Defence chiefs spend over £1 billion on consultants and temporary staff since 2010

Cash splash on external consultants

Figures reveal that cash-strapped defence chiefs have spent more than £1 billion of taxpayer funds on external consultants since 2010.

Surge in spending on temporary staff

Additionally, over £1.5 billion was splurged by the Ministry of Defence on temporary staff in the last five years, with a 53 per cent increase between 2019-2020 and 2020-2021.

Labour's criticism and pledge

Shadow Defence Secretary John Healey criticized the Tories for the "ever-increasing" amounts spent on consultants and temporary staff, accusing them of hollowing out the Armed Forces. He pledged that Labour will conduct an audit of MoD waste to ensure value for taxpayers' money.

Tories' response

Despite pressure for more, the Tories have promised to raise defence spending to 2.5 per cent.