§ Mr. Malcolm BruceTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what policies he intends to implement in order to reduce the expenditure of Government Departments on external consultants. [281581
§ Mr. Aitken[holding answer 14 June 1995]: It is for individual Government Departments to decide how much of their cash provision to spend on external consultants. A report by the efficiency unit on the Government's use of external consultants, published in August 1994, indicated a number of ways in which Departments could optimise their use of consultants. Implementation of those measures, combined with continued firm control of 9W provision available for public expenditure, should enhance the value for money Departments obtain from the services of external consultants.