The Minns Labor Government has launched the Expert Advisory Network (EAN), a new initiative to better utilise in-house expertise across the public sector and reduce its reliance on external consultants.
Established in the Premier's Department, the network has created an initial list of 30 existing teams across the public service. They will be able to provide projects across government with specialist advice and project support, including on policy and strategy, stakeholder engagement, financial and commercial services, actuarial services, infrastructure, technology, and environmental services.
Teams already on the list include Investment NSW's economic and analytics capabilities team and Multicultural NSW's interpretation and translation services.
Support from the Expert Advisory Network will take different forms depending on the nature of the project, including one-off advice, ongoing project coaching, direct project delivery, peer review, and financial and commercial advisory services.
This will enable EAN teams working on short-term projects to share their knowledge and allow agencies to build their own institutional capacity.
As more specialist teams join the network, it will allow the government to deliver more projects internally with fewer external resources.
Under the previous Liberal-National Government, the Auditor-General identified that more than $1 billion was spent on external consultants without adequate procurement and management policies in place. Further analysis found that more than 15% of contracts were for 'generalist work' on policy design, program evaluation and report writing.
In 2023-24, the Minns Labor Government delivered $450 million in savings on consultant and contingent labour spend.
The Expert Advisory Network will continue that work by allowing agencies to identify existing expertise inside government rather than sending taxpayer funds to external consultants.
A 2024 report undertaken by The Cabinet Office found that utilising existing expertise within the public service could save as much as 52% on each contract.
The Minns Labor Government has implemented strict controls on consultant and external labour spend and issued clear instructions to agencies around the use of consultants.
These measures deliver on Labor's plans to reduce spend on consultants, bolster the public service and improve essential services for families and households across NSW.
For more information on the Expert Advisory Network, visit nsw.gov.au/expert-advisory-network.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Domestic Manufacturing and Government Procurement Courtney Houssos:
"Establishing this network is a step forward as we undertake reforms on how the government spends money on goods and services. This is a common-sense reform and makes sure we work smarter within the public service and ensure taxpayer dollars are spent wisely.
"We need to deliver value-for-money for taxpayers by spending more money on essential services and less money on unnecessary consultants.
"Consultants should be offering specific, expert advice to government, not replicating work that can be done with existing resources inside government agencies.
"With the Expert Advisory Network, we will save the public money and boost capacity in the public service, allowing us to deliver on the essential services that families and households rely on."
