Temporary government staff expenses bill tops half-a-million

Thursday 27 June 2019

Temporary Government staff have racked up a bill of more than half-a-million on air travel, accommodation and rent subsidies in just 18 months, an Express Freedom of Information request has revealed.

The figures showed that total spent on such expenses totalled £589,460 between 1 January 2018 – when new Chief Executive Charlie Parker officially took up his post – and 30 April this year.

Of that total, £171,240 was spent on air travel, £371,580 on hotels, and £46,580 on subsidising interim staff’s rental bills.

The Chief Operating Office, which is led by John Quinn, who Express previously revealed to have worked with Mr Parker at Westminster, was the biggest spender overall, accounting for more than half of the 18-month bill with expenses totalling £348,152.

Pictured: The Chief Operating Office, which is led by COO John Quinn, was the highest spender.

It also spent the most on rent subsidy (£27,940) – more than double that of the next biggest renter, the Treasury Department (£12,700).

Health and Community Services were the second highest spenders on interim staff travel and accommodation (£144,306), with the majority of this figure coming from hotel stays (£111,099). No rent subsidies were given by the department, but expenditure on hotels sat at £33,207.

The response to the request under FOI law – which was originally due on 6 June, but had been subject to heavy delays due to an “error” identified in the figures – explained that serviced apartments were sometimes used as they are “often cheaper than hotels.”

“Rental subsidies relate only to pay-rolled employees who joined on a Fixed Term appointment,” it added.

The news comes at a time when increasing questions are being raised over the amount spent on temporary staff by the Government of Jersey as it undergoes its radical ‘OneGov’ transformation, and any ‘perks’ associated with their roles, such as specialist travel arrangements.

Pictured: Many of the temporary staff have been recruited to help implement the Chief Executive's new 'OneGov' model of government.

Express recently revealed that the Director General for Health had employed a former colleague as a Senior Nurse on a £45k 12-week contract spread over six months, allowing her to commute fortnightly to the UK.

33 staff were employed on an interim basis at the start of 2019. At last count earlier this month , the Chief Minister said that number had reduced to 10, but added that numbers “fluctuate based on need”.

“Interim roles may be used at any level in the organisation if business and /or skill need merit the hiring of short term resource. Interims, as well as other individuals, are key to delivering some of the savings outcomes that we are using to inform the efficiency programme, which is seeking to meet the projected deficit at the beginning of 2020 of £30 million. The use of some of those individuals is contributing to the overall savings target of £30 million to £40 million and that will more than dwarf the investment in their services,” he commented in response to a written question from Deputy Mary Le Hegarat.

The Health Minister echoed these remarks in an open letter, which urged “the media, politicians and islanders” to stop what he deemed “unfair” scrutiny of temporary staff contracts, warning that it might deter other professionals from coming to work on the island.

READ: See the interims' expenses in full by clicking below...