Whitehall spent £27 million on diversity initiatives in a single year, a Cabinet Office audit has indicated in a revelation which is sure to stoke the debate over wokery within the civil service. The Civil Service Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Expenditure Review found a total of 380 staff working in EDI roles across government departments, with an average salary of £53,000. Their combined pay packet alone cost the public £20 million.
A further £7.1 million was spent on associated activities, including learning and development sessions (£4.9 million), cross-government efforts (£700,000), and membership of EDI organisations such as Stonewall (£800,000). Staff networks representing minority groups received £700,000. Altogether, the total hit £27.1 million for 2023–24 – enough to pay the winter fuel allowance for 135,000 pensioners or fund more than 1,000 nurses.
The report, published quietly on the Cabinet Office website, was commissioned by the previous Conservative Government and is the first audit of its kind. Data was contributed by 19 ministerial departments and 45 arm’s length bodies.
It also emerged that around 350 full-time EDI officers were embedded in departments, with a further 30 operating across government. Some of these are reportedly involved in promoting contentious ideas, such as the concept of gender existing on a spectrum and the notion that individuals can commit “microaggressions” based on race, gender or sexuality.
Critics say such material undermines neutrality in the Civil Service and creates a culture in which gender-critical views are suppressed. Supporters argue the roles are essential to ensure fair treatment of minority groups.
The review also revealed there are 570 internal diversity staff networks, with 2,965 committee members. Some civil servants are said to spend up to half of their working hours running them.
The release comes as the Government presses ahead with plans to cut 50,000 Civil Service jobs – around 10% of the workforce – in a bid to return Whitehall to pre-Brexit staffing levels.
Right-leaning think tanks have called for further action. Policy Exchange urged ministers to go even further by cutting 80,000 posts and halving the number of HR and senior policy staff. It also proposed slashing communications teams by 70%.
A former Treasury second permanent secretary, commenting on the report, warned against allowing Whitehall to become bloated.
He told the Telegraph: “Whether you believe in a big or a small state, we should all want one that is efficient and effective. An over-resourced administrative machine inevitably generates ever more process for itself and slows itself down.”
Reform UK has also publicly pledged to axe most diversity and inclusion roles, branding them unnecessary and wasteful.
The review found that of the £27.1 million spent, nearly half – £12.8 million – came from just five departments: the Home Office, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Justice, HMRC and the Department for Work and Pensions.
A government spokesperson said the £27 million represented just 0.006% of Civil Service spending, and stressed the audit covered expenditure under the last administration.
They added: “We are absolutely focused on ensuring every pound spent of taxpayer money delivers for the public – ending hospital backlogs, putting police back on the beat and securing our borders.”
