Text of srticle follows for those who haven't yet cracked the DT's miserable attempt at a paywall.
Jacob Rees-Mogg has revealed his efficiency drive has saved almost £4 billion already - as he warned a leaner Whitehall was vital to ensuring taxes and inflation come down.
The minister for Brexit opportunities and government efficiency said cracking down on fraud as well as cuts to civil service numbers and rationalisation of offices had saved the huge sum.
But, writing for The Telegraph, the Liz Truss supporter said the new prime minister must go even further to free up money to make tax cuts possible.
And he said reducing the size of Whitehall could also help in the fight against inflation, which hit 10.1 per cent on Wednesday.
Mr Rees-Mogg said the amount of money saved could have been higher had Rishi Sunak been more co-operative with his efficiency drive.
He said he had wanted to use a new Cabinet committee to bring in extra savings of £5.5 billion a year - but this was stymied by the former chancellor's unwillingness to engage.
Mr Rees-Mogg said Mr Sunak kept cancelling the committee at the last minute, not giving it enough power, and rigidly sticking to the 2021 spending review instead of doubling the quango saving target that he was pushing for.
He wrote: "For the British state to weather the coming storm of inflation and to support the public adequately, waste and inefficiency must be reduced.
"Working with officials and fellow ministers in the Cabinet Office this year, I have been able to realise billions of pounds of savings for the taxpayer. By removing unnecessary inefficiencies and waste this will help to address inflation, which has reached extraordinary heights."
He added: "All taxes are eventually paid by individuals as everyday prices, whether they are green levies on energy bills, corporation tax, or national insurance, which affect economic growth and overall inflation.
"While I support cutting taxes to unleash economic growth, we must eradicate waste so public money is spent as effectively as possible. We will not bring inflation down without a lean and efficient state."
Government waste ‘risks higher inflation'
Mr Rees-Mogg warned that government waste increases government debt, which risks higher inflation.
"With a tight control on spending and an emphasis on reducing fraud, the Cabinet Office was able to save over £3.5billion for the taxpayer in 2020 to 2021. This must go much further.
"Earlier this year, the Efficiency and Value for Money Cabinet Committee was established with a mission to save the taxpayer over £5.5 billion each year. This was sadly under-utilised by the former chancellor, but it must be a vital tool in the next prime minister's arsenal for cutting waste and inflation."
He said there was a certain amount of "kicking and screaming" from the Treasury over his plans to crack down on fraud.
Mr Rees-Mogg wrote: "The next prime minister will face great challenges from the first day in Downing Street. Cutting inflation, cutting taxes and growing the economy must be his or her overriding priorities.
"None of these are deliverable without political determination to make Whitehall as lean and efficient as it can be. The savings I have described should be a mission for all ministers in the new government, from the chancellor of the exchequer to the most recently-appointed under-secretary.
"Cutting taxes must go hand in hand with trimming the bureaucratic bloat of Whitehall, only that way will we bring inflation down and restore the economy to growth."
Cutting taxes must go hand in hand with trimming the bureaucratic bloat of Whitehall to bring down inflation
By Jacob Rees-Mogg
History will remember George Osborne's period as chancellor favourably. He had a long-term economic plan and recognised that taxpayer's money must be used carefully. This was not primarily about cutting spending but about using money to its best advantage. It is thanks to his efforts that the nation could afford the £400 billion of support offered during the pandemic.
For the British state to weather the coming storm of inflation and to support the public adequately, waste and inefficiency must be reduced. Working with officials and fellow ministers in the Cabinet Office this year, I have been able to realise billions of pounds of savings for the taxpayer. By removing unnecessary inefficiencies and waste this will help to address inflation, which has reached extraordinary heights.
When I was appointed minister for Brexit opportunities and government efficiency, I said that the two adjacent responsibilities were one and the same. Our departure from the European Union necessitates a re-thinking of the British state. This means going beyond ministers looking for fiscal trims and haircuts and considering whether the state should deliver certain functions at all.
These savings will ensure the taxpayer can afford to help the public with a spike in energy costs this year and will consequently help to cut inflation. As a supporter of Liz Truss to become prime minister I am a strong advocate of the benefit of tax cuts to the economy and to the British consumer. The economy must grow both to pay for public services and reduce the tax burden.
'We will not bring inflation down without a lean and efficient state'
All taxes are eventually paid by individuals as every day prices, whether they are green levies on energy bills, corporation tax, or national insurance, which affect economic growth and overall inflation. While I support cutting taxes to unleash economic growth, we must eradicate waste so public money is spent as effectively as possible. We will not bring inflation down without a lean and efficient state.
The trade border is one example of how government efficiency eases inflation. In the spring, thanks to the support of the Prime Minister and Liz Truss, the government suspended the expensive physical checks on incoming goods from the European Union to address the rising cost of food. As well as saving officials at the border time and resources, this measure has also saved businesses in the wider economy at least £1 billion in avoided costs, preventing shortages of goods and delays in already strained supply chains.
Thanks to the freedoms outside the EU we are going further by cutting tariffs and digitising our trade border with the Single Trade Window next year, which will help businesses trade across our border seamlessly, cutting costs and reducing inflation. The data flowing through our borders will help ministers make new efficiencies and potentially save the taxpayer billions of pounds by avoiding building costly infrastructure or automating existing processes. In turn, we will be able to reduce the tax burden on the British people without increasing inflation as the economy grows and the state operates more efficiently.
Maintaining government efficiency requires constant vigilance to stop departments from wasting taxpayers' money, which in turn increases government debt and risks higher inflation. With a tight control on spending and an emphasis on reducing fraud, the Cabinet Office was able to save over £3.5 billion for the taxpayer in 2020 to 2021. This must go much further. Earlier this year, the Efficiency and Value for Money Cabinet Committee was established with a mission to save the taxpayer over £5.5 billion each year. This was sadly under-utilised by the former chancellor, but it must be a vital tool in the next prime minister's arsenal for cutting waste and inflation.
'Great deal of kicking and screaming' from Treasury
Surprisingly, there was a great deal of kicking and screaming from certain quarters in the Treasury in opposition to the Public Sector Fraud Authority, which was finally established with strong powers to claw back taxpayers' money lost to fraud. I doubt this would have happened without Lord Agnew's dramatic resignation which shamed the Treasury into action. The Government will publish comprehensive information about the scale of fraud in the pandemic Bounce Back Loans Scheme in September and implement a programme to reclaim the billions lost to fraud, which should do much to restore taxpayers' trust in the government's management of their money.
Governments always face the pressures of public business, but this is not an argument for more civil servants. Completing the reduction to 2016 levels, by some 91,000 officials, 2025 will save the taxpayer over £3 billion and restore our bureaucracy to a sensible size now the pandemic has passed. The Cabinet Office is leading by example with a 25 per cent reduction in headcount over the next three years, which will be an opportunity for significant reform as well as savings.
This goes with the optimisation of the government estate which is saving the taxpayer around £6.5 billion through a combination of consolidating government property, more commercial nous in handling leases and running the buildings more efficiently. As figures show more civil servants returning to the office full time, taxpayers will want to see their money being spent on a Civil Service hard at work in the office.
The next prime minister will face great challenges from the first day in Downing Street. Cutting inflation, cutting taxes and growing the economy must be his or her overriding priorities. None of these are deliverable without political determination to make Whitehall as lean and efficient as it can be. The savings I have described should be a mission for all ministers in the new government, from the chancellor of the exchequer to the most recently-appointed under-secretary. Cutting taxes must go hand in hand with trimming the bureaucratic bloat of Whitehall, only that way will we bring inflation down and restore the economy to growth.
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