Local government department spends £4.5m a year on IT

Some less controversial Westminster expenses revealed

The department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG)spent £4.5m on its outsourced corporate IT service in the year to March 2009.

THE DCLG signed an outsourcing agreement with supplier Steria since 2006 shortly after the department was created.

Sadiq Khan, under-secretary of state in the DCLG said in a written answer to parliament:

"Communities and Local Government has outsourced its corporate IT service to Steria Limited and costs of maintaining IT equipment is absorbed into the annual cost of the service. The service cost for financial year April 2008 to March 2009 for that service was £4.5 million."

The DCLG took over most of the functions of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in 2006.

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister had two outsourced IT contracts, worth £10.7m in total, with LogicaCMG for HR functions and with Fujitsu for the provision of IT infrastructure and desktop services.