A senior Scottish government official resigned last week after revelations of misuse of public funds, including $108,000 for a Harvard Business School program for one of his staff members.
Scottish Water Industry Board Chairman Donald McRae improperly paid tuition fees for WICS Chief Operating Officer Michelle A. Ashford, who attended the HBS Advanced Management Program from January to May 2023. . The British-based Times newspaper was the first to report McRae’s resignation.
The backlash over possible misuse of public funds at WICS comes after a public audit in December 2023 concluded that “financial management and governance problems found by the commission fell far short of what would be expected of a public body.” It started only after it was reported that the Following the audit, then-CEO Alan Sutherland resigned.
In an emailed statement, a WICS spokesperson said WICS has “made the necessary changes to our governance and management to ensure that all future training is cost-effective.”
In an interview with The Crimson, Ashford said, “I have filled out all the necessary approval forms.”
Mr Ashford said: “It was my most senior leadership who signed and signed off on the payments, and I did not seek to obtain government approval.”
Mr. McRae and Mr. Sutherland did not respond to requests for comment.
In a follow-up text, Ms Ashford wrote that her doctor had “currently quit her job”, but in May she told a Scottish Government committee that she knew WICS was paying her tuition fees. said.
However, according to the Times, Mr McRae told MPs at a meeting of the Scottish Parliament last month that he was “surprised” by the payment to Harvard, adding that the board had “not presented a business case, let alone a spending proposal. It was not done,” he added.
In a March email obtained by the Crimson from Ms. Ashford to Ms. McRae and two other WICS executives, Ms. Ashford said that public reporting about the spending meant that she had “proceeded without proper authorization.” He wrote that he was “concerned” that this suggests that.
Ms Ashford said it was Ms Sutherland, who was then CEO of WICS, who suggested she join the HBS program for her professional development, adding: “The Scottish Government’s sponsorship team was very happy with my participation in the HBS program.” I knew that,” he wrote.
“I was aware that this expenditure had been taken up by the Scottish Audit Team but was not concerned as I had followed the process set out by the Treasury Department,” she wrote.
Still, Ms Ashford maintains that spending public money on the HBS program is appropriate and that the course is essential to her professional development and ability to tackle “unprecedented challenges” in the water sector. said.
“You can’t keep doing the same thing and expect different results,” Ashford said. “Spending £80,000 to go to Harvard University is necessary to drive that change.”
“Despite everything that’s happened, even though this is probably the worst time of my life in terms of media attention and the detriment it causes, I would do it all over again.” she said.