'Ambitious approach' to cuts saves UK £3.8bn, says Maude

Cabinet Office Minister Francis Maude said an "ambitious approach to saving money" had delivered the "staggering" results.

He insisted the cash had been clawed back from overheads costs, not services, and more would be found.

Officials now have to win his approval on a range of spending decisions, including any marketing proposals costing more than 20,000 and IT projects worth upwards of 1 million.

Use of consultants has been greatly reduced, something Mr Maude said would be welcomed by civil servants.

"Civil servants were often frustrated when consultants were used, it was very dispiriting for them," he said.

Other money-saving examples include rejigging government office space to free-up the equivalent of 70 football pitches, allowing major reductions in rent costs.

The e-Borders programme, aimed at collecting information on people moving in and out of the UK, is one of the projects that has been dropped because it would "not deliver".

The cash savings, which have been independently audited, were made between May 2010 and March this year.

Last October, Mr Maude pledged to leave "no stone unturned" in the hunt for savings at the centre of government, promising to deliver better for less to help divert funds towards addressing the deficit.

He said: "Today's figures show that our ambitious targets to cut waste and save money have paid off."

Cutting the use of outside consultants saved 870m, and a further 500m was saved by reducing the spend on temporary agency staff.

Taking "stronger control" of marketing spend at the Central Office of Information has saved 400m.