UK5 - Transparency Notice - 715882481 - Cyber Mission Data – Lots 4 & 5 (Cyber Testing, QA and Governance)

1. Legal Basis

This contract will be awarded in accordance with Section 41 of the Procurement Act 2023 (Direct Award in Special Cases), relying on Schedule 5, Paragraph 20. The Authority is satisfied that the contract is a defence authority contract and a defence and security contract, and that direct award is necessary to maintain the operational capability, effectiveness, readiness, and security of the armed forces.

2. Justification

The expiry of the previous contracts has resulted in a temporary reduction in Defence's capacity to undertake the testing, quality assurance and governance activities that support the Cyber Mission Data capability. These services help ensure that new data integrations, products and services are appropriately tested, assured and managed before being introduced into operational use.

Defence continues to operate and exploit data from systems already integrated within the capability, and there has been no identified increase in risk to personnel or ongoing operations arising from the short gap between contracts. However, the pause in onboarding, testing and assurance activities has created a backlog which would continue to grow if the capability were not restored.

The primary risk is therefore associated with a sustained period without these services rather than the short interruption experienced to date. Over time, this would reduce Defence's ability to introduce new systems, maintain effective governance and assurance processes, and develop the capability in line with operational and business requirements. The Authority has therefore determined that continuation of these services through a direct award is necessary to maintain operational effectiveness, continuity of service and the resilience of Defence's cyber data capability whilst a future competitive procurement is undertaken.

3. Reasons for Limited Duration

The contract term is 8 months, representing the minimum necessary time required for the Authority to undertake a separate competitive procurement procedure and transition to a future solution whilst maintaining operational capability, effectiveness and security and avoiding risk and disruption to Defence's cyber detection and response capability during this time.