Universities have spent almost £90 million on pay-offs with gagging orders attached over the last two years, new figures show as academics claim bullying and sexual misconduct claims are being silenced.

The huge sum is said to have been spent on around 4,000 settlements, some of which are reported to relate to allegations of bullying, harassment or sexual misconduct.

Universities UK (UUK), the sector's representative organisation, said non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) were used for "many purposes", including protecting valuable research.

However, the body said the contracts should not be used to prevent victims from speaking out and such practices "will not be tolerated".

Using Freedom of Information laws, nearly 140 universities were asked by the BBC to detail how much they had paid in settlements that included NDAs.

Figures from the 96 institutions that responded showed around £87 million had been spent since 2017.

The BBC said it had heard from dozens of academics that NDAs were being used to silence allegations of bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct.

"Universities use non-disclosure agreements for many purposes, including the protection of commercially sensitive information related to university research," UUK said.

"However, we also expect senior leaders to make it clear that the use of confidentiality clauses to prevent victims from speaking out will not be tolerated.