BACK in June when the BBC first released details of expenses claims made by its top executives we asked whether the corporation was in competition with MPs to see who could waste the most public money.

Our politicians at last seem to be getting their house in order, assuming all the reforms recommended in the Kelly Report are implemented.

The BBC, meanwhile, seems to think that simply publishing the expenses of its top 107 ‘decision makers’ is enough to satisfy the public. It seems the Beeb, like many of our MPs, just doesn’t get it.

The BBC does not deserve a pat on the back for letting us know how it is spending our money. We all have a right to such information anyway.

What it should be doing is cutting back on some of the extravagant expenses claims made by its top earners – 46 of whom earn more than the prime minister.

Let’s look at some of the expenses details released yesterday and the BBC’s defence of them.The controller of Radio 1 claimed more than £500 for ‘specialist clothing’ before joining celebrities on a climb of Mount Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief.

The BBC’s defence? The clothing was “essential kit… taking into account the conditions he would be facing”. It was a charity event. Why were licence payers paying the tab?

The BBC’s chief operating officer claimed more than £4,000 for taxi fares in one month. The BBC’s defence? Some of the trips “are to and from her home when she has to travel early in the morning or late at night”. No doubt many millions of licence payers wish they could claim for taxis to and from their homes.

We think most people will be gobsmacked by the ways in which the BBC is spending their money.

Transparency is all well and good. What is needed now is a clampdown on excess.