£2.3bn NHS IT overhaul becomes a three horse race

The NHS has announced its supplier shortlist for the overhaul of its IT services – and BT Group, IBM Global Services and Lockheed Martin are the main contenders to land a major stake in the improvements.

The three companies are vying to oversee the modernisation work, by providing and implementing the IT systems that will run the government's electronic patient data systems and scheme for sharing data nationwide.

In addition to those bidding to be involved at a national level, the government announcement also listed the firms that would be competing to supply IT services in each of the five regional divisions in England, with the likes of SchlumbergerSema, Accenture and Fujitsu hoping for a contract win.

The NHS winners and losers for two local contracts - London and the North East - will be revealed in October, with the other three awarded at the end of the year.