**London**: MPs emphasise the need for better coordination among UK government departments to secure advantageous cloud service deals. The discussion follows concerns about a recent high-value contract and highlights the challenges in achieving efficient procurement in light of escalating spending on digital services.
In a recent hearing before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), Members of Parliament (MPs) were informed that UK central government departments must better coordinate their cloud computing requirements to secure more advantageous deals from major providers. The session highlighted concerns surrounding the government’s procurement strategies amid increasing spending on cloud services.
Andrew Forzani, the chief commercial officer in the Cabinet Office, emphasised that the government can leverage its purchasing power to negotiate better contracts if individual departments present unified demands. He noted the challenges posed by a limited number of dominant suppliers in the cloud market, stating, “If you want to leverage government purchasing power for hosting, you need to get a number of departments aligned around requirements. That is very challenging to do.”
The discussion also revisited the recent contract awarded by the Home Office to Amazon Web Services (AWS) in December 2023. This contract, worth £450 million over three years, significantly outstripped a previous £120 million deal established in December 2020. Labour MP Lloyd Hatton raised pertinent questions regarding this increase, including the value for money and whether the Home Office fully understood its requirements.
Forzani reiterated the importance of collaboration across departments to facilitate better negotiations, particularly as the government has launched a Digital Commercial Centre of Excellence (DCCE) along with AI tools called Humphrey, aimed at reforming the tech procurement landscape. “We absolutely have an ambition to do that more,” he stated, underscoring the DCCE’s role in enhancing alignment on cloud requirements among various departments.
Cat Little, the Permanent Secretary at the Cabinet Office, discussed the difficulties in achieving efficient procurement, acknowledging past failures that stemmed from unclear specifications and inadequate ‘intelligent client functions’ within government. She stated, “We’ve all had experiences of failed or difficult technological procurement… what we need to do in the center is to make sure that when we look at those lessons learned, we are doing everything we can to share those lessons.”
The PAC’s discourse was spurred by a report from the National Audit Office (NAO), which pointed out deficiencies in the technical evaluation of government contracts, alongside an insufficient understanding of the digital skills required for managing the substantial £14 billion annual procurement of digital services. The report indicated that complexities arising post-contract often posed challenges too significant for resolution through standard change control processes.
PAC chairman Geoffrey Clifton-Brown remarked on the government’s poor management of digital suppliers, stating that the lack of guidance from the central government had hindered departments’ capabilities to act as informed clients.
The ongoing discussions reflect significant scrutiny of the government’s approach to digital procurement, amid escalating costs and a call for improved alignment and efficiency in cloud service acquisitions across the various departments.
Source: Noah Wire Services
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