Government has spent nearly $7.5 million on hiring consultants since it was elected in 1998, it was revealed yesterday.

And the Opposition United Bermuda Party fears there could be much more once more details have been provided from the Tourism, Telecommunications and Works and Engineering ministries.

Written Parliamentary questions tabled in the House of Assembly yesterday show money spent on consultants was as follow:

Education - $953,318

Environment - $487,889

Finance - $1,972,191

Health and Family Services - $1,585,623

Labour and Home Affairs - $1,604,873

Transport - $463,595

Youth and Sport - $222,760

UBP leader Dr. Grant Gibbons said: "Clearly at this point over $7.5 million has been spent on consultancy fees.

"We felt it was important to ask the questions so the public could understand how some of their money is being spent.

"While we are not opposing the use of both local and foreign consultants, (but) there is a real issue of whether the taxpayer is getting value for money in many of these cases."

He said the PLP had been highly critical of the use of consultants when the UBP were in power.

Dr. Gibbons said: "It's clear not only have they continued it. It would appear they have expanded it."

His colleague Michael Dunkley queried the $131,330 spent on a food safety programme.

He said: "I am in the food business and the Shadow Health Minister and I have never heard of it."

The figures reveal the company run by former PLP party organiser and MP Dr. Pauulu Kamarakafego (Dr. Roosevelt Brown) was paid $333,375 in fees and more than $5,000 in expenses by the Environment Ministry between March 1999 and December 2001.

Government said the work was for special projects and technical reports as well as organising a renewable energy conference and cedar tree planting.

Dr. Kamarakafego's firm International Development Consultancy Ltd. was also employed to work on the open spaces committee, the land title registration team and the Botanical Gardens master plan committee.

PLP supporter Dr. Eva Hodgson was paid $40,000 to produce 12 TV programmes on black history in Bermuda.

The opposition were also critical of the sloppy way some of the answers were provided with commas put in the wrong places, therefore making it unclear what the real figures were.

There was also confusion over the Transport consultant Larry Jacob's earnings.

In both the summary in the minutes given to MPs and in a separate response given to Shadow Transport Minister Trevor Moniz, Mr. Jacobs is reported to have a "monthly salary of $308,517".

Yesterday, Mr. Jacobs quipped: "I wish it was. Maybe a got a raise." He said his yearly salary was under $100,000.

Education Minister Paula Cox defended her Ministry's spending on consultants in her written reply.

She said they were only hired when there no one else with similar skills able to perform the tasks - she gave the example of the hiring of an educational officer for social studies.

Consultants have also been brought to raise standards for both pupils and staff said Ms Cox.