My Department applies stringent controls regarding the employment of external consultancy assistance. Under existing procedures, a business case must be prepared to support the need for the consultancy and approved at either principal officer or MAC level, as appropriate. Funding to support the procurement, which can be project-specific or from the Department's administrative budget, must be identified and approved before any commitment is made. The procurement of all consultancies must comply with public procurement law and meet requirements under both national guidelines and European rules. Once awarded, each procurement contract must be managed in accordance with the Department's best practice.
In addition to measures recently announced by the Government to ensure the appropriate use of consultancy assistance across the Civil Service, I have also now introduced additional procedures in my Department to ensure that the business cases for all such contracts receive my approval.