GOVERNMENT is set to spend around $70 million on consultancy fees this financial year ¿ an increase of 150 per cent in the past ten years.

The bill, which has ballooned dramatically in the last two years alone, has prompted the Opposition United Bermuda Party to ask if all consultants are necessary and if the public is getting value for money.

The United Bermuda Party spent approximately $28 million on consultants in 1997/98 ¿ its final year in office. In February, Finance Minister Paula Cox allocated $68 million to pay for consultancy fees this year. However, following a recent rash of high-cost appointments, it is expected that the final tab for 'Professional Services' could exceed $70 million.

Last year Government spent $66.27 million on consultants ¿ an increase of almost 20 per cent on the $56.86 million it spent in 2005/06.

This week Opposition Leader Michael Dunkley questioned if some consultancy appointments were necessary, saying that, in certain instances, an expert adviser was already in place.

And he also suggested that some appointments could be "jobs for the boys", pointing out that the Premier had filled a number of newly-created posts with hand-picked candidates who, according to Mr. Dunkley, seemed unsuitable for the job.

Progressive Labour Party candidate Rolfe Commissiong was appointed as race consultant to the Premier last November on an annual salary of nearly $100,000. Mr. Commissiong was tasked with analysing an earlier study on the difficulties faced by young black males.

However, last month the Premier hired a second consultant, US professor Ronald Mincy, to carry out a further study on the issue ¿ at a cost of $400,000. Meanwhile, Mr. Commissiong appears to have had his six-month contract extended.

Earlier this year medical consultants Kurron Shares of America Inc. won a five-year, $15 million contract to help the Bermuda Hospitals Board develop a long-term healthcare strategy for the island. Premier Ewart Brown is said to be a friend of Kurron chairman Corbett Price.

Government also recently announced the appointment of an education consultant ¿ Henry L. Johnson ¿ to oversee radical change in the public school system. And last week it announced that an economic adviser was being sought to tackle the country's overheating economy.

"The Government already has a financial consultant on the payroll ¿ Andrew Brimmer ¿ and now the Premier is bringing in another consultant on a salary of $250,000 plus a housing allowance . . . that's a pretty penny," Mr. Dunkley said.

He said the flurry of new posts was a cause for concern and needed to be reigned in.

And he questioned Mr. Commissiong's appointment, suggesting that it was another example of "jobs for the boys".

"What credentials does he bring to the table?" Mr. Dunkley asked.

"If you look at every area, the Premier has been able to bring in a bevy of his own consultants ¿ people who he wants.

"It just goes on and on. It's a total abuse ¿ feeding at the trough at the expense of the taxpayer. I get the sense in the community that the only way you are going to get anywhere is by being close to the Premier ¿ then you might get invited to feed at the trough."

Mr. Dunkley added that Government seemed intent on having a spending spree during the current economic boom, but a tighter hand was needed on Government's purse strings.

"There's a lot of money coming in right now, but that's when you need to be prudent," he said.

Shadow Finance Minister Patricia Gordon-Pamplin also went on the offensive, claiming that there was "little accountability for these sky-rocketing fees".

"Consultants and the fees being paid to them have become the bucket into which indiscriminate expenditure by this Government is placed," Mrs. Gordon-Pamplin said.

"In the 2007/8 Budget, there is an allowance for $68 million, much of which is apparently being doled out to those of the inner sanctum.

"There is little accountability for these sky-rocketing fees, even after having given the public assurances about prudent spending. They continue to form the basis of the Government's continued mismanagement.

"We saw the appointment of Mr. Commissiong as a special consultant to the Premier, for a defined period, to conduct a full review of the Young Black Male Study, undertake in-depth research on the plight of young black males in Bermuda and provide recommendations with respect to implementing programmes and initiatives to address the current predicament of this targeted group.

"Mr. Commissiong (pictured) must have failed in his mandate, thus requiring the Premier to extend his terms of reference, spend another $400K on another consultant to do what Mr. Commissiong should have done, and what the consultant appointed by former Premier Scott also should have done.

"How much money will be spent on the same studies with no intelligent output identifying programmes that can be acted upon to the betterment of the Bermudian black male population? How much is the public willing to continue to pay to a foul-mouthed consultant who is hell-bent on politics of division, who clearly does not wish to be confused by facts?

"This once again supports the theory that the Premier is plundering the emotions of the black population by pretending to show concern on election eve.

"The interesting conundrum being created by this most recent move is that Government really has done nothing, will do nothing, and will use an excuse that a study is being undertaken in order to justify their serious ineptitude at handling critical issues to make life better for all Bermudians.

"What the public should be asking is whether they are receiving value for money, and how much more will be spent duplicating efforts because the Government's appointees to take care of these efforts have been woefully deficient in their abilities and their output.

"The United Bermuda Party is certainly not averse to spending where necessary to uncover causes of problems, and to implement programmes to rectify wrongs. What we are averse to is spending three times for the same product with little progress regarding the outcome."

Earlier this week the Mid-Ocean News e-mailed the Ministry of Finance asking if it had calculated what the final bill for consultants will be. We also asked why expenditure had risen sharply in recent years.

The following response was given by a spokesperson from the Ministry of Finance: "Each Ministry is responsible for oversight of their budgets and can produce explanations of the changes in expenditure. Mr. Finighan may wish to reformulate his question for individual Ministers. He may also wish to note that for the period 1987/88 to 1997/98 spending on consultants by former administrations increased three-fold from $8.5 million to $28.3 million or by 233 per cent. The increase between 1997/98 and 2007/08 was actually 130 per cent ($28.3 million to $65.3 million) not 150 per cent."