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Oral question asked in the House of Commons, by Baroness Keeley (Labour). It was answered on Wednesday, 21 March 2012 on behalf of the Cabinet Office.

Policy Advice (Outsourcing)

Question
The Cabinet Office spent almost £120,000 in one day in August last year on consultancy, and McKinsey & Company is reported to have earned almost £14 million from Government health policy since the election. Outsourcing policy advice is costly and can lead to conflicts of interest, so will Conservative Ministers stick to their pledge in their manifesto to reduce the amount of consultancy?
Answer

Not only will we, but we have. We have more than halved—I stress, more than halved—the cost of consultancy to the taxpayer. Under the previous Government, such money was spent incontinently, and the result was bad value for money and the serious undermining of the self-esteem of professional civil servants, who like being asked to do difficult things and are very good at doing them.

Secondary information

Type
Oral question
Reference
542 c775-6 
Session
2010-12
Oral question type
1st Supplementary
Chamber / Committee
House of Commons chamber
Subjects
Consultants Policy
Link
View this Oral question on www.publications.parliament.uk