Recommendation 2

The Cabinet Office is unable to deliver on its strategic objective to reduce consultancy spend because departments are not complying with its definitions and directives. The Chief Commercial Officer stated that some departments are not following Government Commercial Function guidance or the good practice set out in the Consultancy Playbook when defining consultancy requirements, going to market, or contracting. Cabinet Office stated that it has often reiterated guidance for departments but does not monitor compliance. This is further complicated by the fact departments do not routinely monitor compliance by their arm’s-length bodies (ALBs). Cabinet Office is currently consulting with the Government Internal Audit Agency (GIAA) about what government can do to improve assurance over data, consistency controls and oversight of ALBs. 3 recommendation Alongside its Treasury Minute, the Cabinet Office should set out which departments are not complying with its requests on consultancy procurement and what it intends to do to address non-compliance.