National Audit

A note to self, and an indication to others, if they didn’t already know.

I worked with the National Audit Office on a project c1998.
Their Victoria office had it’s own huge staff swimming pool. I beleive it had subsidised bar and I believe restaurant also (don’t quote me)

Ever wonder why government spending is out of control, if the dept that uses/used “Value for Money” (VFM) as it’s main measure has it’s own staff swimming pool.

Ever wonder why organisations like the taxpayers alliance have been pulling their hair out?

The moral of the story is: you have to wake up, your housekeeper is stealing your money & using your credit card and trying to open up new lines of credit in your name …. and you are letting him/her/them. Fire: it’s a good servant but an incredibly poor master !!

Perplexity ai: how much does the national audit office of the uk cost & how many employees & consultants

The National Audit Office (NAO) of the UK has just over 1,000 employees. It operates with a net operating cost of around £100 million per year. The NAO aims to increase its staffing levels by about 58 people in 2025-26 to meet growing audit demands and reduce reliance on contracting out to audit firms. The NAO also contracts some specialist audit advice from firms but plans to bring more routine audit work in-house to save costs. Regarding consultants specifically, while the NAO uses some contracted audit firms for specialist advice, the exact number of consultants is not explicitly listed in the available information.

Summary:

  • Number of employees: just over 1,000 as of 2024-25.
  • Annual operating cost: approximately £100 million.
  • Plans to increase staffing by 58 in 2025-26.
  • Use of consultants for specialist audits, but exact number unknown.
  • In-sourcing strategy planned to reduce reliance on consultants and save money.[1][2][3][4]
  1. https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/nao-annual-report-and-accounts-2024-25.pdf
  2. https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/nao-estimate-memorandum-for-2025-26.pdf
  3. https://leadiq.com/c/uk-national-audit-office/5a1d7ef524000024005a1b34
  4. https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/nao-annual-report-and-accounts-2023-24.pdf
  5. https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Financial-management-of-fees-and-charges.pdf
  6. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Audit_Office_(United_Kingdom)
  7. https://uk.linkedin.com/company/naoorguk
  8. https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/nao-annual-report-and-accounts-2022-23.pdf
  9. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-48547813

copilot ai: how much does the UK government spend on consultants?

In the 2024–2025 financial year, the UK government spent approximately £3.2 billion on consultants across the public sector The Register | MSN. This figure represents a slight decrease from the previous year’s £3.3 billion, despite pledges from both the previous and current governments to significantly reduce consultancy spending The Register | MSN City A.M..

Here are some key highlights:

  • 🔹 Management consultancy contracts alone accounted for £1.44 billion in Labour’s first year in office, up from £1.28 billion the year before City A.M..
  • 🔹 The Cabinet Office was the biggest spender, with over £221 million, followed by the Ministry of Defence (£167 million) and the Home Office (£148 million) City A.M..
  • 🔹 The Home Office recently increased its tech consultancy budget to £350 million, up from a previously planned £250 million The Register.
  • 🔹 The government has pledged to halve consultancy spending and save over £1.2 billion by 2026, introducing stricter controls and requiring ministerial sign-off for large contracts GOV.UK.

Despite these efforts, reliance on external consultants remains high, often due to internal skill shortages and the complexity of digital transformation projects.

Would you like a breakdown by department or insights into which firms are winning the most contracts?

Scroll to Top