Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which central government departments are dependent on Microsoft software and cloud services to deliver core public services; and what steps they are taking to ensure departments retain the ability to procure competing products and services.

The Government does not maintain an aggregated assessment of departmental dependency on Microsoft software or cloud services. Departments are responsible for selecting technology that meets their needs, in line with security, resilience, procurement and value-for-money requirements. The Cloud First policy does not require use of Microsoft, and departments may procure competing products and services, including from other major cloud providers. The Strategic Partnership Arrangement 2024 secures preferential discounts for eligible public sector organisations but is not a direct route to market; departments must still run compliant procurement processes. Cabinet Office and DCMS continue to monitor the market, including the CMA’s investigation into Microsoft’s business software ecosystem, and will consider its findings when published.