The government’s new value-for-money chief is leading several major projects that are seriously over budget.
David Goldstone has previously served as an executive on the London Olympics, council restoration and HS2 high-speed rail.
He will now Lead the government’s new Office for Value for Money (OfVM)According to the Treasury, he advised Chancellor Rachel Reeves on “how to eliminate waste and inefficiency”.
Announcing Mr Goldstone’s appointment, Mr Reeves said “improving efficiency and reducing wasteful spending is vital” and the role would “help us deliver value for every pound of public spending”.
Responding to the Budget on Wednesday, Clacton MP Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform Party, said Mr Goldstone “has been on the HS2 board for many years and I think that is the exact opposite of value for money”.
The resurrected high-speed rail project HS2 had an initial budget of £38 billion in 2009, but Now expected to cost at least twice as much.
Mr Goldstone’s LinkedIn page lists positions on the HS2 board from January to June 2012 and from 2024 onwards, where he was a Treasury nominee, although he does not appear to have held the role in subsequent years .
He served as Finance and Program Director for the Government Olympic Executive Board responsible for the London 2012 Olympic Games and spent Three times as expectedwith revenue of £9 billion.
Mr Goldstone is also Chief Executive of the Parliament House Restoration and Renewal Project, Beaten by MPs for winning £168,000 bonus last yeardespite delays costing around £100m a year in maintenance costs.
Conservative leadership candidate Kemi Badenoch told LBC there was no need for an office to determine the value of the money.
“We’re constantly trying to solve problems with more Aboriginal people, more bureaucrats, more politicians. That’s not the way to grow,” she said.
“We should be able to determine the value of funds within the civil service.
“If they can’t do that, then I’m not convinced that the Office for Value for Money will know how to do that – the Treasury should already have that expertise.”
OfVM will have a team of 20 civil servants working under Mr Goldstone, who is expected to serve for one year, with the “possibility of an extension”, according to the Treasury.
It is understood that Mr Goldstone’s salary is about £950 a day, he works an average of one day a week, and his total annual salary is about £50,000.
When finance minister Darren Jones was told OfVM’s salary would be worth £250,000 if he were working full-time – well above the Prime Minister’s salary – he told LBC that “the return on improvement… would be far, far away” many”.
Jones added: “We can’t expect people to work for free.
“In fact, from a benchmark perspective, David’s daily rates are competitive.”
The Treasury has been contacted for comment.
