NHS to benefit from Google Cloud discounts thanks to government deal

Google Cloud has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the UK government which will see public bodies, such as the NHS, benefit from discounts on products.

The intent of the MoU is to make it easier and more affordable for UK public sector agencies to make use of Google Cloud’s services.

This includes infrastructure, analytics, artificial intelligence, application modernisation and development, and collaboration solutions.

The MoU also considers access by UK public sector agencies to Google Cloud’s managed and serverless offerings, including its comprehensive hybrid and multi-cloud solution, Anthos.

Talks between Google and Crown Commercial Service began in 2019 and were focused on the requirements for cloud services.

Mark Palmer, head of public sector for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Google Cloud, said: “This is a significant milestone for us, as we see the results of our focused investment in cloud services and solutions primed and tailored for the public sector.

“The UK public sector is a major focus for Google Cloud, and this is an opportunity to further support Her Majesty’s government in their digital transformation.”

Google Cloud is a collection of cloud computing services that runs on the same infrastructure that Google uses internally for its end-user products.

Earlier this year, it was reported that account representatives from US firm Epic allegedly called customers to tell them it will not be working with Google Cloud.

The company is said to have decided to halt development with Google Cloud because it wasn’t seeing sufficient interest among its health system customers to warrant the investment.