Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much was spent by Defence Equipment and Support on consultants in each year since 2010.

Details of annual expenditure on consultants (covering such areas as project management, organisational design, finance and legal) by Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) have been set out in the DE&S Annual Report and Accounts (ARAC) since financial year 2014/15, when DE&S was established as a Bespoke Trading Entity. Prior to 2014/15, DE&S consultancy costs were not identified separately from the Equipment Plan.

The DE&S ARAC for the financial year 2020/21 will be published in due course, following completion of the approvals process. The DE&S ARAC index can be accessed on gov.uk via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/defence-equipment-support-annual-report-and-accounts-index.