Peer warns IT suppliers in opposition to partnering with Fujitsu in authorities contracts

Peer James Arbuthnot warned suppliers to “suppose twice” earlier than partnering with Fujitsu on authorities contracts, to keep away from being “tarred by the Fujitsu brush”.

Fujitsu’s central function within the Publish Workplace scandal entered wider public consciousness in January 2024, following the printed of an ITV drama.

Regardless of its self-imposed ban on bidding for presidency enterprise in response, Fujitsu has gained over half a billion kilos’ value of presidency contracts since, in keeping with figures from Tussell. However these figures solely have in mind offers the place Fujitsu is the prime contractor, lacking hundreds of thousands of kilos of taxpayers’ money heading within the provider’s route via subcontracts.

In its newest authorities procurement round-up, Tussell revealed the £510m worth of presidency contracts, signed by Fujitsu as prime contractor, because the ITV drama aired in January 2024.

Pc Weekly reported final month that Fujitsu bagged £450m in authorities contracts in its final 12-month enterprise interval, together with over £300m in contracts with HM Income & Customs.

However Fujitsu’s UK public sector enterprise goes past what’s reported, with subcontracts value hundreds of thousands, not made public and as revealed by Pc Weekly in April final yr, Fujitsu was actively selling profitable enterprise via subcontracts to negate its personal bidding pause guidelines.

Within the aftermath of Fujitsu’s self-imposed bidding ban, and in response to a query in an organization discussion board, Dave Riley, then head of public sector at Fujitsu UK, defined the potential for utilizing different suppliers as companions to get across the restrictions. On the time, he wrote that he engaged in these discussions and that “the present Cupboard Workplace place is: the place we bid with a companion, it’s as much as the companion to resolve if they’re snug to work with them, so not at present topic to the gateway checks of us bidding”.

James Arbuthnot, who mentioned he wouldn’t be stunned if Fujitsu focused subcontracts to get round its personal sanctions, warned suppliers to “suppose twice” about cooperating with Fujitsu to assist it win authorities enterprise.

The Japanese IT provider’s promise to cease bidding for public sector enterprise when the Publish Workplace scandal lastly entered broad public debate was a paltry providing steeped in caveats.

“I might have thought it could be a mistake for different firms to be related to them, as a result of they are going to be tarred with the Fujitsu brush,” mentioned Arbuthnot.

He added that he expects the Publish Workplace scandal public inquiry’s second report back to be extremely important of Fujitsu. “[Other suppliers] would need to suppose twice about working alongside an organization that has proven it will probably produce a ineffective product, then lie about it in court docket, and even connive in folks being despatched to jail on the again of that ineffective product.”

When Fujitsu made its promise to pause bids final yr, it left the door open to working as a subcontractor, with different IT suppliers, reasonably than a primary provider.

Pc Weekly requested Fujitsu whether or not it was nonetheless focusing on subcontracts. The troubled provider mentioned: “We proceed to work with the UK authorities to make sure we adhere to the voluntary restrictions we put in place relating to bidding for brand new contracts whereas the Publish Workplace inquiry is ongoing.”

The Publish Workplace scandal was first uncovered by Pc Weekly in 2009, revealing the tales of seven subpostmasters and the issues they suffered attributable to Horizon accounting software program, which led to essentially the most widespread miscarriage of justice in British historical past (see beneath timeline of Pc Weekly articles in regards to the scandal since 2009).