G-Cloud 10 is now live, with more than 3,500 suppliers listed on the latest iteration of the framework.

More than 90% of the 3,505 companies who’ll be competing for public sector contracts are SMBs, according to the Crown Commercial Service (CCS), and there are 649 more vendors listed on the new version of G-Cloud than there were on its previous incarnation.

«Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, delivering innovative solutions in partnership with the public sector, fuelling economic growth and supporting the delivery of efficient, effective public services that meet the needs of citizens,» said Oliver Dowden, minister for implementation, who oversees CCS.

«The success of G-Cloud demonstrates how we are breaking down the barriers for SMBs who want to supply to government.»

Government figures show that G-Cloud has racked up £3.1 billion in sales since its launch in 2012, with 48% of that going to SMBs.

But SMBs have criticised the framework for its inability to allow them to change their prices on a given iteration – e.g. G-Cloud 9 – if their own costs increase.

Nevertheless, suppliers welcomed the launch of the latest version, with UKCloud founder Simon Hansford, whose firm has listed services since G-Cloud’s inception, saying: «With each iteration the framework has seen enhanced functionality and an increased volume of transactions as it has supported a thriving ecosystem of UK tech SMBs that have succeeded in winning business through it.»

G-Cloud allows public sector departments to put cloud contracts up to tender to a wider pool of bidders that are often smaller than the big tech firms that have historically benefitted from UK government spending.

The arrival of G-Cloud 10 was in doubt for some time, after the government originally said G-Cloud 9 would remain in place until May 2019, rethinking its decision earlier this year.

A new framework means suppliers can list new services they provide and adjust their prices.