Federal government paid over 230 million euros to consulting firms in 2023

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Last year, the federal ministries spent around 239 million euros on external consulting services. IT and digitalization projects were a key focus here. In total, consultancy costs increased by around 54 million euros or 29 percent compared to the previous year. This is according to a recent report by the Federal Ministry of Finance, which is available to c't. Spiegel had previously reported on this.

The Ministry of the Interior (BMI) accounted for the largest share of expenditure on consulting firms in 2023: 26 million euros in the ministry itself and 33.8 million in associated authorities such as the BKA. The BMI's expenditure was "mainly on IT-related consulting", as the ministry explains in the report. External consultants are commissioned when a high level of specialization is required or the administration does not have the necessary knowledge and resources. "This applies in particular to the IT and digitalization sector."

In 2023, for example, the BMI spent a good 367,000 euros on "support services for the preparation and implementation of strategic policy decisions for the implementation of the Online Access Act". Almost 586,000 euros were spent on "Support services for the introduction of the basic e-file service" and almost 3.6 million euros on "Support and advice for the introduction of e-invoicing in the federal administration".

4.5 million euros for "Conception of the federal operating platform"

The Ministry of Justice also emphasizes the role of digitalization in its explanation. According to this, the focus of consultancy expenditure was on "one-off IT-related measures in connection with the introduction of digital infrastructure and electronic business processes".

At the Ministry of Finance, consulting costs are also largely IT-related. The department cites the federal government's IT consolidation, the ongoing digitalization of the administration and the growing demands on IT security as the main reasons for this. The BMF spent over 4.5 million euros on consultancy alone for the project "Conception of the federal operating platform".

A total of 100 million euros for external IT consulting

However, there were also high IT-related consulting costs in many other ministries, such as the Ministry of Digital and Transport (around 2.6 million euros for "Project management for digital planning, construction and operation"), the Ministry of Health (around 2.7 million euros for "Strategic-operational consulting for the redesign and transformation of Gematik into the digital agency") and the Ministry of Education (a good 800,000 euros for consulting and project support for "Mein Bildungsraum").

According to another overview from the Ministry of Finance, the federal ministries spent a total of around 100 million euros on external consulting in the area of "IT" in 2023. In the area of "Controlling", the figure was just under 14 million euros, and in the area of "Legal advice" around 23 million euros. These figures are only comparable to a limited extent with the total sum of 239 million euros mentioned above, as they are based on a different definition of consultancy services.

Lötzsch MP criticizes lack of transparency

"Despite a massive increase in staffing levels in the federal ministries of almost 30,000 employees, expenditure on external consultants continues to rise drastically by millions each year," commented Bundestag member Gesine Lötzsch, a member of the parliamentary group Die Linke. The purchase of expertise is not only "unnecessarily expensive", but also promotes the influence of external companies on government work. "However, the practice of awarding contracts to companies that remain anonymous is particularly fatal," Lötzsch emphasized. This is because the ministries do not always name the contractors in their reports to the BMF.

(cwo)