RCSI spends €18K on wine and spirits

The RCSI spent €18,198 on wine and spirits for College receptions and meetings last year, down from €21,027 in 2017, according to figures released to the Medical Independent following a Freedom of Information request.

Some €11,387 of last year’s expenditure was attributed to “College events”, €5,063 to “surgical meetings” and €1,746 to the “communications department”. In 2017, the highest single source of expenditure (€8,957) was “surgical meetings”, followed by “alumni relations” (€6,095), and “College events” (€5,335).

The RCSI also released details of expenditure on alcohol by clubs and societies in 2017 and 2018. Expenditure by clubs on alcohol was €3,141 during the two years, compared with €1,150 on non-alcoholic drinks. Most of the alcohol spend was incurred by the rugby club, principally for the Saint Antoine Lunch (€1,475) and Saint Antoine Dinner (€,1391) in March 2017.

Each year, coinciding with the Ireland vs France match in the Six Nations Championship, a team from the RCSI takes on a team from Pierre-and-Marie-Curie.

In 2017, College societies spent €7,869 on alcohol and €2,051 on non-alcoholic beverages. Some €3,000 of the alcohol expenditure was for the “Chocolate Ball” in November 2017. According to the RCSI website, the Chocolate Ball is hosted by the Caribbean-African Society and is one of the student body’s “favourite annual events”. It also raises money for charity and is the event where ‘Mr and Miss RCSI’ are crowned.

Last year, College societies spent €5,255 on alcohol and €3,241 on non-alcoholic beverages. The alcohol expenditure included €154 for a Surgical Society Careers Talk, while €22 was spent on non-alcoholic beverages for the same event.

Some €582 was spent on alcohol for a “Céilí Mór” in March 2018, and €142 on non-alcoholic beverages for the same event.

RCSI provides clubs and societies with “annual running budgets to host events and activities”, according to the College.  The draw-down and spending of these funds are overseen and monitored by the Student Services Office.