A $85,000 cash boost for the Premier's personal office will go towards a massive UK review of the civil service.

The news squashed speculation by the Opposition United Bermuda Party that that the extra money was earmarked for Cabinet Ministers' travelling expenses.

A spokeswoman for Government said: "The cash has been put aside for the review. There will be local expenses and we can't expect not to pay for that.'' Earlier this year, a delegation of UK Parliamentarians visited the Island and pledged to petition the British Government to help out with a close-up examination of the civil service with a view to improving efficiency.

The UK Government agreed to use its experts to take a look at the Island bureaucracy -- but with a price tag attached.

The cash increase in the operating expenses of the Cabinet Office was revealed in a supplementary estimate to February's Budget tabled in the House of Assembly last Friday.