They said it, not me...

The Centre for Economic & Business Research published a report on Monday, stating that "public sector procurement [accounts] for at least fifteen per cent of total demand [for business services]", which seems about right to me.

The best bit is this:

Whilst there is almost certainly a proportion of government expenditure on external advisors that could be cut without any noticeable impact on public services, ministers should think carefully before wielding this particular axe (1). Not only can external expertise play a crucial role in helping government become more efficient and effective (2), many important projects could not be achieved without the support of the business services sector (3). Cutting these budgets is an easy option compared with cutting public sector jobs, but unfortunately whoever forms the next government will quickly discover that significant cost savings can only be made by cutting the public payroll (4).

1) OK, I've thought carefully and decided to get rid of it.

2) The government ought to concentrate on "core functions" (things which free markets would not provide and which 'add value'). In economic terms, these are always "efficient" as the value exceeds the cost. If the cost exceeds the value, they shouldn't be doing it (e.g. ID cards, subsidies to favoured industries, green energy tomfoolery, the War On Drugs, endless regulations of everything, smoking ban etc etc), however "effective" they may claim to be in these endeavours.

3) According to their figures, over half a million people in the supposedly private business services sector depend on the government for their jobs. Remember that not only are the employees are paid decent salaries, but that their employers usually charge the end-customer about four or five times their salary, so the end-cost to the taxpayer is equivalent to at least two million extra public sector employees.

4) I've been saying that for years as well. The way forward is zero-based budgeting - tell the two million people paid by the taxpayer who are doing useful stuff (teachers, nurses, doctors*, coppers, prison officers etc) that their jobs are safe and then work on the assumption that the other six million are entirely superfluous.

* As a separate issue, state provision of education or health ought to be scrapped and the money dished out as vouchers to be spent with the provider of your choosing, there's nothing like having to keep paying customers happy to ensure value for money.