A small number of companies do so much business with UK ministerial departments that the Cabinet Office designates them as 'Strategic Suppliers'.

To shed more light on the relationship between these crucial companies and the government, this report examines the evolving procurement market landscape in the five years from April 2018 to March 2023.

In this 6th edition of Tussell's flagship report, we see the following significant trends:

• Overall procurement expenditure grew again in FY22/23, reaching a new record; instead of falling back after the pandemic, spending at this level is the new normal.
• Challenger companies are increasing their market share at the expense of the established Strategic Suppliers
• Based on revenue earned by Strategic Suppliers, the biggest sector was IT, while the fastest growing sector was defence
• Six Central Government departments rely on the Strategic Suppliers for one-third or more of their total procurement
• The largest Strategic Supplier by direct revenue was a UK construction firm; the company with the fastest growth was a well-known US cloud computing company
• ... and much more.