Updated: July to September figures published
In May 2010 the Government introduced an approach to cut costs and waste in central government operations in order to help tackle the budget deficit and protect essential jobs and services on the frontline.
Five key areas of spend have been affected with freezes on:
- All new ICT spend above £5 million or over £1 million for systems that support administration including finance, HR or procurement
- Advertising and Marketing campaigns that require Cabinet Office approval, specifically those above £25,000 up to 18 Feb 2011, and above £100,000 from 19 Feb 2011 onwards
- All new consultancy spend unless it is an operational necessity. Where spend is proposed, Ministerial sign-off is required for £20,000 or above
- Civil Service recruitment, except in important front line and business critical areas; and
- The signing of any new property leases or lease extensions; the non-exercise of lease break options; any new property acquisitions (including those made through a Private Finance Initiative provider); new build developments, sale and leaseback; and any freehold sales as part of national property controls.
The exceptions to the spending freeze in the five key areas above for the Ministry and its Arms Length Bodies are presented in the Excel files on this page.