The Procurement and Management of Consultancy Services

The Procurement and Management of Consultancy Services

All public sector bodies employ staff. However, when faced with a particular challenge, an organisation may consider that it lacks the expertise within its own staff to address a particular concern, project or issue. In such circumstances, public sector organisations will sometimes temporarily contract in a consultant.

The Auditor General for Wales’ report on The Procurement and Management of Consultancy Services was published in February 2013. The report found that although public bodies have reduced their expenditure on consultants, from £173 million in 2007-08 to £133 million in 2010-11, they are unable to demonstrate good value for money in the planning, procurement and management of consultancy services. The extent to which public bodies exercised generally accepted standards of good practice in the various stages of procuring and managing consultants also varied considerably.

The Public Accounts Committee considered it appropriate to conduct a short inquiry into the issues raised by the Auditor General for Wales’ report.

The Committee was mindful that procuring a consultant can represent an eminently sensible approach to a particular issue or challenge but mindful that automatically contracting a consultant as a default response to new challenges represents poor value to the public purse.

 

Business type: Committee Inquiry

Reason considered: Senedd Business;

Status: Complete

First published: 01/08/2013

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