DTA in push to drive up government cloud use

Federal government departments and agencies will be pushed to use more cloud services from July 2026 under a new whole-of-government policy.

The policy [pdf], released by the Digital Transformation Agency, is officially intended to “encourage accelerated cloud adoption” but does not appear to preclude departments from still purchasing their own servers.

“Prioritising cloud computing means that agencies should consider cloud for new digital initiatives, prioritise moving off legacy systems and transition to cloud where it makes sense to do so, and consider hybrid or multi-cloud models when pure cloud solutions are not justified,” the policy states.

The DTA also wants to see some cloud capacity used by departments and agencies “to support innovative technology such as AI.”

The central digital agency said it wanted to “help agencies move from ageing ICT environments to platforms that offer stronger resilience, scalability and security for government services.”

“The policy forms a key part of the government’s broader work to modernise critical systems and improve the way Australians access and experience public services,” it said.

One of the requirements of the policy is also for departments and agencies to develop good FinOps practices for managing cloud expenditure.