questions to answer. Does he believe this upgrade was value for money for taxpayers at a time when families across Scotland are struggling to make ends meet?"
A Scotland Office spokesman said of the flight upgrade: "During the journey, the ministerial speech, due to be delivered the next day in Washington DC, was being finalised. The upgrade cost £263. The standard Scotland Office procedure is to book cost-effective fares for civil servants."
He added the hotel stay ahead of the race required Mr Roddin to accompany the minister on official business.
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