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Written question asked by Mike Wood (Conservative) on Friday, 29 May 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 2 June 2026. It was answered by Chris Ward (Labour) on Thursday, 4 June 2026 on behalf of the Cabinet Office.

Government Departments: Consultants

Question

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Government Response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Sixty-eighth to the Seventy-fifth reports from Session 2024-26, CP 1587, May 2026, page 20, if he will publish the terms of reference of the commission to the Government Internal Audit Agency on the review of 15 organisations with significant consultancy spending; what the 15 organisations are; and what the timetable for the review is.

Answer

The Cabinet Office has commissioned the Government Internal Audit Agency (GIAA) to conduct a targeted review across 15 organisations with significant consultancy spending.

The terms of reference for this commission focus on assessing whether these organisations are adhering strictly to the definitions of consultancy spending set out by the Cabinet Office, and whether they have appropriately implemented the relevant spending and procurement controls.

The 15 organisations included in the scope of this review are:

Central Government Departments

  • Ministry of Defence

  • Department for Environment and Rural affairs

  • Department for Transport

  • HM Revenue and Customs

  • Department of Energy Security and Net Zero

  • Home Office

  • Department of Science, Innovation and Technology

  • Department of Health and Social Care

  • Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Arms Length Bodies/Non-Ministerial Departments

  • National Highways (Department for Transport)

  • National Crime Agency (Home Office)

  • Ofgem (Department of Energy Security and Net Zero)

  • Great British Energy - Nuclear (Department of Energy Security and Net Zero)

  • Environment Agency (Department for Environment and Rural affairs)

  • Atomic Weapons Establishment (Ministry of Defence)

The review is currently underway and is expected to complete by Autumn 2026.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
4167
Session
2026-27
Related items
Subjects
Audit Consultants Expenditure Government departments
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk