The UK government says public spending should back British industry, but procurement data shows HMRC has paid French supplier Capgemini at least £4.2 billion since 2014. The Register worked with Otnox to analyse HMRC's published transactions above £25,000, finding 15,726 payments between 2014 and July 2026. Sixteen months of data are missing, so the true total may be higher.
Capgemini's relationship with HMRC began with the Aspire contract in 2004, a ten-year deal later extended to 2017. It became the government's largest technology contract, costing around £10 billion over 13 years and accounting for about 84 percent of HMRC's technology spending. In 2016, the National Audit Office said Aspire was stable but expensive and had left HMRC's technology out of date. HMRC said it would replace the contract in phases, but extensions and new awards kept Capgemini involved.
Recent deals include a £200 million data warehouse migration contract, a £51 million agreement to support tax systems, a £214 million legacy maintenance deal, and a contact center contract worth up to £600 million. HMRC says the awards are fully compliant with procurement rules and that it has moved to a more diverse supplier base. If the contact center deal runs for its full ten years, the relationship could last until 2036, 32 years after Aspire began.