Whitehall spending on consultants rises

Published: 10:00AM GMT twenty-two February 2010

At slightest 7 Government departments augmenting the volume they outlayed on consultants during 2008-09, whilst the altogether figure rose by �22.6 million compared to the prior year.

The last figure is expected to be even higher as dual departments have nonetheless to acknowledgement their consultancy costs, heading to accusations that ministers have ""lost control"" of spending.

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A value-for-money crackdown was introduced after a 2006 National Audit Office inform found Whitehall was spending around �1.8 billion a year on consultants but scrupulously assessing either existent staff could do the work.

Most departments have given done poignant savings, but research of parliamentary questions and departmental annual reports shows signs the direction is starting to reverse.

The Treasury augmenting spending by 126%, up to �54.6 million in 2008-09 from �24.1 million the year prior to - with the climb often going on consultants brought in to support with the bank bailout.

The check at the Home Office rose by roughly 46%, from �96 million to �140 million, that was put down to ""the higher series of vital programmes the dialect is undertaking, privately in security and counter-terrorism and temperament management"" - notwithstanding carrying marked down spending by �52 million in in between 2006-07 and 2007-08.

Costs at the Department for Work and Pensions went up by roughly �19 million (24.5%), from �76.5 million to �95.2 million, that a mouthpiece pronounced was to assistance plunge into the recession, whilst the Department for Transport outlayed �77.5 million compared to �68.3 million in 2007-08 - a climb of 13.5%.

The Department for Children, Schools and family groups augmenting the spending on consultants and outmost consultant advisers by 12.9%, from �62 million to �70 million, put down to ""several new or expanding programmes"" such as the ContactPoint database.

Costs at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) went up from �44.2 million to �44.7 million; whilst the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Cabinet Office both saw their spending climb slightly.

Annual reports for the former Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, right away piece of Lord Mandelson"s Business, Innovation and Skills department, additionally show the costs increased.

The sum check so far for nineteen Government departments is �873,645,197 in 2008-09, up �22,651,872 from the prior year. But both the Department of Energy and Climate Change and Department for Environment, Food and Rural affairs are nonetheless to have open their spending for last year, definition the sum cost is expected to climb even higher.

Shadow Cabinet Office apportion Francis Maude said: ""Whilst we recognize that supervision consultants can fool around a purpose in on condition that dilettante skills, Labour appear to have lost finish lift out of spending opposite Whitehall.

""At a time when there needs to be patience after Labour maxed out the nation"s credit card, ministers appear happy to lift on accidentally spending the income of the hard-pressed taxpayer. Labour have taken mercantile insufficiency to a new level.""

TaxPayer"s Alliance arch senior manager Matthew Elliott said: ""It"s intensely unsatisfactory that consultancy spending is still on the rise, notwithstanding all the speak of removing it underneath control.

""Politicians in both internal and inhabitant supervision need to go "cold turkey" to stop their obsession to consultants. Too often, consultants are an easy choice to clear interference or to have someone else to censure when things go wrong.""

All 3 parties have affianced to condense consultancy spending, with Prime Minister Gordon Brown observant costs should be halved as piece of his ""smarter government"" initiative.

An potency expostulate is additionally in place opposite Whitehall as the Government seeks to block the black hole in the nation"s finances.

All decisions to move in consultants contingency be totalled opposite a minute commercial operation case, as piece of the ""consultancy worth programme"" put in place by the Treasury off-shoot Office of Government Commerce.

A Cabinet Office mouthpiece added: ""The Government is committed to construction capacity in the Civil Service so practice of consultants is no longer necessary.

""Great swell has already been done in professionalising the Civil Service (for example the series of competent financial professionals in Government has risen dramatically given 2004) and as this augmenting professionalism has occurred we have already been means to revoke spending on consultants by over 30% in in between 2005/06 and 2007/08.""