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Glasgow Caledonian uni bosses spent £3m on New York 'vanity project'

BOSSES at Glasgow Caledonian University have ploughed more than £3 million into a New York “vanity project” while imposing real-terms pay cuts.

Figures released yesterday by the university management revealed that its swanky new campus in New York, opened in April, has cost the university £3.38m so far — with £270,000 spent on staff compared with £1.15m on miscellaneous expenses.

A Glasgow Caledonian spokesman said that taxpayers were not footing the bill as the campus had been paid for with “significant non-governmental income streams.”

“In line with the business plan, GCU NYC will be self-sustaining in the medium term,” he added.

The University and College Union’s Scotland officer Mary Senior yesterday was far from convinced by Glasgow Caledonian’s defence.

“With a campus already in London the university need to be clear why they are setting up another and ensure that there are sound educational and business reasons rather than it being simply a vanity project,” she said.

The university’s disclosure follows a bruising battle with unions earlier this year over yet another year of real-terms pay cuts, contrasting with the average vice-chancellor’s salary, which now sits at about £242,000 a year.

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