The Prime Minister's Department has projected that it will only need RM4.9 billion of the RM12.3 billion development expenditure budgeted for this year following the restructuring of its agencies.

However, its operating expenditure will only be reduced by two percent (RM100 million) of the budgeted RM5.2 billion.

The savings comes from the abolishment of the National Professors Council, as well as the removal of several government advisors and special envoys.

"However, the savings or reduction in government allocation for this year can only be finalised once the restructuring of the Prime Minister's Department is completed," said de facto Law Minister Liew Vui Keong.

Liew said this in a parliamentary written reply to Johor Bahru MP Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir, who sought figures on how the new Prime Minister's Department planned to save cost.

The Najib Abdul Razak administration has been characterised by an extremely high concentration of funding for the Prime Minister's Department.

Najib had allocated a whopping RM18 billion for the department this year, 6.1 percent of the total budget. In contrast, the budget for the Health Ministry was RM27 billion.

The Prime Minister's Department expenditure first breached the RM10 billion mark in 2010 soon after Najib took the reins.

It surpassed the RM20 billion mark just six years later. The average allocation for the Prime Minister's Department between 2010 and now is RM16.15 billion.