The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
BT rings up £100m boost for Dundee economy
telecoms: Firm’s massive connection with UK measured by Dundee area jobs and spending
Telecom giant BT has given a massive £110 million boost to the Dundee economy in the past year, according to a new study.
It has also quantified its commitment in terms of being responsible for around 1,300 jobs and spending £1 million with local suppliers.
The Regeneris Consulting report highlighted the 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.
The figures cover 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 seven employees working in the nation’s IT and communications sector.
Around £171m 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 £110m was in Dundee.
Tim Fanning, associate director of Regeneris Consulting, said: “BT and EE contributed around £1 in every £70 of economic output in the UK in 2015/16.”
BT Scotland director Brendan Dick added: “Few organisations have a more positive and direct impact on the local economy and Scotland’s communities than BT.”