Annual compliance report on the use of consultants across the NICS

There are a number of situations where it is appropriate for central government to employ temporary consultancy support. These can include instances where specialist skills or know-how are required and are not available within a public sector organisation or when an independent view or assessment is required.

However the use of consultants by central government must be carefully regulated to ensure the effective delivery of services to the public for maximum value for money. To reinforce this, the Assembly Public Accounts Committee reported on the use of consultancy in February 2008. It published a set of recommendations regarding the use of, and monitoring arrangements for, consultants. The re-introduction of this annual compliance report forms part of DFP’s response to that report.

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