NHS Buckinghamshire spent more than £2 million on 'expensive' management consultants last year, new figures show.

Though the organisation has reduced the figure from nearly £3.5 million in 2007/08, it has pledged to cut the it further.

It was the 73rd highest spender on management consultants out of 152 primary care trusts.

Project management, IT and human resources were included in the consultancy bill.

Conservative health secretary Andrew Lansley has already spelt out plans to clamp down on “excessive” management spending.

Commenting on the £313 million spent nationally, he said: “I am staggered by the scale of the expenditure on management consultants in the NHS.

“Even at a time when it became clear that the nation’s borrowing was out of control, Labour allowed wasteful spending to blossom.

“I have asked Primary Care Trusts and Strategic Health Authorities to reduce their management costs by 46 per cent over the next four years.

“This will root out unnecessary bureaucracy and any expensive duplication of functions.”

Across the country, spending on consultancy services was similar to that on skin cancer and lung cancer services combined, or equivalent to nearly 10,000 nurses.

Emily Macdonald, spokesman for NHS Buckinghamshire, pointed out the organisation spends the second lowest amount on management consultancy within South Central Strategic Health Authority.

She said it is also the only Primary Care Trust within the region to have consistently reduced consultancy spending over the past three years.

She added: “We are committed to reducing these costs even further over the next year, working closely with GPs to develop their own commissioning skills.”

Buckinghamshire PCT changed its name to NHS Buckinghamshire in April. Under government plans the organisation is set to be axed by 2013, with GPs taking on responsibility for allocating NHS spending.

Of all PCTs, Camden spent the most (£12.2m) on management consultants in 2009/10, with North Tyneside spending the least (£13,000).

The Department of Health did not release figures for Buckinghamshire Hospitals Trust.

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