THE University of Bolton has been ordered to release details of its financial affairs.

Former lecturer Joe Whittaker has won a 13-month battle against the university to answer Freedom of Information requests.

He wanted to find out why and how certain financial transactions relating to the Vice Chancellor and the disposition of university funds had been made and deployed.

Mr Whittaker, who was a lecturer in education, took his fight for information to a second appeal after the Information Commissioner threw out the first.

The First Tier Tribunal has now upheld Mr Whittaker’s appeal for information, stating that both the university and the Information Commissioner “erred in believing that, as a matter of fact, these information requests were vexatious”.

The university declined to participate in the proceedings, but yesterday said it had been ‘astonished’ that the appeal tribunal had been ‘persuaded by Mr Whittaker’s assertions’.

A University of Bolton spokesman said the university recognised the First Tribunal ruling.

He added: “The university will, depending upon any appeal process, take its own legal advice and further consider Mr Whittaker’s requests in accordance with the FOIA legislation. In the event of further legal action by the Information Commissioner who has the ability to appeal, the university does not wish to comment further.”

The tribunal found the university “failed to engage at all the with the appellant’s requests but appears to have decided in advance and as a matter of policy not to respond to enquiries relating to the matters he raised”.

The tribunal added it was “unsurprising that, having retired from the university as a senior lecturer after 24 years’ service, he would maintain an interest in the institution”.

Now bosses at the university have been given 35 days to provide details of certain flights paid for by the university, destinations travelled on the university account, purpose of visit in respect to certain individuals, details of specific financial “signings off” and itemised breakdown of the cost of any building work commissioned by the university within Bolton One since January 2012.

Mr Whittaker said his questions to find out more about the university was prompted by the controversial dismissal of Damien and Jennifer Markey in March last year.

Mr Markey and his wife, an academic administrator in the health and community studies department, were sacked after press coverage of Vice Chancellor George Holmes’ spending habits and financial arrangements.

This included Dr Holmes taking out a £960,000 loan from the university to move to Bolton and details of staff away days to a resort in the Lake District.

Mr Whittaker said: “I thought the loan was ridiculous and completely disagree with it, but I thought maybe the university did have legitimate reason for issuing, even I if disagreed with it. More importantly, however, it was the sacking of the two members of staff which angered me.

“And if members of staff can be sacked like that then nobody is safe.

“The questions I have asked are important and the information should be available to people who are involved in paying for the university, which includes the students.”

He added: “I love the university, I loved working there.

“When the university refused to acknowledge the questions I had asked before sending in an FOI — I had worked there for more than 20 years — I wondered what was going on, their refusal to respond made me more suspicious.

“The irony is the university’s silence created more suspicion.

“This was too important for me to walk away from.”

He added: “I really doubt that the university will answer the questions and is likely to ignore them, such is the arrogance or ignorance of the university.

“The current governance at the University of Bolton, lacks transparency, which undermines the integrity, essential for any forward looking university.”

The university spokesman said: “We suspect that this won’t be the last attempt by Joe Whitaker to draw attention to himself and his ‘cause’. He has attempted ‘sit in protests’ at the university and was seen using a loud hailer in ‘demonstrations’ outside the university. It’s a pity that he insists on behaving in this manner in relation to his former employer but, of course, within the limits of the law, which he keeps testing, he is able to continue.”

The university has to provide the information with the timescale unless it can present a legal reason not to do so.

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