Federal agencies that failed to meet their outsourcing reduction targets quietly expanded their contractor and consultancy deals by tens of millions of dollars, a Canberra Times analysis reveals.
After failing to hit their target cuts for 2024-25, the 14 agencies opted out of setting new targets for 2025-26. But instead of reining in external hiring, their combined contractor contracts surged by 35 per cent, rising from $74.2 million in 2023-24 to $100.5 million in 2025-26.
In 2024-25, the financial year agencies were expected to slash external reliance, their contract commitments for outside advisers and consultants blew out by 42 per cent, jumping from $242.5 million to $344.2 million.
