READER LETTER: "I think Charlie Parker has misread his contract"

Monday 20 July 2020

I was shocked to read our Chief Minister’s response to Deputy Kirsten Morel’s written question “How many government contracts have been awarded to EY (Ernst & Young) since 1st January 2018.”

£9.69 million worth of contracts to be precise! (Not including cost of providing Interim Head Technology M&D, said to be confidential!)

Let’s say another £300,000 for that seven month contract bringing the total to an eye watering £9.99 million! Involving 12 contracts for periods of between three months and 27 months.

One that caught my eye is the M&D Transformation Partner COO, £3.6 million 27 month contract. Included is the provision of the Interim Head, to oversee the team of consultants & States employees working on the Target Operating Model (TOM) – the blueprint for mapping the OneGov hierarchy and the most efficient way to run the civil service.

The TOM project has continually fallen behind schedule – due to be implemented Spring 2019 - then year-end 2019 – then July 2020 - now would you believe the TOM is being reassessed – sounds like too many consultants 'spoil the broth!'

Using my proprietary Advanced Algorithms, Linear and Integer Programme more commonly known as the 'Back of the cigarette packet analysis,' I now estimate the total cost of consultants engaged by CEO Charlie Parker, in the past 30 months, to be close to £50 million, made up as follows.

• EY Contracts £9.99 million.
• TDP Culture Change Consultants £3.5 million (3 year contract).
• 2018 my estimate £15 million – both the Chief Minister and CEO continue to stonewall the Scrutiny Panel on the precise costs – we do know that four of the original 'Charlie’s Angels' or 'Four Horseman of the Apocalypse,' as they became known, were employed from October 2017 and the Chief Minister confirmed that there were 33 Consultants at the end of 2018.
• First-half 2019, £11 million disclosed by the Chief Minister.
• Second-half 2019, my estimate £6 million (after deducting a portion of EY & TDP contracts) - figures are due to be released by the Chief Minister this month.
• First Half 2020 my estimate £6 million (after deducting a portion of EY & TDP contracts) – we do know that 30 consultants were still on the payroll in May (including 19 working from their UK homes!) as a result of a written question from Senator Moore.

Total estimated costs: £51.5 million.

And this does not include ancillary costs like the move to Broad Street offices involving £4 million fit out costs and an additional annual rent of £1 million per annum

I think Charlie Parker has misread his contract – he probably thinks his mandate is to SPEND £100 million not SAVE £100 million!

Ron Mitchell,

St Saviour.