Government external staff costs increase in 2023

The chief minister is required to produce a report showing the amount spent on external staffing

The States of Jersey said the amount it spent on consultants, agency workers and other external staff increased overall in 2023, compared to the previous year.

The report from the chief minister set out the cost of consultants, fixed-term employees and agency staff employed by the Government of Jersey in each six-month period.

It found overall costs had increased by about £6m between 2022 and 2023 - the amount spent on agency staff and consultants had gone up, but it had fallen for casual labour, fixed term contractors and local agency contractors.

The report from chief minister Lyndon Farnham is part of plans to "curb expenditure on third party resources".

The report said costs increased by £3m from £53.9m to £56.9m between January and June 2023, compared to the same period in 2022.

Between July and December 2023, costs increased by the same amount from £63m to £66m, compared to the corresponding period the previous year.

The report said "certain technical specialists, such as architects and doctors, are excluded" as it was agreed "they did not fit within the intended disclosures".

It said: "The Government’s ability to attract permanent and fixed-term employees into specific roles continues to be an issue and it is affected by changing global and economic conditions.

"This has led to shortages in a number of skill sets."