§ Mr. CousinsTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence in what circumstances Crown servants may leave Ministry of Defence or military service employment and be re-engaged as consultants; and how many such consultants are currently engaged.
§ Mr. FreemanAll Crown servants within my Department, whether military or civilian, are subject to certain rules regarding business appointments following retirement. These regulations stipulate that, for a period of two years following retirement, individuals wishing to take up a position with a private sector employer must seek approval from the Department before accepting such an offer.
Subject to this restriction, any retired Ministry of Defence employee may set him or herself up as a consultant in their own right or may decide to join a firm of consultants. In either circumstance, it is possible that such individuals will, at some time in the future, be employed by my Department on a consultancy basis.
The direct employment by this Department of retired individuals on a consultancy basis tends to be restricted to short term, low-value work and, as such, is within the signing powers of individual top-level budget holders without the need for competitive tender action. No central records therefore exist of the employment of this type of consultant and the information required could be provided only at disproportionate cost.