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A widespread outage affecting several Microsoft platforms has disrupted numerous key services across the UK, including general practitioners, police forces, and pharmacies. Although NHS England has advised patients to attend appointments as planned unless otherwise instructed, police departments are encouraging the public to make reports via phone. Members of Parliament have also experienced difficulties as a result of the issue.
Microsoft attributed the outage to an unusually high load on its servers, but stated that early signs of recovery are appearing as efforts to resolve the problem continue. While major airports and UK intelligence agencies remain operational and unaffected, government officials are currently assessing the overall impact on various public services. Sir Ciarán Devane, chief executive of the NHS Alliance, confirmed that some NHS operations, such as email communications, have been disrupted. In response, NHS trusts in England have implemented steps to limit interruptions to essential services.
Patients are being urged to continue calling emergency number 999 if necessary, or alternatively use NHS 111 or local pharmacies for non-urgent health concerns. Several GP practices, especially in Hampshire and Shropshire, have advised patients against sending messages through their websites during the outage, recommending visitors instead call or attend in person for urgent care. The National Pharmacy Association highlighted that pharmacies are experiencing communication difficulties with both GP surgeries and patients, which may result in longer wait times and delays in prescription processing.
Multiple police forces—including the Metropolitan, Greater Manchester, and North Yorkshire police—have reported disruptions to their online reporting systems and have asked the public to contact 101 by phone for urgent but non-emergency matters. Similar issues have been noted by South Wales and Dyfed-Powys Police, as well as Police Scotland, which warned of possible delays in handling recent online submissions. In contrast, the London Ambulance Service’s key systems do not rely on Microsoft platforms and therefore remain unaffected. GMB union’s national secretary Rachel Harrison described the outage as having a “serious impact” on ambulance and NHS trust operations, especially services like 111 and 999 where patient referrals cannot be managed normally. However, she confirmed emergency calls are still being handled without disruption.
Airports such as Heathrow, Manchester, and Stansted continue operating as usual despite the technical difficulties. Defence Minister Luke Pollard stated on BBC Breakfast that government officials are evaluating the impact of the outage on public sector systems and will provide an update once their review is complete. A spokesperson from the government reassured the public that cooperation with Microsoft is ongoing to gauge any consequences for official functions. UK intelligence services are reportedly unaffected since, although some personnel use Microsoft tools, classified operations run on separate systems.
Parliament members are unable to access their parliamentary accounts but have alternative arrangements in place to allow business proceedings to continue. Meanwhile, educators have reported issues accessing cloud-based calendars, emails, and files, with some Scottish parents advised to report absences by phone rather than email. In Northern Ireland, the Education Authority confirmed that schools cannot access email accounts. Royal Mail also noted that certain online services are down, affecting email notifications about deliveries, though physical mail collection and distribution remain unaffected.
Cybersecurity experts and Microsoft have confirmed there is no evidence of a cyber-attack causing the outage, which involves platforms such as Outlook, Teams, and Copilot. The tech company explained that a large number of its servers unexpectedly became unavailable, forcing the remaining servers to handle the excess traffic and causing them to become overloaded. Cybersecurity advisor Jake Moore likened the situation to “blocking one lane on a motorway,” which funnels all traffic into fewer lanes and causes congestion. Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Moore emphasized the importance of having backup communication networks that operate independently of a single provider, warning that heavy reliance on a few major companies can cause widespread disruption if one experiences problems. Mimecast’s Nicky Choo echoed this viewpoint, highlighting how his company uses Microsoft tools but has contingency plans to avoid interruptions. Moore also suggested that traditional phone lines remain a reliable communication method in such crises
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