A report from the Better Regulation Task Force has today reported that a lack of trust between universities and ministers is distracting academics from teaching.

The report says that universities are a 'success story' and are not prone to management or financial failings, but are still subject to "multiple audits, excessive data requirements, and over-restrictive funding".

Forum Response: Association of University Teachers

Sally Hunt, general secretary of the AUT general secretary, told ePolitix.com: "We will make sure the report's recommendations are neither ignored nor undermined by the great and the good in higher education. As such, I urge the DfES to give very serious consideration to each and every one of the report's recommendations.

"The cost of all this red tape is choking the sector. £250 million is the equivalent of employing 8,300 new lecturers or providing an additional 50,000 student places.

"The burden of bureaucracy has reached unmanageable proportions. Staff are increasingly prevented from getting on with their jobs because of the amount of red tape they have to deal with. While it is absolutely right and proper that universities should be accountable for how they use public funds, the scale of red tape is now ludicrous."

Forum Response: Universities UK

Diana Warwick, chief executive of Universities UK, told ePolitix.com: "Universities UK has taken an active role in attempting to reduce the cost of accountability imposed on the sector by government.

"The HE sector takes accountability seriously and recognises the need to be accountable for the significant public funds that it receives - but we are delighted the Task Force has found the sector to be well-managed and low risk.

"We look to the government to reflect this reality in its relations with the sector."

Forum Response: UCET

A spokeswoman for UCET told ePolitix.com: "UCET has no problem with the idea of accountability, but feels matters have reached the point whereby it is such a burden that it is becoming destructive.

"So much inspection and demands for data is costing far too much in both human and financial terms, especially for Schools of Education, and it takes time that should be spent on teaching and research."

Forum Response: NATFHE

Tom Wilson, head of NATFHE's Universities Department, told ePolitix.com: "The report endorses a key idea proposed by the union - Impact Assessments. These should accompany any new proposals from government or its agencies and measure the added workload, cost and time involved. NATFHE urged impact assessments last November.

"The report rightly notes that real accountability should not mean expensive and time-consuming paper trails, it should mean listening to staff and focusing carefully on the key issues. Taking that action could have halved the £250 million bill, money which could have given all staff a further 2 per cent pay rise and helped to tackle lecturer shortages. "