§ Dr. PughTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS will spend in 2003–04 on the licensing of Microsoft products. [156894]
§ Mr. HuttonThe estimated spend for 2003–04 by the national health service on the licensing of Microsoft products is £53 million.
§ Dr. PughTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken to ensure that future ordering of proprietary software by the NHS ensures that the NHS will be able to purchase software from a wide range of suppliers at economic cost. [156895]
§ Mr. HuttonThe NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency and the Office of Government Commerce have put in place a framework contract for information technology products known as GCat. The contract offers a comprehensive range of software to the national health service, at competitive prices, from a number of proprietary software and specialist software resellers.