Telecom giant BT has cemented its position as a leading contributor to the Dundee area’s economy, quantifying its commitment in terms of being responsible for around 1,300 jobs and spending £1 million with local suppliers
BT says it has given a massive £110 million boost to the Dundee economy in the past year, according to a new study.
The Regeneris Consulting report highlighted the huge local impact of BT’s activities including its takeover of EE, which has reinforced the communications company’s position as one of the nation’s leading employers.
It revealed BT supported around 12,600 jobs in Scotland – including more than 1,300 in Dundee – through direct employment, spending with contractors and suppliers and the spending of employees.
Hugh Aitken, Confederation of British Industry Scotland director, said: “This latest research demonstrates the extent to which BT plays a key role in our local communities throughout Scotland.
“There is not a businessperson or family in Scotland who – directly or indirectly – is not affected by BT’s activities as a supplier of essential services, such as superfast broadband, major employer, investor or purchaser.
“In a competitive world, in which trade and relationships increasingly transcend regional and national boundaries, rapid and effective communications are ever more vital.”
In employment terms, BT and EE’s impact in the 2015-16 financial year was larger than Scotland’s insurance sector.
Nearly 7,400 people are directly employed by BT and its EE business in Scotland – equivalent to one in 7 employees working in the nation’s IT and communications sector.
Around £171 million was spent with Scottish suppliers – including £1m in Dundee.
In Scotland the combined Gross Value Added” (GVA) contribution of BT and EE totalled £1.08 billion – equivalent to £1 in every £125 of the nation’s total GVA – of which £110 million was in Dundee.
The Economic Impact of BT and EE in the UK outlines the combined economic contribution of the two companies across Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the English regions in the financial year 2015-16.
Tim Fanning, associate director of Regeneris Consulting, said: “Our latest analysis has shown that, together, BT and EE contributed around £1 in every £70 of economic output in the UK in 2015/16.
“This is clearly a very substantial combined economic footprint. Moreover, this contribution is spread throughout communities up and down the country.”
Brendan Dick, BT Scotland director, added: “Few organisations have a more positive and direct impact on the local economy and Scotland’s communities than BT.
“The acquisition of EE means we can invest even further, enabling people living and working in Scotland to get access to the best communications – fixed line, mobile and broadband services – now and in the future.
“As well as providing the means for families, homeworkers, companies and other organisations to communicate and do business in new and exciting ways, BT is helping to support other firms and suppliers in Dundee with the company’s procurement and overall expenditure and the spending of its employees.”
BT, including EE, in Scotland was responsible for the employment of around 7,400 people and contractors in 2015-16 – with a total income of around £225m – and provided work for a further 5,170 people through spending with businesses that supply equipment and services, as well as through the spending of its staff.
The company employs staff in every part of the country, with around 1,100 people based at Dundee’s Telephone House in Ward Road, which houses the company’s largest contact centre operations in Scotland.
BT’s investment of more than £3 billion in fibre broadband across the UK includes the company working in partnership with Government, local authorities and other bodies to help make the technology even more widely available across the country, especially in rural areas.
