BT Group contributes more than £1bn to Yorkshire and The Humber
BT Group is responsible for generating £1 in every £90 produced in the Yorkshire and The Humber economy, according to an independent report published today.
‘The Economic Impact of BT Group plc in the UK’ report, by Hatch Regeneris, shows that the communications company generated a £1.3bn (£1,280 million) contribution – expressed as “Gross Value Added” (GVA)* – to the Yorkshire and The Humber economy during the 2017/18 financial year.
The report estimates that the equivalent of 16,300 full-time jobs in Yorkshire and The Humber are supported through BT’s direct employment, its spending with contractors and suppliers and the spending of its employees.
BT Group directly employs 5,990 people in Yorkshire and The Humber, with a further 423 employed as contractors. It’s estimated that BT Group supports one in every 100 employees working in the Yorkshire and The Humber private sector, reinforcing its position as one of the region’s leading employers.
The Group also spent more than £500 million with suppliers based in Yorkshire and The Humber.
Across the UK, BT Group directly employed 94,800 people (FTE) and supported an estimated total of 290,000 full-time jobs. It also generated, in total, almost £23bn (£22.8bn) to the UK economy.
BT Group and EE are making major investments in the region bringing 5G to Leeds and Bradford in 2019 and building on major full fibre infrastructure already underway.
Tim Fanning, Director at Hatch Regeneris, said: “Our analysis underlines how vast BT Group’s contribution is to the UK economy, particularly across the nations and regions.
“BT Group is almost unique in contributing to the economies of virtually every community across the UK, supporting significant levels of GVA spend and employment opportunities per region.”
The report from Hatch Regeneris comes in addition to a recent report by PWC1 which highlighted that BT Group is the 5th highest tax contributor in the UK among FTSE 100 companies, and the highest contributor among non-financial companies. The PWC report also identified BT as the largest capital expenditure investor in the UK.
Kieran Charleson, BT Group Regional Director, North of England, said: “Few companies play as important a role in Yorkshire and The Humberas BT Group. Not only does BT connect friends, families and businesses across the UK, but we also we also make a significant contribution to the region’s economy.
“We’re proud to be one of the region’s largest private sector employers and investors. Our investments, including the latest 5G mobile technology through our mobile network EE, will ensure the UK continues to be one of the world’s best-connected economies.
“With 6,400 people directly employed in the region, spending their salaries in local businesses, as well as regularly volunteering on activities such as our Barefoot tech literacy programme in schools, our people are at the heart of the community.”
Dr. Trevor Higgins, CEO of Bradford Breakthrough, said: “BT is a major employer in Yorkshire and Humberside and has a big impact on the economy and jobs. It is good news to see this significant presence in the region continuing.
“BT Group’s investment in the area not only means a boost to the local economy, but also to skills and high quality jobs, including recruiting apprentices and graduates. BT’s investment in the fastest networks and latest technology is also vital for the region. Being connected is essential for our businesses and for improving quality of life in all our communities.”
The report includes the contribution of all parts of BT Group, including Openreach, mobile network provider EE and BT’s Consumer and Enterprise divisions.
The report highlights that, across Yorkshire and The Humber in 2017/18, BT Group:
Directly employed a total of 6,410 people (FTE, including contractors) and supported an estimated 20,700 full-time jobs
Spent £554 million with suppliers based in Yorkshire and The Humber
Generated £1.3bn (£1,280 million) total GVA impact (including indirect and induced effects)
Directly employed 1 in every 250 employees in the private sector across the Yorkshire and The Humber, and 1 in every 8 in the IT and Communications sectors
Supported £1 in every £90 of GVA in Yorkshire and The Humber’s economy and 1 in every 100 employees working in the region’s private sector.
Across the UK in 2017/18, BT Group:
Directly employed 94,800 people (FTE) and supported an estimated total of 290,000 full-time jobs
Employees committed more than 37,000 volunteering days to worthy causes
Spent £510 million on research and development, making it one of the UK’s top investors in innovation
The full report is available at: www.bt.com/reports
ENDS
Notes to Editors
*Gross Value Added (GVA) measures the value of all goods and services produced in an economy. GVA combines wages and operating profits from companies and other organisations. Growing GVA can reflect improvements in workforce skills, productivity, R&D and innovation. The figures for BT show the value added directly through BT's services and additional value generated through BT's suppliers across the nations and regions.
1 PWC Total Tax Contribution of UK FTSE100 companies 2018. BT is:
5th highest contributor (amongst FTSE100 respondents) of UK taxes (borne and collected) – with the 4 slots above BT occupied by banks (HSBC, Lloyds, Barclays, RBS);
4th highest payer of UK wages and salaries;
2nd highest overall distributor of “value” into the UK, where value is the sum of taxes borne, taxes collected, wages and salaries paid, interest paid, and equity returns (which are available for reinvestment, dividends and pension deficit payments) ;
Highest capex investor.
