UK Cabinet Office hands stalled Microsoft migration to another department

Project to get off Google remains a red risk, according to government assessment

Updated The Cabinet Office, the strategic center of UK government, has handed a much-delayed project to migrate from Google Workspace to Microsoft 365 (M365) to another department.

The project, which began in May 2022, aimed to move around 15,000 Cabinet Office users to M365.

A recent report from the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA), the HM Treasury unit that advises government on major projects, said the initial approach was for the Cabinet Office to build its own IT system for this change, dubbed the "Falcon programme."

In its recent report, NISTA said that the Cabinet Office's management of the project "was not the most cost-effective option."

"We have now approved a new plan. This involves moving our digital services to a shared government service called Integrated Corporate Services (ICS), which is managed by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ)," the NISTA report said.

"While this new approach means the project will take a bit longer to complete, it will save money in the long run by using an existing government service."

The NISTA rating for the project remained "red" in line with an earlier assessment from the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (which NISTA replaced) for the final quarter of the 24/25 financial year.

"This is primarily due to concerns that the Programme does not have the resources to transition the Cabinet Office Business Units (BUs) to the new services within the planned time frame. The delay in the Pilot, now projected for completion by September 2025, has contributed to this assessment," NISTA said.

However, in moving the project under the wing of DESNZ, the government hopes to save money. NISTA noted that the whole life cost of the project was expected to fall from £51 million to £23 million. The savings come from the Cabinet Office no longer having to build its own platform, "outsourcing to another government department and securing migration resource from Microsoft and partners at no investment cost."

The NISTA report said it was important to move off Google because it is different from the Microsoft systems used by most of the Cabinet Office's partners both inside and outside of government. "This difference can make working together and sharing information difficult," the report said.

"Moving to Microsoft 365 will help us work more effectively and efficiently. It's becoming more and more important for us to collaborate easily with people from other organisations, who might be in different places, using different devices, and working at different times. This change will also allow us to use new Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools that are being developed across government."

The project is yet to move staff and data from the old Google system to the new Microsoft platform.

The Register revealed last year that the Cabinet Office paused its migration away from Google Workspace to M365 after ditching the Microsoft contract.

At the time, a Cabinet Office spokesperson said a "planned pause" had always been on the cards after the discovery phase, in order for the Cabinet Office "to submit the full business case and fully embed all work and learnings to inform our progress."

The Cabinet Office initially hired French IT giant Capgemini to provide services for the migration, in a deal worth between £12 million and £15 million.

The Register understands that the contract with Capgemini remains available for the Cabinet Office to use if required.

The Cabinet Office once included Government Digital Services, which began its "journey" with Google Workspace in 2010-2011. The GDS has now become part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). A separate Cabinet Office IT platform, which included the Google tools, was rolled out in 2014-2015.

With the Falcon programme now under the wing of DESNZ, The Register wonders if the Cabinet Office has managed to stay on the project timeline for organizing Google's leaving drinks in a nearby brewery. ®

Updated to add:

A Cabinet Office spokesperson said: "The Falcon programme will deliver significant benefits, allowing for greater collaboration and joint working with partners across government. We have changed delivery approach to deliver £24.1 million of savings, and we remain committed to the move to Microsoft 365."