“A cash-strapped Whitehall spent more than £1bn on contractors last year even as overall civil service ranks were being slimmed to their smallest size since the second world war.
“An analysis by Policy Exchange, a Conservative-leaning think-tank, found that, after a period of restraint when the coalition came to power, spending on temporary staff had “ballooned” since 2012.
“Damian Hind, author of the report Whitehall Rules, said while contractors clearly filled an important role in government ‘their persistent use reflects the serious flaws in the civil service HR system’.”