asked the Minister for Health, in writing, on 21 October 2014:

Since 7 September 2013 can the Minister provide details as to the use of all consultants within his/her department, including reasons for engaging their services, and the costs involved.

The answer to the honourable member's question is as follows:

There were 299 consultancy contracts recorded as active within the period 7 September 2013 to 30 June 2014. A listing of the Department of Health's consultancies valued at $10,000 (GST Inclusive) or more, including the name of the consultant, consultancy description and reason, cost and the method of procurement (ie open tender, direct source, etc) is publicly available on the AusTender website at the following link:

https://www.tenders.gov.au/?event=public.app.view&appuuid=78766E81-C367-21AA-66C74C6FE98ED22D